Stand at Attention, Corporal!

by Enigmus

Rating: mature
Tags: Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, Sex
Length: 10781

Corporal Swift Shade, one of the few bat ponies to get into the Royal Guard, went out to have a few drinks with his best friend, Sergeant Hardline. As the night progressed, it soon became clear what the sergeant really wanted out of their friendship.

(M/M shipping. What else is there to say? Gay pone smut is best smut.)
(Featured: 9/28/16 - 9/29/16)
(This story won two categories in a bat pony contest. Link! )

Corporal Swift Shade, one of the few bat ponies in the Royal Guard, is living the life he always wanted. To be something other than what his family expected of him. And if that meant being in the Royal Guard, then that worked just fine for him. He didn't really have too many friends among the guards, as bat pony discrimination was an ever-present problem. He was even outright hated by some.

However, Sergeant Hardline took a liking to the bat pony almost immediately. Shade has been serving with the sergeant for about six months now, and things are going wonderfully. They share jokes, they talk about whatever the hell they want, and just generally have a good time in each other's company. It would be safe to say that they were best friends.

One night, Hardline invites the corporal to a local bar. Things are going great! They joke, they talk, and have fun together. As always, really. But this time... things are a little different. Shade can't quite figure out what, though. That is, until Hardline invites the bat pony back to his quarters. Things become very clear from then on.

Published 2016-09-28 02:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2016-09-28 02:00:01 UTC

A Night Out

Author's Note

This idea has been floating around in my head for quite some time now. Honestly, I'm not sure why I haven't done it until now. Wanted to get it out of the way before I continue with other stuff.

Anyway, hope you enjoy!

A Night Out

The moon hung in the sky, staring down at the insignificant inhabitants of Equestria with its white light. It held a certain beauty that even the sun didn't posess. At least, that's how Swift Shade felt. He often found that staring up at the moon relaxed him if he was feeling anxious, angry, or sad. On nights where sleep wouldn't wrap him up in its sweet embrace, the moon was there to clear his head and tire him out. It was an all-purpose remedy, really. Then again, being a bat pony, it was a little stereotypical of him liking the moon as much as he did. His reason of liking the it was a little different than most, however.

At a young age, Shade had always been expected to be the stepping stool for his family to rise to greatness. His good grades and intellect dubbed him a prodigy by those around him. His big brother had even looked up at him. What kind of twisted reality was that? He had hated every moment of it all. He didn't want to have all of that responsibility placed upon his shoulders, he just wanted to go his own way in life, do whatever he wanted to do. And until a year ago, he had been too afraid to do so. But now here he was, a corporal in the Royal Guard. A bat pony in the Royal Guard.

Shade's father had hated his decision to become a guard, though it wasn't as if the guy ever really had any control over his life. His dad just sort of assumed that through all of his life. He had let it go on, let the illusion take hold. It had just been better to agree with the dictator and move on. But when he had turned eighteen, he had brought up the prospect of becoming apart of the Royal Guard. He had never seen a pony more furious than his father that night. It had honestly been a little frightening. They had argued for weeks, screaming at each other.

But in the end, Shade's dad had begrudgingly accepted that there was no changing his mind. Then the most frustrating thing ever had happened. The pony had the audacity to tell him that, if he had to become a guard, at least become a Lunar Guard under Luna. A bit stereotypical for a bat pony, but that was the reason. Bat ponies had to do bat pony stuff according to his father. He had been contemplating whether or not to go into the Royal Guard or the Lunar Guard for weeks before confronting his father. Out of spite, he had chosen the Royal Guard. Ironically enough, his father had unknowingly chosen for him. It had been a difficult road, but he had made it. A year ago, he had royally screwed with his dad's head. And nothing made him smile more than that thought.

Sighing, Shade turned around away from the window he had been looking out of to go towards his wardrobe. He had wanted to spend tonight alone in his room with his thoughts, but a letter from a good friend of his had ruined that. Well, not really ruined. Sergeant Valiant Hardline, or just Hardline as ponies called him, was an amazing friend of his. The best, actually. Though they'd only known each other for six months, they fit together like glue on paper. If it had been anyone else, Shade would have made up some excuse as to why he couldn't go. But this was Hardline. And a night with Hardline was a lot better than isolated contemplation of one's life.

For a minute, Shade wondered why in the hell he had even went to the wardrobe. He was just going to some shitty bar for a night of shameless drinking and public disturbance. It's not as if he had to dress up for anything. You only ever did that when you were going out to somewhere nice with someone special. Blushing a bit at that thought, he shook his head and closed the wardrobe, and went over to the front door to his quarters. He opened the door, stopping to look back at his room. He could always still make up some excuse to stay home. This was his last chance to do so. A mental image of Hardline's grinning face flickered into his mind. Smiling a bit, he walked out of his room and started down the long hallway.

Since he was a guard, he lived in the barracks in the west side of Canterlot, which was nice. It was farther away from some of the more snobbier and egotistical ponies. While they were still in abundance around here, they were found in the other parts of town. The paper-thin walls didn't keep out the sounds of intimacy that his neighbor seemed to partake in every other night, though. While he normally liked listening to moans and groans, as it slightly excited him, this pony was a screamer. When he had first moved in, he had heard the screaming and dashed to the room like the valiant guard he was. Knocking down a door, he had found two stallions, one moaning normally, and the other screaming as if he was being disembowled by a butter knife.

No one had known the two guards had been colt cuddlers, so they had begged Shade to keep quiet about it. He wasn't an asshole, he would never do something as mean as revealing to the world that they liked that kind of stuff. He had immediately told them that he was more than happy to keep their secret. The conversation hadn't been awkward because they had just gotten done having sex, it had been awkward because their tools hadn't retracted yet. So, he had been reduced to a stuttering mess while making that promise. What had happened next was something that still shocked him today. They had asked him if he wanted to join in. Chuckling, he shook his head a bit as he continued down the hallway.

Shade, after many failed attempts at speaking, managed to politely decline them. He had left after that and found it difficult to talk to them after that. They had pressed him, hoping to get him to be comfortable enough to be their friend. After a week or two, he had warmed up to the two, and they were now pretty good friends. Not as good as friends as Hardline was, though. No one could even compare to the sergeant.

Finally exiting the barracks, he made his way through the compound, not stopping to say hello to any of the guards. They didn't really do it either, as they had stuff to do as well. But a look a few nods was all it took for guards to say hello to one another. It wasn't as if they were being rude to each other. It was just how it normally worked around here. He was totally fine with it, as it meant that he didn't have to be distracted by needless conversation.

The bar Shade was going to was one of the few that held a place for lower tier ponies. Poor drunks, depressed loners, skanky mares (and stallions if you knew how to draw them out), and all manner of rare lower class Equestrians. It was one of the few places that wasn't ridiculously overpriced. You could actually pronounce the names of the beverages, too, which was nice. He didn't really understand the fancy life. It just seemed like it was monumentally stupid and a colossal waste of time. Straight and to the point. That's how Shade liked it.

Groaning a bit, he cleared his head of pointless thoughts. Whenever he thought about stuff too much, he sometimes stopped in his tracks without realizing it. A bit of a bad habit he was still trying to kick, and it wasn't going too well. Continuing on his walk to the bar, now in the open streets of Canterlot, he couldn't help but think about why Hardline wanted to spend so much time with him lately. Sure, they went out to drink a lot, but lately it seemed as if the sergeant wanted to spend every other day (if not every day) with the bat pony. Not that he was complaining. Just... curious.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It took a little longer to get to the bar than Shade would have liked, but he managed to get there without being too late. The building looked so out of place amongst the taste-refined establishments around it. It almost seemed like an infected pimple on a mare model's flawless skin. But it offered what the two guards wanted. A break away from the Canterlot norm was something to truly treasure, as it was rare. Nights like these were what made being in this hell hole bearable. Ponies like Hardline even more so.

Shade opened the door to the bar and walked in, observing the few ponies that were inside. There were only five of them inside, and that included the bartender, two sleazy-looking mares in the back, an obviously depressed pony that was trying to drink his sorrows away, and, of course, Hardline. Business was really slow tonight for some reason. This place was usually booming, as it was the best place to go on minimum wage. Just one of those nights.

He blushed a bit when he realized that he had stopped near the door to stare at the occupants of the bar. Again, his bad habit was making him look like a fool and a weirdo. He went over to Hardline and sat down next to the pony, coughing once to get the attention of the bartender. Hardline jolted in surprise, looking over to the bat pony, obviously unaware of his entrance. The bartender walked over and stopped in front of the dark pony.

The bartender looked Shade over with indifferent eyes, "What'll it be?"

Shade thought for a moment, then said, "Hmmm... I guess I'll have a glass of whiskey."

The bartender grunted in response and went to do just that. Shade had been going to this place almost exclusively for a long time now, and that pony had never once cracked a smile. Or even done much talking besides asking who wants what, or to tell the occasional public pisser to get the hell out. Yeah, that happened a lot more than one would think. This wasn't exactly an establishment where you went to expect a peaceful drink. It was either quiet or loud as all hell. You just go into this place expecting the latter of the two, as that was normally the case. Thankfully that wasn't today.

Shade's eyes shifted towards a grinning Hardline, offering a grin of his own. His friend had a very light grey coat, along with a darker grey mane and tail. The stallion's eyes were a dark green, and were easy to get lost in. They just stared for a while, neither pony saying anything. To an outside onlooker, it would seem as if they were doing some kind of strange flirting. No, this was something a lot more childish. It was a staring contest. It had become tradition that whoever lost the staring contest at the beginning of the night had to pay for the drinks for the rest of said night. It was a definite gamble, and one that made things a lot more interesting.

Hardline's eyes slowly closed after about two minutes of intense, painful staring, "Gah, fuck! You win this round. I'll be buying tonight then. I guess it's a good thing you buy cheap, shitty-tasting drinks. "

Shade chuckled a little and looked in front of him, seeing a glass of whiskey that had been put in front of him when he wasn't looking, "Look who's talking. You'd drink rubbing alcohol if someone told you it could get you drunk faster."

Hardline laughed at that, downing what was left of his pint of beer in one go, "You're right. I would if that shit wouldn't kill me. I've got a lot to live for, you know? A life in the Royal Guard, a... a, uh... hm, that's about it. Settling down sounds like it would suck. Kids make me want to cut my dick off... yeah, I think the Royal Guard is all it'll ever be."

Shade took a drink of his cheap whiskey, fighting, and succeeding, to keep his face straight, as the taste was absolutely dreadful, "Oh? Well, shit, color me surprised. I actually thought you wanted to settle down one day. I knew you hated kids and all, but this is news to me. Oh well, I know how you feel. There are too many crappy mares out there masquerading as saints. It's better to just get laid and get home."

Hardline scoffed a bit, a small smile forming on his lips, "And since when do you ever get laid? In six months, I've never seen you so much as look at a mare. You know, uh... if you're into, well, you know..." he nudged the bat pony's side, "... stallions, I wouldn't judge you."

Shade laughed at that, playfully punching the sergeant in the arm,"No, no, it's nothing to do with that. I just haven't found anyone worth a damn."

If anyone else had made that joke, he would probably be a blushing, stuttering mess right now. Mostly just because it reminded him of when he had walked in on those two stallions a while back. But this was Hardline, and it was easy to joke around with his superior officer.

Hardline asked, his eyes somewhat serious, "Wait, I thought you said that it's better to just get laid and get home? You don't look like you have high standards," he flashed a wicked grin at his joke, "so that means you really are looking for someone to settle down with. Admit it, you'd rather have something special than a one night stand."

Shade hesitantly nodded a bit, "Yeah, I guess you're right. I wouldn't mind settling down at some point. But as I said, I haven't found anyone worth a damn. I don't really like the idea of senseless sex. I'd rather, you know... get intimate. Do shit other than hump this, or lick that. The real stuff. The stuff that's worth it. The stuff that makes waking up fun. You know?"

Hardline was looking at his subordinate in a different way now, raising his pint, which had been filled by the bartender, up, "I may not want to settle down yet. But here's to you finding what you're lookin' for, buddy."

Shade smiled a bit at his friend's sincerity, then raised his noticeably smaller glass to tap against Hardline's, "Thanks, dude. I'd go into a speech about how you're an awesome friend, and you are, but I don't think I'm that drunk just yet. Heh, just put a few more in me, and I'll be singin' like a canary."

Hardline laughed heartily, patting Shade's back roughly, "Don't put it in my head, I might see that as a challenge."

Shade shook his head a bit, laughing along with his friend. Now that he thought about it, he never saw Hardline take any mares home either. They talked the talk, but they never even attempted to bring any home. He didn't know what was up with the sergeant, but his problem was a lot more embarassing. He found it to be difficult to be attracted towards mares of any kind. He could do it, it just required a lot of effort. He wanted to be straight, and he was, it just seemed difficult at times. Actually, all the time. Even as a teenager, he never could truly be attracted to a mare. He could get it up, and had done so with a few mares here and there, but he didn't really enjoy it that much. In fact, it sort of repulsed him. It felt good, but it definitely repulsed him. However... he often found himself looking at the same sex from time to time.

His eyes widened a bit as he realized what he was thinking. Something he had never openly thought about. He didn't even realize what he was doing until the thoughts were already there, so he was forced to deal with them. He had always avoided the subject, even with himself. What would his dad think? A financial disappointment, a shitty son, and a homosexual? There'd be no end to the guy's rage. His eyes widened even further when he was thinking about it again. He wanted to discard these thoughts, but they were coming back over and over. He'd always been able to supress them for the longest time, but now they just... came flooding out. No, he wasn't gay. It's just a case of being bi-curious, nothing more. That's normal for a straight pony with a dry spell of dating, right?

Hardline had been staring at Shade, looking very concerned, "Hey, are you alright? It looks like something's eating away at you. I know that look. What's on your mind?"

Should Shade tell his commanding officer about his revelation? Well, It wasn't really new and calling it a revelation was selling it a bit too high since he didn't know whether or not he was actually gay, and not just bi-curious. He'd known for a long time now about his interest in the same sex, he just didn't want to think about it. Or accept it, for that matter. It was getting to be too difficult to ignore lately. He didn't know what was bringing it on, but those thoughts had been plaguing him a lot. He'd only ever been taught to like mares, as being stallion-stuffer wasn't exactly something his family looked too fondly at. He was on thin ice as it is. If he came out, that'd be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Though, maybe he could tell his best friend... after all, isn't that what friends are for?

Hardline, still not getting an answer, patted Shade's back reassuringly, "Hey, whatever's bothering you, I'm totally here for you. Mushy as all hell, but it's true. Just to spit it at my face, let's see it."

Shade stared forward at the wide assortment of liquor that lay behind the bar in a glass case as he said, "Well... it's difficult to say. I don't exactly feel comfortably saying it in a public place. Honestly, I'm not sure about it yet. It's just something I've been thinking about for a long time, and haven't been able to deal with. Or accept that it exists, for that matter. I'll tell you later. For now, let's get drunk off our asses."

Hardline wasn't going to take that for an answer, knowing that Shade would use both time to make him forget, "Nope, this is obviously really bothering you. Whether you like it or not, we're going to talk about it. You'll just keep making excuses and eventually I'll forget about it like I see you want me to. I'd be a crappy friend if I didn't put away the urge to drink to attend to my best friend's problems. Come on, we're going to my place to talk about this. You wanted somwhere private, didn't you?"

Shade stared at his best friend and commanding officer for the longest time, unable to believe he had such a great friend, "No, no... i-it's okay. Really, I'm fine. We'll talk about it later, okay?"

Hardline chuckled a bit and put bits on the counter, paying for what little drinks they had bought, "Well, if it's going to be that way, I order you to come to my quarters and talk about it."

Shade, despite the subject that only he knew about, found himself smiling, "And if I decided to suddenly be insubordinate?"

Shade's eyes widened a bit as he felt a hoof cover his own, and his eyes darted down in fear to see that what he felt was indeed the truth. He looked back up at Hardline with confusion, wondering what his friend was playing at. This was just a way to cheer him up, it had to be.

Hardline said sincerely, "Then I'm asking you as a friend. Please, let me help."

As much as Shade wanted to at least talk about all of this, maybe get it all out of his head, right now wasn't a good time. They had just met up, there was no point in leaving right away. He appreciated the sergeant's desire to drop the night and help out, but he didn't want to be the reason they had to go home early. They had literally just met up, leaving just felt weird. A little strange how things worked out in less than six minutes.

Shade slipped his hoof away from Hardline's, not able to hide his blush, "A-alright. I'll tell you. But later, okay? We came here to have fun, so let's do that. I won't let you forget, don't worry. I promise. It's not even something I'm entirely sure about just yet anyway."

Hardline looked a little defeated at this point, but shrugged a bit and sat back down at the bar. At least that bought Shade some time before he actually needed to say anything. This wasn't a subject he wanted to talk about at all, really. But he had made a promise, so that was that. For now, however, it was time to get some drink in them and do stuff they may or may not regret in the morning. Unfortunately they couldn't get drink too much as they had patrol duty tomorrow. But a little wouldn't hurt.

Hardline called out to the bartender, who took his time in getting to the two guards, "Just a couple refills. Thanks."

The bartender grunted and took their empty containers in his magical hold. About a minute later, he came back and placed the filled drinks in front of the two. Without another word, he left to go attend to what few ponies were in the back.

Hardline grinned and brought his pint of beer up, "Alright, another toast!"

Shade picked up his glass of whiskey, a little confused, "A toast to what?"

Hardline chuckled and tapped the glass against Shade's, "A toast! Why, you ask? Hell if I know. Just go along with it, we're drinking because of it."

The bat pony giggled a bit and picked his glass up to his lips, letting the disgusting liquid slide down his throat. His stomach despised everything about him for this, but it did the trick in the end. Another night of drinking, another night with his best friend. What better way to spend his time? It sure was a lot better than laying in bed, staring up at the wall, and thinking about the past like he had originally wanted to do. The past couldn't help him at this point, only the future could. And he wasn't going to let his future be the same as his past. A year ago he had become a guard. A year ago, his life had turned around for the better.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About two hours had passed by, and the two had stopped drinking entirely into the first half of it. While getting drunk sounded nice, they still had a job to do. They had filled the rest of that time with playing darts, pool, and talking with whoever felt like talking. It had been a fun night despite the lack of fun everything they did held. It was mostly the fact that they did it together that made it fun. Still, it passed time by. But after those two hours, they had eventually decided to leave and go to the sergeant's quarters to finish up the night. The bar hadn't been showing any signs of getting any more lively, so there wasn't much of a point in staying. In fact, they had left the place about eight minutes ago and were now walking through the streets.

Hardline broke the silence of their walk, "Hey, do you know that neighbor of yours? The one off to the right of your room?"

Shade looked over to Hardline, "Yeah, what about him?"

Hardline looked left and right for a minute, grinning like a young colt just about to get his first kiss, "He was caught making out with a stallion four rooms down from his. The next day, everyone knew! I almost feel bad for 'em, but it wasn't their room they were even doing it in. It was some new recruit's room that was a couple days early in getting here from boot camp."

Shade sighed a little, shaking his head, "Yeah, I know. Not about that, but that those two are into each other. I live right next to one of 'em. He screams like he's being murdered every other damn night. And take a guess as to why he's screaming? I broke into his room on my first night because I thought something was wrong, and guess what I saw?"

Hardline's mouth hung open in surprise, "You're fucking with me. You knew this entire time and you didn't tell me?"

Shade chuckled a bit and shrugged, "Hey, they begged me not to say anything. I'm not an ass, I wasn't going to tell anyone. But now that it's all out, I figure me keeping that secret doesn't make too much sense."

Hardling chuckled heartily, patting the bat pony on the back, "Through all of the shit you have to put up with, and have put up with in the past, you manage to keep your morals. You're really something, you know that?"

Shade playfully pushed the sergeant away, laughing, "Keep that up and I might start blushing."

Hardline smiled a bit, but didn't say anything else. For whatever reason, things had become awkward for the rest of the walk back to the barracks. Shade hadn't a clue as to why, though. The feeling in the air felt different, but he couldn't quite put his hoof on what it was. Now that he thought about that, the sergeant had been acting somewhat strange. The guy had been a lot more open to emotional stuff, and even offered to help out. Hardline was a good pony, but he wasn't too good with his emotions. At least, that's what Shade had thought. There seemed to be an entirely different side to the sergeant that he hadn't seen before. It was kind of nice, really.

As Shade's thoughts drifted and he went off into his own world, also managing to continue walking at the same time, the walk seemed to go by a lot faster than he thought it would. They were already at the small gates of the barracks, which would lead them into the small training courtyard. He would normally just want to go to bed after a long night of laughter, but he had been invited to drink a bit more in the sergeant's quarters. While the walk to the barracks had been an easy one, the one to his commanding officer's room felt unbearably long.

After finally getting to their destination, Hardline slipped his room key into the lock and opened up the door. The room itself wasn't anything special. It had little to no decorations to separate it from the rest of the rooms. But it was still nice to be somewhere other than a shady bar or the darkened streets of Canterlot. Shade walked into the room and immediately went over to the couch to sit down. He was a little buzzed, but other than that, he was quite sober.

Hardline went over to the end table beside his bed and poured two glasses of scotch, then went over to sit down next to Shade. Accepting the glass, Shade looked down at the offending liquid. He had never been a fan of scotch, but he could suck it up for just one night. He took a drink and immediately grimaced at the horrible taste. Sighing a bit, he went back for more. It may taste downright terrible, but it did its job decently.

Hardline looked over to Shade for a moment, bringing his glass down from his lips, "So, about what happened at the bar. You don't normally let things get to you. And definitely not so damn early into the night. Now that we're here, do you want to tell me about it?"

Shade stopped moving completely for a moment, having completely forgotten about what had happened earlier. Sighing, he put the glass down onto the coffee table in front of them. He could just make up some lie, but Hardline deserved more than that. He didn't want to lie to his best friend, but he didn't want to say anything either. It was one or the other. And the sergeant wasn't going to like him not saying anything about it.

Shade looked over to Hardline, a drop of sweat trickling down his forehead, "Well, I've just been thinking a lot about something lately. Something that I'm not entirely sure about just yet. It could just be me thinking too much and coming to the wrong conclusions. It's just... the more I think about it, the more it seems that I've drawn the right conclusion. And it scares the hell out of me. Maybe it's no big deal... and it doesn't seem as if it should be. But it scares me anyway. And I don't know what to do."

Hardline frowned a bit, putting his own glass onto the coffee table, "Well, alright then. Just take your time, Shade. What conclusion have you come to? What's so damn frightening about it?"

Shade looked down at the floor, his heart beating out of his chest. He felt more nervous than he had felt in a very long time. Hardline wouldn't judge him or anything, he wasn't afraid of that. Honestly, he didn't know why he was afraid at all. It just seemed to be something he couldn't quite shake. He had come this far, and there was no turning back.

Shade looked away, as he didn't want to look at his friend whilst saying this, "I think... I think I might not be as interested in mares as I always thought I was. And by that, I think I might be into stallions. You're a really good friend of mine, and I know you wouldn't judge me. But I'm just so damn afraid. I really don't know why, though. It's, like... my heart is beating so fast that it feels like it's going to explode, and I'm actually sweating for Celestia's sake. Hell, I don't know if I'm really gay. It makes sense since I've never really been that into mares, and I've often looked at stallions in a way that would mean me being gay. I'd settle with bisexual if I could, but I just don't look at mares the way you and most stallions do."

Shade didn't look over at his friend for the longest time. In fact, no one said anything for a while. Maybe Hardline was shocked and didn't know what to say? Was he right in telling his friend about what he had been thinking about? He had many questions, and he was getting absolutely no answers for them. Just an unbearably crushing silence that made him feel bad for ever mentioning this.

Hardline simply said, "Look at me."

Shade was so shocked at these three random words he didn't expect to hear that he obliged and did as he was told. He shifted his gaze over to a smiling sergeant. Except this smile was not one of acceptance, but one that would entail the guy being relieved. Yes, there was relief pretty much everywhere on Hardline's face. Relief for what? That he was coming out? No, that wouldn't make sense.

Shade tilted his head a bit in confusion, "You seem... relieved. Unless I'm reading your face all wrong."

Hardline chuckled and shook his head, looking down at the glass of scotch on the table, "You know, I totally understand what you're going through. Not knowing if your feelings are the real deal or not. I am relieved, Shade, " the sergeant looked over to Shade, "can you take a guess as to why?"

Shade shrugged a bit, very confused by all of this, "Erm... no, I can't say that I can. I wasn't really expecting to get a reaction like this. Why would you be relieved that it's a strong possibility that I may like stallions exclusively?"

Hardline stared at the bat pony, "Shade, we've been friends for about six months. And in that time, we've managed to become the best of friends. I've never really known a pony quite like you. I'm glad to have met you and I'm glad you're serving under me. I've had the same feelings about stallions for a long time now. Four years, in fact. I've kept it hidden away from the world for the longest time."

Shade's cheeks flushed a crimson red, "O-oh, so you're gay? I had no idea. So why would that make you relieved? There are a few gay stallions in the guard, and you've even befriended some. Why are you relieved that I'm gay, too? Not that I'm completely sure about it just yet, though..."

Hardline smiled a bit, "Why do you think? I'm not gay, I'm bisexual. So why would I not be picking up mares since I'm very clearly into them? Because I was holding out the hope that you would at least come out to me. I was planning to tell you about me pretty soon anyway, see if I could make something of it."

Shade furrowed his brow in confusion, taking a drink of the terrible scotch, "Make something of it? What do you mean? Can't you just be a little straightforward with me here?"

Hardline sighed, his hooves fidgeting in his lap, "This is difficult for me, too, you know. We've been friends for a long time now. I didn't pick up anyone for months because I wanted to see what your answer would be. Shade, I don't want to just be your friend. I want to make something more out of what we already have. Do you know what I mean now?"

Shade stared in shock, his jaw dropping as he heard this, "W-wait, you mean you want to... with me? Hardline, what are you saying? The reason you haven't dated at all is because of me? Because you wanted something with me? Wow, I'm not sure what to say to that, to be completely honest. Completely took me by surprise."

Hardline took another drink, looking right at Shade, "I'd understand if you need time to think about this. It's not something you just decide right away, and as much as I want your answer now, it's not fair of me to expect it right away. Take all the time you need, okay? For now, let's just drink and talk for a little while."

Shade looked down at the hooves in his lap, which were busy fidgeting with one another. All he had ever done since he got to the Royal Guard was think. He never actually did anything but think when he was alone, or with pretty much everyone except Hardline. His commanding officer was the only one who could ever make him feel welcome. And now here he was. He came out as possibly gay, and his best friend had came out as bi. It all seemed like a dream come true, something that was too impossible to be reality. He looked up at Hardline, who in turn was already looking right back at him.

Without doing much thinking, Shade muttered, "Sure."

Hardline's natural stone-faced expression broke, and he was thrown into a state of stuttering nervousness, "W-what...? Sure? Like, you want to, uhm... you know... be with me? At least try it out, see if you like it? I mean, we'd have to keep it a secret. The higher-ups would love to get me out of command if they knew I was dating a bat pony, much less a male bat pony. They'd have a field day of getting us on fraternization, and you and I both know how ruthless our higher-ups can be. Except Celestia obviously. She, uh... uhm... I'm rambling. I don't ramble. Why am I rambling?"

Shade chuckled a brought a hoof up to Hardline's lips, effectively silencing his superior officer, "With all due respect, sir... shut up."

Hardline sort of scrunched up his face a bit, eyes crossing as they tried to focus on the hoof that was now pressed ever so slightly against his lips. Letting a grin slowly form on his muzzle, he took his subordinate's hoof in both of his own, then brought it to his chest.

Hardline scooted very close to Shade, who was at least twenty shades brighter in the face, their eyes meeting for a moment, "Who said you could order me around, corporal? I'm the top brass right now. You best step into line."

Shade got even closer to his friend, their rumps touching side-by-side, sharing warmth between the two of them, "Oh? And what's the punishment for disobeying a direct order? Because I don't feel like stepping into line. Are you going to make me?"

Breath brushed against each of their muzzles, their eyes getting slightly larger as their faces approached one another. Soon, everything else faded into obscurity, blurred by a lack of interest and focus. Right now, they were focused on another thing entirely. They knew what the implications of fraternization were, and gay fraternization was definitely frowned upon. But right now, they just didn't care. This was their moment, and no one was going to take it from them. Whatever happened in the future, be it soon or far away, it didn't matter right now.

Hardline gave a needy growl, and pushed his muzzle against Shade's, making the bat pony gasp in surprise. He knew that they were going to kiss, that much was painfully obvious, but the actual act of doing it was still a surprise. Tongue darted against tongue, spit shared in their moment of slobbery love. The stubble on his now lover's face tickled his own face, though it was a tickle he more than welcomed into their forbidden moment. Both of their hooves were exploring each others' bodies, feeling the taut muscles hardened by the daily grind of being a Royal Guard. It was warmer than any blanket Shade had ever used, their embrace. It was a different sort of warmth. This warmth was of the more intimate variety, and not only warmed his body, but seemingly his heart and soul as well. While others might see this as wrong, he saw it as right. Oh so right.

Hardline broke the kiss, eliciting a needy whimper from the bat pony, resorting to loving nuzzles to the neck. This, in turn, made the smaller, darker pony gasp and breath deeply, which could be interpreted as very small moans if one was imaginative enough. All the while, the sergeant's hooves explored Shade's body, going lower, lower... lower. Low enough to where the hooves were now riding the line between exploring his lower stomach and the even lower regions. He could feel the familiar pressure of excitement bulging down between his legs, crying out for attention. The sergeant grinned at this and lowered his own body down along Shade's until he was down at the stomach, planting sloppy, slobbery kisses here and there.

Shade's eyes rolled up into the back of his head as he felt something, most likely his lover's hooves, wrap around his half-chubbed member, which was just barely poking out of his sheath. The feeling was nothing short of divine, and he wanted this moment to last for as long as it could. The all-too-familiar motion of jacking began to slowly kick off at his crotch, making the bat pony let out very feminine-like moans, pre already beading at the tip of his quickly hardening erection. He looked down to see his best friend's muzzle already inches away from his dick, closing in slowly. The moment he felt a pair of wet lips wrap around his head, it was all he could do not to cry out with pleasured joy.

The bat pony cried out Hardline's name, which prompted a smirk to tug at the sergeant's mouth. He couldn't help but notice how small the whole thing was. At least compared to his own, that is. It was okay-sized in general, but compared to most of the other guards he had seen pop a boner in the showers, which was pretty rare, his new lover was almost adorably small. He didn't mind. That just meant he would have a better time at fitting it inside of him when that time came. He slowly began to descend upon the throbbing mass, feeling it pulsate within his mouth. He could feel the foreign feeling of pre spurting at the back of his tongue, which elicited a bit of gagging. It wasn't terrible, but this was the first cock he had ever sucked. So naturally, he would be a little unsure about taking small, clear loads here and there. But despite how weird it was, it was strangely hot, and a part of him loved this.

Before he knew it, Hardline was already down at the medial ring, though he was already reaching his limit. He could feel the throbbing head at the entrance to his throat, providing a few spurts of clear excitement here and there. There was still gagging here and there, but he had somewhat gotten used to the feeling. Just a bit longer, and he would be able to get more into his mouth. Deciding that this was far enough for now, he began to slowly ascend up along the black cock, seeing that his saliva was darkening the member even further. Not very much, but it was noticeable. To get his mind off of the slimy feeling that was now dominating his mouth, he focused on the bulging veins that scattered along the shaft. There weren't many, but they were there. Before he knew it, he was up at the head again, which was already starting to flare. He knew exactly what that meant. Giving a mischievous grin to his moaning friend, he pulled off, and gave the slit at the top a very slow lick, flicking upwards at the end and making saliva drop onto the bat pony's lower stomach.

On Shade's end, he was doing everything he could to keep it together. Coupled with the fact that he hadn't gotten off in at least a week, and that he was living out his long suppressed fantasy, he was already close to an orgasm. So it was natural for him to groan when Hardline pulled off of his dick, but not in pleasure this time. He was rightly disappointed.

"H-hardline...! Come on, I was so close!"

Hardline gave a hearty, yet somehow lewd, chuckle before sliding up along his friend's body until their faces met, which made the darker pony noticeably blush, "I was thinking of making you cum in a different sort of way. How about we lube you up, and get you ready for the next step? I don't have any lube, though, so we'll have to settle with this."

The sergeant dragged his tongue along the bat pony's cheek, leaving a trail of saliva as it went up, up, and up until it retracted back. It was clear what Hardline wanted, but Shade wasn't entirely sure that he wanted to go that far just yet. However, he didn't have it in him to deny his lover anything. He found it strangely hot to do whatever he was told without question. He couldn't muster any words, so he let out an adorably effeminate gasp, and nodded his head quickly. All the while, his cheeks were akin to that of little tomatoes, the top of his muzzle a slightly less red. His eyes were as wide as can be as he looked up at his friend's aroused expression.

Hardline let out a small chuckle, taking the cute reaction as a yes, "Well then, return the favor and suck me off, and then after that, I'll give your hole a good slobbering to loosen it up."

Shade watched as his commanding officer sat down on the other end of the couch, cock sticking straight upwards, throbbing in both need and desire. Doing as he was told, he crawled over to Hardline and took the shaft in both hooves. he couldn't help but notice how much bigger this dick was compared to his own. It was at least a couple inches longer, and thicker, too. Not too thick, but it was thick enough to make him feel intimidated. With shaky hooves, he began to pump the impossibly hard erection in front of him. Gulping nervously, he closed his eyes and leaned forward with an open mouth. The closer he got to that lewd warmth, the tighter his eyelids closed. His mind ceased to function went he felt something thick and slimy enter his mouth. He stopped and tried to control his now labored breathing. For that one moment, his mind was blank. However, in the moments after, his mind was abuzz with all sorts of thinking. He couldn't believe that he actually had a dick in his mouth. If his dad hated him before, he would definitely be hated if this ever became public knowledge.

Hardline stiffened up at this and began petting the stallion's mane, coaxing more action out of his friend, "It's okay... just go down. Suck me off. It gets easier, I promise. After all, I just got done sucking yours. I would know."

Shade opened his eyes up and began to go slowly go down, gagging a little bit as he tried to get used to the foreign taste of dick and pre. All the while, an almost intoxicating musk filled his nostrils, making his own erection throb in response. He went down only a little further, as he wanted to pace himself. Going back up to the thick head, he gave said head a quick, sliding lick up along the small dick slit. Once he was done paying attention to that area, he began going down once more, making sure to lick wherever he could reach with his tongue. His fangs made this a little difficult, as he had to make sure not to hurt his friend. However, he soon found that his fangs provided a sort of friction that drove Hardline into a fit of moans. The cock in his mouth fit almost perfectly between his fangs, almost as if it belonged there. As he slowly got used to the taste and the idea of sucking a stallion off, he managed to gather up the courage to go even further. Before he knew it, he was at the medial ring, the spot where Hardline had stopped. He eyed the thick ring of flesh, wondering if he could get that into his mouth. He was already struggling to fit what he already had, so a newbie like him might not be able to pull it off.

Deciding that this was too high of a mountain to climb just for lube, he began to bob his head slowly, never going past the medial ring. All the while, he watched his friend groan and pet his mane. It was such an odd sight to see a stallion in a fit of moaning because what he was doing. It would definitely take some getting used to, that's for sure. It wasn't bad type of odd by any stretch of the imagination, it was just... odd. Shrugging off those thoughts, he focused entirely on the task at hoof. Each time he felt the head jab against the entrance to his throat, he let out a little, wet-sounding gag. He controlled his breathing through his nose the best he could, but it really wasn't that easy. It wasn't too difficult either, but it sure gave him a challenge. As the minutes ticked by, he could feel the member in his mouth begin to throb much more than it had before, the head flaring, which in turn made him choke a bit. He knew exactly what was coming, and he knew that he couldn't let it end right here in his mouth. No, Hardline's load was going to be shooting somewhere else tonight. Pulling off completely with a lewd pop, and a gasp, he looked over to his friend, who was looking back at him with a pleading expression.

Hardline was impressed, "D-damn... where'd you learn to suck dick like that?"

Shade let out a giggle and slid atop his friend, pinning the large pony against the couch, "It was that good, huh? Well, maybe some other night I can blow you 'till you pop. For now, though, I think you know what needs to happen. I'm ready."

Hardline scoffed at this and shook his head before pushing Shade onto the other end of the couch, "You might be ready, but your ass isn't. Move your tail, we gotta lube you up. I've done this before with mares, don't worry. Dicks might be new territory, but ass isn't."

Shade blushed at this and moved his tail off to the side, sitting on it to keep it from getting in his commanding officer's way. He used both hooves to spread both cheeks wide, so much so that there was a slight stinging sensation. He leaned his head back against the couch, and began breathing in and out deeply to calm himself down. He kept his mind on the image of his lover's crotch in his face, cock in his mouth, to keep himself calm. He couldn't believe that he was going through with this. He had heard that it hurt to get it up the ass, though maybe if they were careful, it wouldn't hurt that much? Somewhere in that tangent of thought, he must have lost track of time. Because before he knew it, he felt something wet and thick being shoved up into his flank. Letting out a cry of surprise, he jerked backwards a bit away from the tongue, but it followed almost immediately. His body began to involuntarily squirm away, but a set of very strong hooves wrapped around his legs and kept him in place.

Shade let out a very low, deep, and lewd groan as pre shot out of shaft, decorating the top of Hardline's head. He could feel the tongue wriggling around inside of him, getting a little deeper as time went on. However, it stopped a little ways in, and stayed there to tease at his insides, eliciting more moans. He felt so delightfully helpless to Hardline, helpless to his friend's every whim. After a while, his friend pulled away from his rump, which drew a groan of disappointment from him.

Hardline chuckled and crawled on top of Shade, and picked the bat pony's rump up to gain easier access to it, "Don't worry, you won't be empty for long. So are you ready? I can't imagine this'll feel good at first. I'm not exactly small."

Shade looked up at his lover with eyes full of what could only be described as raw need, "Yeah... yeah, I'm ready. Just take it slow, okay? I don't want you to rip me apart my first time."

Hardline nodded and pulled back enough so his shaft could reach Shade's rump. He placed the head of it against the two cheeks and pushed forward, wriggling it around a bit to get past. Eventually, the head of his cock was resting against Shade's pucker, small drops of pre adding to the spit. As he began to prod against the tight backside, there was silence. There was no pain just head, it was just discomfort. It didn't really feel bad, and only slightly good, so Shade stayed quiet, waiting for the moment of pain. He knew it was coming, and so he hung on for dear life, his eyes closed tightly. Eventually, there was a stinging sensation around the rim of his pucker. The stinging sensation didn't really go away, but he got used to it in a hurry. It really wasn't too terrible of a pain.

Shade's eyes went wide. While he focused on how acceptable the pain was, he hadn't been ready for the next feeling. He felt the head of Hardline's cock slip inside of him rather quickly. He felt a sort of pressure in his insides, along with a very faint and foreign pleasure he couldn't quite describe. The pain was still there, but as it had been before, it was easy to deal with. He always had a great tolerance towards pain, so while this wasn't exactly comfortable, it wasn't exactly terrible either. He opened his eyes and looked up at Hardline, a small smile on his muzzle. They were making love. Gay love. It was a weird thought, and he still wasn't quite used to it, but he liked it. In fact, he more than liked it. He loved it. The only question was whether or not he would love Hardline after this. He felt like he loved his sergeant, but he had never fallen in love before, so he didn't really know if he did in that way. His thoughts were interrupted when Hardline managed to slide another inch inside of him, making him cry out.

The very faint, dull pleasure from the initial penetration was bumped up the moment he felt the head of his friend's cock slide against his quivering walls. Everything inside of him was on fire with pleasure. Any sort of movement, even a twitch, was enough to send him into a fit of moaning. Hardline was brushing up against something extremely sensitive. His guess was that his prostate was being played with. He looked up at his lover.

Hardline was looking down with a grin, slightly pushing in and out, focusing on the prostate. Eventually, however, he abandoned that area and began siding his length inside even further. It was a really tight fit, but with the spit and the pre, there wasn't a lot of resistance. Every once in a while, he got caught on a wall or two, but he managed to get past them fairly easily. After a while of very slow thrusting, he managed to get it inside all the way to the medial ring. With a firm push, he pushed past the meaty ring, eliciting a groan from the sergeant, and a cry of either pleasure or pain from Shade. Probably a little bit of both considering how thick his medial ring is.

Shade grasped his member with both hooves and desperately began pumping it, groaning and moaning the entire time as he was fucked, "O-oh, Hardline... go faster!"

He got what he wanted almost immediately. The sensations within his rump began nearly unbearable, his inner walls being pulled outwards, and then back inwards with quick thrusts. His entire ass was filled with a very intense tingling sensation, which mostly focused around his prostate. Whenever the thrusting slowed down for whatever reason, the tingling sensation turned into a very dull pleasure. But at this point, the thrusting wasn't that slow, and so he was thrown into a world of pleasure he never thought possible. The head of his cock flared up, shooting the occasional strand of pre across his body. All the while, he was moaning loudly, crying out Hardline's name here and there. With each thrust, his body was pushed upwards against the arm of the couch. The whole room was filled with the lewd sounds of stallions grunting and groaning, and wet sounds that went schlick and schlook.

As the seconds ticked by, both stallions were slowly driven to the edge. Somewhere during sex, Hardline had managed to get almost all of his cock inside with each thrust, though there was still a little resistance here and there. With all this stimulation to his prostate and his dick, Shade was the first to burst. His eyes rolled into the back of his head and he violently jerked away from his lover, held in place by the cock in his rump. Several strands of cum shot out of his shaft, arching high up into the air before splattering all across his stomach, chest, and face. With his mouth wide open, he get a good mouthful of his own jizz. But he didn't care. He had been thrown into a world of pleasure he had no idea even existed. His ass clamped down on Hardline during his orgasm, no doubt making it much tighter back there.

Hardline was close, but he wasn't quite finished with Shade. He continued to thrust despite how sensitive his member was at this point. Every thrust made him lurch forward, his stomach tightening as pleasure consumed his very being. He grunted with each push and pull, sweat trickling down his forehead. The room felt like it was a hundred degrees, but he was too deep into this to stop now. Eventually, his grunting turned into cries of unadulterated joy, his thrusts becoming very animalistic and rough. After about a minute of sweaty sex, he fell on top of Shade and quickened his thrusting up even more, causing them both to mingle their exclamations of pleasure. His body pushed up against Shade's, and he felt cum smear into his coat. But he was too far into this to care. With one final cry, he slammed home and shot many strands of cum deep inside of the corporal. He was buried at the hilt, his crotch grinding up against quivering rump.

After what felt like an eternity of mind-altering and world-shattering pleasure, they both collapsed nearly at the same time into a hot, sweaty mess of stallion. Neither of them said a word. Neither of them even wanted to say anything. Soon, both of their worlds went black, and they were both sent into the land of dreams. There they lay, Hardline still shoved deep inside of Shade, who was more than content to keep his hooves wrapped around the stallion on top of him. There was nowhere the bat pony would rather be. For the first time in a very long time, he felt like he had a home. It wasn't some small quarters or a bar where he could be himself with his best friend. It was his best friend. Being here with Hardline made him feel like he was at home. And wherever his friend went, he wanted to go as well. But for now, they simply slept in each others' embrace.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, Shade was aching all over. His upper back hurt because of him being bent while being shoved up against the arm of the couch, and his neck hurt because it was bent... because of the arm of the couch. Next time he had sex, it was going to be on the bed. Couches sucked for gay sex. He looked around until his eyes landed on Hardline, who was making some coffee in the small kitchen-like area. It wasn't so much a kitchen as it was a small portion of one room that slightly resembled one, and had some of the things in it you'd find in a kitchen. He tried to move, but was stopped by a sharp pain accompanied by a dull pain in his rump. He winced and grunted in surprise. When the pain went away, he giggled with glee and slowly got out of bed, careful not to hurt himself in the process. He walked over to the poor excuse of a kitchen, wrapping his arms around Hardline's neck, nuzzling said neck with love.

Shade said under his breath, a small smile on his face as his eyes were closed, "Mmmm... last night was great. So what's on the agenda for today, sergeant? Any exciting patrols or ceremonies we have to guard at?"

Hardline focused on making a couple sandwiches for the both of them, though he had a grin on his muzzle as he did so, "We'll worry about that later. For now, I want to talk to you about what we did, and about what our future will be like. Shade, I just want to make sure that we're... well... you know... dating. Are we dating? We never actually said it. I mean, I wouldn't mind it. In fact, I'd love to be with you. Question is, do you wanna?"

Shade pulled himself off of Hardline and got around in front of the sandwiches and his friend, a loving expression on his face, "Of course. For the first time in a long time, I feel like my life is heading somewhere. This job gave me a purpose to live. And now I have you. I wouldn't trade what we have for anything in the world. You make me feel like I can do anything. And wherever my life is heading, I can't imagine it without you. So I guess it's official. We're a couple of colt cuddlers. Doesn't sound so bad to me."

Hardline chuckled and leaned forward, pushing his lips against Shade's. They both enjoyed the taste of each other's mouths, their tongues sliding against one another in a battle for oral supremacy. The black pony ended up giggling into the the other stallion's mouth after a while, which prompted a giggle from the sergeant as well, which wasn't like him at all. Giggling wasn't a thing Hardline ever did. But it was kind of cute in its own little way. Pulling back, they stared into each other's eyes, sharing a moment of love between each other. They were friends. The best of friends. Lovers. But most of all they were coltfriends. It was a weird thing to think about, and it would take a bit of getting used to be, but there it is. Coltfriends. This sent Shade into a fit of delighted giggling, and he claimed his lover's lips for his own again.

Eventually, he pulled back a second time, but only a few inches, "You're easily the best thing that's ever happened to me, Hardline. And I think I'm falling in love with you. I can't explain exactly what it feels like... but you feel it, too, right?"

Hardline smiled and kissed Shade's right cheek before nodding and walking over to the bathroom door, pausing to look back at a confused bat pony, "Come on. Let's go feel it in the shower."

Letting out a snort that was supposed to be a laugh, Shade ran off into the bathroom with his sergeant. The door closed, the shower turned on, and the room became very steamy very quickly. It was nice to have someone to love. Love might not always last forever, but in the moment, it sure seems like it'll last longer than forever, if that makes any sense. Technically, it doesn't, but then again, love doesn't always make sense. But when it does, love becomes your whole being, and you want nothing other than to stay there, in that moment, for as long as possible. Of course, reality is always going to be just around that corner to kick you down. But with someone else there who is essentially a part of you, no matter how many times you're kicked to the curb, getting back up tends to be surprisingly easy. Easier than it used to be.

Shade had never had anyone in his life he could call his one true love before. But now that that someone was here, what he wanted to do with the rest of his life became suddenly clear where before, it hadn't been clear it all. Before, it had just been living one day at a time, dealing with whatever life threw at him when it was time to do so. But now, things were different. Things were better. And he wouldn't have it any other way.