Honour and Glory(hole)

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Sandbar appeared confused. He furled his ears, lifted his foreleg, and his tail did that swishy thing ponies did when they didn't know which way to turn. His lazy eyes darted back and forth, his grin unsure. “You, uh, want to run that by me again, Yona?”

The yak rolled her eyes. Some days, she had no idea how that stallion got through Headmare Pony's Friendship lessons. Then again, this was why she, Smolder, and Ocellus would occasionally yank Sandbar from whatever he was doing to run their homework or projects past him. If he couldn't understand it, perhaps it was too complicated for other ponies. “Yona figure this would happen, so Yona make bullet points, just in case. Sandbar prefer that?”

He nodded. “Please. Because even though you woke me up for this, I can't possibly still be that asleep to hear what you just said.”

Yona turned around and seized the edge of the sheet in her mouth, yanking it off the easel to reveal a propped-up board. Using her hoof as a pointer, Yona proceeded.

“Counsellor Pony tell Yona she have glory inside her,” she recited, pointing to the first line. “With Yona so far?”

Sandbar nodded again, although his tail didn't stop lashing. “With you so far, yes.”

She moved down a line. “Pony also agree with Yona that she make other things and ponies better. Still understand?”

“So far...” He looked uneasy.

Yona tapped the board at the third line. “Therefore, if Yak make things better, and yak have glory inside her, then yak can step into glory hole room, and make it better, give meaning to glory again! It make sense!”

Sandbar stared at her, then at her list, then back at her. “Uhh. Wait, did you learn that reasoning from Professor Dash?”

“Yona realize she only offended because she surprised and disappointed at what she find. If Yona better prepared, she bring yak glory to pony glory hole in her own way. This excellent way to become better yak!” She clapped her hooves together and grinned.

Sandbar hadn't blinked yet. In fact, his eyes got wider. “Umm, and how, exactly, would this make you a better yak, Yona?”

“Yaks smash, right?” she pointed out. “Any creature can get yak to smash stuff by irritating yak. But what if yak face challenge to not smash? Test of willpower to remain still, keep self-control and not smash surroundings when faced with challenge?” Her heart swelled with pride. “Imagine glory yak would gain. Would utterly redeem stupid name for hole!”

Silence filled the room, then Sandbar made for the door. “Too tired for this. I'm getting Ocellus. She can talk sense to you instead.”

“Wait!” Yona yelped. She hopped in front of him. “Yona have plan, what wrong with it?”

“Uh, I don't know, everything?” He pointed at her chart. “For starters, you ... uh ...” Swallowing hard, he got the words out. “Okay, let's ignore the faulty reasoning for the moment. Are you going to just sit in that room, stare at the hole, and not actively smash anything? That's not how any of this works. You actually have to, um, engage with the ponies on the other end.”

“Yona not planning on engagement! Yona not ready for marriage.”

He finally blinked, then moved to go around her. “Right, I'm getting Smolder instead. She can say words I can't. I don't care how late it is.”

Yona tried to block him again. Using her horns counted as cheating, and jabbing her friend would mean apologizing, but she lowered her head anyways. “Sandbar saying there more to this?”

He pulled up, eyeing her horns with an expression that made her heart ache. “Gallus already said things I can't unhear. I don't wanna repeat them to you. Also, this is your dorm room, not mine, and I'd really like to leave now. You need sleep, I really need sleep, and we can go over this in the morning.”

She did her best to make her eyes big and begging. Given she was bovine, she didn't have to force the issue. The watering, however, happened on its own.

“Ohh, no. Not the cow eyes.” Sandbar groaned, threw a foreleg over his face, and half-turned away. “Nonononono. Don't hit me with the big browns, Yona.”

A noise crept up from her throat, a mighty whimper unbidden. Her rump thumped onto the floor, and she leaned closer. “Sandbarrrrrrrrr,” she lowed.

“Stop it,” he urged.

“You no help Yona?” A big tear trickled down her muzzle and she let it go, even though he'd covered his eyes. “Whyyyyy?”

“This is unfair!” His hooves stayed firmly planted, though, and he'd made no move to go around her. “I was sleeping! You dragged me out of bed for this!”

“Just tell Yona what wrong,” she coaxed. She needed to know. Sleep would escape her otherwise. “Then Sandbar go back to bed. Yona, too.”

He peeked at her over his fetlock, then squeezed his eyes shut again, and looked away. “Ugh, fine! Just stop it with the eyes.”

Yona hopped back up, clearing her throat, and brushed her own foreleg over her face to dry her eyes off. “Deal!”

Huffing, Sandbar stepped back and walked a few paces off, muttering and punching himself in the head. He turned back around, his eyes odd. “Uh, okay. You gotta promise me, though, you're not going to get mad and smash something, especially me.”

“Yak promise!” Yona spat on her hoof and held it out.

Sandbar winced, but reached out to shake it. “Good.” He hesitated. “Has anypony actually explained what a glory hole is for?”

Yona frowned. “Yona already know it sex thing. Pony stick thing through hole, wave it at Yona.”

A brief grumble rolled through his chest, but Sandbar nodded. “Yeah, that's how it starts. But you're supposed to, um ... suck on his thing, until he's, uh, spent. And it's not just one thing, but whoever's in line after him, as well.”

Silence descended on Yona's dorm room, much like she'd descended on that hay bale earlier.

“You promised, Yona.”

“Yona not smashing anything! Yona thinking!”

“Your thinking stance looks a lot like a smashing stance!” Sandbar hopped onto her bed. Her nice, comfortable pony bed, with a yak pillow as a concession to perfection.

Oh, for all gods in smashed yak pantheon. She narrowed her eyes at him and splayed her forelegs. “No, this smashing stance, unless Sandbar get off Yona's bed. No one allowed on Yona's bed.”

“Make an exception,” he challenged. “Yona, you can forget about this whole mess. Just let it go. Don't do this to yourself.”

“Yona not have choice. This only way through. Yona know friends make 'yak smash' sex jokes behind her back. Yona rather they do it to her face.”

“If you go through with this, that's exactly what will happen to your face,” he countered.

Pawing the floor, she snorted. “Yona expect that double meaning from Gallus, not friend Sandbar. But, Yona also know glory means sacrifice, so might give up mouth for short while.” She paused, considering. “Yona not have to give up tail, too, right?”

Sandbar made a face. “Yona, no, you don't have to do any of that if you don't want to.” He stepped down off her bed and sat beside her. “Why aren't you talking to the girls about this?”

She gestured at him. “Yona deal with pony thing, so best friend to ask is pony.” As he leaned in, she wrapped a foreleg around his shoulders and pulled him against her chest. “Sandbar good pony, care for Yona, but she have goal. Restoring glory worth any price, and Yona pay it!”

He sighed, submitting to her embrace, and almost nuzzling her. “Stubborn yak,” he murmured.

Yona ruffled his mane. “Silly pony,” she said. “Yona appreciate concern, and help. Also apologize for mood swings. She just excited about idea.”

Sandbar made a low noise, nestling in. “I'm not responsible for anything that happens, I want that noted,” he mumbled. “Not gonna help clean up whatever you smash next.”

“Lazy pony, too,” she told him, amused at his noises. “Yona know Sandbar tired. Yak tired, too, but maybe pony help with one more thing before sleep?”

“Lemme guess.” He rested his chin onto her breastbone and gazed up at her, eyes already hooded from her stroking his mane and ears. “I roll over and let you practice?”

“Pony craftier than he let on,” she said. “It okay? Yona need to know she can do this. Could use look at what she getting into. And she know tired pony sleep better afterwards.”

Sandbar sighed again and flicked an ear up at her. “Honestly? Been kinda expecting it since you started grumbling about the whole thing. I mean, didn't really think you'd ask. Figured you'd just slam open the door and bellow 'Yak say pony make thing ready!', and I'd fall out of my bed in fright.” His shoulders moved in a weak shrug. “Glad I was wrong?”

“Close. Was supposed to be 'Yona need better look', but plans change,” she admitted. “Yona could always go to Gallus, if Sandbar want. Griffon know more.”

“Hey, like you said, pony problem means pony friend.” Sandbar nuzzled up against her. “I guess I'm okay with being made an example of. Mmm, too tired to really argue any more.”

“Lazy pony,” Yona repeated, grinning. “Yona not smash if pony want to lie on bed, in this case. Pony need sleep, can relax while Yona explore.”

Sandbar nodded, rolling his head to the side to rub his cheek against her chest. “If you step into that glory hole room, it won't be like this,” he warned, bumping his head into her forelegs. “Nopony to guide you, or tell you to stop. It's way more impersonal, and anonymous.”

“Then why ponies do it?” Yona asked. She squeezed him and he 'oomph'ed. “This way better, close and safe.”

“Dunno. Some like it without anypony seeing them.” Sandbar peeked up at her. “But not me.”

“Yona know,” she agreed, letting him go. “Come, make thing ready.”

He laughed and stumbled towards her bed, whatever energy he'd had during their argument now gone. “Yeah, sure.” Flopping onto it, Sandbar nestled his cheek into the covers. “Mmmm...”

“Pony not make yak do all the work,” she chuckled, even as she pushed at his flank. “Stay awake for first part, if nothing else!”

Sandbar peeked out between his forelegs at her, then groaned and made an effort, rolling over onto his back. “Mmmph. Sorry, Yona. I probably won't remember this tomorrow.”

“That fine,” Yona admitted, rearing up at the foot of the bed. She nudged his thighs, spreading his hind legs open. “Pony will owe Yona favour.”

He squinted down at her, “'Kay,” he breathed. “That, I'll remember.” Then his head lolled back and he sighed heavily as her muzzle brushed his sheath. “Ohhh...”

Yona grunted, pushing her nose into his groin. Oh, this wasn't so bad. Pony musk much lighter than yak musk, for one. Smell not bad at all. She brought some of her weight to bear on his hindquarters, and Sandbar shuddered beneath her as she pinned his thighs open, her wide tongue slipping out to delicately lap up and down in broad strokes. Mmm. Taste not bad, either.

True, this wouldn't be what awaited her on the other side of a hole in the wall. That would be rough, fast, and much more yak-like, if Gallus and Smolder's ongoing smart remarks were any clue. Yona already knew she could go fast and hard. Slow and steady, though, could shift power to her favour in there, and for that, she needed some practice.

Sandbar's moan rolled through his body, and Yona whuffed in pleasure at making him feel that way. She nosed in circles, pawing lightly at his inner thigh to get him open more. His hips responded with a small lift. Yona took that as her due, and lavished more licks down over his sac. His skin roughened there, compared to the rest of his sheath, and Sandbar reached down to grope her mane as she sucked on one of his balls, then the other.

Her hoof nudged up higher, caressing the join of his thigh, and she dragged her tongue up that crease with a deliberate rasp. Leaning over to the other side, she repeated the slow drag that ruffled the grain of his coat.

He groaned again, almost involuntarily, twitching beneath her attention. His eyes flickered from their half-closed position, and his hind legs shifted against her body, going slack. “Jus' like that,” he murmured.

Good. Yona bent to her task, using her mouth to pull at him, working him over as he drowsed. He was almost out, drifting in that spot between awake and asleep, where she could say anything and he'd just barely hear it. Even as his body curled into sleep, it awoke in other ways, and she lowed in soft victory as his cock slid out of his sheath.

Sandbar's shoulder jerked a little as she took his dark, thick length between her lips, and his breath caught at the slow back and forth bobbing of her head. “Sh'good, Yona,” he said, slurring a little. One foreleg curled close to her, cupping her head, and she leaned into his touch. Her tongue swiped over the flat head of his cock, causing another quiver. “Mmm...”

He fit easily into her mouth, given her size, and Yona slid down to his medial ring in a long suck, engulfing him nice and slow. Even drowsy, Sandbar felt that, and he huffed, hips rising off the bed as she pulled her head up, her suction lifting him until he slipped out of her mouth with a 'pop'. As he melted back into the mattress, Yona nuzzled up his slick length that rested against his belly, lapping and making little noises in her throat.

His hoof awkwardly pawed her head, stroking her, and she butted up against it, nipping at his fetlock. Her teeth jerked him awake, and he blinked fuzzily, gazing down at where she lay between his thighs. “Mmmf. Doin' 'kay?”

“Yona okay,” she assured him. “You?” She kissed up his length with a little more enthusiasm. Her own hindquarters quivered, partly from the strain of her reared-up posture, and partly from her own arousal. She couldn't help it, and she would ignore it. No riding her friend, not tonight.

“Feels reeeealll good.” Sandbar lifted his head to watch her. He breathed out deeply, sinking back into the bed as she stretched out on his legs and pushed her nose into his groin again. “Mmmm, yeahhhh.” Yona dipped her head, lavishing hot, wet licks with her thick tongue, and his eyes closed, pleasure and fatigue taking his attention from her once again. “Ahhhh....”

“Good,” she whispered, then slipped him into her mouth again. More slow, steady bobs of her head lulled him into a light doze. He lay beneath her, breathing deeply and evenly, as he slipped off on a cloud of bliss.

Yona worked him over tenderly, her nose grazing his belly once or twice as she went nice and deep on him. Each long, slow suck upwards pulled a taut quiver from his body, and Yona mentally prepared herself for the last part of her practice.

With a wet, rasping swirl of her tongue, she sucked on him, pulling him towards the edge of orgasm with strokes of her hooves up and down his shaft. A shuddering, stuttering huff from him was her only warning, and then Sandbar came with a hot gush. One pulse, two, then so much more, and he filled her mouth, the semi-conscious roll of his hips thrusting up against her muzzle. “Hhhhuhhhh! Hhhnnh...” he breathed, then he subsided again, all four legs slackening as he slumped.

Pursing her lips, Yona lifted up and slid him out of her mouth without spilling any of his load, letting his softening cock slap against his belly. With a toss of her head, she swallowed it all in one gulp, wincing slightly at the sweet and salty tang. Huh. Seemed easy enough. Pony load was light, after all.

She yawned widely, lifting off a sated, snoozing Sandbar, the sway of the bed barely disturbing him. At least he'd left her one side of the bed. With a blanket draped over them both, she could still have enough room to keep them comfortable until the morning. No way was he sleeping on her yak pillow, though. She liberated that with a nuzzle at his throat, then a quick yank of the pillowcase before his raised head sank back down onto the covers.

Yona ducked into her bathroom to brush her teeth. As she rinsed, she paused and looked at herself in the mirror. So far, she'd made her plan, done one of her best friends an intensely intimate favour, and swallowed her first ever pony load. Did she dare push forward to the next step? Of course she did. Weaker yaks than her had endured much more than an unsatisfied throb beneath the tail.

She met her own big, brown eyes and nodded to herself. This was a one-yak mission to glory. A private glory that could never be told to anyone else. Which only made it all the more glorious. She, and she alone, would step out and redeem the notion for herself.

-~~-~~-~~-~~-

“Okay, who broke Sandbar?”

Yona turned a baffled expression on Smolder, who stood in the doorway of the school cafeteria.

Smolder scowled back at her. “You can't see it? It's written all over him.” She gestured to where Sandbar ate breakfast at their usual table. “In the three years we've hung out, he's never had an appetite first thing in the morning. Now he's got two kinds of jam and a pile of toast the size of my dad's hoard.”

“It busy day with Professor Dash Pony today.” Yona shrugged. “Pony need fuel for exercise. Yona know she have big breakfast planned.” With that statement, she lumbered towards the serving line.

Unfortunately, the dragon followed her. “Busy day, yeah. Kind of sounded like he had a busy night, too. I heard a thump or two through the wall last night. Did you kidnap him?”

Yona shrugged. “Yona not think about it.” True, she hadn't just thought about it, she'd done it. Sandbar's room was between Smolder's and Ocellus's. Arguing with him in there would have raised too much attention. “Why, you had plans to kidnap him?”

“Would have, if he were in his bed. I needed another opinion on my project.” Smolder picked up a tray. “Who'd ever think a half-asleep pony makes the best sounding board?”

“Oooh!” Silverstream bounced into line behind them. “Who broke Sandbar?”

“Why every creature think he broken?” Yona asked. This wasn't going according to plan at all. “He just having breakfast.”

“The toast and jam, for starters,” Silverstream said, “plus, he wasn't in his bed last night.”

“You too, huh?” Smolder shook her head and picked up a gem cup to go with her apple juice. “It's a wonder any of us get things done if we have to rely on the most easily-confused pony in the whole school for validation.”

Silverstream frowned, her beak somehow turning down. “I know! I tried to talk to Gallus instead, but he just shushed me when I knocked, and he went back to pressing his ear against the wall. I think he might have termites.”

Yona hunched her shoulders as she nudged her tray down the line, opting for the wheatgrass cereal. “Yona wonder about that. She keep ear open for noises.”

“Gotta be Ocellus, then,” Smolder decided. “She's got the most in-depth presentations, and she probably confused him with her smarts last night.”

“Smarts, sure.” Gallus met them at the end of the line, his tray balanced on his claws. “If she broke Sandbar with some intricate changeling point of view, why isn't he sitting there with a blank look on his face? Somegriff wore him out last night, would be my guess.”

“Oh, so he's not broken?” Silverstream asked. “That's good, then. How are your termites?”

Gallus eyed her as they all reached the table. “What termites? Oooh, hey, jam. Don't mind if I do.” He stole the apple-strawberry jam from Sandbar's tray, earning a sudden glower from his normally easy-going friend. “Wow, who got you up on the wrong side of the bed?”

“You're not eating my jam from the jar with a spoon, then putting the spoon right back in,” Sandbar commented, stealing the jam back, then plucking the spoon from between Gallus's claws. “And I slept great, thank you very much.”

“Not in your own bed, you didn't,” said Silversteam. “I stuck my head in because I needed your help.”

“See, this? This is why there's a lock on my door,” Sandbar mumbled through a mouthful of toast with jam.

Smolder patted him on the shoulder. “It's adorable that you think that stops us, because obviously it doesn't.”

He swallowed toast and jam. “I hoped it would. Why don't any of you ever kidnap Gallus? He's smarter than me.” He went back in for another mouthful.

“It's adorable that you think that,” Ocellus said, fluttering down into her spot. “Oooh, did someone break Sandbar or something? He's hungry this morning.”

“Apparently, we think you did,” Gallus said, “despite the evidence, and what do you mean I'm not smarter than him?” He folded his arms over his chest, then crossly pecked at his bacon.

“I didn't break Sandbar,” Ocellus whimpered. “Sandbar, I'd never break you!” She clung to his side, not even pulling away when he sprayed her with toast crumbs. “You'd tell me if I broke you, right?”

“Wait, what evidence?” Silverstream asked. She nudged her jam jar over to Gallus, stealing a slice of bacon off his plate as compensation. “Do the termites have something to do with it?”

Gallus jerked a claw at Yona. “Only if they sound a lot like Sandbar and Yona arguing. Then things got pretty quiet.”

A whole parcel of stares turned themselves upon the suddenly blushing yak. Smolder looked frustrated that she'd been beaten to Sandbar, while Silverstream put her head to one side in confusion, and Ocellus gasped in betrayal at Yona not confessing right away. Sandbar's read as a mixture of resignation and annoyance, while Gallus's expression changed from smug to fright as a snort from Yona bowled him over.

“Oh,” Ocellus said, peeking out from beneath Sandbar's foreleg draped over her head. “That explains those emotions.”

Smolder stole a slice of bacon off Gallus's plate as he clambered back up. “What emotions?”

“Good emotions?” Silverstream wanted to know.

“Tasty emotions,” Ocellus assured them both. “Mostly.”

Sandbar reached around Ocellus to continue eating toast with jam. “Yona has a solution for her problem. It's a dumb solution,” he said.

“It perfect solution!” Yona protested. “Yona just need to find new hole and restore glory! Yak not smash, not be yak about it, and increase yak-ness as result!”

Gallus stared at her. “Isn't that an oxymoron?”

Annoyance flared. “Yona not ox! And Yona use her brain!”

“It's actually a paradox,” Ocellus said, slipping around Sandbar to press a huffing Yona back into her seat. “Yona, are you sure you want to do this? You weren't happy with what happened in Omareha, I get that, but is this the best idea you could come up with?”

“See?” Sandbar asked, swallowing. “This is why I wanted Ocellus to join us last night.”

Ocellus glanced between them. “Uh, not for the whole night, right? Because from what I can sense...”

“When Headmare Twilight hears about a yak in a glory hole, which yak will she think of first?”

“No one ever find out it Yona,” she insisted. “Yona not advertise. How Headmare Pony ever find out?”

“So, what, you're just going to show up to one, chuck out the poor pony in there, and take their place without anyone noticing?” Sandbar challenged.

“Yona working on that part.” She snorted again. “Yona may need help from friends to smooth way.”

Gallus blocked Ocellus from stealing what remained of his bacon. “You know, if you want a stealthy way of doing that, we do have a changeling. A changeling who can pretend to be a stallion and find out where the local hole is.”

“A changeling who's still hungry,” said Ocellus, making sad eyes at him. “Half-day old emotions aren't enough to sustain a girl. A little love, please? Or bacon. I will accept bacon as payment for pretending to be a stallion looking for a glory hole.”

Sighing, he lifted his foreleg and let her steal a couple slices of bacon.

“You're sure you're up for this,” Smolder said, “and we won't end up witnessing another spectacular smash instead?”

“Friends should keep distance from Yona when time come,” Yona said, frowning. “Yona grateful for help, but if things go wrong, Yona take fall on own. Counsellor Pony already know about this, she no need to know friends help Yona get in trouble.”

Still munching on her stolen bacon, Ocellus nodded. “We'll do our best for you, Yona. No way will any pony ever know we helped you.”

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