The Heart of Pleasure
By Haunter Rayne
Chapter 127 - What Patience Blossoms

“Good day to you princess.” It was midafternoon in one of Equestria’s endless rolling fields where the two of them stood a few miles off the edge of Ponyville.

“Mmm, yes. It tis a good ‘day’ indeed, seeing as you absolutely forbade me from coming to see you any earlier this morning, my sweet.” The tall slender mare replied while raising a hoof and glancing up toward the warm sun that was shining down upon the meadow around them.

With a chuckle, Rayne stepped up to Luna to take her by the hoof. “And as I already explained, I will have no part in depriving you of sleep when there is absolutely no reason to do so. I have already inconvenienced you enough to wake even this early just to entertain this foolhardy stallion’s requests.” But before he could go on, Luna took him by surprise, shutting him up with a kiss. She giggled as he jumped until they both settled into embracing one another.

Today there was no coy hesitation or shy romantic banter. After raising her arms up around the stallion's neck, Luna pulled him straight off his hooves for the two of them to fall upon the grass together. Once on the grass, her eager dark lips pressed tightly on her boyfriend’s as the princess of the night decidedly began a new pastime she enjoyed.

Choosing not to spoil this moment with words, Rayne closed his eyes, kissing her back while slipping his hooves into her mane. He enjoyed the little moan she gave as he caressed her scalp, gently cradling her head to pull her even deeper into their kiss.

“This is a dream… this is too perfect to be a dream.” Rayne thought to himself as he lay on his back with the alicorn princess laying half on top of him. The gentle breeze from the meadow swept over them as they lay together, causing them both to giggle as they each readjusted their manes. And then like magnets irresistibly drawn toward one another, the two of them returned to their passionate making-out again.

“Mmm… not that I’m complaining… but what’s gotten into you today?” Rayne asked with a gushing smile through the infrequent gaps in their lips.

“I am… kissing… my boyfriend…” She mumbled back while keeping her lips pressed close. Luna’s eyes were only half-lidded and the mare didn’t seem to mind her mane falling down the side. “Isn’t that okay?” She asked as she bit her bottom lip and squirmed in place impatiently.

Not wanting to leave the yearning mare waiting, Rayne leaned forward to where Luna was happy to throw her arms around him and resume their kissing once again. Meanwhile, the stallion was just as enamored as his mind raced while his lips worked to keep up with her pace. “Kissing Luna feels so different from any other mare...” Rayne thought to himself. “Her soft dark lips are so full and gentle all at the same time. She’s so much taller than any other mare… but even that's wonderful too.”

Luna had begun kissing Rayne almost dominantly now, towering over him while pressing their lips together with fervor. Lacking the experience to mitigate her excitement with her actions, she held on tightly to his face with both hooves from where she was nearly straddling the stallion. Rayne, however, felt no shame in allowing the mare to take control while she explored these feelings and sensations which were new to her.

Testing the waters of her excitement, Rayne pushed his tongue to Luna's and was rewarded by the mare happily following suit. Then while breathing in the scent of her mane and tasting the deepest splendor of her kiss, Rayne's thoughts reeled in his mind in delight. “Ooh, she always smells so good. But more than that. Luna is everything I thought she would be.” He thought to himself while they continued their embrace. “She’s passionate, putting so much emphasis into every kiss. Even now she doesn’t hold anything back while being so completely into this...”

“Oww!” Luna yelped as she pulled back from him while holding a hoof to her mouth. “Rayne… you bit me.” She explained lightly while feeling her bottom lip with her tongue.

Having snapped out of his enamored daze, Rayne lifted his hooves as he apologized quickly. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I was just enjoying myself so much that I guess I got carried away.”

“No, it’s alright.” She responded almost too quickly. “I… I think I liked it.” She said with a smile as she chuckled to him bashfully. “Would you… do that again?”

As Luna lay on the grass in front of him, Rayne could see her chest rising and falling from her breathing. He thought he could almost hear the sound of her heart racing; and the princess was looking adventurous, if not daring, as she stared at him with excitement. And when he did indeed return his lips to hers and sensually bite his teeth down upon her bottom lip, he could feel her thighs clench.

Luna’s spirit seemed to be on fire as Rayne pulled his lips away and then began trailing kisses along the base of her neck. “Rayne… this excitement, this fluttering that I have through every nerve of my body!" She whispered to him breathlessly. "What else is there that you will bring me to feel? What else have I missed out on; living a life devoid of romantic love? I don't know the answers to these questions but," she began while guiding his face back up to look at her. "But you do... Please, will you show me? Will you take me by the hoof and guide this mare and show me all that our love for each other could be?"

Slowly tracing his tongue below the underside of her neck, Luna’s hooves held onto Rayne as if she could not get enough. And as she gave a seductive giggle in response to his lips sucking upon the base of her ear before nipping it with his teeth, Rayne's excitement for her only grew.

However, after reaching up to pull his face back into a deep longing kiss, Luna leaned back with a smile as she lay there in the grass beside him. “My handsome, wonderful boyfriend (special somepony).” She mused aloud in front of him. The mare was looking positively radiant and she was feeling the same as well. “Rayne, I want you to know just how very happy I am to be with you. Thou art kind, and treat me like no other hath before you. I am almost bashful to say how indulgent you make me as well.” She sighed while biting her bottom lip and holding herself back from another makeout session.

Rayne was actually blushing when he replied, “Luna, I hope that you’ll forgive me for becoming speechless after that breathtaking confession from you?” He asked her, which only seemed to increase her radiant glow.

Then a nervous expression seemed to overtake her and Luna anxiously brushed her mane back behind her ear. “Rayne, I… You and I, I mean we… Well, we are together now. What I mean is, I love you and you love me, and we have certainly passed the early courtship stages of our ‘dating’ as they call it. So when it comes to flirting between us, I feel like that…” The princess awkwardly tried to say, clearly braving beyond what was comfortable for her. “For example, it occurs to me that you may not have noticed yet but I want to reassure you that I am not in any way offended by it-”

Rayne could almost feel the blood drain out of his face in embarrassment after she gestured downward and he finally noticed that his entire length had come out of his sheath with his full-bodied erection pointing directly at her.

Rayne’s hooves jumped in an attempt to cover what would have been impossible to hide at this point and yet Luna seemed almost too ready to stop him as she spoke up with a reassuring smile. “Darling…! As I have already said, my love… It doth not bother me… not from my stallion, who is my partner, who I hath already surrendered my heart to.” She told him with a warm and flirtatious gaze in her eyes. “You are my boyfriend, Rayne. And in time, that will lead us to certain things.” At that moment, Luna seemed to put her playful flirtations aside and took hold of Rayne’s hooves to look at him seriously. “But I do not want for my lover to be burdened with thinking he shares in such excitement alone. I want our relationship to be a healthy one, where we may share in our feelings as well as our desires equally and honestly with one another.” Her smile was warm and heartfelt as she hoped she had gotten her message across.

“What are you saying?” He asked her, which immediately caused Luna to frown and nicker in frustration.

Taking a deep breath and patting her cheeks, she said aloud to herself, "Come now, Luna. Thou cannot expect to rely on him to bridge every gap in this relationship. Now take a chance." Then after that mini pep talk, she looked at him sternly and asked, “Rayne, if I were to give you an inch… would you be the type to take advantage for more than what was given?” She asked, to which he immediately shook his head. “Very well… Then, in that case, I would invite you to please look behind me.” She very slowly instructed him while shifting her weight on her hind end uncomfortably. Rayne didn’t need to be told that she didn’t want to have to say the exact words, and as he scooted over behind her, she simply stared ahead with nervous determination into the distance.

Rayne watched as Luna slowly lifted her tail and what he saw nearly took his breath away. He was genuinely surprised to find the fur between her legs so glisteningly wet that it almost shimmered in the light. The parted folds of her vulva were puffy and swollen, showing that her loins were engorged with arousal as her hips bucked unintentionally in response to being looked at. The muscles within clenched as they dropped and Rayne thought he could almost see her clitoris poking out as if she had secretly been screaming to herself with desire for him to take her all along.

All at once, Luna’s tail clamped back down to cover her modesty and the princess shut her thighs together tightly. But the look in her eyes was calm and warm as Rayne’s front hooves crawled forward to bring her closer to him again. “When I say that I am not ready to sleep with you yet, I want it to be understood that the only thing that frightens me is just how comfortable I am with actually moving forward with you… and so quickly.”

“Oh, is that so?” Rayne asked while reaching out to gently caress her cheek with his hoof.

Pushing past his hoof, Luna leaned her face down to rest against his chest. But then craning her neck up to look at him while he held her, she asked him, “What would you have me say to you, Rayne? I may be a princess, but I am still just a mare. You come into my life… looking so handsome, and yes Rayne, I find you to be very, very sexy. You stormed the gates of my world while being spontaneous and mysterious… and yet for all your boldness, you can be so gentle, almost beyond that of anypony I have ever seen. Tis no surprise for me to have fallen for you. Looking back, I cannot even see myself having resisted you. But thou my mind may be wise to tell me not to fall for a storybook romance… How is my heart honestly supposed to feel anything but defeated while under your beautiful blue eyes? You aren’t fair Rayne, making a mare question what choice she has when you leave a girl to feel so defenseless.”

“I am not perfect, Luna,” Rayne stated but without remorse, more trying to rescue Luna from herself as he offered a reassuring gaze.

Sitting up now and wanting to face this particular point head-on, she told him, “No, I realize that. And I admit that a good deal of your possible imperfections could actually be demons of my own making. You have shown me devotion and understanding, while I have met you with impatience and scrutiny. I feel that I have done terrible things to you, Rayne, for which you have subjected me to absolutely no recourse, even when I have deserved it.” Hastily reaching down, she took hold of one of his hooves and held it tightly between both of her own. “I am happy, and I want this. I want what you offer so badly that it frightens me. But I will not hold back. If you will be patient for me to learn what it means to be the kind of girlfriend that you deserve, then I promise that this mare already sees you as a better boyfriend than I could have ever hoped to ask for. I love you, Rayne.” She whispered in a haughty tone as leaned against him again.

Holding her close with her face over his shoulder, the stallion whispered back, “I love you too, Luna. I love you so much. And I want you to know that I have no desire to punish you for mistakes you are already sorry for. We are both learning as we go. And should I ever be the one to mess up then I can only hope you would be as understanding with me as I have been with you. We will figure this whole thing out together and if we can just trust one another then I have no doubt we can be happy… even despite whatever trouble we may undoubtedly cause for one another.” He laughed, but then gasped as she actually squealed and then tackled him down to his back, kissing him even harder on the lips than she had before.

• -

Once the two had finally released from their lip-locked embrace, they began walking together side by side as Rayne slowly guided them over top of a small hill. “Well, I suppose I did need to allow for our actual ‘date’ eventually,” Luna replied in conversation with him as they snickered together like lovestruck foals. But as their hooves peaked the hill and their view crested over the horizon, Rayne simply stood back and watched as wonder slowly spread across the alicorn's face.

Merely a few paces down from the hill sat a small quiet-looking grove. However, as Luna gazed upon it she quickly noticed that the treeline was only the framework for one of the most beautiful gardens she had ever laid eyes on. Plum trees, pear trees, apple trees, and evergreens were all stretching high up from the ground. Bushels and vines consisting of grapes, blackberries, blueberries, and tomatoes were arranged like veins coursing through the beauty of the garden. And flowers shining in the sunlight-filled in almost every corner of the space below as they reflected back into the princess’s eyes. “Rayne!” Luna shouted at him in disbelief before turning back towards the garden in surprise. “What is all this?!” She gushed as she rushed ahead to explore what seemed like a menagerie of nature’s beauty all around her.

Everywhere Luna looked there were vibrant rings of color coursed along framing orchards, vineyards, and flower farms alike. Luna felt as if she were walking through a painting, and as she closed her eyes, she drew in a heavy breath to be treated to a succulent aroma that almost made her hooves feel weak.

“If I may?” The snickering stallion asked, as she stood reaching for her hoof and gesturing towards a little path through the greenery.

Pausing to give a curtsy, Luna extended her hoof while Rayne, in turn, took it with a gentlemanly bow. Then he slowly escorted her down the path as Luna’s cheeks became as red as the roses they passed by together. “Oh, it's a jolly holiday, with Luna.” The stallion sang to her jovially. “Luna makes your heart so light. When the day is dull and ordinary, even in the sun she shines bright!” He sang with a wink.

Luna scoffed bashfully saying, “Rayne, please. You’re simply too much.” She giggled as they walked along together.

Gesturing to the sea of vibrant flowers before them, Rayne sang on, “Oh, happiness is blooming all around her. The daffodils are smiling up above.” He pointed out as they stepped under a floral decorated archway. Twirling her around in front of him, he sang, “When Luna holds your hoof, you feel so grand. Your heart starts beating like a big brass band.” He was glad to see her chuckle at the thought as he then pulled her in close to whisper, “It's a jolly holiday with Luna, no wonder that it's Luna that I love.” He ended while placing his forehead gently along with hers.

“My word, Rayne. What is all this?” She gasped out again while having her breath taken by the beauty of the grove around her. “Not even the gardens at the castle can hold a candle to all of this.” However, as they came to a small clearing near the center of the garden, Luna bashfully laughed again as her date danced with her through the grass and in between the flowers together. Although after about their second twirl in dancing together, Luna placed a hoof on Rayne’s shoulder to steady him as her own voice rang out serenely, “Oh, it's a jolly holiday with you, Rayne. Gentle-stallion like you are few. Though you're just a diamond in the rough, Rayne. I can tell that your heart is true!” Rayne beamed, loving the sound of her voice as he sat them down while she continued. “You never think of pressing our advantage. Forbearance is the hallmark of your creed. A lady needn't fear when you are near. Your sweet gentility is crystal clear.” She sang while batting her eyes at him. “Oh, it's a jolly holiday with you, Rayne. It’s no wonder that it’s Rayne that I love.” She ended with a smile that made her look just as smitten as he was feeling at that moment.

“Beautiful, just beautiful.” Rayne applauded as they now settled in on the soft ground together.

“Oh, why thank you, but I hardly feel it appropriate to be the focus of such praise while sitting within such an exquisite garden. Now, I demand to know what this place is, this instant.” She insisted but the smile on her face showed that she was merely wonderstruck and far from being adamant.

“Oh, just a little bit of dabbling. When all the pressures of the day build up and get to me, I find it relaxing to come here in the evenings and do a bit of night gardening. But really, I can’t take all the credit. With the help of the bees and other local residents, this place practically grows itself.” He explained, while scowling off into the distance to where a series of obsidian eyes hidden beneath the flower petals disappeared back out of view.

The enchanted look in Luna’s eyes slowly faded and she began with a scoff. “All this? Why, this is a far cry beyond a bit of dabbling, Rayne. I, wait a minute…” She trailed off while taking a closer look around. “Avocado trees off in the distance… strawberries, and blueberries… Rayne!” She turned to him as she shouted. “THIS?! This is it, isn’t it? Where you acquired the ingredients for our picnic date that day?”

Rayne just used his magic to pick and levitate a strawberry over, fresh from the vine. Then once Luna took the crimson berry into her hoof and took a bite, the expression on her face melted once again as that same familiar deliciousness from her memory washed over her tongue. “That’s right, it is,” Rayne told her. “And I’m glad to see my efforts are still to your approval.”

Giving him a sarcastic glance, Luna levitated over a few more of the fruits and berries that were around her. “Rayne… I should probably chastise you at some point for all of your slyness. However, you are fortunate that at least up to this point your smoothness has won out.” She warned him playfully as the two began to snack together with something new and tasty to try in every direction they could turn.

• SomeTime Later -

“Oh, so that's how you did it,” Luna exclaimed as she leaned back with Rayne beneath a large pecan tree. “You have been doing odd jobs on farms all across Equestria, and instead of asking to be paid in bits, the only compensation you’ve been taking is a small sampling of their crop to add here to this garden.” She said in review of what he had more or less just told her. “So, that apple tree there in the distance was from Applejack’s family farm?”

“Well, it was a smaller sapling when she gave it to me… but yes. And since then it’s really grown. Same goes for the flowers and everything else that you see here. In fact, the only trees you see that were originally here were the evergreens.” He explained to her.

Turning on her side to face him, she teased, “Well I’m glad to see that romancing me is not the only thing you work so hard at. It would seem you put incredible passion into everything you do, Rayne.” Then she stretched out a hoof wanting to hold on to him as she stated, “Thank you for inviting me to some place so special. I understand now why you were in such a hurry to bring me here before all of this becomes covered in snow.”

Rayne looked up from where he had taken hold of her hoof within his own. “Thank you for being so understanding. This place really deserved the chance to be appreciated before it is tarnished all over again.” He said, causing Luna to look up after noticing the faraway tone in his voice which she found odd since she had always known him to be so incredibly focused.

“Oh? Did something happen here at one point?” She asked while tossing another blueberry into her mouth and then sitting up to listen to him with her full attention.

Seeming to snap out of some unknown memory, he overcompensated by massaging along her hoof he was holding. Rayne waved at the air bashfully as he confessed, “Oh well it’s nothing really. It’s just that I kinda accidentally destroyed the place during the first time I visited here.”

“You what?!” Luna exclaimed as that was the last thing she would have expected him to say.

“Oh, well… maybe it’s not as bad as it sounds, and maybe it is.” Rayne tried to explain. “You see, it was some time ago after I had a misunderstanding with one of my friends from Ponyville. I acted one way, they believed it to be something else, and it ended up turning into a very frustrating situation for us both. I decided the best thing to do at the time was to get a little distance from things, so I set off in a random direction and decided to just go for a run.”

“Uh huh…” Luna nodded, very much enjoying her impromptu hoof massage while still listening intently.

“Well I ran, and I ran, and I didn’t stop to think about much else. I was in a very emotional state at the time and I guess I sort of lost it. Now I’m not proud of what I did and I certainly don’t want to give my girlfriend any impression that I have a dangerous anger problem or anything. But I was so pent up that I needed to explode, in a sense. I lost control of my magic, and over where you see all of those trees, I ended up annihilating the entire area in an explosion."

Luna was looking at Rayne intently. However, the mare was currently less concerned about the deeds of his past and more preoccupied with how the stallion frowned and seemed to be staring off a million miles away. “He’s…. still angry about it?” She thought to herself as she watched him scowl and noticed how much his body posture had tensed up. And as intriguing as it was to see this rare glimpse at another side of him, Rayne's face was marred with discontentment while his eyes looked heavy with guilt and Luna did not like it.

The distracted stallion gasped in surprise when a warm body softly collided against his chest and comforting arms were then wrapped around him. One moment he had been thoroughly lost in memory, and the next thing he knew, Luna had sat up, leaned all the way forward, and was now kissing delicately across his cheek and face.

“Rayne, come back to me…” She whispered matronly and sweet as she planted more soft kisses against his cheek. Once he gave in, she wrapped her arms tighter around him and tugged the stallion forward, laying him back over her lap as she then began stroking his mane. “From now on, come to me next time… is that clear?” She whispered just beside his ear.

“Come to you?” Rayne asked, looking up from within her arms. “Come to you for what?”

“Well, for anything…” She replied while giving him a gentle caress with her snout. Luna continued to hold Rayne in her arms as she whispered to him serenely. “If you are ever again so frustrated or angry… or if you are scared, or just need to know that somepony is in your corner, then come and confide in me. I would support you, Rayne." She told him while closing her eyes and resting their snouts together. "I promise that my love for you is not only skin deep. The ways in which you have touched my heart… I would never hesitate to do the same for you.” She told him. Then, glancing downward as if distracted for a moment, she nodded to herself as if making up her mind about something. “I want to be able to give you that. I want to be able to give you… everything, Rayne.”

“Everything?” He asked her in surprise, opening up his eyes and looking back at her. But as he felt uncertainty, Rayne only saw conviction when he looked back at the mare.

With a nod, she repeated, “Yes, everything.” At that moment, he felt her hooves pulling him in closer to her. “I’m not afraid anymore, Rayne.” She whispered in a husky tone and then closed her eyes to kiss him while he raised himself up to meet her.

There was nothing else left to say as the princess lay down upon the grass on her back and spread her knees apart. Rayne kissed her from her mouth to her cheek and then to her jaw, and she kissed him back as if hanging from his every touch. Her hooves held tightly around his back as Luna could feel him growing firm in between their bodies once again. And Rayne gave a pleasured snort of surprise after feeling Luna reach down to stroke his length with a hoof.

“I’m your mare, Rayne,” Luna said to him devotedly as she slowly began to turn herself over. Rayne lifted up to allow her space to maneuver and watched as the princess turned herself face down with her hips raised to present her body in a traditional mounting position. “I love you, Rayne" was all she said to him as she closed her eyes and waited to feel him take position behind her.

Rayne took his time as he slowly slid his hooves down her back. Massaging along her spine and then using both hooves to cradle each side of her hips, he wanted to make sure she was feeling comfortable. The effort seemed to be appreciated as Luna’s lips parted and released a pleasured gasp from the touch. Slowly caressing his hooves over Luna's raised end, the stallion took his first real grasp of her rear and groaned in delight at how good it felt to grab into.

The mare giggled and started to blush as his lips came down to start giving suckling kisses against the fur of her asscheeks. Squirming lightly as if it were tickling her, Luna covered her face with her hooves as she first snickered and then laughed. “Rayne… stop teasing me. I already told you I’m ready for you. I couldn’t imagine being more turned on than I already am.” She confessed as she gave her hips a little wiggle.

Needing no further encouragement, Rayne mounted upon the mare, placing his hooves at her sides to make sure not to steady his weight against her back. When Rayne’s tip brushed against her thigh, it was as if a shock of electricity suddenly coursed throughout her body. Her bashful smile was replaced by a look of heavy anticipation and she just stared straight ahead with her eyes wide open. She could feel his shaft smearing precum through her fur as it moved up toward the apex of her thighs. And when for the first time in her life she felt a stallion’s tip against her folds, Luna was so transfixed that she was hardly even breathing.

“...ov.. ..u..”

“It feels so hot…” Was all that Luna could think to herself. “Rayne's tip, it’s pressing against me. It feels… like it’s mushing against my skin. Ohhh… why do I have to be so incredibly wet?! I hope he is not repulsed by the sight of me like this. And how is it that he feels so incredibly hard? Is his tool not still made of flesh? Why doth it- EEEYYAAAHH! I feel him pushing me open! Ohhh goodness, his flare is so wide! How will I be able to withstand this?!” Her mind raced while her front hooves were absentmindedly digging into the grass.

“...na…?

“Pr…n….ss?”

After that, there was stillness, and all that pervaded the air was silence. The adrenaline-infused alicorn blinked her eyes several times but all she saw in front of her was grass and dirt. Laying in the throes of an almost enchanted garden, Luna knew this would have been the perfect setting for nearly any mare. But as much as she hated to admit it, the pampered princess was not the outdoorsy type and this just wasn’t comfortable for her. “Wait…” She whispered back over her shoulder.

“Luna, I-” Rayne began but he was cut off.

“Please, you needn’t worry. I am not saying stop, I am merely saying wait.” She reassured him and pulled her hips away before lowering her tail.

With a smile, Rayne raised his hooves up innocently as he said, “Luna, love… I already had. In fact, I had been calling out to you for the better part of a minute.”

‘Wait, what?” She asked as she sat normally now and looked at him in surprise.

“I had said I love you right before I was going to… proceed. But you didn’t respond. And then when I spoke up to you three more times and you didn’t answer, I knew something was off so I pulled myself back.”

“Noooooooo! I didn’t!” Luna exclaimed while bringing a hoof up to cover her mouth.

Chuckling lightly, Rayne just nodded and said, “Yeah, you did.”

“But noooo! This moment hath meant so much to me! And not only for me, I wanted for it to be amazing to you too! Please do not say I have ruined what we've led up to!” She pleaded desperately while reaching out to him.

However, ever the hero, Rayne was able to calm her just by taking hold of her hooves and saying, “You are the most wondrous pony in all of Equestria to me. Nothing is ruined, my love.”

Smiling gratefully at him, she quickly responded, “Okay, well then good. But Rayne, please listen to me. I do want this… I AM ready, but I just don’t want it to be… like this." She stated as she gestured around her. "This garden is absolutely set for a romantic atmosphere, don’t get me wrong. But out here? On the grass? In the dirt? And please don’t make this into a joke about me being a princess. I just-”

However, Luna had said enough and Rayne leaned forward to gently place a hoof over her lips with a smile. “Just tell me what would make you comfortable.”

Feeling appreciative for him stopping her, she smiled at him in relief and told him, “Come to the castle tonight. You will be allowed directly to my chambers, I will make sure of it. Just give me a few hours to prepare.” She asked him and he nodded.

Once he had, Luna rose up to her hooves but the anxious mare had almost forgotten to kiss her boyfriend goodbye before making the very obvious attempt to leave. “Oops, hehe. It would seem that a stallion gives a lady something wonderful to look forward to.” She excused, before stepping up to him to give him a deep longing kiss.

“'Wonderful', I have no doubt, will be the perfect word to describe how later tonight shall go.” He responded, keeping his words candid and knowing that if a lady wanted to take her time to prepare then it was almost always worth it, in the end, to let her go. “Go on and do what you need to. I’ll see you tonight, say about eight, or maybe nine?” He offered, trying to be generous for her benefit.

“Hmm, ten maybe?” She responded, but the surprised look in his eyes made Luna immediately backtrack. “NINE! No, ahem, I mean nine will be just fine. Nine will be lovely… hehe, love you.” She whispered before suddenly teleporting away.

• Back in Canterlot Castle -

Lounging in the castle garden, Celestia sighed in relief for a brief moment of tranquility that as far as she was concerned were too few and far between. Laying back upon a seat with cucumber slices over both of her eyes, the royal spa pony of Canterlot Castle was delicately filing the princess's hooves for her. “Mmm...so lovely." She mused to herself. However, the castle doors leading to the garden were suddenly thrown open witha crash and loud yelling began to follow immediately. “And that would undoubtedly be my sister.”

“Oh thank goodness! There you are! I am in need of your help immediately.” Luna ranted as she charged forward, almost not even noticing the floral arrangements in the garden anymore after having been treated to what Rayne had grown.

Rolling her eyes from beneath her cucumber slices, Celestia slowly sat up and sassed out, “Sister dear, while you know I am always here to support you, I have to schedule these personal care moments for myself MONTHS in advance. So as long as whatever you need does not require me to leave the company of this delightful mare then I-”

“What are you talking about? I don’t need you! I need YOU!” Then there was a gasp as the baby blue earth pony with a soft pink mane was instantly being dragged away.

“H-hey! Now, WAIT A MINUTE!” Celestia yelled. “You didn’t book an appoint- oh, stop walking… Get Back Here!!!” She screamed but was all but ignored.

“I’m sorry! This is an emergency!” Luna called out behind her before dragging the spa pony to the main hall where they almost collided into another unicorn with a mauve coat and a metallic mane.

“Oh, Princess Luna, there you are. Golden Stitch royal seamstress at your service. I was told that you were asking for me with some urgency?” The somewhat older mare asked while performing a curtsy.

However, Luna had no time for pleasantries. “Yes, I am in dire need of your services in my chambers at once. I suddenly require a new outfit, the likes of which I hath never needed before.”

Smiling kindly, the mare stood up to say, “Oh how marvelous. It has been too long since I’ve gotten to design something for you, Princess. And for what sort of affair is this outfit to be? Formal, informal, diplomatic?” She asked with a cheery disposition.

Luna looked around before lowering her voice and the spa pony behind her blushed with embarrassment as she overheard the princess say, “Intimate…”

“Oh, I see. Well, there is nothing wrong with that. I’m sure I can create something for you that will even light the candles in the room as you walk by.” Golden Stitch remarked with a smile to imply that working with delicates was well within her abilities. “And when are you looking to don said attire for your assumedly romantic evening?”

That was when Luna nervously squirmed and replied, “In about four hours from now.”

The seamstress seemed startled and attempted to protest. “Princess! I’m sorry but in such little time-”

However, Luna was adamant as she interrupted the other mare by saying, “And it must, be, perfect. Not a single strand of loose fabric out of place. Do I make myself clear?” She demanded, becoming serious and the seamstress could see the spa pony behind the princess nodding furiously for her not to argue and to just agree.

“Y-yes, princess. Right away. I shall gather my supplies and meet you in your chambers.” Golden Snitch responded and then watched as the princess rushed ahead with the spa pony being almost ragdolled as she was dragged along close behind.

Author's Note

So I am overjoyed to bring you yet another chapter and things are definitely heating up between Luna and Rayne. His efforts to make sure she feels comfortable with him have definitely paid off and you can expect that the next chapter will be quite the rush for them both.

Now for those who might have recognized the reference, I paraphrased just a section of the song "Jolly Holiday" from the 1964 movie Mary Poppins. I didn't feel it necessary to indent for a full song or include a link because the actual song is almost six minutes and I only used a tiny portion of it.

As for Rayne's garden though, this is where a HUGE amount of hidden details all come together for the story. The foreshadowing began back on chapter 90 when Rayne was shown interacting with mares like Strawberry Surprise her other friends. However, it wasn't until chapter 92 when Rayne interacts with Fluttershy in the form of a panther that his garden plan really came together. In an effort to escape having sex with the yellow pegasi, he goes for a run until deciding to yell for Discord while destroying a grove of trees with his magic.

Well, it's that same grove which Rayne later returned to and despite Discord's help with the landscape, the stallion decided to build upon the area as penance for having destroyed the area in the first place. And after visiting just about every farm in Equestria that he could track down, he had quite a bit of supplies to create the magical orchard he now possesses.

Now here's a detail that I hinted at but didn't go too much into detail about. Rayne has collected the magic of many gardening ponies in Equestria. But to at least some extent, his obsidianwolves are able to share in his talent. So they do the bulk of the gardening for him. Since they don't need to eat or sleep, every single tree, shrub, bush, and vine... all the way down to the individual blades of grass are maintained by the shadow hounds. When not serving Rayne, this has become their dedicated home to watch over.

So if you haven't seen them yet, I updated chapters 64 and 89 with another animated video created for me by lithira_opatha from Fiverr. They put a lot of hard work in and it's definitely worth going back to take a look at.