Matters of the Heartby milesprower06ChaptersGuest SpeakerCulturesCuriosityHearts and HoovesHoof-in-ClawInterspecies, Part IInterspecies, Part IIThe Morning AfterEpilogue: MondayGuest Speaker"And so, with a death-defying leap from Spike the Brave and Glorious, and an accurate alicorn javelin throw from my beloved husband, the Crystal Heart narrowly evaded the clutches of King Sombra, and the Crystal Empire was restored after a millennium of being lost to the Frozen North." Princess Cadance's modern history lecture complete, the students gathered in the School of Friendship's lecture hall applauded by lightly tapping their hooves, claws, and talons on the floor and desks. Headmare Twilight Sparkle got up from her seat on the left side of the room and joined Cadance on stage. "I'd like to once again thank Princess Cadance for coming down for Modern Crystal Empire History 101. If anypony has any questions, she'd be happy to answer them. Otherwise, class dismissed! Enjoy your weekend!" Twilight announced. With that, the chatter in the lecture hall quickly rose as the few dozen students began to either file out of the exits towards the cafeteria, the student dorms, or headed into Ponyville, with some staying behind to talk to Cadance and Twilight. The Princess of Love indulged all the questions the students had about how she and the Elements of Harmony rescued Equestria's northernmost city from King Sombra. Once they had all been sated with the knowledge and answers they sought, the two alicorns also made their way out of the lecture hall towards Twilight's office. "Thanks again for coming down here to speak, especially when Hearts and Hooves Day is this weekend. I've been wanting to cover the Crystal Empire in Modern Equestrian History for weeks." Twilight told her sister-in-law as she sat down at her desk to finish up some last minute tasks and make sure Monday's lesson plans were all set to go. "I was happy to do it. I'm just glad you and Shining were able to fill me in on a lot of the details, because, well you know, I was rather out of it for a lot of it, especially towards the end." Cadance replied, chuckling. "So what are your plans for the weekend? Got anything in mind with Shining Armor and Flurry?" "Absolutely. I wouldn't have come down here without them. Shining and I were able to reserve a table for two at the Cafe Hay, I'm told their Hearts and Hooves menu is exquisite. Thanks for offering to babysit Flurry Heart for us." "Quite a small price to pay to get you guys down here for the lecture today, as well as give you two a night off. What can I say? Best aunt ever!" Sandbar had kept a safe distance as he trailed Headmare Twilight and Princess Cadance back to the main office. Their conversation became more distinct as he took a deep breath, and began trotting towards the open office door. Their conversation was interrupted as he announced his presence with a soft knock on the door, and their attention turned to see him in the doorway. "H-Hey there. Sorry to interrupt, Headmare Twilight, but I had a question for Princess Cadance." The apple-green earth pony stated. "No problem at all, come on in, Sandbar." Twilight replied, ushering him in, as Cadance turned to her student. "Well..." Sandbar began, taking a couple steps into the office. He couldn't hide the nervousness in his voice, much less maintain eye contact with Cadance. "As the Princess of Love, I was wondering if you had any advice on... Relationships..." He trailed off, shifting his weight between his legs. "That I would, Sandbar, but that's a very broad subject by itself. Could you be a little more specific?" Cadance asked, not wanting to seem too pressing, it was already quite obvious that the student was embarrassed to be bringing this subject up. "W-Well, at the beginning of your lecture, you said how love can mean a lot of things, of how the strongest, longest lasting relationships start with meaningful friendships." "Yes?" Cadance said, lightly urging him to continue. "I-I-I'm wondering... how can you tell? I mean... When and how can you tell that your friendship with somepony could go... deeper?" Sandbar asked. In a matter of moments, the pin dropped for Cadance. The way he was stuttering, shifting on his hooves, and nearly sweating was all it took for her to read him like a book. "Sandbar... do you have a crush?" Cadance asked sweetly. Blood and heat rushed rushed to the surface, and Sandbar's face turned the most delightful shade of red. Cadance let out a short, innocent giggle. "I understand the embarrassment, but it's absolutely nothing to be ashamed of," Cadance reassured him with a gentle touch on the shoulder, not wanting him to turn tail and run in humiliation. "Everypony gets crushes, and there are so many ways of acting on them, especially around this time of year." Sandbar managed to stop shivering, take a breath, and give Princess Cadance an honest smile. "But when it comes to matters of the heart, there aren't too many textbook answers, I'm afraid. Everypony is different." Cadance told him. "You've been a student here for several months now, Sandbar. Advice might be a little easier to give if we... Oh I don't know... knew who you've got a crush on?" Headmare Twilight asked. There was that beet red face again. "W-Well... It's complicated, i-in more ways than one." Sandbar stammered. "I'm sure Headmare Twilight is teasing you, Sandbar." Cadance said, once again giving him a bit of reassurance. "You certainly don't need to tell us if you're not comfortable with letting us know." She told him with a gentle smile. "But... She's got a point, Princess Cadance. If she knew who it was, some advice would probably be easier to give. They've been a student here too, for just as long as I have, so she's probably gotten to know them as well as she's gotten to know me over this past school year." Sandbar said, getting his breathing to calm down as best as he could, although the heat in his cheeks wasn't having as easy a time getting under control. "I'm all ears if you're willing to tell me, Sandbar. As the Princess of Friendship, I give you my word that I won't judge." Twilight told him confidently. Sandbar took another deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them to look directly at Princess Twilight, fighting back the last urge to turn and run. "It's... Gallus." Author's Note Well, this is probably the most times I've changed the cover of a new story before pushing it live. I wanted to go with a cropped version of a NSFW image, but according to the rules, that's forbidden and well, honestly, I've seen quite a few stories that break that rule. Regardless, I certainly hope you like this little opening. As always, I welcome feedback and theories about where you'd like or think this is going to go. Thanks for reading! Cultures"It's... Gallus." Sandbar had barely managed to say it above a whisper, and he was now desperately waiting for some kind of reaction from Headmare Twilight or Princess Cadance. The Princess of Love shot her sister-in-law an inquisitive glance, and she picked up on it immediately. "He's our griffon student enrolled from Griffonstone." Twilight told her. "I see." Cadance replied, walking up to Sandbar, who was nearly shivering again. "I can only assume that this is the first time you've come out?" She gently asked Sandbar, who swallowed the lump in his throat, and slowly nodded. Sandbar wasn't really sure what to expect next, but he figured it wasn't going to be a gentle hug from the guest speaker. "Then allow me to be the first to say congratulations. Do you feel any better?" Cadance asked, releasing the earth pony from her brief embrace and sat in front of him. "Yeah... Yeah, a little bit. Thanks, Princess." Sandbar replied, managing to smile up at her. "I can certainly see why you say it's complicated." Twilight commented. "I know Equestrian culture has become much more tolerant of same sex relationships in recent years, but I'm not sure whether or not the same can be said of Griffon culture." Sandbar nodded in agreement. "Honestly, Headmare Twilight, I'm not really worried about how Griffonstone feels about it, I'm... I'm worried about how he feels about it." "I'd say that's a step in the right direction." Cadance began. "Love is love, remember that. It's understandable that you're worried about what he'll think, but it's either take the leap, or do nothing." "You and Gallus have become very good friends over the school year." Twilight added. "If Gallus is as good a friend as you think he is, do you really think he'd turn his back if you tell him how you've grown to feel?" "Honestly, yes, Princess. That's exactly what I'm afraid of." Sandbar replied. "If I tell him how I feel, even if he doesn't disown me... If he doesn't feel the same way, that confession would always be there, hanging like a cloud over our friendship forever." Sandbar lamented. "Mm," Princess Cadance acknowledged his fears. "It's an understandable fear, Sandbar, but one that I think is worth overcoming. Most couples out there have had to take that risk at one point or another. I'm not saying you have to outright pour your heart out and leave absolutely no chance to save face. But you are going to need some kind of an icebreaker. Based on the time of year it is, might I suggest a box of chocolates?" Sandbar put a hoof to his chin in thought. A box of chocolates wouldn't be hard at all to find, especially this time of year, it wasn't absolutely positively the be-all end-all "I love you" message; candy was quite a common gift between friends, but it could certainly be enough to get the conversation going. "Yeah, yeah I'm pretty sure I have enough spare bits for that." Sandbar replied, referring to the monthly allowance each student was given outside of the room and meals the school provided. "Thanks for listening, Your Highnesses." He said, giving them a short bow. "Best of luck, Sandbar." Cadance answered, with Twilight also giving him an encouraging smile. His mind made up, Sandbar turned and headed for the front exit. It was early afternoon, and he had candy to go buy in Ponyville. "Well, well," Cadance commented as Twilight finished the last of her paperwork once Sandbar was out of sight. "I think your School of Friendship has started to produce students that could be more than friends." "Yeah, and I don't think I wrote up any guidelines for that..." Twilight mused, flipping through lesson plans for Monday. "Well, now might be the time for that." Cadance suggested. "Still, I wonder how Gallus will react. Rainbow may be more forward than most, but she's right; griffons aren't exactly the most social of creatures." "Well, no doubt your school has done some good." "No doubt. Just a couple months ago, Gallus pulled a prank right before the holiday break. He doesn't have any immediate family back home, so he didn't want to go home. After that came to light, the other five decided to stay with him over the break." Twilight recalled, gathering her shuffled papers on her desk and stacked them in the far corner before she started packing up her saddlebags to depart for the day. "Alright, I think that just about wraps things up—" Twilight was interrupted by another knock on her door, and looked up to see a cerulean griffon in the doorway. "Good afternoon, Gallus. What can I do for you?" She asked, indirectly letting Cadance know that this was the griffon in question. Gallus walked into the office, tail flicking nervously, as he approached the desk. "Well, I had a question for Princess Cadance that didn't really seem too related to her lecture, so I didn't wait around in the lecture hall." "Seems you're a popular Princess down here, maybe we should switch places." Twilight teased. "How can I help, Gallus?" Cadance said, after giving Twilight a smirk. "Well, you see... I... I think, maybe, that one of my friends might be... Attracted to me." Most stores and markets in Ponyville were holding Hearts and Hooves Day sales, or selling specialty items for the holiday that they normally didn't carry, so Sandbar certainly had his share of options to pick from. Now he just needed to select the right one. He was about to step into the out-the-door line to Sugarcube Corner, one of Ponyville's most popular confectioneries by far, when he noticed something in his peripheral vision; a similar shop across the square. The sign read: Gustav le Grand's Delightful Desserts. Sandbar remembered Gustav from one of Professor Pinkie's friendship lessons. The griffon baker had entered Canterlot's National Dessert Competition, and due to events that had happened on the way there, he had decided to combine his expertise with that of the other Ponyville entrants, and went on to collectively win the competition. Sugarcube Corner's offerings might be a tad cheaper, but maybe it would mean a little more if his gift came from patronizing a griffon-owned shop. He stepped inside, and took in the surroundings. It was noticeably smaller than Sugarcube's interior, and the decor was decidedly more posh. "Hello, and welcome to Delightful Desserts. Can I help you make a selection today?" The earth mare cashier greeted him. No doubt Gustav was away from the shop, most likely in his much busier bakery in Canterlot for the holiday weekend. Sandbar gave the mare cashier a smile, and approached the display case next to the register, and looked at the red, heart-shaped boxes of chocolates. Most were a variety of cream-filled, bite sized assorted candies. He remembered that over Hearth's Warming break, Gallus had mentioned that since coming to school in Ponyville, he had taken a liking to caramel-filled candies. All of the heart-shaped boxes were a variety of flavors. He looked at the price sticker on the front of the glass case and saw that a custom-filled box was an additional cost. Doing so would take nearly his entire month's worth of bits. "Yes, can I get a box of just caramel filled chocolates?" Sandbar asked. The cashier rung him up, and he set his bag of bits on the counter, and dug out three silver pieces, and five gold pieces; 35 bits, out of the 50 he had for the month. The transaction complete, the cashier grabbed an empty heart box and walked back to the chilling racks, carefully placing 40 pieces of caramel chocolates into glassine paper cups, and expertly arranged them into the box, putting the lid securely on, and quickly tied a red silk ribbon into a bow on top. "And here you are. Enjoy, and have a happy Hearts and Hooves Day!" Thanking the mare, Sandbar exited the shop with his purchase, and headed back towards the school, now wondering about the next, and probably hardest part; when to give these to Gallus? Author's Note Well well, quite an enthusiastic start here from all of you. This was added to over 280 bookshelves in the first couple days. Here's hoping I can meet your expectations. Thanks for reading! -Miles Curiosity"Well, you see... I... I think, maybe, that one of my friends might be... Attracted to me." Gallus said, having to nearly force the last part of that sentence out of his mouth, the twitching feathered tip of his tail betraying his nervousness. "Oh? What makes you think that?" Cadance asked the griffon. "Well, it's mainly small things, really. Like during class, or lectures, I'll glance and find them staring at me, or always sitting next to me at lunch. Things like that." "Well, depending on how it makes you feel, that may not be a bad problem to have on this holiday weekend." Cadance told him. "Y-Yeah. That's the thing, I'm not really sure if it is a problem, because I'm not sure exactly how I feel about it." Gallus replied, beginning to fidget with his talons. "Well, how good of a friend are they?" Cadance asked, eager for more information. "Pretty good, I'd say. He and I have shared the same dorm room since the beginning of the school year." The griffon answered. That was all the information Twilight needed; Sandbar was Gallus' assigned roommate when he decided to stay on campus and not go into town to his house. "Really? Because we were just talking t—" "We were just talking about how this situation might arise with some of the school's students, especially on this weekend. Headmare Twilight doesn't really have any prepared guidelines for it." Cadance said, having sneakily shot off a very brief numbing spell that disabled Twilight's vocal chords for all of a half-second, long enough for her to take the hint while she finished the sentence. Luckily, Gallus hadn't noticed the single mote of light that had glowed momentarily on the tip of Cadance's horn. "So... What do I do? I've never really thought about if I, well, um, 'go that way'." Gallus inquired, his cheeks beginning to tint as the tip of his tail continued to have a mind of its own. "Well, I'd honestly take whatever time you need to come to a conclusion of what ways you do 'go'. Whether or not this attraction you think your friend has is genuine, you need to know that you're comfortable with it. I will say that Equestrian culture has become considerably more open-minded in recent times, if you're worried about that at all." Cadance told him. "N-No, not really. Honestly, it's my society I'm puzzled about." "Well, if you'd like my advice, I'd worry about yourself and your friend, first and foremost. If you think it's a road you'd like to go down, then you cross those later bridges when you come to them. In the meantime, if you intend on getting swept up in this Equestrian holiday weekend, might I suggest some candy?" Cadance asked. "Well, it couldn't hurt, I suppose. Thanks, Princess!" Gallus replied, giving a quick bow and making his way out of the office. "Now I know you weren't about to just spoil that oh-so adorable moment when they potentially discover their feelings for each other." Cadance chastised, turning and giving her sister-in-law a disapproving but teasing look. "Sorry, I just thought it would make things easier." Twilight apologized as she continued to pack up her saddlebags. "'Easy' should have nothing to do with it. If we go and tell them what each of them secretly feels, then we rob them of that sense of discovery, and the opportunity for them to make a stronger foundation if they pursue something more long-term. Even matters of love have the difference between knowledge and wisdom, Twilight. Let them figure it out themselves." "Right. Noted." Twilight began, strapping her saddlebags closed and setting them on her desk as she made final preparations to leave. "Clearly, either Sandbar hasn't been as subtle as he thought he has been, or Gallus is really good on picking up on such things." "More than likely, a mixture of both. So I believe you and I are due for tea?" Cadance asked as Twilight strapped on her saddlebags. "You read my mind." Sandbar slowly walked down the School of Friendship's dormitory hallway, down to the last door on the left, the room he had shared with Gallus for the past five-and-a-half months. The sun was just beginning to set; after putting the box of chocolates securely in his saddlebags, he went and got a cheap four bit meal for dinner, and now his satchel was very nearly ready for moths. He was going to have to rely on the school's cafeteria food for the rest of the month or start heading across town for meals at home more often. It wasn't that the cafeteria had earned a bad rep, he was usually pretty good at making his monthly allowance last the whole month. Thanks to the gift in his bags, that wouldn't be the case for the second half of February. Hopefully it would be worth it. As he approached his door, his heart began to beat harder against his chest. He hadn't quite figured out the words he wanted to say as he offered the chocolates to Gallus. Taking a few deep breaths in front of the door as he placed a hoof on the door handle didn't make the words come, so he stopped delaying, and turned the knob, pushing the door open. His dorm room was empty. The student dorms were exactly what one would expect from a headmare as organized and neat as Twilight. The room was effectively split perfectly in half; a single window on the far wall, with a twin bed, night stand, closet, and desk were against the walls on each side, with both occupants sharing a bathroom and shower right inside the front door. Sandbar's bed was on the right side, half-decently made this morning before class. Gallus' was less so, sheets and blanket had been haphazardly kicked to the end of the bed, and were half hanging off the edge, with one corner of the blanket reaching the floor. He frequently overslept and didn't give himself time to tidy up before class. Sandbar tapped the door with his back left hoof to close it, and walked over to his bed, and sat down, turning on the lamp on his nightstand as dusk continued to approach. He unfastened his saddlebags and gently set them on the floor, before pulling out the box of chocolates, and held it to his chest, having to mentally check himself to stop from crushing the box in his hooves, which were nearly shivering. In doing so, he liked to think that his heart had transferred into the box. As he continued to mentally fumble with his words, he nearly jumped out of his seated position on the bed when he heard the doorknob turn, and the door opened to reveal Gallus, who most likely saw the stallion nearly juggle the heart-shaped box in his hooves to avoid dropping it on the floor. Once he had it securely in his grasp again, his head whipped to the left to look at Gallus, and gave him a half-panicked smile. "G-Gallus! Hi!" Sandbar said. "Heh, sorry if I startled you, Sandbar." Gallus said as he closed the door. "N-No, not at all. I've just been thinking." The earth pony replied, glancing back down at the chocolates he held in his hooves. "Oh yeah? About what?" Gallus asked as he walked into the room proper and sat across from him on his own bed, taking off his own bags. Sandbar swallowed the lump in his throat, and tore his eyes away from the box, and looked up at Gallus. "A-About you." He said, feeling like he had to reach down into his throat and claw the words out. Shivering, he got up to his hooves, and took a couple steps towards Gallus sitting on his bed, and shakily offered him the box. "I-I-I like you, Gallus. A lot. I'm sorry if it seems like this is coming out nowhere. I know it's a little early, but... Happy Hearts and Hooves Day." He could hear the individual chocolates vibrate as he held out the box to the griffon sitting in front of him. After what seemed like forever, Gallus took the box without a word, and held it gently in his talons, looking down at it. The butterflies in his stomach seemed to multiply and get more restless as time seemed to slow as he waited for some kind of reaction, standing there, visibly shaking. Finally, Gallus looked him in the eyes, and smirked, setting the chocolates beside him on his messily kept bed, before reaching down into his bags, and coming up with a square box of candy, straight from Sugarcube Corner. "I see I wasn't the only one taking advantage of the Princess of Love being down here for a guest lecture." Gallus said, holding out his own gift. "O-oh. W... Wow. S-so you feel the same way?" Sandbar stuttered, accepting the box of assorted chocolate-covered nuts and berries. "Honestly, for the longest time, I wasn't sure what to feel. The professors' lessons don't really tell you about what happens when a friendship goes to, well, this level. I mean, I don't know how much you know about where I come from, but griffons as a whole aren't exactly the nicest of creatures. But seeing how you've been looking at me and spending time with me these last few months..." "Oh, so I wasn't as subtle as I thought..." Sandbar said, blushing. "I didn't really pay much attention to how I felt about it because I was worrying so much about how Griffonstone would feel about it. Then when I was standing in line to buy that candy, it just clicked; why am I so worried? It's no secret that my hometown is a dump, and it's only as good as it is because it's just across the sea from Equestria. It gets even worse the farther east you go into the griffon lands. Creatures who would step over each other if it meant getting just one more ounce of gold; why was I caring about what they think? So in the few hours I've been focusing on my own feelings about it... Nope, still haven't sorted through them. I mean, I guess right off the bat, I'm shocked, flattered, but more than anything... Curious." Gallus admitted. "Curious?" "Yeah. I'm a griffon who has just started to grasp the basic concepts of friendship these past few months. What... What do you, like that much about me?" Gallus asked, his tail twitching, betraying his nervousness again. "Well," Sandbar began, risking taking a seat next to Gallus on his bed, setting the box of candy down next to him. "I know you act all nonchalant at school, like you hate homework, how you pretend to not pay attention in class, but Ocellus is the only one with better grades than you. You're smart, you're funny, and... You're a bit on the cute side too." Sandbar said, cheeks getting hotter. "How dare you," Gallus said in the best mock-angry tone he could muster up, before the pair broke into a chuckling fit. "As for you," the griffon continued. "You were the first to come up and introduce yourself, and you weren't exactly deterred by my poor first impression. You were the first one to suggest we all hide out at the Castle of the Two Sisters so we could all stick together, not to mention you made the cupcake runs. You're kind, you're generous, and while you may not be the most subtle, you're always forthcoming when you need to be." Gallus looked over to the heart shaped box, untied the bow, lifted the lid off, and took one of the chocolate candies and popped it into his mouth, the caramel oozed out onto his tongue. "And you always seem to remember the little things your friends say about themselves, like favorite treat." Gallus said, his mouth half-full of chocolate-y, caramel-y goodness. Sandbar likewise opened his box and tried a chocolate covered strawberry. "Well, I'm so relieved to have gotten that off my chest, not to mention how thrilled I am that you feel the same way." The earth pony said after swallowing his bite and returned the lid to the box. "Now that I guess we can call ourselves... Boyfriends, or coltfriends, or, you know, whatever," Gallus started, his heart skipping a beat at those words. "I guess I'm just wondering... well, how a pony and griffon would... Um, get closer. You know, signs of affection and all that." "Yeah, I uh, I can't imagine that you griffons do a lot of kissing, with those beaks of yours." "Well, we do have one thing in common." Gallus started, as he leaned over and started to gently rub his beak on the side of Sandbar's neck. "Nuzzling." Sandbar shuddered with pleasure as Gallus drew the side of his beak up to his ear and ran it along the edge. "It usually leads to preening." The griffon finished. "Preening," Sandbar repeated, drawing in enough breath to speak. "Yeah, that I'm a little familiar with, pegasi do that to keep their feathers organized..." "Yep. You don't have any feathers, but..." Gallus paused as he started to sink the first few centimeters of his beak into a part of Sandbar's mane behind his ear. "Your mane is so messy, so I could keep myself busy for hours." Sandbar chuckled as Gallus ran strands of his mane through the tips of the two halves of his beak. It was a rather inefficient comb, but it felt... So good, so personal. "I'll be honest. I don't know how you ponies stimulate anything with those hooves of yours." Gallus said, continuing to work behind the pony's ear. "Well," Sandbar began, pulling his head away just far enough to look Gallus in the eyes, placing his front hooves on the griffon's chest. "Would you like me to show you?" Sandbar slowly moved his hooves down Gallus' chest, down to his belly, and stopped just above his sheathed griffonhood, which was now just starting to poke out. "My next question was just about to be, how fast you ponies usually move, how quickly you... Get that close to each other..." Gallus said, tail twitching nervously again. "It depends on the pony, or creature. Am... Am I going too fast?" Sandbar asked nervously, removing his hooves from Gallus' belly. "I... I'm honestly not sure at this point. I just don't want either of us to regret anything by moving too fast, even if we both think it's fine. Let's sleep on it, spend Hearts and Hooves Day together tomorrow, and then, if we both still want to get that close... Then yeah, we can try to get that close." Gallus offered. Sandbar gave him a smile. "Deal." He said, leaning over and gave him a quick kiss on the curve of his beak. "Sweet dreams." Gallus smiled again, and likewise, leaned over, pressed the top of his beak to Sandbar's snout, and gave it a short lick as he pulled away. "You too, handsome." He replied as Sandbar got up and took his box of candy over to his nightstand before climbing into bed. Gallus popped another two chocolate caramels into his mouth before doing the same. As Sandbar shut off the light and laid his head on the pillow, there was no shortage of lewd fantasies playing through his mind, as had been the case for weeks now. As much as he was looking forward to tomorrow, there was a small pang of regret at the possibility that he may have crossed a line with his new boyfriend just a few moments ago. Something had subtly changed in his voice when his hooves got that low, and the tip of his tail had always betrayed when he felt nervous or anxious. Sandbar did his best to shove it to the back of his mind. It had worked out so far. Princess Cadance was right; he had taken the risk, made the leap, and now, he had a very special somegriffon in the bed next to his. Tomorrow was a new day. Author's Note Wow. It's been eleven months since I wrote a chapter that long. Hope you're all enjoying it so far. I'd love to hear what you all think, and what you hope happens in the future! Thanks for reading! -Miles Hearts and HoovesSince the formation of the town's own E.U.P., Princess Twilight's castle on the north end of town always had some kind of activity. Even if a royal event didn't go into the wee hours of the morning or wasn't being held at all, the corridors were kept watch over by at least a half dozen guards. Down in the barracks, the first shift was preparing for their day by 5:00 AM. By 6:00 the night watch was formally relieved, and by 7:00, Princess Twilight was usually up and starting her day. In the kitchen, Chef Grubber's day began at 5:00. By 5:45, he and his two cooks had a breakfast buffet out in the dining hall for the arriving morning shift, as well as the departing night shift. An hour later, he had fresh tea service and bagels and cream cheese ready on a platter; Princess Twilight's and Guidance Counselor Starlight Glimmer's usual preferred start to the day. Holidays were usually a bit more robust. For Hearts and Hooves Day weekend, Princess Twilight was hosting three personal guests from the Crystal Empire, as well as a "Couple's Breakfast" for any in town who wished to attend. To adequately prepare, Grubber's staff had temporarily quadrupled for the morning with a catering service, and dining had moved from the dining room to the reception hall, where most of the guests would be. But the Princess insisted on having her personal guests and E.U.P. served in the dining room away from the hustle and bustle. So while the catering staff handled the first part of the event, Grubber's cooks handled the buffet for the E.U.P., while the hedgehog put together the regular tea and bagel platter, and everything was hot and ready when Princess Twilight Sparkle and Princess Cadance, came into the dining room. A high chair was brought out for when Flurry and Shining Armor got caught up, and for now the two princesses took their seats as the two platters were set on the table in front of them. With that done, Grubber turned his attention to the guests in the reception hall. "So, Twilight. I've been thinking about yesterday's, ah, situation at your school." Cadance said as she dropped a sugar cube into her teacup and stirred it in. "Hm? Oh, you mean with Sandbar and Gallus. Yeah, I wonder how well that went." Twilight asked, as she stirred in her own sugar and milk. "Oh, it went well. I have a sense about these sort of things, so no worries." Cadance said, taking her first drink. "So what about it were you thinking about?" Twilight asked as she started to take a drink. "I was thinking about perhaps providing them with some privacy here at the castle if they want to get as close as couples usually do on Hearts and Hooves night." Twilight was mid-drink with her teacup at her lips, so when the tea came shooting out of her mouth and nostrils, it merely traveled down to the bottom of the tipped cup, and up the other end, effectively spraying the Princess of Friendship with lukewarm sugary tea and milk. Cadance miraculously managed to keep her reaction down to mere giggles as Twilight coughed and righted her teacup as she wiped her face. "Cadance!" Twilight whispered, sniffling the remnants of her tea out of her nose. "That is a school, not an escort service!" "Exactly," Cadance replied calmly, as if the suggestion had been completely normal. "So if and when they decide to try and explore with each other and get to know each other in the way that creatures their age usually do, wouldn't it be nice for them to have an option that's away from your other students?" Twilight couldn't bring herself to close her mouth. How her sister-in-law always talked about these sort of things so... so casually. "No worries, Twilight. I know that would be quite awkward as the school's headmare, so just give the word, and you can leave it to me." Regardless of the holiday weekend, the School of Friendship still retained a cafeteria staff to feed the students who didn't want or couldn't afford to eat out in Ponyville all weekend long. Instead of just getting ready on his own like most mornings, Sandbar went over to Gallus and gently nuzzled him awake. "Happy Hearts and Hooves, cutie." He greeted. "Mmmph mmphmms mm mmmmphs." Was the reply he got through Gallus' pillow. The griffon raised his head up and saw that it was indeed 9:00 AM. "Where does the time go...?" He groaned, nearly rolling out of bed as Sandbar stepped back to give him room to get up. "Come on, gotta hurry if we want to grab breakfast." The earth pony advised him. The thought of a steaming hot breakfast did put some pep in Gallus' step, and after Sandbar got cleaned up in the bathroom, he came out to the unexpected sight of Gallus doing his best to make his bed. "Heh, am I rubbing off on you already?" Sandbar teased. "Yeah, kinda. Thought it'd be nice if the whole dorm looks presentable." With that out of the way, Gallus did some quick cleaning of himself in the bathroom, then the two of them were off. When they arrived at the cafeteria, the staff had set up a nice breakfast buffet for those who weren't spending the weekend abroad. The pair got in at the end of the line of about 20 other ponies. When they had their trays of muffins, apple, and orange juice, they looked around at where to sit, not spotting their other four friends anywhere in the room yet. "Over there look good?" Gallus asked, pointing to a small open table for two towards the center of the concourse. The two of them took their seats, and started into their muffins, smiling at each other. "So," Gallus began, crumbs of muffin falling out of his mouth. "What would you like to do today?" "Well, honestly, most of my thoughts have been gravitating towards tonight." Sandbar began with a tint in his cheeks. "But it doesn't really matter what we do, as long as it's with you, that's good enough for me." "Well, I'm sure we can find something to keep ourselves busy." Gallus replied. As they made their way through their breakfast, they finally saw Smolder, Silverstream, Yona, and Ocellus join the buffet line. But they lost track of them as a mailpony came up and dug out a letter from his bag. "Sandbar and Gallus?" He asked, reading the writing on the envelope then looking at the two of them. "That's us." Gallus said, and the mailpony set the envelope on the table between their two trays. "Royal delivery. Happy Hearts and Hooves day!" He said before continuing his rounds, delivering letters to students from beyond Ponyville as they got treats and letters from home. Sandbar and Gallus looked down at the envelope. It was plain white, with the wax stamp seal in the shape of the crystal heart. Gallus took the envelope, took the knife next to his plate to open it, and pulled out the letter and unfolded it, laying it on the table so both of them could read it. Dear Sandbar and Gallus, Happy Hearts and Hooves Day! I certainly hope both of you have gotten a great start to your day, and that you both have fun together in whatever you have planned. In case you had anything in mind for tonight that called for a little bit more privacy than you get in your dorms, then I'd like to invite you to the East Wing Guest Suite in the castle tonight. If that sounds like something you two would like, please see Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist at the front steps anytime after 7:00 PM, and she'll show you in. Sincerely, Princess Cadance The breakfast buffet had a sample of things for all the creatures attending the School of Friendship. Yona took a bowl of hot minestrone soup with a sprinkling of fresh grass, Smolder helped herself to pancakes with gems baked in, and Silverstream and Ocellus each took a fruit cocktail. "So what do we all want to do today?" Ocellus asked as they sat down at one of the longer tables that were available. "Not sure. I'm actually wondering what those two are up to." Smolder said, pointing a claw across the room to the griffon and pony sitting together, looking like they were reading a letter of some kind. "When have those two ever been the first down here for breakfast? Usually they're the last and they have to take whatever's left on the carts." Ocellus commented, always being the most punctual of the six of them. "Oh, Yona knows! Princess Cadance said that today Hearts and Hooves Day! Holiday of love! Maybe Gallus and Sandbar find feelings for each other! Hearts and Hooves miracle!" The young yak said excitedly. "Well... Yeah, actually that makes sense." Silverstream agreed. "Yeah. I'm sure we've all noticed how much Sandbar has been staring at Gallus these last few weeks." Smolder added. "Huh? So staring means love? What about staring contests? Are those dates now?" Yona asked. "No no," Ocellus told her. "Each species has their own culture, and their own way of courting a mate. Courting means ways of letting someone else know you're interested. Some have scents, some of dances, others have sophisticated rituals. But interspecies, now that's not as common." "Ah yes, yaks have stomping rituals. Yak brings best wood to other yak to stomp! If the yak stomps on it, yak accept courtship!" Laughs were had around the table at Yona's short culture lesson. The four friends shared their own culture's method of courting over breakfast, and when they were done, decided to visit Fluttershy's animal sanctuary. "Hey, Silverstream!" Gallus called out to the hippogriff, as she was the last out of the cafeteria to meet her friends outside before heading south through town. "Oh hey Gallus. We're going to visit Fluttershy's sanctuary. You two want to tag along?" She asked, motioning to Sandbar, who was currently taking the pair of trays up to the dish station. "No, we're doing our own thing today. I was actually wondering if I could ask you a favor. A... A really big favor." Gallus asked, getting a little nervous. "Anything for a friend, Gallus. What can I do for you?" Silverstream asked. "Well... your necklace is what allows you to transform, right? C-Could I... borrow that tonight?" Author's Note Another one down! Thanks for all the feedback, fillies and colts. This has been very fun to write so far. Thanks for reading! Hoof-in-ClawStarlight Glimmer found herself completely enthralled by 'Hearts, Hooves, and History: The Life of Princess Amore' as she walked down the west wing of the castle after a very hearty lunch with Trixie. So enthralled that she didn't notice an equally distracted Twilight as she rounded the corner to the foyer, and the two collided and fell back on their haunches as their books fell to the floor. "Oof. Oh, sorry, Twilight. I haven't been able to put this book down since noon." Starlight apologized as she helped her former mentor up off the ground. "No no, it's my fault. It's been a little hectic around here, and I'm barely keeping up." Twilight replied. Now that she mentioned it, Twilight did look just a little bit frazzled, and then Starlight noticed the Princess' book of choice. "Should I even ask why you're reading 'A Study of Griffon Mating Rituals'?" Starlight asked, catching the cover. "Um, it was one of the only ones in the library that I hadn't read yet." Twilight hurriedly said, shuffling past her guidance counselor. "Twilight, you seem stressed. Is there anything I can do to help?" Starlight asked sincerely. "No, I don't think... Wait, yes! Yes there is, I'm glad I ran into you, Starlight. You know the east wing guest suite?" Twilight asked, turning back to Starlight. Her student immediately nodded. "Ground floor, third door on the left. Full size bed, two dres-" "Soundproof it, please." Twilight interrupted, cheeks flaring red. "I'm sorry?" "Yes. Twenty-four hour enchantment, if you can. Thank you!" Twilight said. With that, she whipped around and headed off to her private study without another word. "Well... Alright then." Starlight said, shrugging, and trotted off to the east wing while preparing a soundproofing spell, unable to help thinking that perhaps this was the room that Shining Armor and Cadance would be staying in tonight. For Silverstream, Yona, Smolder, and Ocellus, it had been a fun-filled day of activities with each other. Gallus and Sandbar had tagged along periodically, but most of the time, they were off doing their own activities, most likely meant for couples instead of larger groups. The four of them had eaten dinner back at the school cafeteria, then it was decided they'd get milkshakes at Sugarcube Corner for desert as the sun began to go down. Silverstream said she was going to hang back a few moments and meet them there in a few moments. "Psst." She called to Gallus as he exited his dorm room on his way out to the front. Gallus came up to her as she removed her necklace, the jewel of which was a shard from the Pearl of Transformation. She gathered it up in her talon, and handed it over to the griffon. "Please be careful with it." She told him as he carefully slid it into a side pocket of his saddlebags. "You have my word. So... Um, you know, how does it work?" Gallus asked. Silverstream smiled at him. "It's easy. Just put it on, think of what you want to change into, and focus on it. Don't worry, it won't do anything unless you absolutely want it to." The hippogriff assured him. "Alright, if you say so." Gallus replied, seemingly satisfied. "Listen, whatever you two are planning, just be careful." She told her friend. "Don't worry. We will." Gallus replied. With that, the griffon and hippogriff went their separate ways; upon exiting the school, she took off into the sky towards downtown Ponyville, and he walked across the bridge to where Sandbar was waiting, a few dozen feet from the stairs to the castle's front door. "Hey there. So are you ready?" Sandbar asked him. Gallus nodded silently. Aside from the time that they had met back up with their friends, the two of them had spent the entire day together. After breakfast, they had gone over to Sweet Apple Acres for the hayrides that the Apple family was offering all day as part of the festivities. They decided to pool their remaining bits and have a romantic dinner for two at one of the fancier restaurants in town, and now that the sun had gone down, activities around town were beginning to wind down, save for select late night destinations. But for most couples celebrating Hearts and Hooves Day, the next few hours would be the icing on the cake, the perfect ending to a day celebrating each other. For the earth pony and griffon walking up to the castle steps, it was some fairly nerve-racking icing. They were already great friends, but they had a feeling that no matter how long any couple knew each other, this was a simply massive step. This wouldn't be just a celebration of their feelings for each other, it would be the first proclamation of them. Sandbar figured it would be a lot like dancing for the first time; there would be missteps and stumbles, but that's how you learned. The duo walked up to the armor-clad orchid unicorn standing on the right side of the staircase. Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist was a somewhat common sight around Ponyville, and even if she sounded and acted friendly, there was a somewhat intimidating aura about her, no doubt that was advantageous if you were an E.U.P. guard. "Major Fizzlepop? Princess Cadance said we should see you about the east guest suite?" Sandbar asked, standing next to Gallus. "Yes, she did say some students would be showing up asking about that. Right this way, please." The unicorn responded, promptly doing an about face, and walked up the stairs, leading the pair inside. Ponies had been coming and going all day, but now things had settled down, and the castle foyer was empty save for another guard making their rounds. The trip made a right before coming to the stairs, and veered off to the ground floor east wing. They passed two doors, and Fizzlepop came to the third, lit up her horn, opened it, and turned to face them. "The east wing guest suite. Please, enjoy your evening, and have a good night." Fizzlepop said, smiling at them. As they made their way inside, Fizzlepop returned down the hall and didn't look back as Gallus shut the door and locked it. Together, they took in the room. It was certainly more spacious than their dorm room had been. There was a bathroom off to the immediate left, and there were two dressers along the left wall. There was a table and two chairs in the right corner. The curtains had been drawn for the window on the far wall, and on the right side, a clean queen bed with a plush comforter and several pillows. Sandbar took the initiative and hopped onto the bed first. "So... Where do we begin?" He said, stretching out. "How are you not like, super nervous?" Gallus asked him. "I mean, I am a little, but I've been looking forward to this all day." The pony replied. "Well, give me a minute to freshen up, and I'll be right out." Gallus told him, pointing a claw over his shoulder to the bathroom before turning around and entering, closing the door behind him. Sandbar was a little puzzled, because he had assumed that's what he had made a stop at the dorms for just a few minutes ago. Gallus stared at himself in the mirror, and saw how absolutely nervous he was as he took his reflection in. He slipped off his saddlebags, and reached into the side pocket, and came out with Silverstream's necklace. He dangled it from his right talon, staring at it thoughtfully, before fastening it around his neck. Taking another look in the mirror at himself, he closed his eyes, got a clear picture of what he wanted, took a deep breath, held onto that image, and exhaled. There was a magical tingling sound, and for a moment, Gallus was afraid to open his eyes to see if it had actually worked. Author's Note I had originally intended this to be one large chapter, but instead I wanted to get you guys another update before my very busy week begins. You honestly shouldn't expect anything else until next weekend; and that's if I get it all written out and I am ultimately satisfied with it. I know this story has been building to this, so I really want to do it justice. Thanks for reading! Interspecies, Part ISandbar lounged on the queen-sized bed, and waited half-patiently for Gallus to get out of the bathroom. He had considered it harrowing enough that they had managed to get in here together, and now he was taking his sweet time 'freshening up'; a pointless endeavor in Sandbar's mind, since they would probably, hopefully, be hot and sweaty when everything was said and done. It didn't take him long to think that maybe Gallus had some kind of surprise in his saddlebags, and was getting it ready in the only place that was out of his sight in this room. But whatever it was, he didn't seem to be making a lot of noise. In fact, the entire room was a bit quiet; he didn't even hear crickets through the closed window. Not thinking about it for too long, he reached down into his saddlebags that he had dropped at the foot of the bed, and came out with a bottle of lubricant; something they would probably need tonight. He heard a sparkling noise, and saw a white light shine from under the bathroom door out onto the hallway carpet. Now really intrigued, he sat up as several more moments passed in silence. "Gallus? Everything okay in there?" Sandbar called towards the bathroom door. He was about to get up and check when the doorknob turned, and the bathroom door inched open. Sandbar didn't know what he expected to see, but when it was two cerulean-coated hooves instead of two golden talons, his mind began to seize up. Then came the rest, and it most certainly wasn't the griffon that had gone in there moments ago. Instead, it was a lean pegasus stallion. It had only taken him a few moments to process what had just occurred, especially when he spotted Silverstream's necklace around his neck. "G-Gallus?" He managed to say through his surprise, looking the pegasus up and down. Some of his features were identical; his eye color was the same, and the yellow-tipped feathers that had stuck up on his head were now similarly-colored bangs. "I thought this would make foreplay a little easier..." The pegasus said nervously. Yep, voice was the same too. 'Gallus' climbed up on the bed and half-crawled over to Sandbar, who was still processing what the griffon had done to himself. The pony's mind was assaulted again as Gallus sat up, leaned forward and pressed their lips together. It was about as sloppy as could have been expected for a creature who didn't have lips until a minute ago. Their lips separated, then Gallus went lower, his wings fluttering as he kissed and licked his neck. Sandbar shuddered, letting the brand new pegasus do his thing. The lips weren't doing much, but the tongue... Sweet Celestia the tongue. It snaked down to his barrel, and he didn't even get down to his belly before his chin bumped into Sandbar's black, fully unsheathed stallionhood. His tongue broke contact with his chest as he pulled away and stared down at it, his cheeks blushing furiously. He lowered himself further, chest now resting on the bed, and licked the shaft, starting at the base and slowly going up. As he got to the tip, he opened his mouth and took it in, lowering again. He only got a little past halfway before the tip pressed against the back of his mouth, and his inexperience showed as he gagged for a moment. "Gallus... Gallus, wait." Sandbar managed to say, finally shaking himself out of his stupor. Gallus pulled his mouth off and away from the pulsing pony penis and sat up, looking at his boyfriend. "Gallus, look. You don't have to go borrowing Silverstream's necklace just because you're a little nervous. I am too." "It's a little bit more than being nervous." The pegasus responded. "Whatever it is... Gallus, I don't want you to change like this for me. I don't want a pony. I want the smart, sarcastic griffon that came to Ponyville to learn about friendship with me six months ago. That's who I fell head over hooves for." Gallus only momentarily revealed a look of frustration before getting up off the bed, closing his eyes, and his body glowed, and reverted back to his original griffon form. He reached a talon around to the back of his neck and unlatched the necklace, before he walked around the edge of the bed and set it on the nightstand. "Not that it made a difference anyways. Yeah, I was kinda curious to see what kissing felt like, and what it felt like to have you in my mouth... But I was really hoping that transforming would help with griffon... um... libido." Gallus said, nervously scratching the back of his head. "What do you mean? What's wrong with your libido?" Sandbar asked. "Well, the reason I was so hesitant last night... Look, I don't know if your feelings for me prompted you to do much research on the subject, but griffons are known to get instinctively... somewhat... aggressive, during mating. I don't want to accidentally hurt you." Gallus admitted, getting back up on the bed and sat in front of Sandbar. Sandbar only stared for a moment, while to Gallus it felt like time had froze. That is, until Sandbar gave him a smirk. "Huh, and here I was somewhat afraid that tonight would stay somewhat vanilla." He said, raising an eyebrow at the griffon. "Wha...?" Gallus replied, surprised at the response. "I think you're underestimating a couple of things; one, the amount of times I've fantasized about this as I've fallen asleep across from you in the dorm; and two, the strength of an earth pony. If I think you're gonna hurt me, I'll let you know. If I think you're being too rough, I'll do my best to put a stop to it if your mind is in too much of a fog. But honestly, I don't think that's gonna happen. So you know what?" Sandbar paused, grabbing the lube from the nightstand, and dribbled some on the bottom of his hoof and then began to rub it onto Gallus' long, pink rod of flesh, a much more pointed tip than what a stallion's flared tip was, and it stayed pretty smooth until it descended to a somewhat bulbous knot at the base, before giving way to the cerulean colored fur of his coat. "Go with your instincts and have your way with me." With that, Sandbar turned, presented, and ran his lubed-up hoof along his plothole and dock, swaying his tail seductively as he did so. Licking his beak, Gallus slid forward and took a hold of Sandbar's flank with one talon, and slid a single claw into his plothole with the other. Going in and out a few times, getting soft moans from Sandbar in return, he then added a second one, loosening him up a bit. He only did that for a few moments before he pulled his right talon out and also put it on his flank, before rearing up and lining his slippery, glistening griffonhood up with Sandbar's entrance. Sandbar felt it poke him and it easily started to slide inside for the first couple inches, before a little resistance was met, and he started to feel a bit of pressure as the griffon continued in. It wasn't any bigger or wider than an average stallions, actually a tad smaller in that comparison, at least until it came to the knot; he knew that would be a challenge to overcome. When he approached the halfway point, Gallus paused, taking a breath and gazing down at the pony that was taking him in. "About half in, you still good?" Gallus asked, gently scratching Sandbar's cutie marks with the tips of his talons. "Mmmm.... Mmmhmm, keep going." Sandbar affirmed, shifting his weight slightly from one back leg to the other, getting used to the griffon's girth. A few seconds later, Gallus continued deeper. While it didn't get much wider than it did at the halfway point, Sandbar was continuing to deal with the pressure that it caused, feeling like half his body was full. Ten seconds later, Gallus was in all the way up to the knot, and he paused again. "Ahh, there we go. Wow, you're warmer than I thought." Gallus said, taking a few deep breaths as he basked in this new sensation. "What about the knot?" Sandbar asked as he glanced back to get a look for himself. "Nah, not yet. I get the feeling that once that's in, it's in, and with how tight you feel, I get the feeling that I'm not gonna last long the first time, and it'll be nice to have a little back and forth movement." He said, feeling himself throb in Sandbar's backside. "Mmm. Well, whenever you're ready, have at me." Sandbar said, resting his head on one of the pillow available. Gallus started to slowly pull out, and to Sandbar, it felt like a somewhat familiar sensation of relieving oneself. The pressure started to feel like it might dissipate as he felt Gallus exit to almost his tip, then pushed his way back in up to the knot, then back out. Back in, but just a little faster this time. As the griffon's pace increased, Sandbar began to softly whimper into the pillow, crescendoing as his knot bumped against his dock. "You good?" Gallus asked as to his partner's whimpers. "Y-Yeah, it's just... So good. Keep going..." Sandbar said, tilting his head to one side to speak clearly. For his part, Gallus leaned over farther, pressing his stomach against Sandbar's backside, sandwiching his tail between the two bodies, and moved his talons up towards the front, grabbing firm hold of Sandbar's front hooves and held him to the bed as he began humping him a little harder. He opened his beak and began to preen the hair on the back of his neck. He couldn't decide what he liked more; how Sandbar was squeezing him as he thrust again and again, or the sounds he was making as he pushed in time and again. Gallus knew he was getting ever closer to release, so he paused for a moment, and intertwined his back legs with Sandbar's, then really stepped up the pace, almost slamming into the pony under him, continuing to preen his hair and occasionally make small nips at his ears. All the while, Sandbar's moaning and cries of pleasure only grew in intensity as he squirmed under the griffon's weight. The last vestiges of Sandbar's thought processes were picking up that Gallus' thrusts were becoming more erratic. It wouldn't be long now. He figured it had been one minute, maybe two. His own stallionhood throbbed with desire, and he began to wonder who would break first. It was only now that he realized he had no idea what a griffon's 'tell' was, when he was about to release. Their tip didn't flare like stallions did. He began to hear guttural growls from Gallus, and with one defining thrust, the griffon's hardest so far, the last of resistance gave way, and the knot popped in, with Sandbar giving a gasp followed by an open mouth, silent scream. Gallus held his front hooves tightly, tensed against his back legs, and got a mouthful of his mane and pulled, hard. What followed wasn't what Sandbar was expecting. It wasn't a spurt, or a glob, or a short shot. No, it was... A stream. As if someone had just barely opened the valve on a hose. Gallus poured into Sandbar's colon, and he quickly felt more full than he had ever felt before. The griffon quivered against him as he emptied himself into the pony's backside. It was a steady stream for perhaps ten seconds, then slowly came to a dripping stop, and Gallus' tense body went limp, almost collapsing on top of Sandbar, but he managed to barely stay up on his back feet as he released his front hooves and mane, and started to catch his breath along with his boyfriend. Sandbar felt Gallus' heart pound against his spine, as well as his stallionhood throb against the bedsheets, having not quite achieved release. He wasn't sure where he felt fullest; where Gallus' knot was slowly shrinking for exit, or the pints of griffon seed he had injected into him. "W... wow." Sandbar finally said, breaking the pattern of heavy breathing. "You're telling me..." Gallus groaned, slowly pulling himself out of Sandbar, and rolling both of them onto their sides, as he brought his talons back to reach around and rub Sandbar's chest as he finished pulling out, his seed beginning to seep out of his plothole. "You weren't kidding about aggressive, I'll give you that." Sandbar said, rubbing his front legs where Gallus had pinned him to the bed. "I warned you. I didn't hurt you, did I?" Gallus asked, concerned. "Would it make you feel better if I told you it was a good hurt?" Sandbar shot back. "I just don't want to leave any marks." "I guess we'll find out in the morning, won't we?" "Heh. Don't worry. Griffons recuperate pretty quickly, but..." Gallus paused, rolling over the rest of the way onto his back, inviting Sandbar over. "I think it's your turn." Author's Note Well, my progress slowed to a crawl the past couple nights (thank you, StarCraft II), so I am going to split this chapter up. Enjoy, and thanks for reading! Interspecies, Part IISandbar's overwhelming feeling of fullness had started to subside when Gallus had pulled out, and it was further returning to normal as the griffon's deposit had now started to leak out of his backside as he rolled over and sat up as his boyfriend lay on display for him. He hadn't really softened up all that much, his smooth, slightly curved cock still laid erect on his stomach. "Well, are you gonna sit there and admire the view, or are you gonna have some fun?" Gallus asked, sinking his head into the pillow that laid up against the headboard. Sandbar smirked at his presenting lover, leaning down and putting his snout in between the griffon's thighs. "And what if I like a little foreplay?" He asked as he nuzzled Gallus' down-covered balls. "Besides, with how on edge I'm feeling right now, I don't think I'll last half as long as you did once I'm inside, and ponies may take a little bit longer to be ready for another round than griffons do, so yeah, don't mind me for admiring the view." Sandbar replied, sticking his tongue out to lick the griffon's hole. "Ahhh... Should I get the lube?" Gallus asked as Sandbar slowly withdrew his tongue. "Nah," Sandbar began, as he leaned up and straddled the griffon, placing himself directly over his erect shaft. The recently deposited seed continued to seep out of the stallion and drip down around Gallus' balls and pooled around his dock and hole. "I think we've got plenty right here." Gallus' seed, still warm from Sandbar's body heat, continued to seep down. Seemingly satisfied, Sandbar got back to his feet and slid down a foot, gently prodding Gallus' hole with his tip. "You ready?" Sandbar asked, judging that the lubrication was sufficient. "Heh, so 'a little foreplay' is about 15 seconds of licking?" Gallus teased with a smirk, then shortly added, "Yeah, I'm ready. Go for it." It took a little bit of pushing due to his tip already being flared, but once that went in with a soft pop, then it was relatively smooth from there. Gallus concentrated on his breathing as Sandbar slowly inched forward. The griffon's seed was more than sufficient lubrication as the stallion got in all the way up to his medial ring, warning his boyfriend to expect a little pressure. "Heh, didn't feel that nearly as much as your flare." Gallus commented in between his deep breaths. "You doing alright?" Sandbar asked, trying not to focus too hard on just how warm and tight Gallus felt on his shaft. "Definitely a new feeling, but from the look on your face, bet it's ten times better for you." "Y-Yeah. I'm sorry if I don't last long, but I feel like I'm right on the edge." "Hey, don't worry about it." Gallus began, running a single claw behind Sandbar's left ear. "You do you. If anything, I take that as a compliment." Sandbar nodded, took a deep breath, went in an inch deeper past his ring, slowly pulled out, and thrust back in. He waited a few seconds, taking a deep breath, before repeating the motion. "Ah... Ah... You like it nice and slow?" Gallus commented on the pony's slow rhythmical thrusts. "Nah... Just trying to keep myself from going over. If I go any faster, this'll be over in a matter of seconds. You feel amazing, Gal." "Gal... I like the sound of that." Gallus replied with a snicker. With a shudder, Sandbar started to pick up the pace just slightly. Gallus took the opportunity to bring his rear lion legs up and wrap them around the pony's flanks, and hooked his talons around the back of his neck. "Come on, Sandbar. Give me that pony spunk." Gallus told him. Sandbar couldn't refuse the griffon beneath him, and as he increased his pace, his breathing quickened, and Gallus' hold on him only tightened. The length of his thrusts decreased as his tempo got even faster. "Gal... Gallus... Gallus!" Sandbar exclaimed through gritted teeth, bottoming out in him and held himself there. Gallus felt the first glob shoot up inside him, followed by a second and third as he held Sandbar's neck to his chest. The stallion's tense body quivered as he emptied himself into the griffon over the course of ten seconds. When the final drops slipped out, Sandbar went limp, collapsing onto Gallus' chest and belly as he caught his breath. Gallus took the opportunity to start preening his boyfriend's mane, feeding it through the two halves of his beak. "I'm guessing by that throbbing rod I'm feeling on my stomach, that you're ready for more." Sandbar said as he gently and slowly pulled out of the griffon laying under him. "Only if you are, I think that took a bit more out of you than it did me." "Well, I was thinking the other end. I've been wanting to get a taste of you." Sandbar said, pushing Gallus further up towards the head of the bed while slinking down to his nether regions. The griffon's shaft already smelled heavily of spunk and sweat, and that only enticed the lust-driven pony more. He pressed his tongue to the base, and slowly licked up. He got his upper jaw around the tip and pulled it off Gallus' belly, and into his mouth proper. Gallus sunk his head into the pillow as he took in this new sensation. It was nowhere near as tight and snug as his other side was, but by Grover's beard, that tongue was working wonders. Hearing Sandbar suck and slurp was just as good as hearing him whimper when he was getting rutted just a few minutes ago. After a few moments of trial and error, Sandbar opened his mouth wide while keeping his lips sealed around the shaft, and took as much of it in as he could, feeling the tip in the back of his throat, holding it there for a moment before pulling off. Seemingly satisfied, he got a hold of Gallus' hips and rolled the two of them over, reversing their positions. Now under the griffon, Sandbar gave him an unmistakable look as the griffon looked down at him curiously. A look that only said one thing. 'Fuck this side just like you did the other one.' Gallus didn't have to work as hard to get lined up this time, because Sandbar's open mouth and tongue were proving to be the perfect guides. As soon as he slid inside, Sandbar tightened his lips around the edges and began to suck and lick in earnest. As Sandbar had no interest in any temporary transformation powers, and no interest in a pony, Gallus felt a pang of regret in not being able to repay him in a similar way, especially since it felt so fucking good. His muffled lustful moans were driving him to the edge, and quickly. "D-Don't think I'm gonna be able to hold back for as long this time, where do you want it?" Gallus asked as he continued to thrust back towards his throat. Without taking anything out of his mouth, Sandbar's answer was to lean his head up, almost gagging on Gallus' tip, and only increased his sucking. The pressure built up to intolerable levels, and the griffon jerked forward as another load of his seed flowed from the tip. Sandbar swallowed as much as he could in one gulp, but the need to breathe overtook his desire for a second helping, so he dropped his head back down to the sheets, freeing the shaft from his mouth, and the result was his chin, neck, and chest getting coated with Gallus' warm white cum. What didn't stick to his coat dripped down to the sheets as Gallus rolled off to the side and laid next to him once he had finished, a little more weary than last time. "Whew... That tongue of yours, Sandbar..." Gallus said, looking over to him. Sandbar blushed at the compliment. "Well, no getting around it now. We're definitely gonna have to see how good that shower is in the morning." The stallion replied. "Definitely looking forward to it. But for now..." Gallus paused, taking hold of Sandbar's semi-erect cock in his left talon. "Ready for round four?" "So what's going on now, Miss Yak-Ears-Are-Best-Ears?" Smolder whispered, crouching directly next to Yona in the dimly lit hallway, whose right ear and braid was pressed firmly against the closed bedroom door, as the other three got as close as they could. "Yona not sure. Something about 'round four'." Author's Note Again, sorry for the delay. My urge to write was sapped this week then came rushing back this weekend. The Morning AfterThe first thing that Sandbar noticed as he returned to the woken world wasn't the 11AM sunlight through the window, or the damp, sticky bedsheets. It was the smell. "Morning, Sandbar." Gallus greeted, waking up next to him, stretching his wings. "Yeah, barely." Sandbar replied, glancing at the clock on the nightstand. The two of them rolled out of bed and immediately made their way to the bathroom. They started the shower head and immediately got in once the water had gotten to an acceptable temperature. "Your front half is so scrawny when you're wet." Sandbar told Gallus, snickering as the griffon lathered up. "Yeah? Well, your wet mane is enough for you to pass as a mare." Gallus shot back. Only when they stepped out of the shower, dried off, and stepped out of the bathroom, did they realize what kind of a scent they had left lingering in the bedroom overnight. "You know, unless you had something very pressing to attend to after waking up, I've got something in mind to start our day." Sandbar said, hanging his towel back on the rack before shutting off the bathroom light. "Oh? Do tell." Gallus said, excitement climbing in his voice. After a satisfying brunch in the dining room with her brother and sister-in-law, Twilight figured it would be a good idea to go check on her other guests that had no doubt stayed the night. The Princess of Friendship made her way down the east wing to the guest suite, walking up to the door and knocked. After waiting a few moments with no reply or noise whatsoever from the other side of the door, she tried the doorknob and found it unlocked. The guest room was empty, and curiously enough, the bedding was missing. The sheets, comforter, pillowcases... The queen-sized bed was nothing but plain white. "Huh. Did Spike get started early today?" "No, your highness. Your two guests from the school asked me for directions to the laundry room." Commander Thunderlane answered in passing, briefly startling the princess. "Oh! Uh, thank you, Thunderlane. Really? They know laundry service is complimentary, right?" Twilight asked her third-in-command EUP officer. "I informed them of that very thing, but they were quite insistent." The princess nodded at the commander, and he was on his way, as Twilight shut the bedroom door and made her way further down the east wing to the laundry room. Indeed, the door was open and she could hear one of the washers going from several doors down. She trotted up to the open doorway and saw Sandbar, Gallus, and Spike sitting around one of the empty folding tables, their snouts in comic books. "Good morning, barely," Twilight greeted, as the three of them looked up from their reading material. "Morning, Headmare Twilight. I hope we aren't overstaying our welcome." Sandbar replied. "Not at all. I just didn't expect to find you in here, of all places." "Well, we decided that we wouldn't be good guests if we left the bedding in the condition that we... Uh, left it in." Gallus told her, tinting at the cheeks. "I appreciate the sentiment, you two, and I certainly don't need any more details than that. As long as you had a good time, that's all I need to know." "We absolutely did," Sandbar began. "We learned something new about ourselves, and each other." "That's great. And if you're kind, loyal, generous, and honest with each other, then there's no limit to where your relationship can go." "Thank you, Your Highness. Could you perhaps tell us what Princess Cadance's favorite flower is? We'd like to give her something in appreciation as well." Gallus added. "Hm. I believe pink roses have always been a favorite of hers. With that, I'm afraid I have quite a few things to take care of today, so you three have fun!" Twilight said, bidding them farewell before leaving the laundry room. "So what do you two think you're going to do when school's done? Do you think it's that strong, and will last that long?" Spike asked them as he returned to his comic book of choice. Sandbar and Gallus looked at each other. "Well, Sandbar, if it's all the same to you, I don't see myself returning to Griffonstone." Gallus told his boyfriend. "Really?" "Yeah. I mean, I want to be around creatures who will be happy for us. I don't have anyone there, except maybe Grandpa Gruff, and I doubt he'd be thrilled for us. Despite Gilda's and Gabby's best efforts, it's the aspiration of any Griffonstone citizen to get out of the city, to say nothing of the rest of the Griffon lands. I'd rather stay with you in Ponyville. The best things in my life have happened here. You most recently." "Well, if it's alright with you, I'd like to at least visit it sometime with you. I think we should at least give it a try. That's what you and I did this weekend, and look how it turned out." Sandbar encouraged. "Yeah, I guess you're right." To: Guidance Counselor Starlight Glimmer From the desk of Headmare Twilight Sparkle Starlight, Just what did you think I meant when I said 'Please soundproof the East Wing guest suite'? Because I've got four students pestering me about how many 'rounds' are in pony and griffon mating rituals. Care to explain? Sincerely, Headmare Twilight Sparkle Dear Twilight, As you know, soundproofing spells can be somewhat complicated. I believe the spell I cast was effective to equine ears, but I can't say the same for dragons, yaks, hippogriffs, or changelings. Perhaps you want to start pointing hooves at your E.U.P. night patrols? For what it's worth, apologies for the misunderstanding. Sincerely, Guidance Counselor Starlight Glimmer Dear Starlight, Oh no need to apologize. I redirected their questions to you. They'll be in your office first thing Monday morning. Good luck. Sincerely, Twilight To: Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist From the desk of Princess Twilight Sparkle Major Fizzlepop, Do you care to explain how four of my students got past your night patrols to eavesdrop on what was supposed to be a private and isolated night for two other students? I almost choked on my coffee this morning. Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle Dear Princess Twilight, I believe you told me to expect guests from your school and to show them to said guest suite in the east wing of the castle. You didn't tell me how many guests. Sincerely, Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist Author's Note Disclaimer: Red Dead Redemption 2 assumes no responsibility for the delay of fan fiction chapters. Please consume responsibly. Epilogue: MondayStarlight Glimmer sat at her desk in her office as the clock struck eight in the morning. A total of five cups on her desk, one for her, and four for the creatures she would soon be seeing. A single sheet of parchment rested next to her cup, containing the very few talking points she could will herself to write down last night. Right on cue, there was a knock at her office door. She turned to the thermal pitcher full of steaming hot cocoa, and poured four cups before dropping a marshmallow into each. Then, knowing she would need a little extra empathy this morning, she opened her bottom desk drawer. Inside, tucked behind a few file folders, was a glass bottle of some of Sweet Apple Acres' finest and hardest cider. She filled her mug halfway before returning it to its place in the drawer and announcing "Come on in." The doorknob turned and in filed Yona, Smolder, Ocellus, and Silverstream, and took their seats at the long sofa she had placed on the other side of her desk before taking each of their cocoas. "Alright," Starlight began after taking a deep breath. "First things first; why it's wrong to eavesdrop on very personal and private moments of close friends..." Author's Note Hope you all enjoyed this story of mine. Now I've got a late 1800's American West to get back to.
Guest Speaker"And so, with a death-defying leap from Spike the Brave and Glorious, and an accurate alicorn javelin throw from my beloved husband, the Crystal Heart narrowly evaded the clutches of King Sombra, and the Crystal Empire was restored after a millennium of being lost to the Frozen North." Princess Cadance's modern history lecture complete, the students gathered in the School of Friendship's lecture hall applauded by lightly tapping their hooves, claws, and talons on the floor and desks. Headmare Twilight Sparkle got up from her seat on the left side of the room and joined Cadance on stage. "I'd like to once again thank Princess Cadance for coming down for Modern Crystal Empire History 101. If anypony has any questions, she'd be happy to answer them. Otherwise, class dismissed! Enjoy your weekend!" Twilight announced. With that, the chatter in the lecture hall quickly rose as the few dozen students began to either file out of the exits towards the cafeteria, the student dorms, or headed into Ponyville, with some staying behind to talk to Cadance and Twilight. The Princess of Love indulged all the questions the students had about how she and the Elements of Harmony rescued Equestria's northernmost city from King Sombra. Once they had all been sated with the knowledge and answers they sought, the two alicorns also made their way out of the lecture hall towards Twilight's office. "Thanks again for coming down here to speak, especially when Hearts and Hooves Day is this weekend. I've been wanting to cover the Crystal Empire in Modern Equestrian History for weeks." Twilight told her sister-in-law as she sat down at her desk to finish up some last minute tasks and make sure Monday's lesson plans were all set to go. "I was happy to do it. I'm just glad you and Shining were able to fill me in on a lot of the details, because, well you know, I was rather out of it for a lot of it, especially towards the end." Cadance replied, chuckling. "So what are your plans for the weekend? Got anything in mind with Shining Armor and Flurry?" "Absolutely. I wouldn't have come down here without them. Shining and I were able to reserve a table for two at the Cafe Hay, I'm told their Hearts and Hooves menu is exquisite. Thanks for offering to babysit Flurry Heart for us." "Quite a small price to pay to get you guys down here for the lecture today, as well as give you two a night off. What can I say? Best aunt ever!" Sandbar had kept a safe distance as he trailed Headmare Twilight and Princess Cadance back to the main office. Their conversation became more distinct as he took a deep breath, and began trotting towards the open office door. Their conversation was interrupted as he announced his presence with a soft knock on the door, and their attention turned to see him in the doorway. "H-Hey there. Sorry to interrupt, Headmare Twilight, but I had a question for Princess Cadance." The apple-green earth pony stated. "No problem at all, come on in, Sandbar." Twilight replied, ushering him in, as Cadance turned to her student. "Well..." Sandbar began, taking a couple steps into the office. He couldn't hide the nervousness in his voice, much less maintain eye contact with Cadance. "As the Princess of Love, I was wondering if you had any advice on... Relationships..." He trailed off, shifting his weight between his legs. "That I would, Sandbar, but that's a very broad subject by itself. Could you be a little more specific?" Cadance asked, not wanting to seem too pressing, it was already quite obvious that the student was embarrassed to be bringing this subject up. "W-Well, at the beginning of your lecture, you said how love can mean a lot of things, of how the strongest, longest lasting relationships start with meaningful friendships." "Yes?" Cadance said, lightly urging him to continue. "I-I-I'm wondering... how can you tell? I mean... When and how can you tell that your friendship with somepony could go... deeper?" Sandbar asked. In a matter of moments, the pin dropped for Cadance. The way he was stuttering, shifting on his hooves, and nearly sweating was all it took for her to read him like a book. "Sandbar... do you have a crush?" Cadance asked sweetly. Blood and heat rushed rushed to the surface, and Sandbar's face turned the most delightful shade of red. Cadance let out a short, innocent giggle. "I understand the embarrassment, but it's absolutely nothing to be ashamed of," Cadance reassured him with a gentle touch on the shoulder, not wanting him to turn tail and run in humiliation. "Everypony gets crushes, and there are so many ways of acting on them, especially around this time of year." Sandbar managed to stop shivering, take a breath, and give Princess Cadance an honest smile. "But when it comes to matters of the heart, there aren't too many textbook answers, I'm afraid. Everypony is different." Cadance told him. "You've been a student here for several months now, Sandbar. Advice might be a little easier to give if we... Oh I don't know... knew who you've got a crush on?" Headmare Twilight asked. There was that beet red face again. "W-Well... It's complicated, i-in more ways than one." Sandbar stammered. "I'm sure Headmare Twilight is teasing you, Sandbar." Cadance said, once again giving him a bit of reassurance. "You certainly don't need to tell us if you're not comfortable with letting us know." She told him with a gentle smile. "But... She's got a point, Princess Cadance. If she knew who it was, some advice would probably be easier to give. They've been a student here too, for just as long as I have, so she's probably gotten to know them as well as she's gotten to know me over this past school year." Sandbar said, getting his breathing to calm down as best as he could, although the heat in his cheeks wasn't having as easy a time getting under control. "I'm all ears if you're willing to tell me, Sandbar. As the Princess of Friendship, I give you my word that I won't judge." Twilight told him confidently. Sandbar took another deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them to look directly at Princess Twilight, fighting back the last urge to turn and run. "It's... Gallus." Author's Note Well, this is probably the most times I've changed the cover of a new story before pushing it live. I wanted to go with a cropped version of a NSFW image, but according to the rules, that's forbidden and well, honestly, I've seen quite a few stories that break that rule. Regardless, I certainly hope you like this little opening. As always, I welcome feedback and theories about where you'd like or think this is going to go. Thanks for reading!
Cultures"It's... Gallus." Sandbar had barely managed to say it above a whisper, and he was now desperately waiting for some kind of reaction from Headmare Twilight or Princess Cadance. The Princess of Love shot her sister-in-law an inquisitive glance, and she picked up on it immediately. "He's our griffon student enrolled from Griffonstone." Twilight told her. "I see." Cadance replied, walking up to Sandbar, who was nearly shivering again. "I can only assume that this is the first time you've come out?" She gently asked Sandbar, who swallowed the lump in his throat, and slowly nodded. Sandbar wasn't really sure what to expect next, but he figured it wasn't going to be a gentle hug from the guest speaker. "Then allow me to be the first to say congratulations. Do you feel any better?" Cadance asked, releasing the earth pony from her brief embrace and sat in front of him. "Yeah... Yeah, a little bit. Thanks, Princess." Sandbar replied, managing to smile up at her. "I can certainly see why you say it's complicated." Twilight commented. "I know Equestrian culture has become much more tolerant of same sex relationships in recent years, but I'm not sure whether or not the same can be said of Griffon culture." Sandbar nodded in agreement. "Honestly, Headmare Twilight, I'm not really worried about how Griffonstone feels about it, I'm... I'm worried about how he feels about it." "I'd say that's a step in the right direction." Cadance began. "Love is love, remember that. It's understandable that you're worried about what he'll think, but it's either take the leap, or do nothing." "You and Gallus have become very good friends over the school year." Twilight added. "If Gallus is as good a friend as you think he is, do you really think he'd turn his back if you tell him how you've grown to feel?" "Honestly, yes, Princess. That's exactly what I'm afraid of." Sandbar replied. "If I tell him how I feel, even if he doesn't disown me... If he doesn't feel the same way, that confession would always be there, hanging like a cloud over our friendship forever." Sandbar lamented. "Mm," Princess Cadance acknowledged his fears. "It's an understandable fear, Sandbar, but one that I think is worth overcoming. Most couples out there have had to take that risk at one point or another. I'm not saying you have to outright pour your heart out and leave absolutely no chance to save face. But you are going to need some kind of an icebreaker. Based on the time of year it is, might I suggest a box of chocolates?" Sandbar put a hoof to his chin in thought. A box of chocolates wouldn't be hard at all to find, especially this time of year, it wasn't absolutely positively the be-all end-all "I love you" message; candy was quite a common gift between friends, but it could certainly be enough to get the conversation going. "Yeah, yeah I'm pretty sure I have enough spare bits for that." Sandbar replied, referring to the monthly allowance each student was given outside of the room and meals the school provided. "Thanks for listening, Your Highnesses." He said, giving them a short bow. "Best of luck, Sandbar." Cadance answered, with Twilight also giving him an encouraging smile. His mind made up, Sandbar turned and headed for the front exit. It was early afternoon, and he had candy to go buy in Ponyville. "Well, well," Cadance commented as Twilight finished the last of her paperwork once Sandbar was out of sight. "I think your School of Friendship has started to produce students that could be more than friends." "Yeah, and I don't think I wrote up any guidelines for that..." Twilight mused, flipping through lesson plans for Monday. "Well, now might be the time for that." Cadance suggested. "Still, I wonder how Gallus will react. Rainbow may be more forward than most, but she's right; griffons aren't exactly the most social of creatures." "Well, no doubt your school has done some good." "No doubt. Just a couple months ago, Gallus pulled a prank right before the holiday break. He doesn't have any immediate family back home, so he didn't want to go home. After that came to light, the other five decided to stay with him over the break." Twilight recalled, gathering her shuffled papers on her desk and stacked them in the far corner before she started packing up her saddlebags to depart for the day. "Alright, I think that just about wraps things up—" Twilight was interrupted by another knock on her door, and looked up to see a cerulean griffon in the doorway. "Good afternoon, Gallus. What can I do for you?" She asked, indirectly letting Cadance know that this was the griffon in question. Gallus walked into the office, tail flicking nervously, as he approached the desk. "Well, I had a question for Princess Cadance that didn't really seem too related to her lecture, so I didn't wait around in the lecture hall." "Seems you're a popular Princess down here, maybe we should switch places." Twilight teased. "How can I help, Gallus?" Cadance said, after giving Twilight a smirk. "Well, you see... I... I think, maybe, that one of my friends might be... Attracted to me." Most stores and markets in Ponyville were holding Hearts and Hooves Day sales, or selling specialty items for the holiday that they normally didn't carry, so Sandbar certainly had his share of options to pick from. Now he just needed to select the right one. He was about to step into the out-the-door line to Sugarcube Corner, one of Ponyville's most popular confectioneries by far, when he noticed something in his peripheral vision; a similar shop across the square. The sign read: Gustav le Grand's Delightful Desserts. Sandbar remembered Gustav from one of Professor Pinkie's friendship lessons. The griffon baker had entered Canterlot's National Dessert Competition, and due to events that had happened on the way there, he had decided to combine his expertise with that of the other Ponyville entrants, and went on to collectively win the competition. Sugarcube Corner's offerings might be a tad cheaper, but maybe it would mean a little more if his gift came from patronizing a griffon-owned shop. He stepped inside, and took in the surroundings. It was noticeably smaller than Sugarcube's interior, and the decor was decidedly more posh. "Hello, and welcome to Delightful Desserts. Can I help you make a selection today?" The earth mare cashier greeted him. No doubt Gustav was away from the shop, most likely in his much busier bakery in Canterlot for the holiday weekend. Sandbar gave the mare cashier a smile, and approached the display case next to the register, and looked at the red, heart-shaped boxes of chocolates. Most were a variety of cream-filled, bite sized assorted candies. He remembered that over Hearth's Warming break, Gallus had mentioned that since coming to school in Ponyville, he had taken a liking to caramel-filled candies. All of the heart-shaped boxes were a variety of flavors. He looked at the price sticker on the front of the glass case and saw that a custom-filled box was an additional cost. Doing so would take nearly his entire month's worth of bits. "Yes, can I get a box of just caramel filled chocolates?" Sandbar asked. The cashier rung him up, and he set his bag of bits on the counter, and dug out three silver pieces, and five gold pieces; 35 bits, out of the 50 he had for the month. The transaction complete, the cashier grabbed an empty heart box and walked back to the chilling racks, carefully placing 40 pieces of caramel chocolates into glassine paper cups, and expertly arranged them into the box, putting the lid securely on, and quickly tied a red silk ribbon into a bow on top. "And here you are. Enjoy, and have a happy Hearts and Hooves Day!" Thanking the mare, Sandbar exited the shop with his purchase, and headed back towards the school, now wondering about the next, and probably hardest part; when to give these to Gallus? Author's Note Well well, quite an enthusiastic start here from all of you. This was added to over 280 bookshelves in the first couple days. Here's hoping I can meet your expectations. Thanks for reading! -Miles
Curiosity"Well, you see... I... I think, maybe, that one of my friends might be... Attracted to me." Gallus said, having to nearly force the last part of that sentence out of his mouth, the twitching feathered tip of his tail betraying his nervousness. "Oh? What makes you think that?" Cadance asked the griffon. "Well, it's mainly small things, really. Like during class, or lectures, I'll glance and find them staring at me, or always sitting next to me at lunch. Things like that." "Well, depending on how it makes you feel, that may not be a bad problem to have on this holiday weekend." Cadance told him. "Y-Yeah. That's the thing, I'm not really sure if it is a problem, because I'm not sure exactly how I feel about it." Gallus replied, beginning to fidget with his talons. "Well, how good of a friend are they?" Cadance asked, eager for more information. "Pretty good, I'd say. He and I have shared the same dorm room since the beginning of the school year." The griffon answered. That was all the information Twilight needed; Sandbar was Gallus' assigned roommate when he decided to stay on campus and not go into town to his house. "Really? Because we were just talking t—" "We were just talking about how this situation might arise with some of the school's students, especially on this weekend. Headmare Twilight doesn't really have any prepared guidelines for it." Cadance said, having sneakily shot off a very brief numbing spell that disabled Twilight's vocal chords for all of a half-second, long enough for her to take the hint while she finished the sentence. Luckily, Gallus hadn't noticed the single mote of light that had glowed momentarily on the tip of Cadance's horn. "So... What do I do? I've never really thought about if I, well, um, 'go that way'." Gallus inquired, his cheeks beginning to tint as the tip of his tail continued to have a mind of its own. "Well, I'd honestly take whatever time you need to come to a conclusion of what ways you do 'go'. Whether or not this attraction you think your friend has is genuine, you need to know that you're comfortable with it. I will say that Equestrian culture has become considerably more open-minded in recent times, if you're worried about that at all." Cadance told him. "N-No, not really. Honestly, it's my society I'm puzzled about." "Well, if you'd like my advice, I'd worry about yourself and your friend, first and foremost. If you think it's a road you'd like to go down, then you cross those later bridges when you come to them. In the meantime, if you intend on getting swept up in this Equestrian holiday weekend, might I suggest some candy?" Cadance asked. "Well, it couldn't hurt, I suppose. Thanks, Princess!" Gallus replied, giving a quick bow and making his way out of the office. "Now I know you weren't about to just spoil that oh-so adorable moment when they potentially discover their feelings for each other." Cadance chastised, turning and giving her sister-in-law a disapproving but teasing look. "Sorry, I just thought it would make things easier." Twilight apologized as she continued to pack up her saddlebags. "'Easy' should have nothing to do with it. If we go and tell them what each of them secretly feels, then we rob them of that sense of discovery, and the opportunity for them to make a stronger foundation if they pursue something more long-term. Even matters of love have the difference between knowledge and wisdom, Twilight. Let them figure it out themselves." "Right. Noted." Twilight began, strapping her saddlebags closed and setting them on her desk as she made final preparations to leave. "Clearly, either Sandbar hasn't been as subtle as he thought he has been, or Gallus is really good on picking up on such things." "More than likely, a mixture of both. So I believe you and I are due for tea?" Cadance asked as Twilight strapped on her saddlebags. "You read my mind." Sandbar slowly walked down the School of Friendship's dormitory hallway, down to the last door on the left, the room he had shared with Gallus for the past five-and-a-half months. The sun was just beginning to set; after putting the box of chocolates securely in his saddlebags, he went and got a cheap four bit meal for dinner, and now his satchel was very nearly ready for moths. He was going to have to rely on the school's cafeteria food for the rest of the month or start heading across town for meals at home more often. It wasn't that the cafeteria had earned a bad rep, he was usually pretty good at making his monthly allowance last the whole month. Thanks to the gift in his bags, that wouldn't be the case for the second half of February. Hopefully it would be worth it. As he approached his door, his heart began to beat harder against his chest. He hadn't quite figured out the words he wanted to say as he offered the chocolates to Gallus. Taking a few deep breaths in front of the door as he placed a hoof on the door handle didn't make the words come, so he stopped delaying, and turned the knob, pushing the door open. His dorm room was empty. The student dorms were exactly what one would expect from a headmare as organized and neat as Twilight. The room was effectively split perfectly in half; a single window on the far wall, with a twin bed, night stand, closet, and desk were against the walls on each side, with both occupants sharing a bathroom and shower right inside the front door. Sandbar's bed was on the right side, half-decently made this morning before class. Gallus' was less so, sheets and blanket had been haphazardly kicked to the end of the bed, and were half hanging off the edge, with one corner of the blanket reaching the floor. He frequently overslept and didn't give himself time to tidy up before class. Sandbar tapped the door with his back left hoof to close it, and walked over to his bed, and sat down, turning on the lamp on his nightstand as dusk continued to approach. He unfastened his saddlebags and gently set them on the floor, before pulling out the box of chocolates, and held it to his chest, having to mentally check himself to stop from crushing the box in his hooves, which were nearly shivering. In doing so, he liked to think that his heart had transferred into the box. As he continued to mentally fumble with his words, he nearly jumped out of his seated position on the bed when he heard the doorknob turn, and the door opened to reveal Gallus, who most likely saw the stallion nearly juggle the heart-shaped box in his hooves to avoid dropping it on the floor. Once he had it securely in his grasp again, his head whipped to the left to look at Gallus, and gave him a half-panicked smile. "G-Gallus! Hi!" Sandbar said. "Heh, sorry if I startled you, Sandbar." Gallus said as he closed the door. "N-No, not at all. I've just been thinking." The earth pony replied, glancing back down at the chocolates he held in his hooves. "Oh yeah? About what?" Gallus asked as he walked into the room proper and sat across from him on his own bed, taking off his own bags. Sandbar swallowed the lump in his throat, and tore his eyes away from the box, and looked up at Gallus. "A-About you." He said, feeling like he had to reach down into his throat and claw the words out. Shivering, he got up to his hooves, and took a couple steps towards Gallus sitting on his bed, and shakily offered him the box. "I-I-I like you, Gallus. A lot. I'm sorry if it seems like this is coming out nowhere. I know it's a little early, but... Happy Hearts and Hooves Day." He could hear the individual chocolates vibrate as he held out the box to the griffon sitting in front of him. After what seemed like forever, Gallus took the box without a word, and held it gently in his talons, looking down at it. The butterflies in his stomach seemed to multiply and get more restless as time seemed to slow as he waited for some kind of reaction, standing there, visibly shaking. Finally, Gallus looked him in the eyes, and smirked, setting the chocolates beside him on his messily kept bed, before reaching down into his bags, and coming up with a square box of candy, straight from Sugarcube Corner. "I see I wasn't the only one taking advantage of the Princess of Love being down here for a guest lecture." Gallus said, holding out his own gift. "O-oh. W... Wow. S-so you feel the same way?" Sandbar stuttered, accepting the box of assorted chocolate-covered nuts and berries. "Honestly, for the longest time, I wasn't sure what to feel. The professors' lessons don't really tell you about what happens when a friendship goes to, well, this level. I mean, I don't know how much you know about where I come from, but griffons as a whole aren't exactly the nicest of creatures. But seeing how you've been looking at me and spending time with me these last few months..." "Oh, so I wasn't as subtle as I thought..." Sandbar said, blushing. "I didn't really pay much attention to how I felt about it because I was worrying so much about how Griffonstone would feel about it. Then when I was standing in line to buy that candy, it just clicked; why am I so worried? It's no secret that my hometown is a dump, and it's only as good as it is because it's just across the sea from Equestria. It gets even worse the farther east you go into the griffon lands. Creatures who would step over each other if it meant getting just one more ounce of gold; why was I caring about what they think? So in the few hours I've been focusing on my own feelings about it... Nope, still haven't sorted through them. I mean, I guess right off the bat, I'm shocked, flattered, but more than anything... Curious." Gallus admitted. "Curious?" "Yeah. I'm a griffon who has just started to grasp the basic concepts of friendship these past few months. What... What do you, like that much about me?" Gallus asked, his tail twitching, betraying his nervousness again. "Well," Sandbar began, risking taking a seat next to Gallus on his bed, setting the box of candy down next to him. "I know you act all nonchalant at school, like you hate homework, how you pretend to not pay attention in class, but Ocellus is the only one with better grades than you. You're smart, you're funny, and... You're a bit on the cute side too." Sandbar said, cheeks getting hotter. "How dare you," Gallus said in the best mock-angry tone he could muster up, before the pair broke into a chuckling fit. "As for you," the griffon continued. "You were the first to come up and introduce yourself, and you weren't exactly deterred by my poor first impression. You were the first one to suggest we all hide out at the Castle of the Two Sisters so we could all stick together, not to mention you made the cupcake runs. You're kind, you're generous, and while you may not be the most subtle, you're always forthcoming when you need to be." Gallus looked over to the heart shaped box, untied the bow, lifted the lid off, and took one of the chocolate candies and popped it into his mouth, the caramel oozed out onto his tongue. "And you always seem to remember the little things your friends say about themselves, like favorite treat." Gallus said, his mouth half-full of chocolate-y, caramel-y goodness. Sandbar likewise opened his box and tried a chocolate covered strawberry. "Well, I'm so relieved to have gotten that off my chest, not to mention how thrilled I am that you feel the same way." The earth pony said after swallowing his bite and returned the lid to the box. "Now that I guess we can call ourselves... Boyfriends, or coltfriends, or, you know, whatever," Gallus started, his heart skipping a beat at those words. "I guess I'm just wondering... well, how a pony and griffon would... Um, get closer. You know, signs of affection and all that." "Yeah, I uh, I can't imagine that you griffons do a lot of kissing, with those beaks of yours." "Well, we do have one thing in common." Gallus started, as he leaned over and started to gently rub his beak on the side of Sandbar's neck. "Nuzzling." Sandbar shuddered with pleasure as Gallus drew the side of his beak up to his ear and ran it along the edge. "It usually leads to preening." The griffon finished. "Preening," Sandbar repeated, drawing in enough breath to speak. "Yeah, that I'm a little familiar with, pegasi do that to keep their feathers organized..." "Yep. You don't have any feathers, but..." Gallus paused as he started to sink the first few centimeters of his beak into a part of Sandbar's mane behind his ear. "Your mane is so messy, so I could keep myself busy for hours." Sandbar chuckled as Gallus ran strands of his mane through the tips of the two halves of his beak. It was a rather inefficient comb, but it felt... So good, so personal. "I'll be honest. I don't know how you ponies stimulate anything with those hooves of yours." Gallus said, continuing to work behind the pony's ear. "Well," Sandbar began, pulling his head away just far enough to look Gallus in the eyes, placing his front hooves on the griffon's chest. "Would you like me to show you?" Sandbar slowly moved his hooves down Gallus' chest, down to his belly, and stopped just above his sheathed griffonhood, which was now just starting to poke out. "My next question was just about to be, how fast you ponies usually move, how quickly you... Get that close to each other..." Gallus said, tail twitching nervously again. "It depends on the pony, or creature. Am... Am I going too fast?" Sandbar asked nervously, removing his hooves from Gallus' belly. "I... I'm honestly not sure at this point. I just don't want either of us to regret anything by moving too fast, even if we both think it's fine. Let's sleep on it, spend Hearts and Hooves Day together tomorrow, and then, if we both still want to get that close... Then yeah, we can try to get that close." Gallus offered. Sandbar gave him a smile. "Deal." He said, leaning over and gave him a quick kiss on the curve of his beak. "Sweet dreams." Gallus smiled again, and likewise, leaned over, pressed the top of his beak to Sandbar's snout, and gave it a short lick as he pulled away. "You too, handsome." He replied as Sandbar got up and took his box of candy over to his nightstand before climbing into bed. Gallus popped another two chocolate caramels into his mouth before doing the same. As Sandbar shut off the light and laid his head on the pillow, there was no shortage of lewd fantasies playing through his mind, as had been the case for weeks now. As much as he was looking forward to tomorrow, there was a small pang of regret at the possibility that he may have crossed a line with his new boyfriend just a few moments ago. Something had subtly changed in his voice when his hooves got that low, and the tip of his tail had always betrayed when he felt nervous or anxious. Sandbar did his best to shove it to the back of his mind. It had worked out so far. Princess Cadance was right; he had taken the risk, made the leap, and now, he had a very special somegriffon in the bed next to his. Tomorrow was a new day. Author's Note Wow. It's been eleven months since I wrote a chapter that long. Hope you're all enjoying it so far. I'd love to hear what you all think, and what you hope happens in the future! Thanks for reading! -Miles
Hearts and HoovesSince the formation of the town's own E.U.P., Princess Twilight's castle on the north end of town always had some kind of activity. Even if a royal event didn't go into the wee hours of the morning or wasn't being held at all, the corridors were kept watch over by at least a half dozen guards. Down in the barracks, the first shift was preparing for their day by 5:00 AM. By 6:00 the night watch was formally relieved, and by 7:00, Princess Twilight was usually up and starting her day. In the kitchen, Chef Grubber's day began at 5:00. By 5:45, he and his two cooks had a breakfast buffet out in the dining hall for the arriving morning shift, as well as the departing night shift. An hour later, he had fresh tea service and bagels and cream cheese ready on a platter; Princess Twilight's and Guidance Counselor Starlight Glimmer's usual preferred start to the day. Holidays were usually a bit more robust. For Hearts and Hooves Day weekend, Princess Twilight was hosting three personal guests from the Crystal Empire, as well as a "Couple's Breakfast" for any in town who wished to attend. To adequately prepare, Grubber's staff had temporarily quadrupled for the morning with a catering service, and dining had moved from the dining room to the reception hall, where most of the guests would be. But the Princess insisted on having her personal guests and E.U.P. served in the dining room away from the hustle and bustle. So while the catering staff handled the first part of the event, Grubber's cooks handled the buffet for the E.U.P., while the hedgehog put together the regular tea and bagel platter, and everything was hot and ready when Princess Twilight Sparkle and Princess Cadance, came into the dining room. A high chair was brought out for when Flurry and Shining Armor got caught up, and for now the two princesses took their seats as the two platters were set on the table in front of them. With that done, Grubber turned his attention to the guests in the reception hall. "So, Twilight. I've been thinking about yesterday's, ah, situation at your school." Cadance said as she dropped a sugar cube into her teacup and stirred it in. "Hm? Oh, you mean with Sandbar and Gallus. Yeah, I wonder how well that went." Twilight asked, as she stirred in her own sugar and milk. "Oh, it went well. I have a sense about these sort of things, so no worries." Cadance said, taking her first drink. "So what about it were you thinking about?" Twilight asked as she started to take a drink. "I was thinking about perhaps providing them with some privacy here at the castle if they want to get as close as couples usually do on Hearts and Hooves night." Twilight was mid-drink with her teacup at her lips, so when the tea came shooting out of her mouth and nostrils, it merely traveled down to the bottom of the tipped cup, and up the other end, effectively spraying the Princess of Friendship with lukewarm sugary tea and milk. Cadance miraculously managed to keep her reaction down to mere giggles as Twilight coughed and righted her teacup as she wiped her face. "Cadance!" Twilight whispered, sniffling the remnants of her tea out of her nose. "That is a school, not an escort service!" "Exactly," Cadance replied calmly, as if the suggestion had been completely normal. "So if and when they decide to try and explore with each other and get to know each other in the way that creatures their age usually do, wouldn't it be nice for them to have an option that's away from your other students?" Twilight couldn't bring herself to close her mouth. How her sister-in-law always talked about these sort of things so... so casually. "No worries, Twilight. I know that would be quite awkward as the school's headmare, so just give the word, and you can leave it to me." Regardless of the holiday weekend, the School of Friendship still retained a cafeteria staff to feed the students who didn't want or couldn't afford to eat out in Ponyville all weekend long. Instead of just getting ready on his own like most mornings, Sandbar went over to Gallus and gently nuzzled him awake. "Happy Hearts and Hooves, cutie." He greeted. "Mmmph mmphmms mm mmmmphs." Was the reply he got through Gallus' pillow. The griffon raised his head up and saw that it was indeed 9:00 AM. "Where does the time go...?" He groaned, nearly rolling out of bed as Sandbar stepped back to give him room to get up. "Come on, gotta hurry if we want to grab breakfast." The earth pony advised him. The thought of a steaming hot breakfast did put some pep in Gallus' step, and after Sandbar got cleaned up in the bathroom, he came out to the unexpected sight of Gallus doing his best to make his bed. "Heh, am I rubbing off on you already?" Sandbar teased. "Yeah, kinda. Thought it'd be nice if the whole dorm looks presentable." With that out of the way, Gallus did some quick cleaning of himself in the bathroom, then the two of them were off. When they arrived at the cafeteria, the staff had set up a nice breakfast buffet for those who weren't spending the weekend abroad. The pair got in at the end of the line of about 20 other ponies. When they had their trays of muffins, apple, and orange juice, they looked around at where to sit, not spotting their other four friends anywhere in the room yet. "Over there look good?" Gallus asked, pointing to a small open table for two towards the center of the concourse. The two of them took their seats, and started into their muffins, smiling at each other. "So," Gallus began, crumbs of muffin falling out of his mouth. "What would you like to do today?" "Well, honestly, most of my thoughts have been gravitating towards tonight." Sandbar began with a tint in his cheeks. "But it doesn't really matter what we do, as long as it's with you, that's good enough for me." "Well, I'm sure we can find something to keep ourselves busy." Gallus replied. As they made their way through their breakfast, they finally saw Smolder, Silverstream, Yona, and Ocellus join the buffet line. But they lost track of them as a mailpony came up and dug out a letter from his bag. "Sandbar and Gallus?" He asked, reading the writing on the envelope then looking at the two of them. "That's us." Gallus said, and the mailpony set the envelope on the table between their two trays. "Royal delivery. Happy Hearts and Hooves day!" He said before continuing his rounds, delivering letters to students from beyond Ponyville as they got treats and letters from home. Sandbar and Gallus looked down at the envelope. It was plain white, with the wax stamp seal in the shape of the crystal heart. Gallus took the envelope, took the knife next to his plate to open it, and pulled out the letter and unfolded it, laying it on the table so both of them could read it. Dear Sandbar and Gallus, Happy Hearts and Hooves Day! I certainly hope both of you have gotten a great start to your day, and that you both have fun together in whatever you have planned. In case you had anything in mind for tonight that called for a little bit more privacy than you get in your dorms, then I'd like to invite you to the East Wing Guest Suite in the castle tonight. If that sounds like something you two would like, please see Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist at the front steps anytime after 7:00 PM, and she'll show you in. Sincerely, Princess Cadance The breakfast buffet had a sample of things for all the creatures attending the School of Friendship. Yona took a bowl of hot minestrone soup with a sprinkling of fresh grass, Smolder helped herself to pancakes with gems baked in, and Silverstream and Ocellus each took a fruit cocktail. "So what do we all want to do today?" Ocellus asked as they sat down at one of the longer tables that were available. "Not sure. I'm actually wondering what those two are up to." Smolder said, pointing a claw across the room to the griffon and pony sitting together, looking like they were reading a letter of some kind. "When have those two ever been the first down here for breakfast? Usually they're the last and they have to take whatever's left on the carts." Ocellus commented, always being the most punctual of the six of them. "Oh, Yona knows! Princess Cadance said that today Hearts and Hooves Day! Holiday of love! Maybe Gallus and Sandbar find feelings for each other! Hearts and Hooves miracle!" The young yak said excitedly. "Well... Yeah, actually that makes sense." Silverstream agreed. "Yeah. I'm sure we've all noticed how much Sandbar has been staring at Gallus these last few weeks." Smolder added. "Huh? So staring means love? What about staring contests? Are those dates now?" Yona asked. "No no," Ocellus told her. "Each species has their own culture, and their own way of courting a mate. Courting means ways of letting someone else know you're interested. Some have scents, some of dances, others have sophisticated rituals. But interspecies, now that's not as common." "Ah yes, yaks have stomping rituals. Yak brings best wood to other yak to stomp! If the yak stomps on it, yak accept courtship!" Laughs were had around the table at Yona's short culture lesson. The four friends shared their own culture's method of courting over breakfast, and when they were done, decided to visit Fluttershy's animal sanctuary. "Hey, Silverstream!" Gallus called out to the hippogriff, as she was the last out of the cafeteria to meet her friends outside before heading south through town. "Oh hey Gallus. We're going to visit Fluttershy's sanctuary. You two want to tag along?" She asked, motioning to Sandbar, who was currently taking the pair of trays up to the dish station. "No, we're doing our own thing today. I was actually wondering if I could ask you a favor. A... A really big favor." Gallus asked, getting a little nervous. "Anything for a friend, Gallus. What can I do for you?" Silverstream asked. "Well... your necklace is what allows you to transform, right? C-Could I... borrow that tonight?" Author's Note Another one down! Thanks for all the feedback, fillies and colts. This has been very fun to write so far. Thanks for reading!
Hoof-in-ClawStarlight Glimmer found herself completely enthralled by 'Hearts, Hooves, and History: The Life of Princess Amore' as she walked down the west wing of the castle after a very hearty lunch with Trixie. So enthralled that she didn't notice an equally distracted Twilight as she rounded the corner to the foyer, and the two collided and fell back on their haunches as their books fell to the floor. "Oof. Oh, sorry, Twilight. I haven't been able to put this book down since noon." Starlight apologized as she helped her former mentor up off the ground. "No no, it's my fault. It's been a little hectic around here, and I'm barely keeping up." Twilight replied. Now that she mentioned it, Twilight did look just a little bit frazzled, and then Starlight noticed the Princess' book of choice. "Should I even ask why you're reading 'A Study of Griffon Mating Rituals'?" Starlight asked, catching the cover. "Um, it was one of the only ones in the library that I hadn't read yet." Twilight hurriedly said, shuffling past her guidance counselor. "Twilight, you seem stressed. Is there anything I can do to help?" Starlight asked sincerely. "No, I don't think... Wait, yes! Yes there is, I'm glad I ran into you, Starlight. You know the east wing guest suite?" Twilight asked, turning back to Starlight. Her student immediately nodded. "Ground floor, third door on the left. Full size bed, two dres-" "Soundproof it, please." Twilight interrupted, cheeks flaring red. "I'm sorry?" "Yes. Twenty-four hour enchantment, if you can. Thank you!" Twilight said. With that, she whipped around and headed off to her private study without another word. "Well... Alright then." Starlight said, shrugging, and trotted off to the east wing while preparing a soundproofing spell, unable to help thinking that perhaps this was the room that Shining Armor and Cadance would be staying in tonight. For Silverstream, Yona, Smolder, and Ocellus, it had been a fun-filled day of activities with each other. Gallus and Sandbar had tagged along periodically, but most of the time, they were off doing their own activities, most likely meant for couples instead of larger groups. The four of them had eaten dinner back at the school cafeteria, then it was decided they'd get milkshakes at Sugarcube Corner for desert as the sun began to go down. Silverstream said she was going to hang back a few moments and meet them there in a few moments. "Psst." She called to Gallus as he exited his dorm room on his way out to the front. Gallus came up to her as she removed her necklace, the jewel of which was a shard from the Pearl of Transformation. She gathered it up in her talon, and handed it over to the griffon. "Please be careful with it." She told him as he carefully slid it into a side pocket of his saddlebags. "You have my word. So... Um, you know, how does it work?" Gallus asked. Silverstream smiled at him. "It's easy. Just put it on, think of what you want to change into, and focus on it. Don't worry, it won't do anything unless you absolutely want it to." The hippogriff assured him. "Alright, if you say so." Gallus replied, seemingly satisfied. "Listen, whatever you two are planning, just be careful." She told her friend. "Don't worry. We will." Gallus replied. With that, the griffon and hippogriff went their separate ways; upon exiting the school, she took off into the sky towards downtown Ponyville, and he walked across the bridge to where Sandbar was waiting, a few dozen feet from the stairs to the castle's front door. "Hey there. So are you ready?" Sandbar asked him. Gallus nodded silently. Aside from the time that they had met back up with their friends, the two of them had spent the entire day together. After breakfast, they had gone over to Sweet Apple Acres for the hayrides that the Apple family was offering all day as part of the festivities. They decided to pool their remaining bits and have a romantic dinner for two at one of the fancier restaurants in town, and now that the sun had gone down, activities around town were beginning to wind down, save for select late night destinations. But for most couples celebrating Hearts and Hooves Day, the next few hours would be the icing on the cake, the perfect ending to a day celebrating each other. For the earth pony and griffon walking up to the castle steps, it was some fairly nerve-racking icing. They were already great friends, but they had a feeling that no matter how long any couple knew each other, this was a simply massive step. This wouldn't be just a celebration of their feelings for each other, it would be the first proclamation of them. Sandbar figured it would be a lot like dancing for the first time; there would be missteps and stumbles, but that's how you learned. The duo walked up to the armor-clad orchid unicorn standing on the right side of the staircase. Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist was a somewhat common sight around Ponyville, and even if she sounded and acted friendly, there was a somewhat intimidating aura about her, no doubt that was advantageous if you were an E.U.P. guard. "Major Fizzlepop? Princess Cadance said we should see you about the east guest suite?" Sandbar asked, standing next to Gallus. "Yes, she did say some students would be showing up asking about that. Right this way, please." The unicorn responded, promptly doing an about face, and walked up the stairs, leading the pair inside. Ponies had been coming and going all day, but now things had settled down, and the castle foyer was empty save for another guard making their rounds. The trip made a right before coming to the stairs, and veered off to the ground floor east wing. They passed two doors, and Fizzlepop came to the third, lit up her horn, opened it, and turned to face them. "The east wing guest suite. Please, enjoy your evening, and have a good night." Fizzlepop said, smiling at them. As they made their way inside, Fizzlepop returned down the hall and didn't look back as Gallus shut the door and locked it. Together, they took in the room. It was certainly more spacious than their dorm room had been. There was a bathroom off to the immediate left, and there were two dressers along the left wall. There was a table and two chairs in the right corner. The curtains had been drawn for the window on the far wall, and on the right side, a clean queen bed with a plush comforter and several pillows. Sandbar took the initiative and hopped onto the bed first. "So... Where do we begin?" He said, stretching out. "How are you not like, super nervous?" Gallus asked him. "I mean, I am a little, but I've been looking forward to this all day." The pony replied. "Well, give me a minute to freshen up, and I'll be right out." Gallus told him, pointing a claw over his shoulder to the bathroom before turning around and entering, closing the door behind him. Sandbar was a little puzzled, because he had assumed that's what he had made a stop at the dorms for just a few minutes ago. Gallus stared at himself in the mirror, and saw how absolutely nervous he was as he took his reflection in. He slipped off his saddlebags, and reached into the side pocket, and came out with Silverstream's necklace. He dangled it from his right talon, staring at it thoughtfully, before fastening it around his neck. Taking another look in the mirror at himself, he closed his eyes, got a clear picture of what he wanted, took a deep breath, held onto that image, and exhaled. There was a magical tingling sound, and for a moment, Gallus was afraid to open his eyes to see if it had actually worked. Author's Note I had originally intended this to be one large chapter, but instead I wanted to get you guys another update before my very busy week begins. You honestly shouldn't expect anything else until next weekend; and that's if I get it all written out and I am ultimately satisfied with it. I know this story has been building to this, so I really want to do it justice. Thanks for reading!
Interspecies, Part ISandbar lounged on the queen-sized bed, and waited half-patiently for Gallus to get out of the bathroom. He had considered it harrowing enough that they had managed to get in here together, and now he was taking his sweet time 'freshening up'; a pointless endeavor in Sandbar's mind, since they would probably, hopefully, be hot and sweaty when everything was said and done. It didn't take him long to think that maybe Gallus had some kind of surprise in his saddlebags, and was getting it ready in the only place that was out of his sight in this room. But whatever it was, he didn't seem to be making a lot of noise. In fact, the entire room was a bit quiet; he didn't even hear crickets through the closed window. Not thinking about it for too long, he reached down into his saddlebags that he had dropped at the foot of the bed, and came out with a bottle of lubricant; something they would probably need tonight. He heard a sparkling noise, and saw a white light shine from under the bathroom door out onto the hallway carpet. Now really intrigued, he sat up as several more moments passed in silence. "Gallus? Everything okay in there?" Sandbar called towards the bathroom door. He was about to get up and check when the doorknob turned, and the bathroom door inched open. Sandbar didn't know what he expected to see, but when it was two cerulean-coated hooves instead of two golden talons, his mind began to seize up. Then came the rest, and it most certainly wasn't the griffon that had gone in there moments ago. Instead, it was a lean pegasus stallion. It had only taken him a few moments to process what had just occurred, especially when he spotted Silverstream's necklace around his neck. "G-Gallus?" He managed to say through his surprise, looking the pegasus up and down. Some of his features were identical; his eye color was the same, and the yellow-tipped feathers that had stuck up on his head were now similarly-colored bangs. "I thought this would make foreplay a little easier..." The pegasus said nervously. Yep, voice was the same too. 'Gallus' climbed up on the bed and half-crawled over to Sandbar, who was still processing what the griffon had done to himself. The pony's mind was assaulted again as Gallus sat up, leaned forward and pressed their lips together. It was about as sloppy as could have been expected for a creature who didn't have lips until a minute ago. Their lips separated, then Gallus went lower, his wings fluttering as he kissed and licked his neck. Sandbar shuddered, letting the brand new pegasus do his thing. The lips weren't doing much, but the tongue... Sweet Celestia the tongue. It snaked down to his barrel, and he didn't even get down to his belly before his chin bumped into Sandbar's black, fully unsheathed stallionhood. His tongue broke contact with his chest as he pulled away and stared down at it, his cheeks blushing furiously. He lowered himself further, chest now resting on the bed, and licked the shaft, starting at the base and slowly going up. As he got to the tip, he opened his mouth and took it in, lowering again. He only got a little past halfway before the tip pressed against the back of his mouth, and his inexperience showed as he gagged for a moment. "Gallus... Gallus, wait." Sandbar managed to say, finally shaking himself out of his stupor. Gallus pulled his mouth off and away from the pulsing pony penis and sat up, looking at his boyfriend. "Gallus, look. You don't have to go borrowing Silverstream's necklace just because you're a little nervous. I am too." "It's a little bit more than being nervous." The pegasus responded. "Whatever it is... Gallus, I don't want you to change like this for me. I don't want a pony. I want the smart, sarcastic griffon that came to Ponyville to learn about friendship with me six months ago. That's who I fell head over hooves for." Gallus only momentarily revealed a look of frustration before getting up off the bed, closing his eyes, and his body glowed, and reverted back to his original griffon form. He reached a talon around to the back of his neck and unlatched the necklace, before he walked around the edge of the bed and set it on the nightstand. "Not that it made a difference anyways. Yeah, I was kinda curious to see what kissing felt like, and what it felt like to have you in my mouth... But I was really hoping that transforming would help with griffon... um... libido." Gallus said, nervously scratching the back of his head. "What do you mean? What's wrong with your libido?" Sandbar asked. "Well, the reason I was so hesitant last night... Look, I don't know if your feelings for me prompted you to do much research on the subject, but griffons are known to get instinctively... somewhat... aggressive, during mating. I don't want to accidentally hurt you." Gallus admitted, getting back up on the bed and sat in front of Sandbar. Sandbar only stared for a moment, while to Gallus it felt like time had froze. That is, until Sandbar gave him a smirk. "Huh, and here I was somewhat afraid that tonight would stay somewhat vanilla." He said, raising an eyebrow at the griffon. "Wha...?" Gallus replied, surprised at the response. "I think you're underestimating a couple of things; one, the amount of times I've fantasized about this as I've fallen asleep across from you in the dorm; and two, the strength of an earth pony. If I think you're gonna hurt me, I'll let you know. If I think you're being too rough, I'll do my best to put a stop to it if your mind is in too much of a fog. But honestly, I don't think that's gonna happen. So you know what?" Sandbar paused, grabbing the lube from the nightstand, and dribbled some on the bottom of his hoof and then began to rub it onto Gallus' long, pink rod of flesh, a much more pointed tip than what a stallion's flared tip was, and it stayed pretty smooth until it descended to a somewhat bulbous knot at the base, before giving way to the cerulean colored fur of his coat. "Go with your instincts and have your way with me." With that, Sandbar turned, presented, and ran his lubed-up hoof along his plothole and dock, swaying his tail seductively as he did so. Licking his beak, Gallus slid forward and took a hold of Sandbar's flank with one talon, and slid a single claw into his plothole with the other. Going in and out a few times, getting soft moans from Sandbar in return, he then added a second one, loosening him up a bit. He only did that for a few moments before he pulled his right talon out and also put it on his flank, before rearing up and lining his slippery, glistening griffonhood up with Sandbar's entrance. Sandbar felt it poke him and it easily started to slide inside for the first couple inches, before a little resistance was met, and he started to feel a bit of pressure as the griffon continued in. It wasn't any bigger or wider than an average stallions, actually a tad smaller in that comparison, at least until it came to the knot; he knew that would be a challenge to overcome. When he approached the halfway point, Gallus paused, taking a breath and gazing down at the pony that was taking him in. "About half in, you still good?" Gallus asked, gently scratching Sandbar's cutie marks with the tips of his talons. "Mmmm.... Mmmhmm, keep going." Sandbar affirmed, shifting his weight slightly from one back leg to the other, getting used to the griffon's girth. A few seconds later, Gallus continued deeper. While it didn't get much wider than it did at the halfway point, Sandbar was continuing to deal with the pressure that it caused, feeling like half his body was full. Ten seconds later, Gallus was in all the way up to the knot, and he paused again. "Ahh, there we go. Wow, you're warmer than I thought." Gallus said, taking a few deep breaths as he basked in this new sensation. "What about the knot?" Sandbar asked as he glanced back to get a look for himself. "Nah, not yet. I get the feeling that once that's in, it's in, and with how tight you feel, I get the feeling that I'm not gonna last long the first time, and it'll be nice to have a little back and forth movement." He said, feeling himself throb in Sandbar's backside. "Mmm. Well, whenever you're ready, have at me." Sandbar said, resting his head on one of the pillow available. Gallus started to slowly pull out, and to Sandbar, it felt like a somewhat familiar sensation of relieving oneself. The pressure started to feel like it might dissipate as he felt Gallus exit to almost his tip, then pushed his way back in up to the knot, then back out. Back in, but just a little faster this time. As the griffon's pace increased, Sandbar began to softly whimper into the pillow, crescendoing as his knot bumped against his dock. "You good?" Gallus asked as to his partner's whimpers. "Y-Yeah, it's just... So good. Keep going..." Sandbar said, tilting his head to one side to speak clearly. For his part, Gallus leaned over farther, pressing his stomach against Sandbar's backside, sandwiching his tail between the two bodies, and moved his talons up towards the front, grabbing firm hold of Sandbar's front hooves and held him to the bed as he began humping him a little harder. He opened his beak and began to preen the hair on the back of his neck. He couldn't decide what he liked more; how Sandbar was squeezing him as he thrust again and again, or the sounds he was making as he pushed in time and again. Gallus knew he was getting ever closer to release, so he paused for a moment, and intertwined his back legs with Sandbar's, then really stepped up the pace, almost slamming into the pony under him, continuing to preen his hair and occasionally make small nips at his ears. All the while, Sandbar's moaning and cries of pleasure only grew in intensity as he squirmed under the griffon's weight. The last vestiges of Sandbar's thought processes were picking up that Gallus' thrusts were becoming more erratic. It wouldn't be long now. He figured it had been one minute, maybe two. His own stallionhood throbbed with desire, and he began to wonder who would break first. It was only now that he realized he had no idea what a griffon's 'tell' was, when he was about to release. Their tip didn't flare like stallions did. He began to hear guttural growls from Gallus, and with one defining thrust, the griffon's hardest so far, the last of resistance gave way, and the knot popped in, with Sandbar giving a gasp followed by an open mouth, silent scream. Gallus held his front hooves tightly, tensed against his back legs, and got a mouthful of his mane and pulled, hard. What followed wasn't what Sandbar was expecting. It wasn't a spurt, or a glob, or a short shot. No, it was... A stream. As if someone had just barely opened the valve on a hose. Gallus poured into Sandbar's colon, and he quickly felt more full than he had ever felt before. The griffon quivered against him as he emptied himself into the pony's backside. It was a steady stream for perhaps ten seconds, then slowly came to a dripping stop, and Gallus' tense body went limp, almost collapsing on top of Sandbar, but he managed to barely stay up on his back feet as he released his front hooves and mane, and started to catch his breath along with his boyfriend. Sandbar felt Gallus' heart pound against his spine, as well as his stallionhood throb against the bedsheets, having not quite achieved release. He wasn't sure where he felt fullest; where Gallus' knot was slowly shrinking for exit, or the pints of griffon seed he had injected into him. "W... wow." Sandbar finally said, breaking the pattern of heavy breathing. "You're telling me..." Gallus groaned, slowly pulling himself out of Sandbar, and rolling both of them onto their sides, as he brought his talons back to reach around and rub Sandbar's chest as he finished pulling out, his seed beginning to seep out of his plothole. "You weren't kidding about aggressive, I'll give you that." Sandbar said, rubbing his front legs where Gallus had pinned him to the bed. "I warned you. I didn't hurt you, did I?" Gallus asked, concerned. "Would it make you feel better if I told you it was a good hurt?" Sandbar shot back. "I just don't want to leave any marks." "I guess we'll find out in the morning, won't we?" "Heh. Don't worry. Griffons recuperate pretty quickly, but..." Gallus paused, rolling over the rest of the way onto his back, inviting Sandbar over. "I think it's your turn." Author's Note Well, my progress slowed to a crawl the past couple nights (thank you, StarCraft II), so I am going to split this chapter up. Enjoy, and thanks for reading!
Interspecies, Part IISandbar's overwhelming feeling of fullness had started to subside when Gallus had pulled out, and it was further returning to normal as the griffon's deposit had now started to leak out of his backside as he rolled over and sat up as his boyfriend lay on display for him. He hadn't really softened up all that much, his smooth, slightly curved cock still laid erect on his stomach. "Well, are you gonna sit there and admire the view, or are you gonna have some fun?" Gallus asked, sinking his head into the pillow that laid up against the headboard. Sandbar smirked at his presenting lover, leaning down and putting his snout in between the griffon's thighs. "And what if I like a little foreplay?" He asked as he nuzzled Gallus' down-covered balls. "Besides, with how on edge I'm feeling right now, I don't think I'll last half as long as you did once I'm inside, and ponies may take a little bit longer to be ready for another round than griffons do, so yeah, don't mind me for admiring the view." Sandbar replied, sticking his tongue out to lick the griffon's hole. "Ahhh... Should I get the lube?" Gallus asked as Sandbar slowly withdrew his tongue. "Nah," Sandbar began, as he leaned up and straddled the griffon, placing himself directly over his erect shaft. The recently deposited seed continued to seep out of the stallion and drip down around Gallus' balls and pooled around his dock and hole. "I think we've got plenty right here." Gallus' seed, still warm from Sandbar's body heat, continued to seep down. Seemingly satisfied, Sandbar got back to his feet and slid down a foot, gently prodding Gallus' hole with his tip. "You ready?" Sandbar asked, judging that the lubrication was sufficient. "Heh, so 'a little foreplay' is about 15 seconds of licking?" Gallus teased with a smirk, then shortly added, "Yeah, I'm ready. Go for it." It took a little bit of pushing due to his tip already being flared, but once that went in with a soft pop, then it was relatively smooth from there. Gallus concentrated on his breathing as Sandbar slowly inched forward. The griffon's seed was more than sufficient lubrication as the stallion got in all the way up to his medial ring, warning his boyfriend to expect a little pressure. "Heh, didn't feel that nearly as much as your flare." Gallus commented in between his deep breaths. "You doing alright?" Sandbar asked, trying not to focus too hard on just how warm and tight Gallus felt on his shaft. "Definitely a new feeling, but from the look on your face, bet it's ten times better for you." "Y-Yeah. I'm sorry if I don't last long, but I feel like I'm right on the edge." "Hey, don't worry about it." Gallus began, running a single claw behind Sandbar's left ear. "You do you. If anything, I take that as a compliment." Sandbar nodded, took a deep breath, went in an inch deeper past his ring, slowly pulled out, and thrust back in. He waited a few seconds, taking a deep breath, before repeating the motion. "Ah... Ah... You like it nice and slow?" Gallus commented on the pony's slow rhythmical thrusts. "Nah... Just trying to keep myself from going over. If I go any faster, this'll be over in a matter of seconds. You feel amazing, Gal." "Gal... I like the sound of that." Gallus replied with a snicker. With a shudder, Sandbar started to pick up the pace just slightly. Gallus took the opportunity to bring his rear lion legs up and wrap them around the pony's flanks, and hooked his talons around the back of his neck. "Come on, Sandbar. Give me that pony spunk." Gallus told him. Sandbar couldn't refuse the griffon beneath him, and as he increased his pace, his breathing quickened, and Gallus' hold on him only tightened. The length of his thrusts decreased as his tempo got even faster. "Gal... Gallus... Gallus!" Sandbar exclaimed through gritted teeth, bottoming out in him and held himself there. Gallus felt the first glob shoot up inside him, followed by a second and third as he held Sandbar's neck to his chest. The stallion's tense body quivered as he emptied himself into the griffon over the course of ten seconds. When the final drops slipped out, Sandbar went limp, collapsing onto Gallus' chest and belly as he caught his breath. Gallus took the opportunity to start preening his boyfriend's mane, feeding it through the two halves of his beak. "I'm guessing by that throbbing rod I'm feeling on my stomach, that you're ready for more." Sandbar said as he gently and slowly pulled out of the griffon laying under him. "Only if you are, I think that took a bit more out of you than it did me." "Well, I was thinking the other end. I've been wanting to get a taste of you." Sandbar said, pushing Gallus further up towards the head of the bed while slinking down to his nether regions. The griffon's shaft already smelled heavily of spunk and sweat, and that only enticed the lust-driven pony more. He pressed his tongue to the base, and slowly licked up. He got his upper jaw around the tip and pulled it off Gallus' belly, and into his mouth proper. Gallus sunk his head into the pillow as he took in this new sensation. It was nowhere near as tight and snug as his other side was, but by Grover's beard, that tongue was working wonders. Hearing Sandbar suck and slurp was just as good as hearing him whimper when he was getting rutted just a few minutes ago. After a few moments of trial and error, Sandbar opened his mouth wide while keeping his lips sealed around the shaft, and took as much of it in as he could, feeling the tip in the back of his throat, holding it there for a moment before pulling off. Seemingly satisfied, he got a hold of Gallus' hips and rolled the two of them over, reversing their positions. Now under the griffon, Sandbar gave him an unmistakable look as the griffon looked down at him curiously. A look that only said one thing. 'Fuck this side just like you did the other one.' Gallus didn't have to work as hard to get lined up this time, because Sandbar's open mouth and tongue were proving to be the perfect guides. As soon as he slid inside, Sandbar tightened his lips around the edges and began to suck and lick in earnest. As Sandbar had no interest in any temporary transformation powers, and no interest in a pony, Gallus felt a pang of regret in not being able to repay him in a similar way, especially since it felt so fucking good. His muffled lustful moans were driving him to the edge, and quickly. "D-Don't think I'm gonna be able to hold back for as long this time, where do you want it?" Gallus asked as he continued to thrust back towards his throat. Without taking anything out of his mouth, Sandbar's answer was to lean his head up, almost gagging on Gallus' tip, and only increased his sucking. The pressure built up to intolerable levels, and the griffon jerked forward as another load of his seed flowed from the tip. Sandbar swallowed as much as he could in one gulp, but the need to breathe overtook his desire for a second helping, so he dropped his head back down to the sheets, freeing the shaft from his mouth, and the result was his chin, neck, and chest getting coated with Gallus' warm white cum. What didn't stick to his coat dripped down to the sheets as Gallus rolled off to the side and laid next to him once he had finished, a little more weary than last time. "Whew... That tongue of yours, Sandbar..." Gallus said, looking over to him. Sandbar blushed at the compliment. "Well, no getting around it now. We're definitely gonna have to see how good that shower is in the morning." The stallion replied. "Definitely looking forward to it. But for now..." Gallus paused, taking hold of Sandbar's semi-erect cock in his left talon. "Ready for round four?" "So what's going on now, Miss Yak-Ears-Are-Best-Ears?" Smolder whispered, crouching directly next to Yona in the dimly lit hallway, whose right ear and braid was pressed firmly against the closed bedroom door, as the other three got as close as they could. "Yona not sure. Something about 'round four'." Author's Note Again, sorry for the delay. My urge to write was sapped this week then came rushing back this weekend.
The Morning AfterThe first thing that Sandbar noticed as he returned to the woken world wasn't the 11AM sunlight through the window, or the damp, sticky bedsheets. It was the smell. "Morning, Sandbar." Gallus greeted, waking up next to him, stretching his wings. "Yeah, barely." Sandbar replied, glancing at the clock on the nightstand. The two of them rolled out of bed and immediately made their way to the bathroom. They started the shower head and immediately got in once the water had gotten to an acceptable temperature. "Your front half is so scrawny when you're wet." Sandbar told Gallus, snickering as the griffon lathered up. "Yeah? Well, your wet mane is enough for you to pass as a mare." Gallus shot back. Only when they stepped out of the shower, dried off, and stepped out of the bathroom, did they realize what kind of a scent they had left lingering in the bedroom overnight. "You know, unless you had something very pressing to attend to after waking up, I've got something in mind to start our day." Sandbar said, hanging his towel back on the rack before shutting off the bathroom light. "Oh? Do tell." Gallus said, excitement climbing in his voice. After a satisfying brunch in the dining room with her brother and sister-in-law, Twilight figured it would be a good idea to go check on her other guests that had no doubt stayed the night. The Princess of Friendship made her way down the east wing to the guest suite, walking up to the door and knocked. After waiting a few moments with no reply or noise whatsoever from the other side of the door, she tried the doorknob and found it unlocked. The guest room was empty, and curiously enough, the bedding was missing. The sheets, comforter, pillowcases... The queen-sized bed was nothing but plain white. "Huh. Did Spike get started early today?" "No, your highness. Your two guests from the school asked me for directions to the laundry room." Commander Thunderlane answered in passing, briefly startling the princess. "Oh! Uh, thank you, Thunderlane. Really? They know laundry service is complimentary, right?" Twilight asked her third-in-command EUP officer. "I informed them of that very thing, but they were quite insistent." The princess nodded at the commander, and he was on his way, as Twilight shut the bedroom door and made her way further down the east wing to the laundry room. Indeed, the door was open and she could hear one of the washers going from several doors down. She trotted up to the open doorway and saw Sandbar, Gallus, and Spike sitting around one of the empty folding tables, their snouts in comic books. "Good morning, barely," Twilight greeted, as the three of them looked up from their reading material. "Morning, Headmare Twilight. I hope we aren't overstaying our welcome." Sandbar replied. "Not at all. I just didn't expect to find you in here, of all places." "Well, we decided that we wouldn't be good guests if we left the bedding in the condition that we... Uh, left it in." Gallus told her, tinting at the cheeks. "I appreciate the sentiment, you two, and I certainly don't need any more details than that. As long as you had a good time, that's all I need to know." "We absolutely did," Sandbar began. "We learned something new about ourselves, and each other." "That's great. And if you're kind, loyal, generous, and honest with each other, then there's no limit to where your relationship can go." "Thank you, Your Highness. Could you perhaps tell us what Princess Cadance's favorite flower is? We'd like to give her something in appreciation as well." Gallus added. "Hm. I believe pink roses have always been a favorite of hers. With that, I'm afraid I have quite a few things to take care of today, so you three have fun!" Twilight said, bidding them farewell before leaving the laundry room. "So what do you two think you're going to do when school's done? Do you think it's that strong, and will last that long?" Spike asked them as he returned to his comic book of choice. Sandbar and Gallus looked at each other. "Well, Sandbar, if it's all the same to you, I don't see myself returning to Griffonstone." Gallus told his boyfriend. "Really?" "Yeah. I mean, I want to be around creatures who will be happy for us. I don't have anyone there, except maybe Grandpa Gruff, and I doubt he'd be thrilled for us. Despite Gilda's and Gabby's best efforts, it's the aspiration of any Griffonstone citizen to get out of the city, to say nothing of the rest of the Griffon lands. I'd rather stay with you in Ponyville. The best things in my life have happened here. You most recently." "Well, if it's alright with you, I'd like to at least visit it sometime with you. I think we should at least give it a try. That's what you and I did this weekend, and look how it turned out." Sandbar encouraged. "Yeah, I guess you're right." To: Guidance Counselor Starlight Glimmer From the desk of Headmare Twilight Sparkle Starlight, Just what did you think I meant when I said 'Please soundproof the East Wing guest suite'? Because I've got four students pestering me about how many 'rounds' are in pony and griffon mating rituals. Care to explain? Sincerely, Headmare Twilight Sparkle Dear Twilight, As you know, soundproofing spells can be somewhat complicated. I believe the spell I cast was effective to equine ears, but I can't say the same for dragons, yaks, hippogriffs, or changelings. Perhaps you want to start pointing hooves at your E.U.P. night patrols? For what it's worth, apologies for the misunderstanding. Sincerely, Guidance Counselor Starlight Glimmer Dear Starlight, Oh no need to apologize. I redirected their questions to you. They'll be in your office first thing Monday morning. Good luck. Sincerely, Twilight To: Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist From the desk of Princess Twilight Sparkle Major Fizzlepop, Do you care to explain how four of my students got past your night patrols to eavesdrop on what was supposed to be a private and isolated night for two other students? I almost choked on my coffee this morning. Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle Dear Princess Twilight, I believe you told me to expect guests from your school and to show them to said guest suite in the east wing of the castle. You didn't tell me how many guests. Sincerely, Major Fizzlepop Berrytwist Author's Note Disclaimer: Red Dead Redemption 2 assumes no responsibility for the delay of fan fiction chapters. Please consume responsibly.
Epilogue: MondayStarlight Glimmer sat at her desk in her office as the clock struck eight in the morning. A total of five cups on her desk, one for her, and four for the creatures she would soon be seeing. A single sheet of parchment rested next to her cup, containing the very few talking points she could will herself to write down last night. Right on cue, there was a knock at her office door. She turned to the thermal pitcher full of steaming hot cocoa, and poured four cups before dropping a marshmallow into each. Then, knowing she would need a little extra empathy this morning, she opened her bottom desk drawer. Inside, tucked behind a few file folders, was a glass bottle of some of Sweet Apple Acres' finest and hardest cider. She filled her mug halfway before returning it to its place in the drawer and announcing "Come on in." The doorknob turned and in filed Yona, Smolder, Ocellus, and Silverstream, and took their seats at the long sofa she had placed on the other side of her desk before taking each of their cocoas. "Alright," Starlight began after taking a deep breath. "First things first; why it's wrong to eavesdrop on very personal and private moments of close friends..." Author's Note Hope you all enjoyed this story of mine. Now I've got a late 1800's American West to get back to.
