Healing Two Sprains

Chapters

Chapter 1: Tugging the Tree's Tail
Chapter 2: Acclimating
Chapter 3: Attachment
Chapter 4: New Experiences (NSFW)
Chapter 5: A 'Gift' (NSFW)
Chapter 6: Cranial Conundrum
Chapter 7: New Wheels
Chapter 8: Cool Mom (NSFW)

Chapter 1: Tugging the Tree's Tail

The sun had begun to set on the Appaloosian Countryside, a gentle breeze rolling through the sloping hills and coming, leaving a chill down down a young stallion’s spine as dusk’s chilly temperature started to significantly take over the midday’s heat and humidity. The sunset’s a wonderful one, beautiful hues of warm oranges and pinks with cool purples and blues complimenting the hillsides and laying down a stammeringly eerie shadow.

After plowing through several acres of farmland throughout the entirety of the day, that stallion removes his yoke followed by the strap tied around his middle to help keep that yoke in place. Putting his equipment back into the barn’s tool corner, he wrinkles his muzzle at the feeling of dirtiness he’d accumulated throughout the day.

With his ‘personal shift’ having come to a conclusion, he decides a brief walk around the fields to visualize what he’ll be up to tomorrow is a good idea. It always helps to be thorough. While thinking of tomorrow’s plans he looks up at the barn ceiling, grimacing at the sight of a rather large hole he can look through to see the stars in the night sky… he’ll have to fix that later, somehow. He doesn’t have wings or magic, so that’s something that scaffolding, patience and care will have to fix. Sighing at the inability to take care of that sooner rather than later, he walks out of the barn, locks it up and begins his nightly inspection of the remaining field west of the house, southwest of the barn. As he’s making his way, he briefly inspects the home he lives in...

The farm house is a rather simple one, home to a total of five residents; the young stallion, his parents and his grandparents. It’s a decent-sized bohemian country home with a ground and first floor, painted white with reddish-brown accents for the shutters and window frames. A sizable patio with windows and a screen door to keep the bugs from biting any porch visitors is dimly lit by the lamps by each side of the two front doors, not to mention the cozy cushioned two-seater chairs by each door. On the western side of the home there’s a cellar that leads to a small underground stocked with canned and jarred foods amongst other supplies and spares. Overall, the place is nothing out of the ordinary; your average rural area home with a farm.

There are also a few pigs, cows and about a dozen chickens in the barn where he’d put his yoke and strap back. Given it’s getting late into the day, they’re all at rest more than likely at this point.

He begins making his round-trip of the field, glad to feel the chilly breeze through his fur, a gentle but exhausted smile adorning the stallion’s face. Today was an especially hot one, and he feels gross, so the trip should be a brief walk. As he inspects the soon-to-be-tilled areas of ground, he looks over at the apple trees northeast of the barn. They’re probably due for picking soon; Goodland apples are usually best for picking in the later part of summer. He’ll check those too, he supposes. Once he’s finished up with checking what ground will likely be easier for plowing, he moves on over to the apple trees.

Nothing seems out of the ordinary as the stallion stands on his hindlegs, propping his hooves against a tree to reach up and pluck off an apple. Even though it’s starting to get dark, he can still pick up on the color fairly easily; they’re looking ripe, so he can probably make due with picking a few baskets tomorrow. In the meantime, he’s checking each tree to make sure they’re all growing apples in a healthy manner. He’s never had an issue with diseased trees, but he supposes it could happen even if it’s a rare chance. There’s a few dozen trees, so he’s on his hindlegs for a good ten minutes once he’s almost all the way through them.

Coming up to one of the last trees, he tilts his head slightly as an odd-looking, limpy branch seems to hang from it in an odd manner. He’s seen branches sometimes sag a bit low from these trees, so it doesn’t strike him as odd at first. He rears up once more, not giving the branch much attention as he plucks an apple from the tree gingerly with his teeth, plopping it into the flat of his hoof and giving it a brief glance-over—but he’s slightly startled when that one goofy branch moves. As in, it seemed to have a mind of its own for the briefest of moments, and he could’ve sworn it almost flicked. Knowing he’s exhausted, the thought crosses his mind that he might’ve just been imagining it, but he decides to test his luck anyhow by grabbing the oddly soft branch and giving it a sharp tug.

His fur stands on end from the back of his neck to the bottom of his spine as the branch seems to protest with a loud, cat-like yowl. Reflexively relieving the victimized ‘treelimb’ from his grasp, he watches as it slinks away before he hears the tree's branches shifting, to which he’s then met with what definitely appears to be a face.

“That’s my tail, asshole,” the face protests. Dropping his apple and backing away from the newly discovered intruder, the stallion finds himself to be largely startled as this creature's words are followed with a violent hiss of displeasure. He can see those dangerously sharp chompers right down to the violent-looking incisors, and he’s not planning on becoming the meal of what appears to be a uniquely-colored puma of sorts.

While he may be retreating away to get some distance from the cat, he certainly doesn’t plan on letting her just crash in one of his trees. He puts on a stern face, getting closer to the tree she’s in once again.

“Easy now,” he commands, before pointing a hoof at the tree she’s in. Her ears flick, but gradually stand upright to indicate she’s listening.

“Yer’on my property, in my tree. Mighty sorry for pullin’ yer tail, thought it was a branch,” he says in a defensive, but apologetic tone. He’s entirely unsure of how to deal with what appears to be a predatory cat, and even more concerned that she appears to be on the larger scale of most stallions, let alone mares.

The stallion’s stern look seems to soften some as her expression does the same, though only a little on each of the two, her tail lashing a bit. Letting the air settle for a moment seems to do the trick in calming both the cat and the earth pony down, though it should be known that the two are staring each other down regardless.

It should also be known that the stallion’s curiosity is getting the better of him.

“Y’ain’t gonna attack me, right?” he asks, his forehooves shuffling in place as the anxiety of awaiting an answer crawls into his chest. The cat seems to wince slightly at the question, before rolling her eyes. She’s still clearly annoyed at having her tail pulled, and unbeknownst to him, tired of hearing that from anyone that views her as some ‘killer kitty’.

“No,” she claims simply. She looks him over, frowning at the light-brown colored stallion who’s… well, shit, certainly a bit larger-than-life. The dude’s fucking huge. He’s a good head taller than she is! It’s not too common she runs into a stallion taller than herself. Given his seemingly calm demeanor and questioning whether or not he was in harm’s way, she doubts he intends on provoking her any further than accidentally.

The sphinx glances down at her left paw, a vexed noise creeping from her throat as she gives it a testing wiggle. Still hurts like hell from her earlier scrap with a boar that’d gotten the better of her angle of attack, the boar having charged her and stomping directly on her wrist. Didn’t help that it’d whipped around just after and given her a nice cut just below that with its tusk.

With that in mind, she’d like to be able to recover. She’s hungry for starts, and with that hunt failing, she’s only bound to use up more energy to eat. Being unfamiliar with the area, she doesn’t exactly know where the nearest town is aside from ‘about a mile north’. Plus, she’s apparently on this guy’s property despite it being somewhat distant from the house that’s closest. It’d seem that the injured sphinx is in a bit of a pickle.

Ah. Can’t hunt too well with an injured wrist, either. Yes. Definitely in a pickle.

“Erm,” she says, inhaling and exhaling slowly. She’s really about to ask a stranger she’d just hissed at and called an asshole for a favor? She feels a little selfish, but… shit, it’d be much easier to chance seeing if she can have a place to crash, maybe do this guy a favor or two in return, something?

“I’m uh, a bit delayed. Kinda lookin’ for a place to sleep, it’s been a long day,” the sphinx says, still looking down at the stallion. He’s still looking right back at her, mulling over her words briefly.

“Mnh, not so sure ‘bout lettin’ brand new folk get the idea that this here’s a motel,” he chides back, tilting his head while giving her a slight squint.

“Fair enough. How about I offer some labor?” the cat asks. Another pause, this time longer than the previous one. He seems to be reluctant over the idea.

“Mmh, I’ve half a mind to think yer up t’somethin’. Ya just appear here, and wanna sleep over?” he asks, his expression turning to that of suspicion. He’s clearly under the guise that her actions are for exploitation, which isn’t at all what she was thinking.

“Nono, really, I’m just looking for rest,” she protests with a look of worry on her face. She bounds—at first gracefully—out of the tree before remembering upon touchdown that her wrist is most definitely still impaired, and when she lands she yelps several times louder than when she’d had her tail pulled. The stallion’s initial reaction is to back away, surprised by the sudden move to jump out of the tree. His surprise shifts to confusion when she takes the fall almost face-first, rolling on the ground for a few moments as she holds her bad wrist with her good paw. It’s clear she’s in pain.

“Fuck!” she blurts explicitly, squeezing her eyes shut as pain rolls up her foreleg, making the whole thing feel like it’s throbbing. She opens her eyes long enough to realize they’re watering up, embarrassment striking her as the massive stallion looks down at her, clearly bewildered.

What she wasn’t expecting was the defensive stallion to walk quickly up to her, leading to her thinking that he just might attack—but no, he stands beside her and looks down at her with worry.

“Good gods, you alright there, Miss?” he asks, that look of worry transferring into his voice as well. The cat looks away from him, knowing full well that the fall she’d just taken had probably hurt her pride more than it had her paw. That was completely and utterly stupid of her to do, overlooking her own self like that. Plus, she has grass in her mouth now… she spits it out, whining for another brief moment, rolling to her stomach. She starts coming to a stand, once again surprised as she does so with ease…?

He’s helping her up? His head, large and befitting to his massive body, is against her underside between her chest and her tummy. She lifts her bad paw, now steadily on her hinds and her one good paw, looking over at him with her eyes still watering. She looks confused, but not at all unthankful, staring at him as he brings his head out from under her and comes to a full stand.

She almost loses her balance, but stops herself from wobbling as she looks up at him. She feels a shiver trickle down her spine while realizing the truly immense size of the farmhand next to her. When she was looking down at him, she wasn’t in realization at how depth was fooling her a little, plus he’d had his head somewhat low.

Her eyes trail down from his face to his neck, broad in circumference before looking forward at his chest. She’s seen her fair share of working stallions, but this guy?

He looks like he could stop a fucking train cart.

Probably an exaggeration, but by Luna’s moon, this guy is robust.

His fore and hindlegs look strong, too. From his shoulders to his knees, right down to the notably chipped hooves from years of work, his unshorn fetlocks, the way his hoof waves in front of her face as she finds herself staring—!

“Miss? Didn’t hit yer head too hard, did’ya?” he asks, which mostly snaps her out of her daze. She’s never met anyone so much bigger than herself, and she can’t deny that that alone is pressing a mental button that she really likes.

He also gets a good look at her while she’s staring, finding her three-toned brown colors with small complimentary splashes of blue on her shoulders, under her eyes and behind her ears quite nice to look at. That tail looks like a whip, and her wings are tri-toned just like her body color.

“Uh… I’m good,” she says after another moment of just… looking him over. She feels a bit shameless in that regard, but really, there’s a lot of him to look at. She can’t deny she’s feeling a little intimidated. Thankfully enough he seems to be oblivious to her ogling, giving a nod to her affirmation. She notices him looking down at her botched wrist, followed by her wings. Now he’s looking her over.

“I’d feel guilty if I let ya fly off in a twist,” he admits. He frowns at her paw, worry once again resurfacing on his face. He can see blood from whatever happened to her, and it doesn’t look like a very pleasant cut, nor does it look like a clean one. He’s surprised it isn’t bleeding as much as the cut would indicate, though she may have done what he supposes any cat would do; lick their wound. The sphinx seems hopeful as she looks up at him, a metaphorical bubble building up in her chest as she awaits his decision.

“...There’s loose straw in the barn, you can use that for beddin’, I’ll tolerate that. It’s warmer in there than it is out here,” he says, some hesitance still falling from his voice, though he’s not one to let an injured stranger just walk off.

“Here. I’ll lend ya my side, can’t letcha fall again an’ ruin a fair face,” he says while stepping beside her, to which the sphinx seems to have no problem with. She’s not complaining about the random compliment either, it’s nice of him. Sweet, really. Calling out her involuntary clumsiness is making her cheeks feel a little warm, though.

With her leaning against his side walking is a bit easier, though it’s still a slow task. Most of the way to the barn goes without many words, and mostly with the feline taking this moment to feel the stallion she’s leaning against. His center of gravity is… comparable to a rooted trunk. She even tries pushing against him a little, and he doesn’t even seem to notice it. Plus, that scent coming off of him after a long, hard day of work?

There’s a feeling not unlike a shiver and a tingling feeling in her spine. That scent is tickling her nose in a way that can only be described as pleasant. She’s quite fond of it, honestly, though she wouldn’t admit that to him at this moment.

“I s’pose I should be askin’ yer name,” he inquires suddenly, a little over halfway to the barn at this point. She blinks herself out of her stupor, having mostly been focusing on the way she’s walking paired with the enjoyment of his warmth and his musk.

“Cloudjumper,” she replies.

He nods, which confuses her for a moment. He’s frowning again, as if in thought. He can’t just tell her offhandedly that her name is a little bit of a mouthful.

“Y’mind if I call ya CJ?” the farmhand asks. Cloudjumper tilts her head, frowning. He’s abbreviating her name? Well, it’s not bad. It’s kinda cute.

“Sure, that’s fine.”

They continue their walk, and with each passing moment she frowns a little more. He’s going to share his name, right?

“Do you have a name?” she asks pointedly, to which he seems to have a bit of a brain hiccup, his eyes widening.

“Shoot, sorry—yeah. Name’s Chestnut,” he says sheepishly, correcting his manners. Better late than never!

Cloudjumper smiles gently. Cute.

“It was hotter’n Hades out today, I’m tired as all getout,” he continues a moment later, looking down at her apologetically. With a gentle smile, Cloudjumper nods while hobbling against his side, seeming pleased with the information and apology. So he’s the work around here, she supposes? She’d seen him a little earlier working in the field, using that plow. She wasn’t entirely sure if it was the same pony all day, however. If so, good gods he needs to take a few more breaks.

A few minutes later and he finishes escorting her to the barn with care, opening the door and helping her build up a sizable stack of straw for her to lay cozily on. Chestnut watches the injured cat do a hobbled turn as she seems to knead her way with her good paws into the straw, plopping down just after.

“Cozy?” Chestnut queries. After receiving a nod from the cat-bird, he shares his tired smile with his guest and turns to walk out of the barn.

“I’ll be back shortly, that’s gonna need patchin’,” he claims, pointing toward her cut and sprained wrist. Before she gets the chance to fully respond, he’s turning to face away from her, walking out of the barn and toward the house, judging by his heavy steps.

She gets a brief, though definitely opportune moment to check out the backside of the stallion as well. Now definitely isn’t the right time to be horny, but she can’t help but admire that cute freckled butt, followed from below by the short tail Chestnut has. It allowed her eyes free access to what she would consider something along the lines of his quite large set of family jewels, contrasting his steady walk by swaying heavily between his hindlegs.

If he’s as nice as he’s been tonight for the time she’s here, she’d dare to say she’ll enjoy her ‘suffering’ this downtime. A handsome gentle giant with a burred, deep voice that’s complemented with a southern accent?—shit, she’s tickled to receive his hospitalities if he’s offering.

Due to her being relatively hungry, she manages to stay awake without much incident while Chestnut is obtaining the necessities to treat her wound. After a good fifteen minutes of thinking to herself, she starts to wonder if he’d forgotten until he re-arrives at the entrance of the barn, a first-aid kit in tow as well as cleaner fur. Judging by the scent he’s carrying when she’s close enough to pick up on it, he’d showered; he smells like an assortment of berries, dare she say like peaches too. She doesn’t pick up that he’d brought peaches and berries with him, though his shampoo coincidentally has a berry scent in it also.

“You comfortable out here?” the returning stallion questions, to which Cloudjumper nods. He says the kit and a cleanup towel down beside her, before laying down himself to open the kit and dig out some of the stuff she’ll need: peroxide, an antibiotic ointment and some gauze should do the trick just fine for the cut. About the sprain, well… he’s no doctor, so what she’s doing by keeping pressure off of it is probably just fine.

“Thanks for letting me stay. It’s generous of you,” Cloudjumper says as he unscrews the lid from the peroxide. She lifts her bad paw, knowing well what’s coming next as he slides the towel under it to stop peroxide from getting all over the straw she’ll be sleeping on.

Chestnut carefully tips the bottle over just enough to pour a suitable amount of the liquid over her wound, Cloudjumper grumbling under her breath as that familiar stinging sensation begins and the liquid starts bubbling like it’s supposed to, indicating that it could’ve led up to infection if it hadn’t been used. Thankfully the wound isn’t too wide, or it’d be far worse.

“Mnh, yer welcome,” he tiredly responds, though there’s a gentle smile on his face. He pours a little extra to be sure across her wound, a smaller but still noticeable noise of protest leaving the sphinx as less bubbling occurs. He uses the same towel, unfolding it carefully from under her paw to use the cleaner half to gently dab away the remaining peroxide. Thankfully it doesn’t hurt to touch the paw, only the wrist it’s connected to.

“All I ask is ya don’t make me regret it,” Chestnut says, looking up at her with a serious look behind his eyes. If there’s any indicator of him being unsure about this cat on his property it’s that, and Cloudjumper is well-aware.

“Don’t sweat it, I’m good company,” she beams with a toothy grin. Chestnut, not being used to that, naturally folds his ears as he sees her dangerous-looking set of teeth much closer than he had earlier. They look like they could rend flesh without much effort, and it honestly makes him a little uneasy… and maybe a hint intrigued. Mostly uneasy...

“Y’keep them pearly whites away from my hide, my family ‘n’ my animals ‘n’ we’ll be peachy,” he says, that serious tone of his returning. Her wings physically shiver at the sound of his voice, so compelling and deep, strong. She can feel her heart start to beat like a drum as she notices he’s staring at her, right into her eyes. Despite being quite the brave and hardy little adventuress she is, she feels a little paralyzed by those icy-blue irises of his. It’s like she’s stuck in place, frozen by the authoritative tone of the stallion in front of her.

In the blink of an eye, however, his expression settles into something calmer once more.

She feels like she just ran a lap. Her breathing had picked up somewhere in the past ten seconds, and her heart’s racing in her chest. Chestnut is clearly adamant on ensuring she’s true to her word; no trouble.

She swallows thickly, her pupils dilated from Chestnut’s tone and her ears flattened to the sides of her skull as he gingerly cares for her wrist, applying an ointment to the gauze he’d brought along, carefully wrapping it around the base of her paw, halfway up her ulna before tearing an end off of the bandage, sticking it to the rest that’s wrapped up part of her foreleg. He did a neat job of it; her claws would kinda get in the way with fabrics, so she’s thankful.

“There. We’ll change it daily, so if it gets torn up or somethin’ then we won’t have t’worry too much,” Chestnut says, before turning his head to get something from behind him. He presents a small basket with an assortment of peaches, strawberries, grapes and plums. It should be more than enough to keep her hunger sated until the later half of the morning, given she’s hungry.

Cloud’s certainly surprised, not having expected him to feed her. Her ears perk as she examines the fruits in front of her, looking up at him.

“I… thank you,” she appreciatively chirps with a smile. He gets up, his tail twitching behind him as he looks down at the cat who’s looking right back up at him. He’s nervous that she’s planning something. He makes a mental note to make sure all the doors are locked in and out of the house.

“Mmm. Sleep well,” is Chestnut’s rejoinder. He turns tail once more, though this time around Cloudjumper isn’t getting an eyeful of his rump as she looks down at the fruits, the bandage applied to her foreleg, the soft straw underneath her to sleep on…

She’s lucky. Really lucky. He could’ve just booted her to the curb, but he did all of this instead. The chickens in the barn with her would’ve looked appetizing earlier, even if she wouldn’t have stolen regardless of her appetite, but now they don’t even cross her mind.

She’s gonna show Chestnut what she’s made of, even with a scuffed leg. Repaying his kindness is priority until she’s all healed up and can make her way back to her adventuring.

For now, she happily munches away at the fruits given to her, finishing off the sweet and juicy treats in an acceptable amount of time before finding herself dozing. Full of food, warmth and something more comfortable to sleep on than the ground or a tree is more than what she needs to fall into wondrous slumber.

Chapter 2: Acclimating

Cloudjumper wriggles in her sleep as her ears pick up a metallic clunking noise, the opening and closing of several doors and the clucks and moos of chickens and cows a few moments later as she slowly comes to for long enough to realize that she’s sleeping in a place she doesn’t recognize.

Well, she sleeps in places she doesn’t recognize all the time, but inside a barn is fairly new. She wrinkles her nose at the smell of fresh straw so close, looking down and realizing she’s laying on it. She looks at her foreleg, partially wrapped in gauze, the basket that must’ve had something in it… it all starts coming back to her. What’d happened last night, who she’d met, how they’d met and what followed after. Blinking through her hazy vision, she looks up and sees the mildly blurry form of a pony putting something on, hearing more metal gently clinking together. As her vision’s clarity returns to normal she sees Chestnut, who’s putting on a strap that connects to a yoke, connecting the two together.

Chestnut looks over at Cloudjumper who’s still laying on her side, nodding at her as he realizes she’s awake.

“Mornin’,” he greets politely, double-checking the strap to make sure it’s secure. Cloudjumper can’t help but notice that the yoke around the base of his neck looks… pretty heavy. It probably helps for using that plow out in the field. He seems a lot more spry after some sleep. He’s smiling the same gentle way he was when he’d gone into the house to go to bed last night.

“Good morning,” she returns quietly, her voice raspier than usual since she’d just woken up. She doesn’t know what time it is, though it’s pretty easy to tell that it’s either early or mid-morning. She stretches while laying down, lunging her body out like an obtuse ‘U’, groaning while she splays out before starting to come to a rolling stand. It’s a bit awkward given her bad paw, but she makes due just fine. She turns to ask Chestnut a question, but it would appear he’s left the barn already. Seems he really wants to get to work!

So, with a three-legged hobble out of the barn she walks into the sunlight, enjoying the warm morning sunlight on her fur. Despite her claims that she’d help him with labor, she’s really unsure of what she can efficiently do with three paws instead of four. She’s dealt with sprains before! Just… not quite as bad as this one, so it leaves her questioning what he could use the help for without her being more of a burden to his time. She looks out at the field to see the stallion strapping his yoke up to the plow, opening her wings and taking off to go over and talk to the light-brown earth pony.

Chestnut hears Cloudjumper’s wings as he starts his morning routine, though he doesn’t bother to look over right away. He begins his work, starting to tug the heavy plow through the dirt.

He hears CJ land off to his right, looking over in time to catch the sphinx catching her balance on the soil that hasn’t been pulverised yet.

“Hey, is there anything I can do to help you?” Cloudjumper asks, seeming eager. His brow perks slightly and his movement continues as he works on thinking of something that might keep her busy. He’d ask her to repair the roof, but… that bad wrist would probably make it more dangerous for her to fix than him doing it himself at this moment in time.

“The Goodlands need pickin’—y’know, the apple trees you hunkered down in last night? Take yer time, though. Can’t be stressin’ that,” he says, nodding toward her foreleg. She smiles as she nods in agreement, starting to take off—she stops herself however as she comes to a realization.

“Do you have anything to carry them in?” she asks. He nods.

“Mhm, behind the barn there’s a stack’a woven baskets we use to put apples in.”

With another nod, she opens her wings and flies off toward the barn. He stops to watch, seeming amused with her use of flight. There aren’t too many pegasi around here, so seeing wings in action has always been neat to watch up close when he gets the chance. After seeing her stop behind the barn and fly off toward the apple trees with a stack of baskets, he continues his fieldwork. With the sun not completely beating down on his back he can enjoy the work of pulling this heavy plow through the dirt. It’s still hard work, though he hopefully won’t be dripping sweat by the time he’s finished up with the fifth big and final field of the season.

A few hours later...

Chestnut pulls one final time to finish up the last field, panting lightly and looking around him to examine where the sun is shining. The short answer is, well, everywhere. He’d unfortunately wound up suffering the consequence of the hot sun taking a vacation from behind the clouds to scorn his back with more heat than desired, the result being an undesirably sweaty earth pony. He’s not fussy about it! Would’ve been nice to get some mercy with the sun behind the clouds, though...

After taking a quick seat underneath the shade of a nearby tree to cool off, he wipes his brow with the front of his forehoof and looks over toward the small plantation of apple trees that Cloudjumper is likely still at. Given there’s a few dozen trees, it’s impossible she’s picked all of them and stockpiled them beside each tree, let alone actually carry them back—even if she were flying. He decides to make his way over, deciding against walking and instead gathering into a decently paced trot. Judging by the first of five rows of trees, she’s completed one row entirely by herself. She certainly hasn’t been doing nothing!

Once under the canopy of the Goodland trees, he returns to a walk. The shade feels wonderful, and the gentle breeze is a welcome feeling as his damp fur cools off quickly as a result. He can see Cloudjumper at the end of the second row of trees, so he slows down and decides to take a breather, not wanting to interrupt her while she’s busy.

Also, it gives some time to examine her. Given his complete and utter lack of communication and interest with either the same or opposite sex in a romantic setting, he doesn’t have the slightest idea if what he’s doing is creepy.

His eyes wonder, watching the sphinx from behind as she stands on her hindlegs balancing carefully with her tail, her wings giving subtle flaps to help as well while she reaches up with her good paw, plucking an apple from the tree with care and bringing it down to the half-full basket of apples beside her. She’s taking her time, making sure none of them wind up bruised or chipped of the fruit surrounding the core.

But the fruit isn’t what’s keeping Chestnut so interested in watching. He hadn’t really been awake enough to notice or generally care last night about how attractive she might’ve seemed at the time. Watching the way her body and muscles move, how her gentle steps make no sound in comparison to hooves, even with her gaited step. Listening closely enough, he’s certain she’s humming a tune to herself as well. And those paws! Something about them is strangely fascinating.

He’s never really stopped long enough to admire another for their beauty, has he?

He didn’t think the first one he’d find an attraction toward would be a species rumored as a meat-hunting predator. Right now, she doesn’t seem dangerous to him at all. Tranquil, docile, peaceful… those words come to mind. He can better understand that she was pissed last night because, well, he yanked her tail. He wouldn’t be happy if someone randomly pulled his tail, not at all.

His ‘show’ of sorts is interrupted as she turns around, yelping at the sudden realization that Chestnut is sitting just a few trees away, watching her. Her wings are unfolded thanks to the fright he’d provided simply by sitting there, her face a mix of mild shock, confusion and surprise.

“Scared the fuck out of me dude,” she says, frowning at him. He doesn’t appear to acknowledge that what he’d done might be a little odd, and she tilts her head at him for that.

“Uhm… sorry,” he says, genuinely apologetic for scaring her, but not for anything else it seems.

“I hope you don’t just silently stare down any girl that’s facing away from you,” Cloudjumper says with a teasing laugh, mostly dismissing the fact that he’d done just that. She can excuse it, given the fact he’d let her have a place to rest plus the other stuff. Looking is fine, touching is another story.

“Just interested in how you work,” he returns. She cocks an eyebrow, her curiosity climbing a little bit as she tries to deconstruct the way he processes. All she knows is that he’s a big stallion who appears to work a lot, he seems fairly pleasant and he has a nice voice. He treats the eyes nicely and his fur colors are neat! Oh, and his name of course.

“Well,” she says, standing on her hinds while facing him, plucking another apple from the tree’s branches above her.

“Next time lemme know you’re there, please? Not a fan of getting jump-scared like that,” she requests politely. He nods, watching her carefully set yet another apple into the basket with the others.

“Sure thing. Ya hungry?” Chestnut asks. Cloudjumper’s ears perk at the mention of hunger. She hadn’t realized it because she’s been working, but yeah, she could definitely go for a proper bite to eat. He probably only has more fruits, though. Eh, that’ll do just fine for now.

“Yeah,” she says, starting to walk toward the barn. Chestnut comes to a stand again, deciding he could let her in on a little surprise.

“I figured since yer a cat, you probably like fish, right?”

Cloudjumper stops, looking at him with perked eyebrows. That’s an often-used stereotype, that cats love fish. In her case, definitely not an incorrect one.

“Yeah, I do. Why?” she asks quizzically.

“Went down to the market early this mornin’, talked to a couple folks. They claimed you’d probably like fish, so I got some,” he says.

Cloudjumper is… a little flattered, honestly. This guy went down to the market to buy her, a trespasser on his property, food that she’d possibly like?

Gods, he’s either generous or a suck-up. As far as she remembers, the nearest market is about a mile north. That’s a decent walk! She can feel her face warm up a little as she mulls over it a few times in her head, starting to walk toward the barn again.

“You didn’t have to, you know,” she says, looking back at him. He’s catching up fairly quickly, trotting.

“I know, but I wanted to. Ain’t gonna heal very quickly eatin’ a buncha fruits, bein’ an omnivore. Guy at the market said ‘protein’s prerequisite for a cat’, an’ he recommended it,” Chestnut asserts. Cloudjumper certainly isn’t complaining, though she is curious about what kind of fish he’d picked up.

As she hobbles along, she realizes Chestnut is falling behind, looking up at the clouds in the distance. Dark, enormous bluish-gray clouds, or more specifically: storm clouds.

Cloudjumper doesn’t like the sight of that. Storm clouds indicate lightning, and lightning indicates thunder. She doesn’t mind the rain much, but thunder…

Chestnut had turned back around, moving to the side of her that has her bad paw.

“Storm’s comin’, you can come inside. Not gonna make ya stay in the barn with that mess on the way,” he says, catching her scent as she leans against him for support. She mostly smells of straw since she’d slept on it last night, though he can pick up hints of earthy forestry, soil, and a bit of what smells like a campfire in her fur too. While those scents are pleasant, he’s sure she’s likely due for a shower. Anyone would be after a day or two.

Chestnut takes notice that her ears are swiveled to face backwards, like she’s listening closely for distant thunder. After a few moments of assisting her toward the house, he notices she presses a little tighter against him. Hopefully she’s not too skittish over stormy weather.

A few minutes of slow walking later, the two manage to get onto the patio and through the front door. He gives her a brief summarization of the house’s layout while her eyes wander. After the general introduction to the household, he helps her along to the kitchen, pulling a chair out from the table for her to be seated at while he pulls her fish out of the ice box. Thankfully he’d asked the fellow down at the market to fillet it for him. He personally has no idea how to. He doesn’t eat meat!

“Pretty sure what I got was salmon ‘n’ tuna,” he says, examining the orangish-colored salmon with little lighter strips in segments throughout it. The tuna is a vibrant reddish-pink. He can smell it, but it’s not overwhelming at all to his surprise. Still doesn’t tempt him to taste it… he decides he’ll let her choose which ones she wants.

“D’you have a preference?” he asks. The cat, now clearly smelling what he’d brought home, seems genuinely interested and eager to try what he’d bought from the market. Her tail is swishing around excitedly behind her and her pupils are dilated. She’s even licking her lips. It’s kinda cute!

“The tuna. Save the salmon for later; best for last,” she says, her tone seeming a bit brighter than usual as he removes the fish from its saran wrap and onto a plate. He slides the plate over to her, the sizable hunk of fish now in front of the cat, to which she starts eating without prompt. He watches for a few seconds, before turning to the ice box to receive a couple of the daily salads that his grandmother put together for him. He doesn’t know the entirety of the ingredients, but he knows that tofu, avocado and tomatoes are involved, all of which he’s fond of. They’re filling! He’d like if she’d teach him how to make it.

“Thank you,” he hears as he puts a few sandwiches on a dinner plate, turning and setting his food on the table before seating himself. He’d washed his hooves prior to serving CJ her fish, but the rest of him is in need of some washing. With the storm heading this way, he doubts he’ll be back outside to pull a plow through the mud. The plow will just sink and the job will be made way harder than it needs to be.

The look of enjoyment on Cloudjumper’s face is something that surprises Chestnut a little. Okay, so he’s heard that felines like fish; he hadn’t imagined she’d be so giddy over it. The smile on her face as she chews, licking her lips after each swallow of fish, her good paw on the table beside her plate, seeming to ‘knead’ against the hardwood. He’s seen domesticated house cats do the same thing. If he remembers correctly, it usually means they’re content.

“Yer welcome,” he says with a quiet chuckle. The scene before him isn’t necessarily one that he thought he’d be seeing in this household; a sphinx eating fish, happy as can be at his dinner table. He’s never brought any form of red meat into this household before, nor has he brought a creature that has an apparent reputation of being a potential threat in here either. The more he sees her do, the less he feels like she’s out for blood. Ponies are gossipers. They usually twist the story hard enough to make their dull lives entertaining, even if it drags some name or species through the mud.

As he spots her taking another bite, he gets a glimpse of those teeth of hers again. He could definitely see why someone would pull the asinine rumor of calling a sphinx a ‘pony eater’. Heck, maybe he’s simply too large for the cat to attack and eat. He doubts that. Those claws could turn him to ribbons if she really wanted, and that’s not even mentioning her teeth or her ability to fly. She also has quite the capable build of being nimble and reflexive. He might be big and strong, but he wouldn’t be able to do much defending if he can’t catch her.

After realizing that he’s staring, mostly because she’s staring right back at him now, he comes to the conclusion that he’s over thinking when he should be eating.

“Sorry,” he says, clearing his throat. He starts to eat, occasionally catching himself looking up at her as she continues to do the same. Their meal is relatively quiet as they both fill their bellies, though she’s finished a little before he is. She takes her plate between her teeth, carefully hobbling over to the sink to set the dinnerware in it. He’s glad she cleans up after herself. He’s always cleaning up after granny and gramps, they’re often forgetful.

“If you want, you can take a bath upstairs. It was pretty warm out,” Chestnut offers halfway through his meal. Cloudjumper tilts her head in thought, taking his words and thinking over him. Does he think she stinks or something? He didn’t seem offended by any sort of smell she was giving off.

“I… could go for a bath, yeah. Thanks,” Cloudjumper awkwardly replies. Chestnut picks up on her tone, but doesn’t make much out of it. She’s in a stranger’s home, and if he’d outright been offered a bath, he’d probably think similarly. He munches on his salad while he watches her hobble toward the way to the first floor, her tail disappearing behind a corner followed by the thuds of paws ascending the stairs.

A few minutes pass before he can hear the water turn on. It sounded to him like she’d headed straight for the bathroom, so that’s good, she’s not nosy. He polishes off his meal a few minutes later, before looking down at his hindlegs, stomach, rear hooves… all of which have some dirt and a little bit of mud splattered on them. He hears a very faint rumble of thunder, and he looks out the kitchen window… that storm is moving at quite the pace.

“Dangit,” he mumbles. He probably won’t be able to work the garden tomorrow, and that leaves picking apples. There’s a reason he’d tasked the sphinx to pick them. He can’t quite place why, but he just doesn’t enjoy picking apples as much as he likes running a plow or doing something more physically intensive.

He puts his plate in the sink, rinsing them of any extra greens before cleaning the dishes that he and CJ had dirtied. He can hear faint thumps through the ceiling since she’s likely moving around in the tub. If he were any good at guessing, he’d say she’s hobbling a bit while trying to clean up. Maybe he should help her out?

Drying his hooves with a towel, he moves himself to and up the staircase. The bathroom is just to the left, and he gives it a couple quiet knocks with the back of his hoof before letting himself in without any other warning.

Cloudjumper looks over, eyes widened in surprise as Chestnut suddenly makes himself known while she’s bathing. She’d taken the liberty of creating a bubble bath with a little too much water in the tub, bubbles at her chest as she sits upright in the massive bath. It’s not high enough to overflow since it’s quite deep.

“Erm, hello. Am I taking too long?” she asks, looking at Chestnut curiously. He shakes his head. Ah… okay? Surely she’s in the right for being confused and surprised? That confusion and surprise merely grows as he nears the side of the tub, Chestnut’s eyes examining the level of water.

“I don’t even use this much water,” he says, frowning and blinking. He looks over at the sphinx, who’s now wide-eyed considering he’s within reaching distance while, again, she’s bathing.

“I saw the bubble bath mix and… got a little carried away. Sorry about that,” she says, pointing at the blue bottle that’s clearly branded as ‘Bubbles’ Bubbles!’. This one is the Honey and Oats scented one, sweet and warm.

“Naw, you ain’t gotta apologize. Well water’s super cheap. I get carried away once in a while too.”

Cloudjumper feels a little more cozy with that confession, though she’s still questioning why he’s just standing there. Thankfully, that answer seems to come sooner rather than later thanks to his questioning.

“Was wonderin’ if you’d need any help. Couldn’t imagine only usin’ one hoof to clean up,” he points out, wiggling a hoof to emphasize. Cloudjumper is naturally a bit reluctant to let a stallion she’d met just last night join her in what’s considered a time meant for personal care, but… well, he’s once again offering his help. He hasn’t done anything perverted so far, and judging by the look on his face?

He’s either ridiculously oblivious or one of the best actors she’s ever seen. Surely this guy’s been around a mare or two in his time? If he has, maybe he’s just super forward? She can’t really pin down what he’s doing.

“I… guess that’d be helpful, sure,” she says after a few moments of thinking. Would he be the type to get suddenly frisky? She hopes that’s not his plan. He seems really nice so far, it’d be a shame if he turned out to be a creep.

“Alright. Scoot over,” he says. That reluctance returns sharply, and she almost tells him to hold on, wait just a second—but he’s already getting into the tub with her. This hadn’t been mentioned! He can help from outside, can’t he!?

Almost completely flabbergasted as the stallion sits directly behind her, Cloudjumper turns her head with eyes wide as saucers. Her heart is starting to hammer in her chest and her ears are pinned flat against her head.

“Uh, you doin’ okay there?” Chestnut asks as he sees her expression. She looks like she’d seen a ghost.

She swallows somewhat thickly. How to respond without offending him is beyond her, she doesn’t know him that well at all and all she knows is he’s practically looming over her. She can feel his stomach against the middle of her back for a couple of seconds before he seems to inch back a little.

“Y-yeah,” she returns, her mouth feeling a little dry. She tries her damndest to relax while hoping he doesn’t have anything unfortunate planned for her. She feels him moving and tenses up in result, unsure of what the massive stallion behind her is doing.

He grabs shampoo from the side of the tub, uncaps and pours a decent amount into her hair, and… well, he starts lathering. No pause, no unusual touching, no change in pace.

He’s just washing her hair. He’s not even talking, seeming focused on the task that he’d offered up. She can’t lie, she’d expected something… different. Most guys she lets get close enough to her usually try at least getting a little too close. Well, in fairness he’s definitely in the category of ‘too close’ right now, but he’s not trying to nip at her or get sexual, he’s not even trying to come up with some bedroom statement to whisper into her ear.

She feels her tension slowly deflate as suspicions, spare thoughts and a manifold of questions come to mind. Is this a decoy? Is he joking? Would she be okay with him doing something she’d honestly expected him to do?

It would seem that the answer to those questions is ‘no’. He’s just happily lathering away, he’d even started gently humming.

She’s heard of guys getting confused over girls, but she, a girl, is completely gobsmacked over this guy right now. She never thought she’d be asking to herself:

Why isn’t he trying something right now?

He’s moving down to the back of her head and the start of her neck. Her good paw kneads against the tub floor as she leans into his lathering, letting herself start to relax more. Surely if he had something planned, he would’ve done so already. She breathes in deeply, exhaling slowly to let herself calm down. He’s moving lower, at the base of her neck now. His rubs are firm and strong, but not so much so that it hurts. She’s pretty sure she can feel a gentle purr starting to rise up from her chest to her throat. Her wings are subtly twitching in the water as she remains still.

“So… you really did just wanna help me out, big guy?” she asks, adding a hint of flirting into the tone of her voice. Chestnut pauses, and at first she thinks he may’ve caught onto that—but again, she’s left with more curious questions at his answer.

“Yup. There’s nothin’ wrong with helpin’ a pal clean where they can’t reach, is there?” he asks, innocent and unaware as ever.

It’s starting to become more and more clear to her. There’s a list she’s already compiled in her head that basically screams what she’s thinking.

He works every day, solo at that, on a large farm.

He doesn’t seem to acknowledge flirting as such, which presents the possibility that he’s lacking in communication with the opposite sex… or maybe he’s gay?

He’s living with his parents and grandparents as a young adult in the countryside despite seeming to have a really strong work ethic. He probably could’ve been in his own place by now.

There’s also the fact that he’d just silently watched her, not seeming to catch on that it may’ve been a little creepy to most. He didn’t seem to think he was doing anything wrong.

She’s sure she’ll come up with more reasons while her stay here resumes, or at least her gut is telling her so.

“I suppose not, looking at it from a certain point of view,” she says. Judging by his actions he seems to be a rather innocent and pure stallion.

“You were a little frazzled when I started, this ain’t botherin’ you, is it?” he asks, worry creeping into his voice. Oh, so now he starts to catch on? Seriously?

“Well, I hadn’t expected you to just hop in the tub with me,” she counters. He shrugs, deciding that’s a fair enough point. He’s never really been in the tub with anyone before, so thinking of it like that is kinda odd, even to him. She’s still pretty new to him. Yeah… kinda weird of him. Oh well, she doesn’t seem to be minding his help at this point.

“...Right. Well, I’ll ask next time. My apologies,” he responds amiably. Cloudjumper just grins.

“You’re forgiven—but only if you help me clean my back, too,” she chirps at him with a toothy smirk. Chestnut cocks an eyebrow at her.

“I wouldn’t offer t’do a job and stop halfway,” he says seriously, now at the start of her shoulders. Cloud’s purring has increased significantly in volume, strong enough at this point that she’s creating little ripples in the tub around her body from the vibrations.

“Ya really are a big cat,” Chestnut says, stating the obvious as he hears and feels her purring. He smiles as he continues his circular rubbing down the start of her back, though he stops rather soon since the rest of her is in the water.

“Might wanna stand up,” he says, moving to come to her side. He would’ve stayed in place, but approaching a female from behind would be rude, at least so he’s heard. Once she’s at a stand, he sits a little more upright to properly scrub the soap into her back, watching her tail and wings flick and twitch, her paws resting over the end of the tub for support as he cleans off what she can’t.

It doesn’t take incredibly long for the stallion to finish up what he’d offered.

“Alrighty, that should be it,” Chestnut says, before closing his eyes and dunking his head underwater. Resurfacing a brief moment later, he gently shakes the hair out of his eyes.

Cloudjumper, feeling far more relaxed after all that scrubbing, smiles while she purrs and looks back at him.

“That was nice, thank you,” she softly praises him as he starts to wash himself up. She’d offer to help but, well… one paw. She could lean against him, but she feels that what just happened was already enough for now. Goddesses forbid she explore and get a bit touchy. If she were him, she might’ve taken a chance at sneaking in a few ‘dirty deeds’ along the way. Not sex, persay, but not just helping someone wash.

“Rinse in the shower if ya need,” Chest offers as he lathers shampoo into his hair. She looks back at the mentioned shower, before shrugging.

“Later. The water feels nice,” she says, waving her good paw dismissively as she lays against the back-rest section of the tub, still purring like a motor.

“Yeah. Baths are great after a long day’a work,” Chestnut says, already starting on his neck and shoulders. He seems to be one of the ‘quick bathing’ types, cleaning thoroughly but not slowly at all. She closes her eyes for a couple of minutes as she listens to the soft sound of his hooves digging into his fur, removing any crud that may have gotten into his fur. She almost dozes off, that is until she hears the water swishing around somewhat loudly. Opening her eyes and watching him scrub his lower half, she’s guessing he’s at his hindlegs or something of the like.

He once again dunks his head underwater, coming back up a second later. His face looks a bit cleaner, same with his shoulders and chest. She hadn’t realized that much could get on him just running a plow. Then again, some of the more moist dirt might tend to splash and stick easier.

He comes to a stand, his massive form heading for the edge of the tub. His stomach and all that’s lower is hidden by the bubbles in the bath, though when he gets out Cloudjumper watches to experience the satisfying feeling of seeing something that was once dirty be much cleaner.

As he heads for the shower, still dripping with water, she gets a good look at the difference! His fur had looked a bit darker earlier, but now it’s brighter. His hindlegs contrast the most from earlier, looking significantly cleaner along with his forelegs. He’s looking squeaky clean!

She pauses. Stallions don’t have five legs. Wait…

That’s not a fifth leg.

That’s his dick.

His absolutely girthy, long, pink and mottled prick swaying back and forth like a grandfather clock’s pendulum. Her eyes stare as the massive and heavy tool slaps crudely against his underside when he steps into the shower and turns, before closing the door behind him.

Her face feels like it’s on fire, and she shamelessly stares through the clear shower door. Each step he takes in the shower, or how he shakes his head to get out any residual dirt out of his hair, even adjusting his stance results in that monstrous phallus to swing, water flinging off of it as he rinses off. She swears up and down she can see it lightly throbbing from where she’s at...

She snaps her head back to a forward position, her heart thudding heavily in her chest. The imagery of Chestnut’s partner is ingrained in her mind. She stared for long enough, so the only one she can blame for that is herself. She also notes that her loins feel tingly, the show that Chestnut had involuntarily given her resulting in her becoming a little bit worked up.

Personally, she’s never seen a size like that. She’s seen some reasonably large cocks before, but this guy is beyond even what most would expect in the porn industry. Any reasonably-thinking mare would probably ‘nope’ right out of the room if she thought of putting something that damn large inside of her. Not to mention when he flares, good Goddesses.

Being a female in curiosity, Cloudjumper wonders to herself if she’d be able to handle the beast between his hindlegs, though only for a brief moment. Probably best to not think about that right now.

...Can’t deny she’d check it out again, though. What mare—or sphinx, in her case—wouldn’t wanna check out a handsome, hung stud?

She wriggles in the tub as she tries to think of something to get the intense blush off of her face. She knew she’d probably catch a glimpse of something considering they were bathing together, but not all that. After a couple minutes of metaphorically fanning herself to cool down, she hears the shower shut off. Following that is some heavy hoofsteps, Chestnut walking over to a cupboard to remove a couple of towels, using one to dry himself off as he sits on his hindquarters. Thankfully he’s sheathed now, she notices. She totally wasn’t actively looking for it.

She’s tempted to ask him if he always just ‘waves that thing around’, but decides against the possibility of awkward conversation.

“Shower’s all yours,” Chestnut says as he ruffles through his hair with a towel. She looks toward the shower, then back to him and nods. She can hear a distant rumble, her body reacting with her wings shivering. She really hopes that the storm isn’t coming too close..

She comes to a stand, managing to meander her way out of the tub once she unplugs it to let the water drain. CJ hops her way over to the shower on three paws, having to stand on her hinds to start it up, though the temperature is already adjusted thanks to Chestnut leaving it in place. Without much delay she rinses off, and by the time she’s done Chestnut has the other clean towel in one of his hooves, nodding toward himself to indicate she comes closer.

“I’ll get yer back. Sound alright?” he asks. She hobbles over to him, sitting so she’s facing away from him wordlessly. Now that he’s in plain sight again, she’s kinda thinking about what she’d seen barely ten minutes ago. Talk about a surprise..

“Ya comin’ down?” he asks her as he starts rubbing the damp fur on her back. She looks back at him, tilting her head curiously as if to ask what he means.

“Y’know, ya tired?” he corrects himself. Her ears twitch at the question, Cloudjumper reciprocating with a little shrug. She’s begun purring again while he dries her off, so at least he knows she’s not in a bad mood.

“A little worried about that storm,” she quietly answers. Chestnut starts rubbing the back of her neck and head, a bit gentler considering the area.

“Ah, ain’t nothin’ to fret over. It’s just some rain,” the stallion claims in an attempt to reassure the cat. Cloudjumper grimaces at the idea of so easily revealing her fear of thunder, so she hesitantly nods.

“It might pass over,” he mentions, looking through the bathroom window. That would be nice, since he’d be able to work given there’d be no poor field conditions. Cloudjumper doubts that when she looks out the window. It’s heading right for them, but that’s not what concerns her. Again, she doesn’t like thunder. She could care less about rain.

Chestnut helps her dry off the rest of the way, leaving her private areas to herself as he steps out of the bathroom and heads downstairs. Making sure her fur is mostly free of dampness, she gives a few final pats to her fur with the towel before throwing it in the hamper atop his. She follows the path he’d taken back down the stairs as well, to which he walks out of the living room and meets up with her.

“It’s gettin’ dark out. I didn’t get much shuteye last night, so I’m gonna take a nap,” Chestnut says, before looking toward the couch. Granny and Gramps won’t be back until later tonight, having gone out with a couple of friends a few miles into the nearest sizable city. They’ll likely be back late, so he’s not worried about them walking in to see a big cat on the couch.

“Yer welcome to snooze on the couch. If yer hungry or thirsty there’s food’n’drink in the icebox. Ah… if someone knocks on the door, holler up the stairs for me,” Chestnut says with a hint of tiredness in his voice. Cloudjumper nods, coming to a conclusion that, with him being tired, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to snooze a little. She enjoys naps throughout the day sometimes. It’s good relaxation.

That distant thunder rolls again, this time slightly louder. Chestnut is heading up the stairs to his room, so she goes into the living room and lays herself down on the couch. Without much to do, and her travels being inhibited by her paw, she decides trying to nap sooner rather than later wouldn’t be the worst idea she can come up with.

She closes her eyes, doing her best to get some sleep. For the first thirty minutes, she doesn’t have too much a problem with dozing in and out of dreamland, but by the time a full hour passes the storm has gotten close enough that she’s having trouble not feeling restless, let alone actually getting proper rest.

She feels her whole body shiver in disapproval as thunder cracks! much closer than earlier, making the house feel like it’s rumbling. The rain’s coming as well, going from a sprinkle to a shower and developing into a downpour outside. The next roll of thunder sends her into a bit of a panic as she balls up on the couch, using her good paw to fold her ears against her head to block out as much of the noise as possible.

It just keeps getting louder, more violent and more terrifying for her.

The next rattle of noise from the heavens is just enough to make her feel uncomfortable enough to get off of the couch, pacing in the living room. She can feel an involuntary whimper climbing out of her throat as her circular hobbling around continues and she tries to calm herself down.

She didn’t think it could get louder, but it does. The next one sounds like a giant is galloping right by the house with explosions tied to its hooves, and that scares the absolute hell out of the poor cat. Her wings fling open and she bolts for the stairs with the best of her ability, ascending them quicker with the help of a single flap of her wings. She looks toward Chestnut’s room, hesitating and stopping herself in the upstairs hallway.

KRAK—BOOOM!

NOPE.

She continues her panicked staggering to Chestnut’s room, swinging the door open and darting for the bed. The sight of him alone relaxes her a little… though after bounding onto Chestnut’s place of slumber, she curls herself into a ball at the foot of the bed. This should be good enough…

Despite her eyes being closed, she can see the flash of light through her eyelids as lightning makes itself known outside his bedroom window. Barely two seconds pass, and the house shakes as the sky metaphorically detonates, reverberations coming from above to send the shockwave below.

Chestnut had awoken the moment he felt his bed shift, examining the cat after she’d made the end of his bed a place of rest. He’s unsure why she decided to turn up all a sudden, but as that next crack of thunder rolled through the house, it revealed the reasoning behind her being all curled up.

He watches the cat try to tighten herself into an even smaller ball, and his sympathy for her overflows almost instantly. He’s not one to make fun of others, and while seeing her so scared is kinda cute in a way, it’s more worrying than anything. Chestnut’s eyes pick up on her anxiously shaking, trembling as her fear of thunder continues to show itself each time the air splits from the infamous whip of lightning coming down from above.

He can’t stand to watch this poor cat suffer. It’s breaking his heart.

He sits up, leaning over to press a hoof in the center of her little ball she’s made up of herself. Her head lurches upward, looking at him, a mix of terror and confusion on her face as he pulls her toward him. Rather than continue to be pulled, she merely speeds up the process, scrambling toward him and trying to get as close as possible. He lays back down on his side, his chest pressed to CJ’s while both of his forelegs are wrapped securely around her. He minds her botched paw, making sure he doesn’t accidentally jostle it, though her other paw is tucked away just by his collar area. Another rumble rolls through the household, and his chin is forced a little upward as she stuffs her nose into the fur of his neck. He can hear her whimpering, feel her shaking… gods, he has fears too, but nothing that affects him this much.

He decides to take a gander on comforting her.

He squeezes her gently with his forelegs, bringing one up after to rub the back of her head and neck. He lowers his head to rest his chin between her ears, before taking a gentle inhalation…

“It’s alright, CJ. You’re safe, sshhh…” Chestnut quietly burrs. Cloudjumper’s shaking stops for a moment while he speaks, giving him the notion that what he’s doing is working to some effect.

“There you go, sweetheart,” he encourages her, trying his utmost to keep his voice soothing.

Cloudjumper’s already starting to feel a good deal better just by listening to him talk to her, to distract her from the commotion of the weather. It helps that his voice is so warm and strong, mellifluous—as well as the sturdy forelegs wrapped around her. He’s wonderfully warm and soft, and she’s loving the musk hidden beneath his choice of shampoo as she inhales, wriggling to try to get closer even though she can’t.

She feels pretty secure in this tremendous stallion’s grasp right now. She’s thankful he’s being so sweet to her. This will be something she remembers for a long, long time.

“I got you, don’t be scared…”

Oooh, his voice is like honey. It’s wonderful..

Her shaking comes to a halt, though she still flinches and wriggles on occasion when the weather’s noisy and explosive cracking makes itself known. Each time Chestnut is on the case, quietly reassuring her that she’s safe and sound, that there’s nothing to be afraid of.

After a good consistent hour of doing so, the storm finally passes. By the time the thunder is distant, they’d both fallen asleep together in each other’s embrace. Their respective naps last a bit longer than either intended, what with them each being so cozy and content with the result of the weather.

Neither of them are complaining. In fact, they could both get pretty used to this.

Chapter 3: Attachment

Warmth.

Wonderful warmth, with a feeling of security and the wonderful scent of a stallion to complement it all. This is a feeling she occasionally finds herself fantasizing over. Not as a sexual fantasy or anything of the like, no, but a desire that just sounds plain and simply enjoyable. She’s had her share of bedroom romps, but never one that ended up with her being gently held in place by a stallion that she’d… coupled with, at least temporarily.

As she slowly comes to, she realizes that those three factors weren’t a part of her dreams, or even part of a nightly swing, no—she’s lying comfortably with the massive stallion she’d met barely two days ago, Chestnut. She carefully looks upward, though she can’t really get a view of his face from here. Judging by the long, slow movements of his chest against hers, she’s almost certain he’s still sleeping. She almost wonders how she got here, however that wonder quickly fades as she remembers last night.

The storm, which had driven her to come up here in the first place. Yeah… she’s not fond of thunder at all. That thunder is nowhere to be heard now, so she questions whether or not she should be in bed with this guy. They didn’t do anything to each other, no—she’d probably be sore as hell if they did—so at least she feels like resting with him is a rather innocent practice for now.

And if she sees it as an innocent practice, she’s gonna enjoy it. So with a happy little wiggle against him, she presses her nose into his fur and simply indulges in Chestnut’s warmth, cuddling and scent. It’s undeniable that his body size makes for an excellent source of comfort! She even starts kneading her good paw gently against his chest, and she’s purring somewhat loudly.

“Mnnh, g’mornin’.”

She’d just started closing her eyes, but they shoot right back open. His voice sounds a little raspy, but still as nice as it usually does otherwise. His chest rumbles when he speaks, emphasizing what she’s experiencing.

“Heh, hey. You want me to get out of your hair?” Cloud asks, stopping her kneading. She can’t really help the purring right away, and she’s comfortable for the moment, so…

“Mmmhh..” he… grumbles? She can’t really tell.

She finds herself being gently squeezed by his forelegs, keeping her close. She can’t lie, she was hoping he’d do something like this. It’s nice…

“Cats purr when they’re cozy n’ happy, right?” he asks tiredly. Cloudjumper frowns slightly at the question, being it’s a little bit of a curveball.

“Yeah, that’s usually the case,” Cloud responds. One of his hooves move upward to the back of her neck, rubbing gently and slowly.

“So… I’m cozy n’ happy. Yer purrin’, which means you are too,” Chestnut says, rubbing his chin between her ears.

“I ain’t fixin’ to roll outta bed just yet.”

Cloudjumper, happy to hear the news from her current source of comfort, smiles into the fluff that is the fur of his neck. Chestnut continues his neck and head rubs, a soft smile on his face as he starts to wake up and pet the cat snuggled against him.

The two enjoy each other’s physical company, the only noise coming from either of them being soft breathing and purring. It’s still dark outside, so it’s either late at night or very early in the morning. They stay in their respective spots for an additional hour just enjoying the warmth and closeness of each other. She’d say it’s strangely intimate, but it really doesn’t feel that way. More like two friends just doin’ a cuddle.

“Alright, can’t be in bed all day,” Chestnut announces, releasing his grip from around the sphinx. He backs away a little bit, leaving the cat to feel slightly chilly after growing so used to the warmth he was giving off. While the loss of that warmth is unfortunate, she discovers she gets to watch him stretch at least.

And when he does, she’s once again catching herself shamelessly ogling his underside. His barreled chest, soft-looking tummy right down to the bits that she tries not to spend too much time looking at up until he’s done. She’d heard a few pops somewhere during that stretch, so he’s likely feeling a little relieved. Chestnut rolls out of the bed, walking around it, which leads to Cloudjumper getting the urge to do some stretching, too.

Chestnut pauses, turning to watch the cat as her back faces him and she begins stretching the same way he had, except she rolls onto her stomach. Her ears fold back, her midsection arching to the bed as she manages to plant her hind paws on the sheets, bringing her lower half to a sudden stand as she changes the stretch into something more cat-like. With her chest still planted to the bed and her rump contrasting that by being perked up as much as she can get it to be, that… leaves Chestnut’s eyes wandering toward her tail, which is also high up in the air. His eyes travel southward, and stops as his eyes meet with her, ah, feminine parts.

He can’t say he’s never taken the time to wonder what a mare’s parts look like, and he’s seen them before, yeah, but… something strikes him a little differently as he examines the cat that’s stretching on his bed. He’s half sure he’s starting to become attracted to her physically, and with the sight of that mound between those soft-looking rear cheeks, well.. he’s not one to leave himself in denial. His sheath even twitches a couple of times, a tingling sensation starting to build in his loins, his cheeks reddening slightly.

He likes what he sees, though before he gives himself the chance to stare any longer and risk being caught, he turns and heads out of the room.

Unbeknownst to him, her eyes had been on him the moment she’d gotten to her stomach. He was totally just ogling her, seemingly without any shame or a care in the world.

And just maybe she enjoyed the attention of the stallion's wandering eyes. There's something satisfying about the thought of Chestnut just… looking down at her while ignoring what's respectable. It gives her the shivers, in a good way.

She rolls off of the bed too, though she's careful on her landing. The bandage he'd applied the night before is still looking mint, so changing it can wait a while longer. She makes her way down the stairs, finding Chestnut in the kitchen eating breakfast.

She walks up next to him, Chestnut stopping his chewing as he looks over at the cat now beside him. He's expecting her to get some food to eat and sit at the table with him, but what he gets instead is… well, unexpected.

Cloudjumper plants a little kiss on his cheek, Chestnut's mouth hanging open slightly in surprise.

"Thank you for last night. It was sweet of you,” she says, revealing what she’d thought of the occurrence. He just continues staring at her with his mouth slightly agape, blinking a few times before closing his mouth and swallowing his food.

She can’t help but let a teasing thought cross her mind. He’s acting like it’s his first kiss from a girl or something, heh.

What she doesn’t know is that it is his first kiss from someone that isn’t family.

“I… uhm. Just uh… d-did what I felt was right,” he stammers, his face going red. His ears are half-folded back, and his brain feels a little rattled. She could’ve just thanked him. Why the kiss? Is she going to do it again? Should he give her one back?

The questions pile on, though he doesn’t get to act on any of them as she just shakes her head with a giggle, shambling out of the room.

The twenty year old stallion is blushing fiercely from a kiss on the cheek.

Luna help him, he really needs to get away from this farm more often.

Chestnut finishes up his meal, delivering the dish he’d used to the sink after before deciding to go out and do some work. He’d heard the front door open and close earlier, indicating Cloudjumper venturing outside. The early-morning sun has already risen, a dense fog covering the majority of the surrounding area as far as he can see. It’s a little spooky-looking, but also really pretty. The air seems to ‘sparkle’ slightly as the sun’s rays bounce off of the evaporating mist.

Chestnut makes his way out to the apple trees, looking closely to find Cloudjumper picking apples where she’d left off yesterday. She’s doing it the same way; standing on her hinds, using the semi-dextrous grip of her paws to gently pluck apples away from the trees.

Ah, right. It’d probably be wise to announce his arrival this time around.

“Hey-howdy,” Chestnut chants, making himself known. CJ’s tail flicks as she successfully pulls another apple, carefully setting it in the basket to her right.

“You pickin’ apples with me?” Cloudjumper asks, turning to look at him. He’s already standing upright, carefully pulling an apple from the tree between his teeth. Seems that question was answered before she even started.

“Mhm,” he responds, setting his apple in his own basket.

“Kills time, an’ we can talk while we work,” the stallion states as he starts standing on his hinds again. He has pretty good balance for an earth pony on their hindlegs. Most are clumsy—it shows that he’s done this his fair share of times.

“Anything specific you’d like to chat about?” Cloud asks. Chestnut hums a noise to answer her with an ‘mhm’ right before he collects another apple.

“I wanna know more about ya. Can’t blame me for bein’ curious, you stayin’ here ‘til yer paw’s all dandy,” he starts.

“Mmh. Well, fire when ready!”

Chestnut smiles. He doesn’t really know how many questions he has for this cat, but he’s sure more will pour in as he goes on.

“Firstly, how old are ya? Can’t be any older than maybe twenty,” he asks, starting.

“Twenty-two.”

“Huh. Any kids?”

Cloudjumper turns her head to look at him, cocking an eyebrow.

“Well that escalated quickly, geez—no, definitely not,” she playfully rebukes with a shake of her head and a giggle.

“You live around here?” Chestnut continues.

“I… don’t really live anywhere specifically. I just venture around, all free-spirit like.”

Chestnut pauses his questions, thinking over that for a moment. She doesn’t have a place to call an official home? A bit unusual, though he presumes she’s the hunter-gatherer type. There’s probably lots of those types around Equiis that travel because they enjoy it.

“You... just find work while ya travel?”

“Mhm! Pest control can get me some good coin pretty quickly,” Cloudjumper proudly states. She's quite prideful of her hunting prowess, well, when she's not on the losing end of things.

A good example is her left paw right now… though in fairness, a boar is quite hard to take down.

Curiosity getting the better of him, he decides to dig a little deeper.

“How ‘bout relationships?” he asks, not thinking much of it. Cloudjumper has several questions after that gets sent her way, though she’ll wait her turn.

“Mmh, mostly the occasional one-nighter,” she admits, though she can’t really say she’s ashamed. Girls have needs too, and scratching that itch is good relief.

“‘One-nighter?’” he presses.

“Yeah, y’know. A one night romp,” she continues. She puts another apple in her basket, watching him momentarily as he comes down to put one in his basket too.

“...Ya lost me,” Chestnut utters, delayed.

“You don’t know what a one night stand is?” Cloudjumper pursues, her curiosity growing even more.

“Nup.”

“You’re joking.”

“Erhm, really. I dunno,” he insists, turning to look at her. His face shows no sign of lying. She even waits an extra moment, almost expecting him to start cracking up and claim that he ‘got her good’ or something. That doesn’t come.

“Is it a dance or somethin’?”

By the gods, he’s so innocent… and clueless.

“It’s sex, Chestnut. Get together with someone for a night, get your rocks off and part ways.”

Chestnut blinks. Oh. So… oh, wait a minute. He’s heard something similar to that before from an old highschool friend!

“Shoot ‘n’ scoot!” he exclaims.

Cloudjumper just lowers her head toward the ground, before starting to giggle like crazy. Goddesses, that was silly and oddly cute of him. Once her giggling comes to a stop, she sits upright and uses her good paw to wipe a tear from her eye.

“Yes, Chestnut, ‘shoot ‘n’ scoot’,” she says with a few final giggles. Chestnut is glad that he’d caught on despite it being after her explanation. He doesn’t think anything negatively of her regarding her shooting and scooting activities. It’s none of his business, and he’s not one to judge.

He’s never even had sex. He can't fully grasp the emotional context of it if he's never experienced it.

"And what about you?" Cloudjumper asks, using this opportunity to switch who's asking questions.

"What about me?" he parrots.

"Yeah! Y'know, how old are you, hobbies, relationships?"

"Oh, uh… I'm twenty. I'll be twenty-one in a couple weeks. I s'pose my hobby is workin' since I enjoy doin' it. Been runnin' this here solo since I was sixteen," he says, gesturing a hoof toward the expanse of plantations. Cloudjumper seems impressed by this new information, most notably him doing this all by himself. She doesn't know much about farming stuff, but it looks like a lot of hard work.

"Relationships? Well, can't deny I've had a couple opportunities, but I turned 'em down. Never had a marefriend before."

Cloudjumper tilts her head, confused as to why a young guy would push away the chance at having a partner. She can’t judge, never having been in a real relationship also, but still. Almost every guy she’s ever heard of has at least taken a gander at pursuing a saucy night with someone they find appealing.

“Seriously?” she asks, incredulous.

“Eeyup.”

Huh. Well, that’s that she supposes. It sounds like he should try to get out more and enjoy himself. Judging by what she’s been told, he’s just been working the past four years and nothing else.

From a realistic standpoint he’s not at all bad looking, and he’s a big dude to boot, which she knows for a fact some girls would love to have. Such a kind and gentle giant, working endlessly at home rather than having an actual life outside of busting his ass day-in day-out? It's kinda sad, though she keeps that to herself.

“I’ll take a shot in the dark and assume you’ve been in a relationship before?” he asks suddenly.

“Nothing serious, no. I travel a lot, and I’m not ready just yet to start settling down,” she responds.

“Mmh. Topic change,” he suggests, to which she nods.

“You mentioned pest control earlier. Hunting, right?”

“Yeah, like property destroyers. Moles, groundhogs, mice, rats... all that fun stuff,” Cloudjumper explains. Chestnut doesn’t ask if she eats those pests, though it does remind him that she hadn’t bothered to eat breakfast.

“I’m guessin’ some folk would prefer a hunter doin’ the work instead of puttin’ poison around their property?”

“The large majority, yeah. Some of ‘em had young kids, so poison was out of the question,” Cloudjumper confirms. She plucks another apple.

“Mhm. Hey, you can eat a few apples if you wanna. Ya didn’t eat breakfast,” Chestnut says. Cloudjumper shares an appreciative smile with him, before taking a bite out of the apple she’d just plucked. It’s sweet and juicy, with a mild tart to it. Crisp, too!

Chestnut takes a bite out of an apple as well, or rather, a good half of an apple.

While snacking, they both take notice that the fog is starting to lift. The sun is about to be blocked off by some clouds, so at least they’ll continue to have some mild weather.

Starting to talk again while continuing, the two take the next few hours to strip a couple more rows of trees free of their fruits. They also get a bit more acclimated to each other’s company, their conversation flowing even better as they continue getting to know each other.

Cloudjumper’s becoming a bit more fond of the stallion as he shares more about himself, and Chestnut could say the same about Cloudjumper.

Over the next several days, that fondness for each other would, of course, grow. Working together through the heat and making the time pass quicker with each others’ company makes it a lot more enjoyable.

Being there is a nice pit-stop. Flying is fine and all, but she’d rather not risk messing up her paw more just for some adventuring. Actually, it’s starting to feel pretty okay! Though not quite ready for travel. She’d tried taking a few steps this morning, and while it’s a bit sore, walking wasn’t hard to do at all. Just a bit awkward, since it still stung a tad and she hasn’t walked on four paws in over a week. She’d thought about making her exit rather soon to get out of this family’s hair—she’d met his grandparents! They’re really sweet—but she’d discovered that, well…

She’s really enjoying her stay here. Her paw isn’t fully healed just yet, and while Chestnut had been watching her walk around on it this morning, her limp was still a little visible. She’d asked to stay a little while longer, and he’d seemed happy to let her do so. Judging by his tone, he’s enjoying her stay here too!

There’s just one little additional thing that has her pondering, maybe even second-guessing herself.

She’s growing increasingly fond of Chestnut. Each day spent with him feels like a gift, one that she can unwrap each morning she wakes up to reveal the present that is the kind stallion she’s helping out, and vice versa. His traits are attractive; hard-working, sweet, handsome and, judging by his efforts in seeing she’s comfortable, very considerate. He’s put just as much work going into town for her benefit, making sure she gets a part of her diet that he doesn’t even eat, fish.

He’s not judgmental, usually giving the benefit of the doubt. He always cleans up after himself and practices good manners. He’s always looking out for her too, keeping a close eye on her when they’re working, but giving her space as well. Given he’d been wearing a shirt, there’s no doubt she could see him taking it off of his back to help her stay warm, in a metaphorical sense. Probably in a literal sense, too.

He’d be a good role model for some more unruly stallions out there. His parents raised him right, and his own ethics merely improved that. This kind of guy is a hard one to find.

And after thinking about all of that, well… she’s kinda hooked. She’s found guys physically attractive quite a few times before, but mentally? This is new to her, but not unwelcome.

She looks over at Chestnut as he picks some plums—they’d finished up the apple trees almost a week ago!—smiling widely at the stallion that she’s grown so attracted to.

Chestnut’s thoughts are in a similar place, but for different reasons. This is the first girl he's met outside of family that isn't bothered by getting her hooves—paws—a little dirty. She'd accidentally fallen into the muddy field the other day and just laughed over it, saying it would wash off. She's physically active, and doesn't go out of her way to pretty herself up with makeup and clothes, confident in her own looks.

He'd asked her about that, actually. She'd just stricken a silly pose, flicked her tail and shuffled her wings…

"If a guy doesn't like me the way I look now, then it sucks to be him."

It was a little cocky, but he likes that about her. She doesn't act fake. She's herself, and she's proud to be that way.

Siding that, well, she's pretty. She respects him, and the conversation he'd picked up on while she was talking to his grandparents went smoothly. She's helpful, clever and enjoyable to work with to boot.

That smile, too. Goddesses he was a little scared at first, but it's grown on him quickly. She's adorable when she smiles.

…He'd never really 'checked someone out' prior to meeting her, if he's not counting accidental glances. Her build makes his mouth water, something he can't explain nor is he used to, but he loves it. Slim, but she has meat on her bones. He'd compare her to an athlete, firm in the right places but soft where she should be.

He would know. The same night she'd fallen into the field another storm had come along, and she'd wound up inside with him for comfort again. She must've wriggled her way upward in her sleep, because he'd woken up with her chest in his face and his hooves around her butt instead of her back.

It's a nice butt, if he says so himself. Of course he'd quickly retreated his hooves to her back, but he'd accidentally 'copped a feel' in the process.

He snaps out of his thoughts when he hears the familiar pattering of rain against leaves above them. There was a call for showers today, though they were expected to come a little later. The sound of rain starts to quickly escalate, going from a sprinkle to a shower in just a few minutes.

They put their plums near the bases of the tree trunks, already knowing what to do in case of rain.

"Head for the barn!" he hollers as the shower starts turning into a downpour. This is far more than what was expected. He starts off into a gallop, surprised to see CJ flying past him, taking the lead by default.

It doesn't take him too long to catch up. He's just not as speedy as someone who's clearly better built for running, let alone flying. Apparently Cloudjumper thinks it's hilarious to see him run so quickly, she's laughing her head off as she watches him get soaked in the rain. His hair is over his eyes at this point from the absurd amount of rain.

Of course, he'd started laughing too. She'd also gotten soaked in the time it took to get to the barn, so he's not the only one looking goofy.

They swing open the barn door together, rushing in as their coats drip rainwater and their fur sticks out oddly from under them. Sharing their giggles, they find a spot in the barn to take a seat: the cozy pile of straw that'd been made up for Cloudjumper.

After wiping her hair out of her face, CJ looks at Chestnut with a lingering grin.

"Can you see through those bangs, rockstar?" she jokes. He tries blowing the hair out of his eyes, but it doesn't work.

With a 'snrk', she reaches up for him and moves aside his soaked hair, revealing those pretty, icy blue eyes. His tail flicks behind him, some water flinging off of it.

“Now I can,” he responds, scrunching his muzzle at her. She scrunches hers back, which looks far more threatening coupled with her top canines poking out from under her upper lip. As if trying to compete, he bares his teeth in a manner to mock her canines. In fairness, he has canines too, but they’re a lot smaller.

He doesn’t look menacing at all since it looks like a kooky smile. She shakes her head, perking her eyebrows. Deciding to play along, she actually snarls, looking genuinely frightening to anyone that hasn’t seen this sort of sight before. Ponies seem to have an innate fear of anyone with carnivorous traits around the mouth or face in general.

He’s been around her almost constantly for the past week and a half, though. Eating, talking, nipping her fur while grooming? Chestnut’s kinda used to it at this point since he’s seen the majority of it.

He still shivers a little, however.

He can’t place why, but… her teeth get him excited. So dangerous and capable of harm, yet he doubts she’d bite him with malicious intent.

“Like I can compete with that,” Chestnut says, admitting defeat. Cloudjumper just wiggles a little in her spot, sporting her winning smile. They listen to the rain pound against the barn roof for a moment.

"Whelp. Chores are a hair limited," Chestnut says, shaking his head.

"We could work in the rain. It's not cold out," Cloudjumper points out, but Chestnut shakes his head to deny that possibility.

"Wait it out, then?" she suggests.

"Dunno how long it'll last," he admits, frowning. The sound of water hitting the roof continues, the audible onslaught punctuating its existence.

Chestnut tries to think of something to do. They're ahead on chores, so it's not completely necessary for them to be on the ball. Still, sitting here doing nothing makes him a little anxious, if not restless. Cloudjumper merely watches his expression, an idea slowly presenting itself.

She scoots a little closer, mentally preparing herself. Staying here had resulted in an opportunity to make a friend, and for the past few days she's really been thinking on that. While not typically being the type to seek a romantic relationship, she can't deny that she's been playing with the idea in her head when it comes to applying Chestnut to it. As she continues looking up at him, her wings ruffling as she examines the workhorse in thought, she can't help but silently encourage herself to make the push. She really likes Chestnut, and the idea of actually being an item with him isn't one she'd scoff at.

"I've got nothin'," he finalizes, his hoof tampering with some straw. He looks up at her, cocking his head slightly.

"Any ideas?" the stallion quizzically asks the cat in front of him.

He's presented an opening without even knowing it. Steeling her resolve the sphinx inches closer, the gap between closing. She sits up, staring into those light blue irises. Her heart is pounding away relentlessly in her chest, her pupils dilating due to her being nervous.

She doesn't lurch, leaning up and forward at a reasonable pace until their lips meet. Fearing disdain from the stallion, she squeezes her eyes shut and holds herself still while her ears fold against her head. Her tail starts to lash around behind her; there's no denying it, she's definitely lip-to-lip with the gargantuan male in front of her.

On Chestnut's end, a lot more is going on than meets the eye. One moment he's thinking of something to do, the next he's getting kissed. Questions start surging from all fields while his eyes widen at Cloudjumper, at first stunned by her action.

Did she plan this? Is this her idea of 'something to do'? Is she aware that he's interested? Is she interested back, or is she just being a special kind of friendly?

Distracted with his thoughts, he's a little startled when she pulls away. Mouth agape, he tries reading her expression. She looks worried and embarrassed, turning her head to the side with a frown on her face.

He'd liked that kiss, and he'd liked it a lot! His wordlessness coupled with the look on his face might be telling her otherwise, however.

"Uhm, ahem. Sorry. That was uncalled for," she mutters. She's still not looking at him, her eyes locked on the barn floor. She's avoiding eye contact.

Chestnut is speechless. That was his first actual kiss. Can't she give a guy a moment to process that? Though… he is awkwardly staring at her, which isn't helping.

Her attitude shifts, and she looks at him with a frown. Now her face appears annoyed.

"Alright, I get it, stop staring at me like that," she huffs, only continuing to grow more annoyed. That snaps him out of his daze, a head shake and a series of blinks following. Now she's rolling her eyes—dammit Chestnut, do something!

"I'm uh—"

"Yeah, I know, not interested," she finishes for him, her bullheadedness stepping in.

"Wh—no, that's not—"

"I said I know, dammit," she curses at him, to which Chestnut becomes frustrated. Gritting his teeth, his ears folded against his head, he tries to think of something, anything to save the situation before it gets worse.

"You've turned girls down before, why stop at me?"

He bites his tongue. He's losing it, his patience that is.

"This is why I've never pursued a real relationship."

Ah. The straw that broke the camel's back has finally arrived.

He moves forward swiftly, both of his hooves pressing against her cheeks, turning her head to face him. She looks bewildered, and for a split second he hesitates due to that expression—but that hesitation is cast aside when he re-engages the kiss. A moment later he realizes her paws are against his chest, claws extended, threatening to dig into his skin—but he holds, his persistence unbreaking. When he feels her claws retract and feels her start to relax, he presses on.

His hooves move from her cheeks, slowly finding their way to her midsection. His forelegs wrap around her, gripping her lithe body while he carefully turns the both of them to lay in the straw bed together.

It's Cloudjumper's turn to be baffled as Chestnut rolls her onto her back, his massive form positioned over her before he starts to rest himself atop her. If that weren't enough, she's even more dumbfounded when her mouth is pried open by the big lug's tongue, a moan escaping her. He even tilts his head, making it more comfortable. She feels his tongue wandering against hers, and that's when she brings her forelegs around to his back, her hindlegs up around his waist while she kneads her paws between his shoulder blades. She's purring louder than ever…

Chestnut does his best, trying to go by something he's never personally experienced and only seen a few times before. Given her reaction, the way she's purring and that little noise she made, he must be doing something right. He continues eagerly wrestling her tongue with his own, gasping when his aim is off and he pokes against one of her canines. Better yet, pokes against any of her teeth. All the ones he's able to reach feel sharp, but to his surprising discovery he finds it exhilarating! Her tongue is a little rougher than his too, but that's not something he's bothered by at all.

The two continue kissing for what feels like seconds, minutes, maybe even hours. The closeness, the warmth of their wet bodies pressed together, the intimacy of their newfound relationship… it's romantic, really. Slow, not too sensual, and they're both loving it!

Though after some untracked amount of time, Chestnut breaks it up. Now gently panting with his face flushed, he looks down into the sphinx's golden eyes, which seem to be a little more watery than eyes usually are.

"Sorry for freezin' up earlier. It stunned me," Chestnut explains, shooting her a smile to show he's happy. She squeezes his back with her hocks, returning the smile.

"It's okay. Sorry for freaking out," she apologizes in return, lifting her head to nuzzle his cheek.

"I forgive ya. Figured kissin' you would do somethin'."

Cloudjumper rolls her eyes, refraining from giggling. It definitely did something alright! Judging by the additional appearance of something else, she’s not the only one that’s aroused. She can feel her nethers twitching, giving the occasional wink from the slow tongue action they’d just been giving each other.

And that something else feels pretty damn heavy for what it is.

Chestnut coming unsheathed isn’t something he’s really concerned about. He’s aroused now, so it was bound to happen, right? Nothing to be too flustered over, unless he were being asked to use it.

‘It’ gives a subtle throb when Cloudjumper seems to acknowledge it, looking down as her curiosity gets the better of her.

With him laying on her, it’s in plain sight. Laying on her stomach, heavy and thick, long and ‘looking’ right up at her. He notices her peeking, clearing his throat to snag her attention.

“Oh! Sorry,” Cloudjumper says, feeling herself wink again. He’d been leaking precum like crazy onto her stomach. Everything about his ‘attachment’ was nice to look at.

“I wasn’t pesterin’ ya. Just wanna ask a question,” Chestnut states as he rolls off of her, laying on his side with his underside facing her.

Well that’s definitely not distracting at all. Now she can see all the goodies. Definitely not stealing a peek at everything, she looks up at him.

“Sure, fire away.”

Chestnut nods.

“I take it we’re a couple?” Chestnut asks.

Cloudjumper just looks at him as if to say, ‘Seriously? After that, you’re not sure?’.

“Yes, Chestnut,” she says, shaking her head. She can’t help but smile after a couple of seconds. She’s his first marefriend, and he’s the first stallion she’s actively pursued for a serious relationship.

“Was just makin’ sure. I’m new to all this stuff,” he says, before stretching on the hay beside her. She knows he’s not meaning to do it, but with him on display like this in all of his glory, it’s hard not to be aroused right now.

She kinda wonders if he's just blissfully unaware. Maybe he's stupendously oblivious? She's never heard of a stallion so willingly let themselves be seen in such a manner without them being, well, a sleep around.

Deciding to use stereotypical country lingo to seem less prying, she decides to question the nearby stiffy.

"You gonna holster that cannon or fire a few rounds?" she asks with a smirk, nodding toward his lower half. He looks down at it, before shrugging.

"Hooves are clumsy," he openly admits, even poking his length with the side of his hoof.

"Uh-huh. So… you're just gonna let it be?" she asks, her face warming considerably.

"Well, it's rainin'. I can't go into town."

Go into town? Now she's confused.

"Whattya mean?" she asks. Her ears perk to listen, wondering what could be involved with him getting off and being in the nearest town.

"The clinic. I go there a couple times a week, they pay for sperm donations."

Cloudjumper blinks. Well, that makes sense. He frequents the walk there commonly.

"But… wouldn't you still be using your hooves anyway?" she asks, prying.

"Nope. They have mounts there, they do the job nicely. Get paid, too."

Cloudjumper feels herself wink, hard. There's something satisfying about the thought of Chestnut rearing up on his hindlegs and just… doing as he pleases.

"I accidentally broke one the first time I went," he claims nonchalantly, resting his head on the straw with a soft smile.

What?

"How?" she asks, eyes widened in disbelief. Chestnut's eyes open and he smiles a little wider.

"Snapped the frame. Got too eager, I s'pose."

"Aren't those made of metal?"

"I reckon, yup."

…

That's… hot.

"Shit, sounds like easy money. Guess it pays to have a penis," Cloudjumper giggles.

"You could say that, yeah. Surrogate mothers can rake in way more, though."

"I don't think it's fair to compare a ten month pregnancy to something that can take as little as a few minutes," Cloudjumper counters. Chestnut silently agrees with a nod.

"...So. I have another question."

"I have another answer."

"I thought you'd never kissed before. I expected far worse than what I got—not that I'm complaining," she says.

"Oh. Saw a few different movies in my free time, took some notes. Just copied what I saw," Chestnut explains. That opens a door for another series of relatable questions, but she decides to keep it shut for now. If those movies were 'X-Rated' or even 'R-Rated', he might be able to pull off something she doesn't expect again. Sex is a different ballpark versus kissing, but… she can dream!

"Clever."

"Thankya kindly."

"...It's still raining," she notes. As if the pouring rain outside weren't obvious enough.

"That it is," he says, looking up at the ceiling. He's not quite catching her subtle hint.

"What could we possibly do together being stuck in a barn?" she decides to ask him. He looks over at her, his smile widening again. He got the hint that time. He pats his chest with a hoof, inviting her over for round two.

"C'mere."

With a shiver and a flutter of her wings, the winged feline crawls to him. Wasting no time, she climbs atop the massive stallion's torso, her purr returning as he wraps his forelegs securely around her back. She's mindful enough to avoid his erection, letting it hang innocently enough over her hock.

She starts off with a smooch to his lips, a giddy grin plastered over her features. Pressing her nose to his, she tilts her head, engaging in the kiss again. This time, she's the one prying his mouth open. Their tongues greet, welcoming each other back for a second visit.

She hopes this rain lasts until sunrise. She's gonna enjoy every damn moment of it.

Chapter 4: New Experiences (NSFW)

Cloudjumper starts to awaken, eyes sluggishly opening as she drifts from the dreamworld and back into reality. Recalling her dream immediately after waking, she’d been flying over what seemed to be a never-ending meadow. She can easily recall what she’d identified as a serene landscape, the sun warm on her wings as she traveled the endless expanse of goldenrod and aster forbs. The daisies and susans, the pleasant smell of the earth in the late summer as the sunset shone directly ahead, her directive forward and nowhere else. The mild scent of purpletop grass tickled her nose as she went lower, mere feet from the ground as her wings allowed her to soar seemingly forever.

It was a refreshing dream. Though she’s still certainly young, she finds herself forgetting her dreams a little more often as she gets older. To remember one so vividly, to not have it ruined by becoming startled while sleeping in the outdoors, to get a comfortable good night’s rest without interruption is always something nice to experience.

Though no matter how nice that dream was, the stallion she’s laying on top of feels warmer than the sun that was shining on her in that dream. His scent is more welcoming than any meadow grass she’s sniffed before. While those pretty flowers were easy on the eyes, she finds it far more exciting and interesting to experience this farmhand’s eyes on hers. Blue is a common eye color in this world, but the contrast of his icelike eye color versus his earth-themed fur, hooves and hair is something undeniably pleasing to look at.

Plus, she gets to experience all of this while she’s awake. The dream was just an appetizer; he’s the meal. It’s a shame he’s still asleep, those light beige lids hiding away the source of his soft expression, his gentle gaze accomplished with those soothing eyes.

Those thoughts of him bounce around in her head like an echo. Despite being in an actual relationship with him now for the past four days, she can’t deny that she’s feeling resolute about that. Chestnut’s doing a fantastic job at keeping her interested, and that fact solidifies more with each day that passes. At first she’d worried that he was just sucking up, possibly wanting something in return, but as she continued getting to know him she discovered he was genuine in his efforts.

So far, he’s treated her like gold. She wishes he’d treat himself the same way and give himself a bit of a break since he’s always busting his butt, but his desire to work hard seems like something she’ll have to teach him to work on. That’ll take a significant amount of weaning, she’s sure.

Her paws are on his shoulders, habitually ‘making biscuits’ into the large stallion’s musculature as a form of outwardly announcing her delight. She’s to the point now that she can walk on her left paw, since it’s healed almost completely. She’s mildly reluctant to break into a sprint since there’s still a hair of perturbing pressure in her wrist, but in a couple more days? She’ll be golden to move freely, she’s certain of it. She can’t wait to feel the freedom of being back in tip-top shape!

Although…

As fun as adventuring sounds, she’s second guessing herself. Even on the day of agreeing with Chestnut that they were in a relationship, she’d been mentally set on resuming her adventures and returning periodically to give him the time he deserves, to pursue their relationship actively while wanting to give him his space for work. He’s lived a seemingly solitary work life, being here with his family. She’s the polar opposite of that, traveling and finding work where she can, not having seen any part of her family since she’d run off from home.

And she’d be damned to admit it so soon, but...

For once, she wants to remain solitary, like him. She wants to be by Chestnut’s side. Life’s thrown her a huge opportunity to be with a guy that likes her for her, not for her exotic features or for what’s between her hindlegs, not because she’s dirty-minded or because she’s attractive.

She didn’t ever think she’d come to this one day. Wanting to pursue a real relationship instead of an adventure? Granted, she’ll be wanting to communicate; she’s a chatty kitty and needs interaction with more than just one other being. Some form of travel even if it’s small will be necessary, but still.

Her friends would think she’d rolled around in a laced field of catnip.

She doesn’t want to leave, not so soon. She’s enjoying this too much; taking it easy and getting to know a guy for who he is. The only thing she’s known about guys before is a tidbit of their personality at face value and how decent they were or weren’t in bed. Thinking over that now, she’s… still not ashamed, but she does feel like she could’ve made a better decision.

At this point her thoughts have gone so far that her kneading has come to a halt, the cat’s focus elsewhere for the moment. This brings Chestnut to open his eyes, his massage being on pause while Cloudjumper zones out. Those irises she’d wanted to see are fully on display, and he smiles up at her as she seems to stare at the wall behind the bed.

“Mnh, I was enjoyin’ that,” Chestnut mock-complains, watching the cat’s face light up.

Her pupils dilate when she looks down at him, a smile overcoming her momentarily distant expression. As soon as she fully registers that her stallion is awake she starts kneading again, her wings fluttering as his eyes peer into hers. She rests her chin on his chest.

“Sorry!” CJ chirps, though in an excited tone. He’s awake! The cordial look on his face speaks volumes, revealing how he feels about seeing her right back.

“You better be,” he jokes, chuckling. He looks at the clock on the wall; eight-thirty. He usually gets up at five thirty. The reason for getting up so late has a good excuse behind it, he swears!

They were up late talking, which evolved into kissing, which further evolved into another hour-long session of swapping saliva and a battle of skill via tongue wrestling. He won strength, she won dexterity, and they both won with that as a compromise. Though… she’d won a little more, considering one more thing.

Still has the blue balls from last night, he can’t lie, but… he can wait it out. He’s not aware of the fact that mares can get something similar—which is something she’s experiencing also. That makes them at a stalemate.

“Lemme make it up to you,” she says, giving him a little peck on the lips.

“Better?” she continues. Her tail whips gently behind her and her wings twitch again.

His smile broadens, his forelegs squeezing her. He sits up, bringing the sphinx along with him until they're both upright, Cloudjumper's forelegs wrapping around his shoulders to make sure she's supported while her haunches rest on his lap. She's… pretty much straddling him.

She's not complaining! Nor is she protesting when he cocks his head to the side and kisses her. It seems he's eager this morning, pressing into the kiss and leaning forward, his tongue brushing against hers. The cat squirms excitedly, her hips rolling just slightly as air gets stolen from her lungs, leaving her to gasp for breath as soon as she gets the chance.

He's getting good at this, and the better it gets the more susceptible she finds herself to becoming aroused. Being a horndog doesn't help.

He pulls away after a few minutes, a trail of saliva breaking from their tongues as the kiss comes to a close. She can feel his heart hammering against her chest, not to mention the turgid length that'd slipped its way upward and between them during their 'action'.

She looks down at it, examining the fat, bulbous head of his endowment. Deciding to be a little sly, she sits fully upright and presses her stomach against it, sliding upward purposefully as she comes to a stand and looks down at him. His face had contorted, eyes widening with a mix of pleasure and tension. He'd liked it, but he certainly hadn't expected it.

"What're you—" he starts, but is cut off with a paw pressing against his mouth. She'd never put her paw there before. It's… soft, kinda squishy? It has some give to it. His eyes cross, looking at it.

"When's the last time you went into the clinic?" she asks, his eyes uncrossing to look up at her. She removes her paw.

"Uhm… a little over a week ago, I think. Why?" Chestnut returns. He's considerably confused when her grin reappears. What's she thinking?

Cloudjumper gathers an idea. She isn't hesitant to really ask if he's down to enjoy his first time experiencing some actual pleasure via another's touch, but…

She's kinda scared he'll turn it down. Whenever she's offered help, although outside of sexual context, he's always insistent on taking care of it himself. It wouldn’t be unfair to think that he might do exactly that. Maybe if she approaches the topic the right way…

“Well, I’ve been wanting to treat you to something nice. You’re always doing nice things for me, and I wanna do something nice for you…” she says, before… feeling like that may’ve been the wrong way of approaching what she’d like to do.

He tilts his head, frowning.

“Whatcha got in mind, pretty kitty?” Chestnut curiously questions.

Huh, pretty kitty? That’s… nice. Cute. She likes it! Now with her face warmed up too, she presses onward.

“Well…” she starts, slowly coming to a sit once again, her paws pressing into his chest. She kneads briefly, giving him a gentle push just after.

He seems to get the message, laying on his back, forelegs tucked to his chest. His fur is even throughout his body, though it's a little thinner at his belly and around his 'boys' and his clearly erect pride.

Fitting that thing in her will, admittedly, be a little difficult. Not impossible, but adjusting will be a must. That scenario is for a later date, however.

She backs herself up to get better access, Cloudjumper's chest between his hindlegs with her paws at either side of his gently pulsating member. Naturally curious, Chestnut's eyes follow while the cat gets comfortable in a place she's never been with him before. Oblivious as ever, he smiles down at her—he’s not nervous, he’s not squirming, he’s not even in thought to question why she’s there of all places. CJ could lean forward and touch his dick with her nose, but he doesn’t seem to think of it.

Still, he’s clearly aroused. She’s glad he doesn’t seem to mind being on display, honestly! His confidence is pretty sharp!

“I was thinking…” she says, her paws once again starting to knead, though this time on his belly.

“You could let me be the clinic for you this time around,” she says, cleverly involving his usual place of relief with herself, or so she thinks.

“You… want to be my mount?” Chestnut’s eyes widen, incredulous.

Whoa! She backpedals fairly hard, waving a paw and shaking her head. Not what she meant! She’s trying to take this relationship at least a little slow, geez!

...Although that thought is incontestably hot. Chestnut, mounting her? She can’t deny, she’s already fantasized about that!

“Nonono!” she attempts to amend, before deciding to be more direct with her approach. Those paws at either side of his length instead move to be directly on it, though she’s not putting any pressure on it just yet.

“This is what I meant,” she says, watching as his form goes taut. It’s the first time he’s been touched there by another pony, or in her case, sphinx; she’d expected that.

He’s reluctant and embarrassed now that her intentions are clear. A nearly inaudible huff can be heard from the stallion as he examines her paws resting on his, er, tool. Deciding to ask a question before he accepts or denies her treatment, he eases up.

“Yer uh… yer claws won’t cut me, I hope?”

“Nope! I know what I’m doing. You’ll like it, I promise.”

A few brief moments of thought passes as the stallion ponders over it. He doesn’t know why he’s not giving a straight answer right off the bat. It’s not like he hasn’t thought about being touched, or having sex, or any of that stuff ever. He’s a guy. Of course he has. He’s not as completely innocent as he lets off, he’s just never taken as much interest as most guys have.

Maybe he feels like she might consider it a chore? She’d probably be offended if he admitted it...

But now there’s an eminent reason to be interested. Cloudjumper’s his partner, very possibly his partner romantically. Chestnut takes a deep breath in, lets it all out and gives her a simple nod.

“Good boy,” she whispers, Chestnut’s ears perking at those two words. His face feels like it’s on fire after, the unexpected praise being unusually welcome for the stallion.

What comes next startles him more, however. One of her paws, once stationary and passive, starts its journey upward toward his tip while the other heads in the opposite direction, pressing against the base of his shaft. He feels and sees her press the ‘dewclaw’ of her paw just under his crown, practicing circular rubs in the surprisingly sensitive spot. He doesn’t know what to do other than make a quiet moan, one of the first that Cloudjumper has heard come from him.

She grips the underside half of his tip with her paw, gently squeezing and pressing against the pliable width of flesh to get him more worked up. If she wants this to be truly enjoyable for him (and frankly herself as well) she’ll need to build up some pre-cum. She can feel herself starting to salivate as her other paw cups his balls. They’re heavy, as if their large size didn’t tell enough already.

CJ presses her center paw pad against the top of his tip, using her surrounding digits to grasp the wide thing to the best of her ability and give it a fuller squeeze, crimping his tip while it’s flaring mildly. At the same time, her other paw comes up to press against the base of his length, just under his medial ring.

The result is a spectacular one as Chestnut gets the instinct to thrust, inarguably taking delight in her choice of actions as his cockhead spits a healthy dose of pre right into the center of her paw. Perfect.

She rubs the slick and translucent fluid against his tip, watching with eager eyes as she massages this massive stallion’s hefty meat, making sure to catch any pre-cum she can to apply it to her ministrations.

“H-hoh, fuck,” Chestnut mutters—Cloudjumper’s ears caught that. She’s never heard him curse before. Something about this typically virtuous and decent-mannered stallion cursing strikes a nice chord with her, as if literally stroking him off weren’t enough.

Well, the stroking off hasn’t quite begun, but it will momentarily.

Already coated in a generous amount of pre, the cat’s semi-dexterous digits start rubbing up and down his length to coat him sufficiently. Since this stuff doesn't dry nearly as fast as water, she'll have plenty of time to get him properly 'lubed up' before the more exciting part begins. He's moving his hips, trying to fuck his way into this new feeling with eagerness and it's turning her on like crazy. Feline paws work enthusiastically to make sure this stallion's first time experiencing an orgasm with another is one he'll never forget.

It hardly takes an additional two minutes before she can hardly take her paws off of his enormous member without that see-through liquid sticking to her pads and fur in trails—Chestnut is supplying copiously! She's never seen so much at once, though given his good health and diet, well, even then it's surprising.

"M-more," he suddenly begs with a needy nicker.

She obeys, finally making an actual grip around his girthy cock, both of her paws secured around his shaft as she starts properly stroking him. She pulls upward, twisting in opposing directions while she squeezes, similarly to wringing out a towel. Her eyes flick up to see him wrenching his eyes shut, scrunching his muzzle as he lets loose a moan again, though this time it's louder and shakier.

"Feel good?" she asks, receiving a vigorous nod almost immediately after.

Her squeezing gets a little tighter, though she can't reach her digits around his length, not even if she squeezed as hard as she could. He's too thick! At least she gets the best view she can from here, being within nudging distance of this stallion’s virility.

"Way better than hooves," he mutters in delayed fashion, looking down once again while Cloudjumper works to please him. He’s half sure he’s starting to get close already, and judging by how well she’s going about this, he has half a mind to believe she knows as much as he does.

Deciding to carry his usual courteous attitude, he decides to put a warning in place.

"Gettin' close," he huffs, not worried about the fact that, well, he's not lasting very long. Factors like attraction, both mental and physical toward Cloudjumper are likely shortening the amount of time it takes to cum considerably. Plus, it's just downright arousing to watch her!

"That's alright," she purrs, adding some sweetness in her tone. Her eyes are glued to the dick that's practically soaking her paws. Her loins feel incredibly warm, and she can feel herself winking as her stallion's tip starts to flare.

She increases her efforts, focusing more on the fat head of his enormous spire. Her paws work to apply pressure, compressing his flare between her paws. She's squishing his tip between her slickened paw-pads and it's clearly working wonderfully.

Her jaw goes slack, eyes widening when his tip expands to its fullest, the stallion below her sucking in air through clenched teeth, gasping as he hits his peak. Cloudjumper's paws were nearly touching a moment ago! Now they're separated by the mass of swollen flesh at the top of his shaft, but she keeps up her kneading regardless.

"F-fuck—ngh!"

Cloudjumper's rhythm is broken when Chestnut's hips suddenly rock upward, the work horse's resolve snapping upon achieving orgasm. He's clearly trying to fuck whatever had caused the blissful feeling coursing through his system, her paws being the suspect in this case—she loosens her grip to allow him to do so, watching his fat cock slide 'into and out of' the makeshift 'tunnel' she's formed with her two beaned grabbers.

As if she weren't impressed enough with the ridiculous size of his swelling cap, the first shot of pearly-white nut flying from said source is coming in volumes that merely proves his earlier statement—not getting off in over a week.

His mass throbs wildly as it sends volleys of sticky liquid across his chest, stomach and neck. She crimps the head of his cock gently, applying gentle squeezes to hopefully add onto his high while he makes a mess of his own torso. She's keen on watching his expression while he bites his lip, his brow furrowed, his eyes screwed shut, his grunts and pants of pleasure… she's sure he'll remember this for a long time, and she's undeniably going to as well. She's seen and caused faces of pleasure before, but this one is special!

He shudders a final time, his body starting to relax while his prick continues leaking little spurts on his stomach with each throb. He's panting now, but without the restraint of holding his breath during climax. She's just now realizing she's purring, still gently putting pressure on his flare which is returning to its normal size.

"Wow," she whispers. Chestnut opens his eyes, looking down at the stuff he's managed to decorate most of his torso with. It's certainly more than usual, as even he's surprised with his, ah, output.

Chestnut looks up at CJ with a sheepish smile, still panting quietly. Hopefully she's not like, disgusted or anything.

"Sorry," he chuckles nervously, bringing one of his hooves up to rub at the back of his head.

"Sorry? For what?"

Chestnut blinks before gesturing at his torso.

"The mess.."

Cloudjumper rolls her eyes. No way is he insecure about the result of an expected bodily function, nor will she let him be. She brings a paw up to swipe some of the stuff up, watching with a smile as the creamy stuff hangs and slowly drops from her digits.

"Doesn't bother me at all, I think it's hot. You pack a big load," she counters, though in a polite and complimenting tone. He seems to ease up as a result, his smile less sheepish and more genuine. He still seems a little apprehensive, however.

"Do you want proof that I like it?" she asks while moving off of the bed, grabbing a used towel from his hamper to clean off her hooves. She bounds back onto the bed with the towel, getting the majority of it off of his chest as she awaits an answer.

"Uh… sure? Ain't gettin' what you mean."

Cloudjumper feels the corners of her mouth tug upward. Since he's stared at her ass more than a few times, he'll like what she has in mind, she's certain.

"Well…" she starts, feeling her heart start to thud heavily in her chest again. With a turn of her lithe form she plops herself down beside him, though she's at a bit of an angle for him to get a good view. She swings her tail out of the way, bringing a paw back to spread one of her cheeks.

Chestnut's eyes aren't fooling him. Her rump is completely on display right beside him, and she's proving her point brazenly. While her paw lifts one of her supple buttocks, she's also gently spreading her sex—not only revealing her soft pink tunnel, but the fact that she's soaked too. He was wondering what that scent was, and now it's all too close. Her inner thighs are lightly coated in moisture, lips winking periodically while she gives him a show.

His eyes are locked on that ass.

"It's wet," he dumbly notes aloud. All too soon, Cloudjumper is on the move again, bringing herself to lie beside him properly after another quick turn around. He was really enjoying that view!

"Mmh, very wet. If you don't mind, I'm gonna deal with that," she says, wiggling her eyebrows at him while a paw makes its way between her hindlegs. She looks up at him as she starts to rub at her engorged little button, sighing in relief as she touches herself in front of him.

The work horse's attention is focused between her hindlegs, the stallion realizing he's salivating after she'd basically stuck her butt in his face and given him a closer experience of that wonderful scent—his ears perk attentively at the sound of her moaning. It's soft, and her tone is pleasing to his ears. He's always liked her voice…

...Should he be doing something, or should he just stare like he's lost? She helped him feel nice, shouldn't he be doing the same?

That's what they've been doing for nearly two weeks. It's just that this is in a severely different context. He mentally grumbles at himself for being so hesitant, wanting to give Cloudjumper a good time on top of wanting to learn something new. He shrugs away that reluctance, putting an improvised plan into action.

He reaches over Cloudjumper and pulls at her side, rolling her to face him while he rolls himself to be on his side as well.

"What're you—hey!" CJ complains, grumbling. She doesn't mind being face-to-face with him, but it's easier on her back! She's about to bicker at him again, until she finds herself being kissed, effectively stopping any further complaints from the feline as she feels his hoof sliding down her tummy. Feeling a little more energized from his kiss she starts rubbing faster. She’s caught off guard when she feels his hoof move hers out of the way, not that she minds. Her main concern is the fact that he probably doesn’t know what he’s doing.

She decides to let him try anyway, grabbing his hoof with the paw she was rubbing with. She doesn’t let him hesitate, directing him between her thighs, graduating him into a careful circular motion with his hoof. Her paws would undeniably do better than any hoof could, but the fact that it's him doing it to her makes up for that.

His hoof is a lot bigger and far less flexible than her usual go-to for relief, but with a squeeze of her thighs and an improvised roll of her hips against the front of that big hoof of his? It's quite sturdy, his fur softening the feeling and making it a lot more comfortable than him just rubbing with the bottom of his hoof. Handily catching onto what she's doing, Chestnut goes 'against the grain' of her movement; she rolls toward him, he rubs toward her, and vice versa.

The payout is rewarding, her tongue getting greedy against his while her thighs squeeze tighter, silently begging him to continue. With both of her forelegs free she wraps them around Chestnut, both of them clutching to him between his shoulders.

"Did you learn this from a movie too?" she asks with a breathy giggle, moaning after as she winks, her clit stroking against his soft fur.

"Nope," the stallion quietly responds, though he considers her words. Does she want something he's learned from a movie, or maybe a book? Her question implies she's interested in what else he may have up his sleeve. It may come as a surprise to her that there's still a thing or two he could try that she might like. There was an especially memorable moment in that same movie he'd kinda learned to kiss from…

Cloudjumper rolls her hips again as Chestnut puts a little more pressure against her excited sex, increasing the friction. She's glad that, considering his status as very inexperienced, he gets the gist of how things work at least a hair. For the moment she's pretty damn happy he's making a move, and that happiness grows when she feels his free hoof wriggle its way under her neck. She's guessing he's going to push her toward the kiss, hungry as he's always been for getting intimate with their tongues.

She feels his hoof playing with her hair at the base of her skull, expecting something, but… he's just playing with her hair? It's like he's trying to twirl it around his hoof. She keeps up her grinding while they kiss, though she feels him start to pull away as his hoof behind her head stars to tense up, and—

He pulls her hair, hard enough to send a jolt of tingling down her spine as well as turn her head upright.

Oh.

Chestnut brings his head enough up to look down at the cat still clinging to him, still rocking her hips against his hoof as he pulls her head back by her hair. Despite the sudden action, she doesn't seem to be at all offended by it. She might even be rolling her hips a little harder…

Her throat is wide open for play, just as he'd intended. He comes back down, lapping his tongue across her neck, the sphinx gasping as she learns his intentions. The action alone sends more tingles through her spine, her tail flicking excitedly while he licks a trail up to her jaw. He kisses there, nibbling gently with his teeth, applying what little knowledge he does know to his benefit.

“F-full of surprises, aren’t you?” CJ mumbles, biting her lip as his teeth dig a bit deeper, yanking her hair a little harder in response. Yep! Full of surprises is accurate, and Cloudjumper isn’t complaining. Squeezing another time with her loins as she’s subjected to his gentle barrage of kisses, licks and bites, she subconsciously starts to let her claws reappear. They’re poking against Chestnut’s back a little, but he doesn’t pay it much mind. His focus is elsewhere.

“You love it,” Chestnut responds, albeit late. Hearing no protest to that, he untangles his hoof from her hair, slinking it down her back between her wings. Pegasi’s wings are erogenous zones, right? Maybe it applies to her?

He doesn’t know what areas are the best, but he’d be dumb to not try finding them. Right now’s a great time to learn while he has her grinding against his hoof.

He gives a testing knead between the bases of her wings.

Cloudjumper arches her back promptly, moaning considerably louder than before at the sudden touch. Her available wing gives a lame flap, beating against the air as Chestnut continues kneading, sticking to a circular motion like he would a massage.

At this rate, she might cum just as fast as he did. He's pressing buttons that stallions before never bothered trying, always wanting to get their relief and be on their way, same as her. Chestnut is clearly interested in what makes her tick, not letting his inexperience deter him from learning about her.

She adores that about him. From the day she met him, he's been all about his best effort.

"More," she whimpers, her claws gently digging into his pelt. His hoof between her wings presses more firmly, the hoof against her soaked cunny moving faster along with her quickened grinding. His nibbles turn to bites and his actions grow more confident with each passing moment. He's a little alerted regarding those sharp claws digging into his back, but he's not stopping.

Her whimpers grow, turning into shallow breaths while her haunches continue to tighten around his hoof. The sphinx's claws come out more, starting to slide down the earth pony's back as she's hurtled toward her awaiting finish—unaware that she's cutting into her partner's withers and back. Chestnut bites harder, enduring for the moment to let her enjoy what's coming.

Chestnut is riveted to the spot he lies in as Cloudjumper cries out in ecstacy, her tunnel attempting to clench around something non-existent as her senses are bombarded. Her body gently shakes, and although Chestnut is baring his teeth silently as those claws of hers drag lower, he continues stimulating CJ for the sake of making her finish last as long as he can. She trembles in his grasp, panting with her mouth open, humping against his hoof.

Chestnut starts experiencing something new just as her climax begins coming to a fall, a pleasurable tingling spreading from the wounds inflicted upon him as her claws start retracting. At first it'd hurt like hell, but now? It's a pleasing high, short but rewarding. He'd… enjoyed that? It stings, but it's a sting he's quickly growing fond of.

Oh shoot, right!

"Good girl," the stallion softly coos, earning a giggle in between Cloudjumper's breaths as she comes down from her befuddled state. She seemed to like that, so he keeps it stored for later use.

"Fuck, that was good," CJ huffs, her wings still jittery. She rolls her hips for another moment, biting her lip; she's a little over-sensitive right now, so she releases his hoof from her thighs' grip. Feeling relieved, relaxed and stupendously cozy, the feline brings her paws back up to around his neck, giving him the tightest hug she can.

"You're awesome," she mumbles, stuffing her face into his fluffy neck. She rubs her nose against him, as if trying to snatch his scent and keep it on her sniffer. Her paws start kneading again to display her comfort, Chestnut wincing in response, but he doesn't stop her.

She stops herself, however. She'd be dumb not to notice that.

"You okay? You haven't said anything."

"Yeh, I'm good. You uh, cut me pretty good though," Chestnut answers. Cloudjumper's eyes go wide, and her kneading comes to a halt.

"Did I?" she asks, unraveling herself from their cuddle and coming to a stance. She steps to stand over him, looking down at his back. The sight she discovers isn't terrible, no, but…

There's two clear trails of claw marks down his topside, from the base of his thick neck to the center of his back. He's bleeding, but not badly at all. He'll be fine, but she's still not content with slipping up without even realizing.

"It's not bad, is it?" he questions, looking back and up at her. She shakes her head, but still feels an apology is owed to him.

"I should've been paying attention—I'm sorry, Chestnut."

"Eh, it's alright. I… kinda liked it. It hurt, but… in a good way?" he says, questioning his own thoughts in the process. Cloudjumper cocks an eyebrow. She never thought she'd wind up pegging Chestnut of all ponies as someone who might be a masochist.

"You liked the pain?" she asks, attempting to confirm her suspicion.

"I uh.. I guess I did, yup."

Huh. Well then. Always burning with curiosity, she decides a test or two might yield solid results.

"You mind if I try something?" she asks.

"Like?"

"Well, nothing like this," Cloudjumper gestures toward Chestnut's back with a paw.

"Uh… ah, sure. Just nothin' too crazy."

Cloudjumper nods. She already knows what her first try is gonna be. She moves to his side, laying herself down once again. Cloudjumper noses her way to his neck, starting gentle with a few kisses and licks, then a couple nibbles. His fur ruffles a little, an indicator of pleasure, and that's not even mentioning the satisfied look on his face. Most ponies she's heard of like this treatment. It's standard vanilla stuff.

She kicks it up a notch, her nibbles turning to gentle bites. She's never really used her teeth on him at all, but he doesn't seem to mind. He still looks quite peachy, a noticeable shiver coming from him.

"That's nice.." he murmurs. She can't help but smile. He really is adorable sometimes. Her curious nature still isn't sated, however!

So, she bites harder. His tail whips lightly, and she hears the tiniest nicker. His muzzle is twitching, but it looks like a flinch reaction to stop from scrunching considering the way he's doing it. After a couple moments, she moves to a new spot on his neck, biting again just as hard.

He puts his forelegs together, ducking his head down to rest his muzzle between them. It's hard to miss the following moan even though he's suppressing it. Some ponies wouldn't like being subjected to how hard she's biting now, though some might. Chestnut is clearly in favor of it!

He's also in favor of suggesting something to her.

"T-try harder," he recommends.

She hesitates. Biting harder might guarantee bruising his skin or even penetrating it.

She listens, though. She bites harder, listening as Chestnut groans between his hooves, her ears flicking as—he's rolling his hips against the bed? She hears him cursing, followed by him turning his nose toward the wall, exposing more of his throat. He even brings a hoof up to the back of her head, cajoling her. His eyes are watching her, seeming to plead for more.

She pulls away, however. She's always been the bitey type, so she's definitely in favor of littering his neck with all sorts of fun marks—but for a better time. They've had plenty of fun today!

"We can do it later, alright big guy? We should get up," she suggests, nuzzling him with a smile. She hears a noise of dismay, but it seems to be replaced rather quickly with a yawn and the start of another stretch. She feels a little bad for teasing, but she'll make up for it later.

"Alright, alright. Gotta work," he mutters, finishing his stretch. He shuffles to the side of the bed and steps off, refusing to roll due to his back.

"What're we doing today?" she asks, following. He stops, thinking but that. Given there's been two of them doing stuff, it's given him less to do overall since he usually does it by himself.

It's odd, having to actually think of something to do. They've picked available fruits and vegetables, they've cleaned, CJ even fixed the hole in the roof of the barn. They're way ahead of what he could do solo.

"We could go for a walk. There really isn’t much to do."

Chestnut ponders over that. They've done a lot of what he wanted to do mostly involving work. She's the type who likes a bit of adventure, right? A walk wouldn't hurt.

"Sure. There's some trails in the forest down the road, if you wanna try those," Chestnut says, pondering on whether he should bring some snacks or not if they're gonna go for a little hike. She could probably bring along some of the stuff he'd bought at the market for her, he could stick to his usual fruits and veggies. A nice little late morning breakfast, a private date of sorts. That'll be nice.

"I can use this now, so anywhere would be great. I don't see how you can stick to this farm so much," she says, wiggling her once bad paw.

"Gotta work, and there's usually lots of it. Oh, we could bale some hay for the animals—"

"No, there's plenty in the hay shed!" she counters, interrupting him. She's right. It's at least three quarters of the way full. They really are ahead of everything.

"Let's get away from here for the day. I need it, and you need some relaxation yourself. So," she says, stepping up to the gargantuan stallion's side. She rubs her cheek against his neck, inhaling that scent of his like she always has.

"C'mon. Let's pack a lunch and do that. It's still pretty warm out, we could probably go for a swim, too."

Chestnut looks down at the feline pressing her cheek against his neck, smiling. He's never been easily convinced to go out and do something other than work, but Cloudjumper doesn't even have to convince him. He enjoys being by her side, so he just… kinda does whatever she recommends. He's really taken a high liking to her.

He nods, bringing his head down to return her affectionate gesture, kissing between her ears. They remain in their spot for a few moments, simply enjoying each other's presence. It doesn't take too long for them to both get on the move, however, both being somewhat restless souls.

They pack a meal and drinks, making their departure toward the hiking trail Chestnut had mentioned. He knows she wants to get back to her adventures, but he really hopes she doesn't leave too soon. He doesn't know if it's loneliness, exhaustion, the monotony of his lifestyle or all of the above, but Cloudjumper is a refreshment to have around and get to know.

Both of them silently hope that she doesn't have to go too soon.

To her, he's the type of guy that's plain and simply hard to find. He seems very willing to make sure she's comfortable, and he shows often that he cares for her, he's very considerate!

To him she's made his life more exciting, like a hole has been patched somewhere within him. It's only been a week and a half, but he can't help but feel more complete with this little adventuress around. He hopes she feels the same!

Though they're opposites in many ways, her being fairly blunt and wild while he's more passive and consistent, they've seemed to strike a way of showing that they're unusually compatible.

Really, who'd think a sphinx and a farmhand would get along as well as they do? Their lifestyles as a whole are vastly different.

Something strikes Chestnut with that thought. He's gonna have to make some changes if he wants to chase the opportunity of remaining with this cat. It wouldn't be fair of him to keep her grounded with him out here in the boonies, and it's already not fair to himself to, well, not have a life.

She opens up so many opportunities for him! Getting out and enjoying the world around them, taking a break from working his ass off, the possibility of experiencing love. He's sure there's more than that, but he's tugged away from his thoughts as he watches Cloudjumper trot ahead, her wings partially opened as she enjoys the breeze of the late summer air across her wings.

Though she's shown a little bit of a wild side, not to mention cocky and prideful, he can't help but just watch. She's gorgeous in more than just a physical way. They may not realize it now, but the few similarities they have is what makes them that unusual sort of compatible, something that could grow to be inseparable.

He has a good feeling about the future. Chestnut clenches his teeth around the handle of the picnic basket they'd packed together, grinning so hard it almost makes his face hurt.

This is a new chapter to his life, and he's willing to embrace it in lieu of his repetitious farm life. He's ready for that. More than ready.

Chapter 5: A 'Gift' (NSFW)

The quiet squeaks of an old rocking chair fills the otherwise silent living room as Cherry Strudel, the eldest resident of the farm home, sits cozily in it. Beside her in a reclining chair is Oakwood, her husband of nearly thirty-five years, snoozing comfortably. Cherry smiles at him, looking him over while he naps. She still remembers the day she met him in the grocery store. She was so surprised to discover that he also used to be a city pony, and that he’d moved himself away from the hustle and bustle of noise, just as she had. The quiet life was much more suited for them.

They still go into the city on occasion to visit old friends and get out, but she wouldn’t trade the quiet life up for anything. She’s pretty sure Oak wouldn’t either. Speaking of city life...

“Oak, sweetie? Did you go to the bank the other night when we were in town?”

Oakwood is roused from his shallow sleep, and he stares at Cherry for a few moments, blinking and nodding.

“Eeyup, I did. Is it the ninth already?” he asks, sitting a little more upright.

“Yep! You said you had something to give Chestnut?” Cherry asks, reminding him of his plan. Oakwood nods again, grunting as he scoots out of his chair and comes to a stand.

“Mhm, he’s been doin’ the larger majority of the work here since he turned sixteen. Boy needs to go out and do somethin’ other’n bust his ass,” Oakwood mumbles, tilting his head to the side, relieving a few pops in his neck. He walks out of the room and toward his office.

Chestnut really has done them a huge solid, saving their property and livelihood. After Redwood was born they couldn’t do a whole lot of farming, and had to hire some help to tend to it all. Over the years they’d kept it mostly afloat, but they’d done the same thing Chestnut is doing now—worked hard enough to wear their bodies down sooner than planned. Continuous hard work led to hospital visits, which led to bills higher than they could pay out since the answer to some of their more major problems were surgical. Redwood had met Lavender, and they’d both been happy to help thankfully enough, taking breaks when they needed to, but… well, that also wasn’t enough. They didn’t have anyone that could do deliveries, and the time spent doing those deliveries was time they needed to utilize taking care of the farm since delivering goods can sometimes take weeks. They’d managed to, again, stay afloat—but without a profit, it’s hard to continue business. It’s like running on a treadmill, always being stuck in place.

Chestnut had come along, the boy clearly having his father’s build and his mother’s attitude. He was a butterball in his younger years, growing up to be a chubby colt who didn’t see the point in working the way they did.

His mind had changed when Cherry had found herself in the hospital, after she and Oakwood had decided to help tend the farm, while Chestnut was walking around in the woods. For a while, Lavender and Redwood wondered what was going through the boy’s head, but when Chestnut had discovered that his grandmother was hospitalized, well…

It was a harsh push, but one that bettered his attitude. His desire to work went from non-existent to getting up earlier than anyone else in the household at the age of sixteen. He wasn’t as big as he is now, but he somehow managed to put on Redwood’s yoke and plow through an impressive amount of field by the time they’d woken up. Even though the sun hadn’t even risen yet, it was more than evident he was working as hard as he could. Despite the fact that the boy was drenched in both sweat and dirt, he was insistent on continuing.

As the years went on, Chestnut had transformed himself from a somewhat whiny, chubby kid to a level-headed, hardworking and robustly-built adult. It’s odd, remembering Chestnut as a little tot who ate a lot and cried a lot more… but now?

He’s done what they couldn’t by himself. Well, in terms of farmwork at least. He couldn’t do the deliveries too, that’d be impossible—but still! The boy-turned-stallion is the pure definition of an excellent work horse.

He’s earned what’s coming to him. All Oakwood has to do now is sign the check. This isn’t a birthday gift; Chestnut’s birthday is tomorrow. This is four years of payment due to his hard work. It's not all of what was earned, but it'll give him a head start and some time to do what he wants for a couple years. If there’s one thing he deserves, it’s some time off. Oakwood puts the check under his hat.

While his parents and grandparents aren't aware of it, that's not accounting for the money he's collected from the clinic either. He’s been doing that since he was eighteen.

Oak steps out of the household, looking around for his grandson. It doesn’t take him long to notice the stallion with his friend, the both of them—ah. They’re kissing, having a bit of a private moment, though he can’t say he blames them. Chestnut definitely needed some of that too. Oak can’t deny he’s surprised, given Cloudjumper’s claim on being a sphinx pony, but he’s not against the idea of what is technically interspecies dating.

It’s good to see that his grandson is actively pursuing a romantic relationship. Well, he’s assuming it’s romantic. It definitely looks romantic to him. He checks to see if they’re finished, and while the two’s mouths are separated, he figures it’s a good time to grab Chestnut’s attention. He walks out to the trees, giving a little nod of his head as the two seem to notice him and wave.

“Howdy,” Oak chants to them, smiling. Given they’re both laying in the shade, he can see the marks on Chestnut’s back. He decides against acknowledging it, since it’s none of his business.

“Heya Gramps,” Chestnut responds, smiling right back.

“Hey Mister Oak,” CJ chirps, though she limits her smile. She doesn’t like the idea of making Chestnut’s relatives uneasy because of her teeth. It’s happened before…

“Takin’ a break?” Oak asks, looking around. Chestnut seems to sit a little more upright, as if subconsciously expecting judgement. He’s not lazy!

“Yeah, we’re pretty far ahead,” Cloudjumper answers for him, picking up on his uneasy body language.

“...You two’ve been cleanin’ the sheds for cryin’ out loud. The fields are done and ready for later plantin’. I didn’t come out here to bicker,” Oak says with a hearty laugh, grinning and shaking his head.

“Heavens knows my ol’ ass can’t keep up with either of ya.”

“Aww, don’t say that Grampa,” Chestnut counters, a frown overcoming his features.

“Well, it’s true! I’m gettin’ old!” Oak counters right back.

“And ya still run around with Gramma all the time,” Chestnut points out. Oakwood just shrugs, before giving a small nod. He’s right, they do get around a lot. They just don’t work like they used to, he supposes.

“Fair enough. Speakin’ of runnin’ around, I got somethin’ for ya. Don't blow it all in one sittin'," Oak says, taking his hat off. He dips a forehoof into the hat, pulling out the check and leaning toward Chestnut. The latter takes the little piece of paper gingerly between his teeth, frowning all the while.

He knows what this is just by Grandpa's words, and he knows he told his parents he didn't want any money.

Curious as ever, he decides to look at the check anyway—his eyes shoot open wide as saucers. He knows four years of work amounts to quite the sum of income, especially with edible goods, but damn that's a lot of money. What would he even do with it?

"Redwood already told me you'd turn it down, so I scheduled a transfer for today from our savings to yours. You've earned that," Oak says, even dropping his southern accent seriously as Chestnut stares at the check. Cloudjumper even looks, her eyebrows perking along with her eyes widening as well. She knows farmers make good figures, but to know they've sold enough to fork over that much to Chestnut? That's quite the amount!

"So you're not letting me decide?"

"Nope. Unless you withdraw it and give it back, which you couldn't do in one go anyway since there's limits. That check is the other half, don't lose it."

The other half?!

"Grampa, I… dunno what to do. Are you guys kickin' me out?"

Oakwood tries to stifle his laughter, but fails rather quickly.

"No! Good gods boy, y'got all the time you want t'figure out whatchu wanna do, okey doke? An what to do with that amount of money… well, it's yers. Do whatever ya want with it! Ya earned it, yer an adult. Buy a house, git yer kitty friend here a gift, go out and see the world around ya!"

Cloudjumper blushes. Kitty friend, heh. That's kinda cute.

Chestnut is a bit lost for words. He'd already built up a nice chunk of savings, but to have all of this in one day, well, it's natural for him to be overwhelmed.

"Just… listen, bud. At the very least go out an do somethin'. Yer gonna be twenty-one t'morrow and all you've done is work from sun up 'til sundown every damn day."

Chestnut looks up at his grandfather, trying to take all of this in at once. He’d had the money to go and do what he wanted before—well, not buy a house or anything crazy like that—but to go out and just have some fun. It was on his bucket list, he just wasn’t sure when it would happen.

Chestnut looks down at the check another time, and while he’s processing that this is really happening, Oakwood looks over at Cloudjumper. The cat looks back, tilting her head slightly. It seems like the property owner wants to say something.

“While he’s lettin’ that sink in, can you take a step over here with me?” Oak asks of the bird-cat, giving her a friendly smile. She comes to a stand, following. She's not sure what Chestnut's grandfather wants to say, though she's not too worried. He's one of those 'looks hard, acts sweet' types.

Once they're far enough away that Chestnut can't hear either of them, Oakwood starts.

"I wanted t'bring you over here to thank ya," the elder stallion says, giving her a warm smile.

"I know ya haven't known him terrifically long, but when you weren't around he didn't smile this much. Not a depressed kid by any means, but… lonely seems like the right word. Always puttin' his back into somethin', hardly talkin'. Whatever you're doin', please," Oakwood says, sighing. He doesn't like coming off as emotionally vulnerable, and he's feeling it a little bit right now.

"Keep doin' it. He needs it. Ah’ honestly think he's scared of denial and that's why he didn't go searchin'. That youngin' needs some love. He really seems to like ya, and—“

"Sir, you don't have to worry. I like Chestnut a lot, he's a great guy, and up until I met him I've never really gone looking for a serious relationship either. I feel like I relate to him in more ways than I understand.”

Oakwood’s smile broadens even wider, the old stallion’s face alight with the idea that this cat will improve his grandson’s lifestyle, not to mention her own as well. It’s reassuring to hear the words shared.

“Thank you,” Oak murmurs, swallowing somewhat thickly. He cares about Chestnut just as much as his grandmother and parents do, and he’d hate to see that young stallion take another curveball. Life hasn’t been bad for any of them, but the few bad things that’ve come their way have certainly been hard to deal with.

“You don’t have to thank me. Thank you for raising him the way you did. He’s really nice all-around.”

They share a smile, Oakwood nodding and starting to turn on his hooves—wait! Just a moment…

“Oh, one more thing?” he asks. Cloudjumper is all ears.

“The cuts on his back. Was that you?” he asks. Cloudjumper’s face goes red in record timing, and she feels her paws follow up with her blush by kneading anxiously into the grass.

“Uh… well, yeah, it was.”

“I ain’t scoldin’ ya. Yer adults, have yer fun!” he says with a laugh, realizing he’d embarrassed the poor cat.

“Y-yeah, of course..” Cloudjumper mutters back, feeling incredibly awkward. What a way to exit a heart-to-heart conversation.

“Sorry. My nose got the better of me. I’m just glad he didn’t get attacked by some wild animal!”

Oakwood chuckles for a moment, Cloudjumper still feeling like she’d been called out. She doesn’t feel guilty for doing that to Chestnut since, well, he obviously likes it. Still, that was kinda awkward.

“Y’have a good day, Cloudjumper.”

“You too, sir.”

She watches the older stallion fully turn this time around, walking back up to the house. While she’s not necessarily angry with him, she’s a little shocked that he’d be so brazen to make it known what he’d seen. Most ponies would’ve kept quiet… though Oak is a little different in that regard, she supposes.

She stops her shuffling, walking briskly back to Chestnut. He’d stopped staring at the check, though it’s still in the grass in front of him.

“You alright?” he asks as his ‘kitty friend’ approaches him.

“Yeah, your grandpa just wanted a little talk. I’m good.”

Chestnut cocks an eyebrow, squinting slightly at her. He knows a fib when he sees one, and she’s fibbing.

“He was bein’ nosy, wasn’t he.”

“...Yeah, kinda.”

“What about?”

“The marks on your back,” Cloudjumper says, nodding toward his withers. She sits down beside him, turning her head to look at those markings. They do stand out, in fairness. She’d be curious, too.

“Just be glad y’haven’t heard him use bedroom talk on Granny. Seriously, that old man’s got his head in the gutter.”

Cloudjumper grimaces, entirely unwilling to hear anything further about that.

“I don’t wanna know.”

“Good, ‘cause I’m not explainin’ it,” Chestnut returns with a laugh, leaning over to give her a handsome serving of nuzzles. Her anxiety from the earlier conversation with Oak fades rather quickly due to the affectionate gesture and she finds herself purring moments later.

They rest for a few minutes longer, before Chestnut decides to announce what he’s gonna do.

“Gotta run this into town and deposit it. The entire family’d ring my neck if I lost it,” Chestnut states, picking up the check carefully with his lips. He looks over at CJ, before nodding his head toward town.

“Comin’?” he asks. She nods, her wings giving a little flutter. She likes going on walks.

The both of them head to town, Chestnut stopping by the bank to make his deposit. He's still a bit flabbergasted by the sudden payment, and it certainly doesn't help when he's given a receipt. Despite being given some good suggestions he's still unsure of what to do with it.

He'll probably just take his Grandpa's advice. A home of his own sounds nice, and getting out sounds just as appealing.

Given they’d put most of the day to use already, they decide to retreat back indoors. After cleaning the exterior of the animal barn and the hay shed, they haven’t much else to do. Instead of the usual work, they gather together for a late dinner.

It goes over nicely, though it's the first actual dinner they've all had together, Cloudjumper included. She gets to share a summary of her story and background, Chestnut's grandparents, mother and father getting to share some of their stories as well. Their nights go over pretty well, Lavender and Cloudjumper wind up doing the dishes together which results in more talking—mostly about what plans may lie ahead for CJ and Chestnut.

Of course, it’s still pretty early to decide what’s really going to happen, but Cloudjumper isn’t the type to miss an opportunity that’s very clearly easy to take. That’s what she’d told Lavender, and that’s what she plans on rolling with.

Finishing their cleaning up, they relax in the living room together. The grandparents share some stories of their past, Redwood and Lavender tell about how they met. Cloudjumper gets to learn a fair bit of information about the family she’s been staying with for a couple weeks now.

Their storytelling comes to an end as the night starts to grow late, and all three couples find their way to their respective rooms. Chestnut had insisted that Cloudjumper stay in his room, and she’d found no reason to deny that opportunity. It’s warmer, the bed is more comfortable than the straw in the barn, it smells better and she gets to sleep with him! Who would take sleeping on straw in a barn over that?

Of course, their slumber isn’t immediate. Chestnut and CJ have their bit of fun, though it mostly involves a long session of slow kissing and maybe a little bit of rubbing here and there. Nothing to get them too worked up, but just enough to leave them thinking about it, fantasizing.

Tomorrow is his birthday, and she has a plan to put fantasy into reality. It can wait until then. She has a feeling he’ll like the start to his day, given she executes it correctly.

After a cozy night's rest snuggled up to him, she's the first to wake. Usually it's the other way around, but in this case she's happy to be the first awake. She slips out of bed, wandering her way into the bathroom, taking a few moments to clean herself up, brush her hair and teeth, tying her hair up… actually, she doesn't tie her hair up. Maybe Chestnut will like seeing her with her hair down. And besides, even with paws it's kinda hard to tie hair up.

She sneaks downstairs, making her way to the front door. Lavender is awake too, so she decides to add her into the plan.

"Hey, missus Lavender? Could you let Chestnut know I'll be out in the barn? I'm gonna feed the animals."

"Sure. I'm surprised he's not up already. I'll let him know."

Nice.

"Thanks!"

"No problem."

She goes to the barn without further delay, taking a deep breath. It's a cool morning, a little humid but cozy otherwise. Thinking about what she has planned, she can't help but feel a bit excited—not just for herself, but for Chestnut too. He'd gotten so eager when she'd used only her paws, so she's curious to see how he'll react when she offers something a little… warmer.

She steps into the building after sliding open one of the two doors, immediately busying herself. She grabs some feed, dumping the contents into the cow's trowels as well as topping off their water before moving onto the chickens. There's a few pans dedicated to their feed, so she's careful not to step into the pen itself, taking her time in making sure they get their food and water too. With that done, she cleans her paws with the hose and goes back to the interior center of the barn.

Cloudjumper looks around, spying some bales of hay. They're not very tall, but if she plays her cards right they'll work out just fine. She flops herself onto one, rolling onto her back.

It's comfortable, and with a testing shake she decides it's not going anywhere too easily. This should do just fine. She removes herself from the makeshift surface, sitting beside it with her forelegs propped on it. She licks her lips, realizing she's salivating since she’s getting a little worked up while waiting. She can't deny that she's thought about doing this very thing to him before, and now it's just a matter of whether or not he acts upon it.

When she hears hoofsteps nearing the barn her wings fluff up, restlessly squirming as she sits. Her ears fold against her head, but unfold as soon as one of the barn doors starts rolling open.

It's him!

"Good morning birthday boy!" she chants in a happy tone, the tip of her tail thumping against the floor. She finds herself licking her lips again, her heart starting to thud away in her chest.

"Mornin'! You look excited," Chestnut returns her greeting, his voice still a hair tired, slightly raspy. The fur on her neck puffs up regardless—she loves his morning voice. He walks over to her, leaning down and planting a kiss on the cat's cheek.

"Never seen ya with your hair down before. It's cute," he says. It looks like she brushed it too, given it's a little straighter. Still fluffy, but in an appealing way. He takes notice of her body language, her wiggling in place and her pupils dilated to the point that her golden irises are harder to see.

It's clear as day that she's thrilled about something. What exactly that is, he's unsure.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?" he asks, almost cautiously. CJ merely smiles wider, before wiggling her eyebrows.

"Things," she teases, before patting the bale of hay she has her forelegs resting on.

"Have a seat. I wanna do something."

Chestnut looks at the hay, then back to her before shrugging. He's still waking up, so having a seat doesn't sound like a bad idea. Stepping to the side of the bale, he carefully laid down on top of it, stomach down. She playfully grumbles, gently nudging his side.

"Lay on your back, big guy?" she asks. He looks at her, puzzled. Why can't he lay on his stomach?

"Pleeease?" she presses, her tone as sweet as she can muster. He gives in, carefully rolling over so he doesn't flop off of the thing he's trying to lay on. Once done, he looks over at her with an expression as if to ask: Is this okay?

CJ licks her lips again, but now it's because he's on full display. She starts rubbing his chest and the upper half of his stomach, smiling as Chestnut seems to relax, closing his eyes and resting on the bale of hay. His tail lightly swishes and his ears lazily flop sideways, the smile on his face indicating comfort.

Her paw on his stomach rubs lower, grazing against his sheath. His eyes open a little, but they shut again when she continues her rubs around it.

“I was thinking of giving you a little birthday gift,” Cloudjumper says, eyes flicking to his face. He looks over, staring for a moment as if expecting her to continue.

“And what might that be?” he questions, watching the cat bite the inside of her lip. Despite knowing her for only a couple of weeks, he’s caught onto how her body language works pretty well. She seems reluctant, but also like she really wants something.

“I… think it’d be better to surprise you,” she answers, feeling confident. Still a little nervous that he might get fussy or worried considering her teeth, but she can prove herself just fine. She did it without problems when he was worried about her claws!

A surprise? Chestnut looks down at her paw that’s teasing around his bits. He considers how she’s acting also, like licking her lips and wiggling her lower half. Also, her wings have been fluffed up since he came in here, which is usually a sign that she’s a bit more ‘bedroom excited’, or so it seems. She’s always been a little wiggly whenever they start getting… touchy-feely.

He connects the dots fairly easily, thanks to her being somewhat horrible at hiding what she’s getting at. His suspicion is aroused further as her paw rubs his balls directly, following up with applying more pressure to his sheath. Her ‘gift’ is something she’s done to him before, but it’s still definitely a gift to him nonetheless. He’s really learned to love those damn paws, so soft and far more dexterous than hooves.

“Yer such a horndog,” he sighs, laughing quietly.

“And?” she asks, watching his member start to slip from his sheath. Still salivating, yep...

“Wasn’t complainin’, don’t lemme stop ya,” Chestnut murmurs, his face contorting as he gets excited too. Cloudjumper looks his expression over, happy to find that her stallion’s face is a little redder than usual. Her eyes backtrack, looking at his thick, mottled member at half-mast growing by the moment. She shivers, feeling herself attempt to clench, a wink following.

One paw lifts the floppy, heavy thing by its base while the other lifts his jewels, Cloudjumper's eyes stuck to the point that is all of… him. By him meaning that outstandingly sized dick and those big nuts accompanying it—he's not huge for his body size, but by default he's a massive stallion. Although it's early to be thinking about it, she can't but feel a little anxious thinking about how this beast is gonna fit somewhere other than her mouth.

She leans forward, deciding to make her first move. She flops his length toward her, angling herself so she can see his face while the upper third of his dick presses against her cheek. It really is heavy, and warm to boot!

She angles it downward so it's hanging right in front of her lips, smiling while he looks at her. He even sits upright to get a better view, propped on his elbows.

Her mouth opens, and out comes her tongue to swipe across his tip—he gasps, surprised by the difference in comparison to her paws. Given it was only her tongue it wasn't hugely significant, but it was noticeable!

She doesn't do it again though, not just yet. She wants to warm him up into something proper, so she performs with her paw pads for now. The taste of pre she'd collected on her tongue is noticeably sweet, the bitterness being minimal. She's never really gotten a taste of, well, decent cum. Thank gods he doesn't eat the mess that some city restaurants serve, or this would be a repeat offense.

Cloudjumper presses his stiffening length against his belly, stroking up and down by using his stomach, his cock sandwiched between that and her paw. Her ears swivel to listen to his grunts, his body attempting to hump in response to the pressure against his shaft. Cloudjumper notices his eyes are half-lidded, locked onto the sight of his dick being effectively pressed and rubbed against his stomach.

Cloudjumper continues her actions until he's leaking precum sufficiently, which doesn't take very long at all. The reasoning behind that is simple: better lubrication, plus she wouldn't mind tasting it again.

She moves to the end of the hay bale that has his butt end almost hanging off of it, spreading his hindlegs to maneuver herself between them. Once she's certain she's comfortable with the positioning, she grabs his throbbing piece and angles it toward herself. She kisses the tip, her eyes looking up at him as her tongue pokes out of her mouth, starting to lather his bulbous head in circular motions with saliva. She gets another taste of that transparent liquid he's leaking, a purr starting to rise in her chest as she watches him react.

Chestnut's thoughts are a bit scrambled, but not in a bad way. As aroused as he is, thinking clearly isn't the usual cakewalk. Watching his partner use her mouth on him isn't something he thought he'd be experiencing today, but complaining isn't in mind at all. The sensation is pleasant, his viewpoint is pristine and the way she's looking up at him while doing it is hitting a mental button he didn't even know he had.

Her maw opens wide, and with her teeth on display he can't help but feel a fearful tingle shoot down his spine. It doesn't help that she's moving toward the same thing she'd just been bathing in spit. He almost stops her, but when she manages to fit the fat tip of his cock into her mouth, fear is thrown out the window completely.

And then she starts slowly sinking downward. Chestnut groans, his eyes rolling upward as he closes them for long enough to just take it all in.

The urge to roll his hips toward her is strong as he gets his first feel of a blowjob, but he manages to hold himself still. Her eyes flutter closed as she descends, focusing on the task while Chestnut registers the feeling of her tongue, the roof of her mouth, the incredible warmth…

The idea of shoving her head down also comes to mind, but he feels like that'd be a bad idea.

Cloudjumper is faring well enough, managing to cram a good third of him into her mouth without too much fuss. She hasn't done this in a while, and Chestnut is considerably bigger than what she's tried before, but that doesn't stop the confident kitty from persisting. She feels his crown poke the back of her mouth, and she takes a deep breath. This will undoubtedly be 'the hard part'.

CJ loosens her throat, relaxing herself as she forces herself downward even further. Chestnut's left to the merciless feeling of her throat making way for his member, his eyes shooting open as he watches her engulf half, two thirds, three quarters—almost the entire thing. Due to her angling she can't complete the journey to his crotch, but he doesn't give a single damn about that. The feeling of her throat completely throttles him, and he's left grunting and panting as she starts attempting to swallow. It feels like the mount at the clinic but better, warmer, tighter.

Nearing his tipping point already, Chestnut's feeling the urge to move his hips again. He sits completely upright, his forelegs seeming to be on autopilot as they start reaching for her head, though she's… pulling back? Slowly tugging his length free of her gullet, inch by inch until he's free of her throat and then free of her mouth entirely.

At a loss for words, Chestnut stares at her while she clears her throat, wiggling her jaw. She's phased, yes, but it doesn't seem like much. He's extremely confused about how she did that, but he's not about to interrogate her when his prick has a coating of her saliva glazing it, ready for re-entry.

"Trade me spots."

Chestnut blinks. What?

"Huh?"

Cloudjumper uses her paw to emphasize, drawing a circle toward the ground.

"You get up, I lay down. You'll see why."

Confused and horny as all get-out, Chestnut rolls off of the makeshift bedding to see what her next plan is. He stands at attention just as much as his soaked phallus, watching the feline lay where he was, but reversed. Now lying on her back, the cat smiles up at him and taps her chin with a single digit.

"Do you see what I'm getting at now?"

Chestnut stares, befuddled. She's just laying down. He hasn't the slightest idea of what she's trying to accomplish.

She figured he'd do something like this. That's fine, she'd rather say it how she likes.

"You know what to do with that mount you was talking about at the clinic, right?"

Chestnut's brows perk, before he shrugs and nods.

"I reckon, yeah."

"Well," she sweetly murmurs, rubbing her thighs together. She's insanely hot and bothered, and thinking about what he's gonna be doing to her shortly is only adding onto it.

"Pretend you're at the clinic, but instead of using the mount…" she taps her chin again.

"You use this instead."

She opens her mouth again, her tongue out past her chin. Chestnut puts two and two together pretty quickly, now under the guise that she wants him to, well, fuck her face.

That's ridiculously hot.

"I… uh…"

Cloudjumper stops him with a swift raise of her paw.

"Nuh-uh! I'll be fine, and if for some reason I'm not, I'll make it known."

Chestnut whimpers, his eyes locked on her muzzle. He's worried he'll hurt her, but at the same time he really wants it!

"I promise."

He shivers, feeling his piece stiffen and slap crudely against his underside. She promised, and if she really thinks she can do it, then he'll trust her judgement.

Chestnut approaches closer, rearing onto his hindlegs before planting his hooves on the bale. Cloudjumper's view is… certainly intimidating. Above her is Chestnut in all his glory, from his huge self to his huge cock, right in her face. As his tip pokes her muzzle she opens her mouth, reaching up to guide him with her paws.

Chestnut's tip bumps her chin, so she reaches a paw up to pat his rump.

"Crouch just a little," she suggests, and when he does he lines up perfectly. Trial and error being minimal is always nice! She opens wide, tapping his rump again to let him know he can move.

Chestnut doesn't wait, but he's not greedy either. He carefully moves his hips forward, groaning as he's met with the confines of her warm, wet mouth. He moves in baby steps, getting a feel for the new sensations by giving small rocks of his hips to and fro. His body tenses as she moans around her mouthful, his tip flaring for a moment while he continues his very gentle motions.

Cloudjumper isn't complaining that he's starting slowly, but as the moments pass she comes to the realization that he's not making any effort to really get into it. 'It' being his careful and repetitive actions, the other 'it' being her throat. Her jaw can only handle this for so much time, and while she's fine for now, it won't last forever.

She decides to give him a push—or rather a pull in this case. Both of her forelegs reach up, grabbing his butt to pull him in, but even still he's reluctant. Grumbling around the shaft in her mouth, she decides aggression will solve the problem.

Out come the claws, digging into his hide as she pulls harder, threatening to penetrate skin. Chestnut yelps, instinctively trying to move himself from her clawed grip which leads to progress being made significantly. His cock forcefully allows itself into her throat, and with those sharp claws still threatening to poke his hide, he's not stopping there.

Cloudjumper's claws retract and she trades her aggressive encouragement for praise, giving his buttocks a firm squeeze with both paws. She silently thanks the fact she's half gryphon; if she weren't, her throat would be under extreme stress.

Not to say there's no stress at all, no, that's not the case. His girth alone is a harder pill to swallow than anything she's ever eaten whole.

Chestnut stops his panicking, his head turning to look back at one of her paws kneading into his pelt. He turns his head forward and down, taking a moment to look under himself. The sight he's met with will remain in his mind for as long as he lives, he's sure of it.

She has every single inch of him in her mouth, her throat bulging for obvious reasons. A gentle swing of his hips forward and her nose would be stuffed between his balls.

A pat of her paws reminds him where his dick is, followed by her starting—or at least trying—to swallow.

He responds with a grunt, a hind hoof stomping against the floor. His excitement has escalated all over from that alone.

"Fuck," he sharply mumbles, suddenly feeling at a loss of breath, a nicker leaving the stallion as he starts to move. Pulling his hips back reveals the sensation of her convulsing throat muscles, and once he reaches the entrance of her throat he slides right back into that blissfully snug tunnel.

His want to be careful is fading fast, and Cloudjumper is eating it up. Her paws move, one to his side and one between her hindlegs, playing with her soaked cunny as Chestnut fucks her face. The next thrust that comes is particularly greedy, her body tensing as she's shifted atop the hay bale.

He's losing control, but she's plenty content with that idea. This is a gift after all, and he's free to use his gift however he likes.

Well, given she can handle it. She's usually pretty confident, but he's starting to really settle into getting rough. With another rock of her entirety thanks to his enthusiasm and a healthy dose of pre right into the deep confines of her throat, she decides it'd be best for not only her wellbeing, but his ability to control himself to give him a limit. She pushes against his thighs, indicating that he's giving a little too much for her to handle.

"Huh—oh, sorry!" he yelps, pulling back enough so that he's only in her mouth. She takes a few moments to gather some air, moaning as she brings a paw between her hindlegs again and starts rubbing, feeling her eyes water. She's been a little turned on by blowjobs before, but this is another story entirely. This is pleasing a guy she's actually with, not just romping with overnight. She can only imagine how turned on she'll be when the roles are reversed…

"Mmh!" she pats the stallion's butt, giving him permission to continue. He wastes no time rolling his hips forward, her throat once again receiving a stress test. He's easier on her than before, letting her properly adjust by going at a pace that's reasonable.

There's something crudely satisfying about feeling those weighty testes bump against her nose here and there, fueling her arousal like dumping gasoline on a bonfire. Her paw rubs somewhat erratically against her presenting button, her hindlegs twitching as she listens and feels the stallion above her grunt and hiss through his teeth as he revels in the blissful feeling of her throat.

While gentler than earlier, his pistoning is becoming more erratic. She knows there's no way he's getting worn down, and the telltale feeling of his tip starting to expand lets her know that he's starting to get close. He doesn't seem to last very long, but that's a good thing in her case. She can only handle so much of the meat being stuffed in her throat at a time.

An available paw moves to her throat, feeling it and squeezing as Chestnut causes it to distend. Cloudjumper squeezes her thighs around her other paw, trying to keep her attention on his moves and her soaked snatch at the same time.

Chestnut's really putting his hips into it while trying to be mindful of the throat his member is lodged in, not wanting to overdo it and cause her stress. He can feel CJ squeezing her throat, the friction more noticeable while the feline squeezes around the part of her neck that bulges the most—his tip! That feeling in the base of his dick is building quickly, and his flare is growing to its full size, Chestnut picking up speed and screwing the cat's pipe deeper as he nickers and tries to announce that he's just around the corner.

"G-gonna—!" he mutters, his face contorting as he humps forward as far as he can, Cloudjumper's eyes screwing shut as her throat is subjected to a massive, fully flared dick in it. Not knowing how to react other than do her best to cope, the cat continues furiously rubbing between her hindlegs as she feels that thick meat pulsate.

Chestnut's 'gift' in return is coating her throat in a thick layer of hot batter, each pump of his virile seed being shot straight into her. The stallion stomps his rear hooves against the barn floor as he serves his partner a prolific quantity of his jism, casting ropes while she struggles to hold for him to finish. She could hardly handle him unflared, this is beyond her limit.

Feeling overwhelmed, the cat pushes against one of his thighs while she continues rubbing herself, backing the stallion's pole out of her throat and into her mouth—hasty decision-making is evident as her cheeks bulge from the ridiculous size of him, not to mention the fact he's still cumming.

Chestnut already misses the feeling of being lodged in that tightness, but he recognizes her discomfort and pulls all the way out of her mouth. Cum spills from the cat's lips and onto the floor as his swollen crown exits with a crude schlup! Thankfully her teeth hadn't caught the skin, though they were certainly poking..

A few final spurts emits from the stallion's physical pride, slinging ropey white fluid onto the underside of her jaw, neck and chin. She swallows what'd built up in her maw, gasping for air just after.

It's just enough to send her over the edge, Cloudjumper shoving a digit into herself and grinding against her paw. Her body spasms and twitches as she gets her relief, moans of pleasure echoing through the barn while she achieves climax. Between moans she utters his name, her eyes opening just enough to see the swinging mass between his hindlegs right in front of her nose, which boosts the eroticism of the act as a whole.

Chestnut, coming down from his euphoria, spectates. The calls of his name, her noises of enjoyment and the fact that he'd just unloaded in her mouth is more than enough to make him feel not only thankful, but obligated to make sure she gets her support and enjoyment. He backs up, sitting on his haunches while leaning down to give her a kiss on the lips, deciding against holding it since she clearly needs to catch her breath. After a minute or so she seems to relax, coming back to Equiis, her eyes looking more focused. Glazed, but not rolling into her skull.

"You okay?" he asks, smiling as she nods, still in a haze.

"Mnnhm, that—that was hot."

Chestnut grins. Yeah, that was pretty damn hot all right.

"Y'need some water?" he asks, to which she shakes her head. CJ groans, rolling off of the bale and onto the ground, carelessly letting herself plop right onto the strawbed beside the hay.

"In a minute. Just… lay with me," she says, patting the spot next to her. Without protest, Chestnut takes the spot she'd recommended, minding his step. Despite nutting so hard, he's faring well. CJ seems to be more out of it than him, but that doesn't mean he didn't enjoy what happened just now, no, not at all.

"You taste nice," she softly notes aloud, her tongue grazing her lips. She looks over at him, silently thankful he doesn't eat greasy stuff and candy. All those fruits and veggies result in a decent aftertaste of what he'd… deposited. Sweet, but not overbearing. The bitterness was mild, and his stuff was creamy and smooth, it didn't just stick like tape. It's the worst when it's like that…

"Glad ya think so. Ya sound a little raspy, it's kinda cute," he replies, to which he receives a bewildered look from the feline.

"Have you seen your own dick?" she asks with a breathy laugh, rubbing her throat with a paw. Yep, that's gonna be sore later.

"What about it?"

"I'm surprised I can speak properly. I know you haven't been with anyone before me, so I'll be the first to give you a heads up—you're fucking hung."

"Like a horse?" he asks. She stares at him plainly, blinking a couple of times. He just…

"...Yes. You… you're aware you're a horse, right?"

"Yep!"

She loves his weird way of being a goofball, she can't deny it. She playfully rolls her eyes and puts a paw on his side, rubbing.

"Jackass," CJ taunts him, Chestnut cocking an eyebrow.

"Rude," he replies, feigning offense. He gives her another kiss, resting his head beside hers just after.

Cloudjumper clears her throat, looking at him. She'd say the went pretty well, considering he could've just dismissed her want for him to be gentle and did what he liked. She's glad he can show some restraint, especially for bedroom moments.

A couple guys in the past were… well, she'd decidedly call them inconsiderate. At least they were easier to handle, so it wasn't too bad. She's never sexually interacted with a guy bigger than herself up until she met and got to know Chestnut.

It's weird to be the smaller one. A really good kind of weird.

"Thank you, the gift was nice," Chestnut says, clearing the silence. She stops zoning out, ears perked before she laughs. He seems a little confused, so she decides to respond.

"You're welcome—but you don't have to thank me, big guy," she states, before leaning upward, her mouth right beside his ear.

"It won't be the only time. I loved it," she says, her warm breath tickling his ear as she whispers into it.

Chestnut swallows thickly, shivering as his eyes widen and his cheeks redden. He's heard the word before, what is it…?

Kinky. Yeah, that's it.

"Not complainin'," he murmurs, shifting in his spot. He'd just managed to re-sheath himself, but that'll change if she keeps up that tone. Thankfully she seems to relent, trading her saucy tone for an affectionate rub against his neck.

The pair rests quietly, taking the next few minutes to relax and cuddle, kisses shared and smiles galore. Chestnut is the one to break the cuddle, coming to a stand while nodding his head toward the door.

"We should clean up with the hose 'n' head inside when we dry off. Don't wanna go in with a, uhh…"

"Yeah, I know. My mouth smells like cock," she notes, interrupting. Chestnut raises his eyebrows. Not a terrible thing in her mind, but she still wants to brush her teeth and avoid Chestnut's family from smelling, well, Chestnut's nut on her breath. Plus, there might be cum on her throat. That'd look oddly out of place…

The two gather themselves outside of the barn, cleaning up with the hose. They take a walk after to dry off in the morning sun, CJ's voice gradually getting more raspy as they talk on their walk. The strain of taking him is only gonna kick in more, and her throat's feeling sore already. She doesn't mind it, welcoming a reminder of their actions in the barn, though it's gonna suck not being able to talk right.

Once their walk is complete they come back to the farm, walking in and continuing the celebration of Chestnut's birthday. His mother and grandmother had whipped up a cake in the time that the couple had been interacting in the barn and on their walk. His grandfather had gifted him a new hat to replace the one that he'd accidentally gotten caught under the plow a few months back, and his mom and granny had gotten him some apparel that had to be custom ordered given his size. His dad had gotten him a jacket for the colder months, thick and comfortable! He's usually content in the winter without a jacket, but it still looks pretty nice!

Once the little party is over, Chestnut and CJ decide to have some downtime. Cuddling on the couch while the remainder of Chestnut's available family goes into town is fine with the both of them. They'd intended on just talking and enjoying the embrace of each other, but of course, they wind up falling asleep together.

They’ll be falling asleep together for a long time.

Chapter 6: Cranial Conundrum

A pair of green eyes overlook the back end of the farmland accompanied by a family of five, plus one visitor. Shuffling his shoulders to adjust his saddlebags, Cedar trots his way onto the official property, pacing with haste toward the homestead.

Chestnut is up early for the first time in a week, his birthday having passed the day before yesterday. Gathering breakfast for himself and his partner since the elder residents are out of town, he looks out the window to see a figure making its way toward the door. Typically he wouldn't be bothered by the occasional visitor, but he'd recognize that face from a mile away.

It's his older brother, Cedar.

Most siblings would be happy to see each other after a while of being apart, giving each other a warm, embracing welcome. Upon hearing the front door creak open and slam shut Chestnut winces, holding his breath as he listens, hoofsteps coming directly to the kitchen.

Cedar stands in the doorway, leaning against the frame of it as Chestnut stares for a moment. As much as he's not a fan of Cedar's company, Cedar is his older brother, and Chestnut isn't one to start drama. It'd be best to start nice and go from there.

"Well hi!" he greets with a warm smile, looking down at the ingredients he'd gathered for himself and CJ after. Pancake mix, eggs and fish—though of course the fish isn't for him. He has no idea how to cook meat, so he's glad she loves it raw.

"You eaten breakfast yet? Makin' pancakes and eggs," Chestnut asks, politely offering for Cedar to be involved. Cedar tilts his head, eyes locked on the raw fish. Cocking an eyebrow, the elder sibling shows his curiosity.

"Ah ate already. When the fuck didya start eatin' fish?" Cedar asks, nodding his head toward the orange-colored seafood.

Chestnut attempts to look past the doorway, wondering where CJ is. It wouldn't need explaining if she were in here. She probably won’t be long...

"Ain't for me," he replies. Cedar smirks, deciding to test the waters.

“No one in this household eats fish, c’mon now. Ain’t gotta be embarrassed,” Cedar says with a roll of his eyes, Chestnut pursing his lips at the comment.

“Actually, I do,” Cloudjumper says, meandering her way past Cedar and into the kitchen. Those paws of hers are awfully quiet! Cedar’d jumped at the sudden reveal of another right beside him, looking over at the cat to realize that the fish isn’t, in fact, being eaten by Chestnut.

Cloudjumper walks over to Chestnut, giving him a little smooch on the cheek before turning to face Cedar. Having no knowledge of siblings, she finds it a bit strange that they share a strikingly similar color scheme, though Cedar’s is darker and inverted. Also, Cedar’s eyes are green while Chestnut’s are blue. They’re both clearly the same breed, their body sizes are comparable, Chestnut being roughly a quarter of a head taller, and they even look pretty similar in the face. She’d think they were brothers!

“Nice to meet you, I’m Cloudjumper,” she says with a nod, though she doesn’t entertain any formal greeting.

“Cedar,” the ‘new’ stallion returns simply, looking at her and then at Chestnut.

“Never thought I’d come here t’bare witness to mah little brother actually havin’ a lady-friend,” Cedar says pointedly, that smirk of his returning.

Cloudjumper had caught that—brother? Really? Why hadn’t Chestnut mentioned him before?

“Mmh, woulda happened eventually,” Chestnut returns, starting to mix the pancake ingredients together while their conversation starts.

“How long y’all been together?”

“Uh… ‘bout a month now,” Chestnut replies while he mixes the pancake batter together thoroughly. Cloudjumper is mostly listening, while examining Chestnut’s body language. She’s getting a strong vibe that he’s not super comfortable, so she keeps her eyes peeled for any sudden changes or triggers.

“Took you twenty damn years. ‘Bout time,” Cedar says, eyes wandering around the kitchen. Looks like not much has changed, which results in a bored expression overcoming the older brother’s features.

“Yep, not like I was bustin’ my ass for the past few years or anythin’.”

Cloudjumper cocks an eyebrow. She’s heard Chestnut curse before, but never in casual conversation, not once. His ears are partially folded back, another sign of discomfort.

“Fair ‘nuff, though y’can’t say ya didn’t turn down a couple hussies in highschool.”

Chestnut’s ears fold all the way back now. He’s becoming agitated. Cloudjumper looks at Cedar with surprise. Hussies?

“Maybe I wasn’t interested in girls that my brother was busy fuckin’,” Chestnut says as he stops his mixing, his expression having changed in a single moment, his tone lightly seething. He is most certainly not happy. Cloudjumper is incredibly confused—he’s usually so calm, kind and level-headed, why’s he so… volatile all of a sudden?

“Shit, yer gettin' me in cahoots—you know us drafts are strong breeders, boy,” Cedar says, to which Chestnut slides the mix of pancake batter away from himself and removes himself from his seat. CJ can see him gnawing at the inside of his cheeks in an attempt to not go off. There must be some bad history between them; Cloudjumper has never struck him as the type to be so short with someone.

“I know yer antagonizin’ me and I ain’t stickin’ around for it right now,” Chestnut says, walking out of the kitchen. Cloudjumper’s eyes widen as her partner makes his way out of the kitchen and out the front door, even letting it slam the same way Cedar had.

She looks at the only stallion left in the house with bewilderment, before shaking her head and following Chestnut. She’s not gonna be left here with someone she doesn’t know more than the first name of, and the way he’s looking at her as she walks out is rubbing her the wrong way. It hasn’t even been three minutes and she can say that she’s not much of a fan of Chestnut’s brother.

“Enjoy yourself now,” Cedar says, even daring to wink at her. She grimaces, disgust on her face before shutting the door behind herself. Chestnut is already down the driveway, almost at the path to town already. She opens her wings and takes off into the air landing beside him shortly after, joining him in his trot.

“Are you okay?” she asks, receiving a sigh from the stallion just after.

“Yeah. Sorry for the way I was actin’, it’s just, well… you’d know if you knew Cedar. He ain’t very fun to be around. Thinks Equiis revolves around his head or somethin’..” Chestnut says, giving her a little of his mind when it comes to what he thinks about the stallion back at the house.

“He was workin’ his way up to pissin’ me off ‘cause he gets a laugh out of it. He does it every time he comes over,” Chestnut continues, looking back at the house briefly before returning his line of sight toward town. It’s Cloudjumper’s turn to let her ears fold back. If Chestnut isn’t having any sort of bias and what he’s saying is absolutely true, then it’s no wonder he wanted to get out. It’s just a shame that even after only a few minutes, he couldn’t stand to be around his own brother.

“Have you ever considered giving him a black eye?” Cloudjumper asks, to which Chestnut snorts.

“Violence don’t solve nothin’.”

“Neither does walking away from him to let him win,” she points out, to which Chestnut grumbles. She knows it’s directed at her, but she can’t help but feel like it’s kinda cute.

“You’re just letting him know that he’s getting to you. If it isn’t at its worst now, imagine what he’s gonna be like when we get back.”

Chestnut speeds up his trot, though Cloudjumper has no issue meeting his pace. Chestnut groans as he feels his stomach rumble.

“Ain’t even had breakfast,” he says.

“We could get something in town. I don’t mind not having fish,” she says. It’s a daily thing (eating fish, that is) for her thanks to him, so missing a morning of good ol’ salmon or tuna is fine if it means he can avoid conflict.

“Yer gonna turn into a fish one day,” Chestnut jokes, looking over at his partner as she jogs alongside him. It’s strange how loud his steps are in comparison to hers. He's always been used to the sound of hooves, always clippity-clopping along—but she's virtually silent, even at a fast trot. Seeing steps hit the ground with no noise being made is unusual, in a fascinating way.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" she asks, noticing him staring, snapping him out of thinking about her silent steps.

"Yeah, just uh… thinking, I guess."

"About?"

"What we're gonna get to eat, mostly."

"While staring at my paws?"

"I'll eat those too! Beans are good for yer health!"

Cloudjumper grins.

"Mostly just wondering how I'm gonna deal with Cedar. Usually when he comes over, it's for a few days. Guess he gets lonely over in his little cabin," he says. Cloudjumper doesn't really know anything other than the little bit of what she's just been told, so knowing exactly what to say doesn't really come to mind.

"Maybe you should just approach him and ask him not to mess with you?" she decides to suggest. It's something at least.

"Tried that before, it worked for an hour 'n' he was right back at it."

Ouch.

"Well, rile him up a little bit. Fight fire with fire." she suggests, though she knows better. Chestnut isn't the type to tease outside a friendly boundary.

"He's persistent, that won't get to him. He'll see it as a challenge."

The feline gives up a mildly defeated expression. If what Chestnut is saying is true, then it really does sound like Cedar needs a little wake up call. She's pretty confident that Chestnut won't get physical, and he's already said that violence won't solve anything, which it typically doesn't.

"For now, let's just get breakfast."

Cloudjumper agrees with a nod. She's hungry!

The duo makes their way into town, finding interest in a small restaurant befitting the countryside. Chestnut settles for exactly what he was making at home, pancakes and eggs, CJ ordering the same since the rest isn't super interesting. Enjoying breakfast together seems to calm Chestnut down considerably, that gentle smile returning as he eats. By the time they're finished, he's looking and sounding pretty content!

After paying their bill, they leave the premises with full stomachs and happy faces.

"I ain't exactly rushin' to go back to the farm. Wanna do some shopping?"

“Yeah! Did you bring any bits with you?" she asks, receiving a head shake from Chestnut.

"We'll stop by the bank and get some."

Said bank is only a couple doors down, so once that's accomplished, Chestnut gives CJ some bits to spend and they begin their shopping.

She'd felt a bit opposed to taking money from him, but tried her best not to make a fuss over it. Knowing him, he would've insisted…

CJ's first stop is a clothing store, interested in what sort of apparel she may be able to pick up for a particular night out with her partner. Most of it seems to be related to the area's residents; plaid, checkered or complimentary to the earthy style of the surrounding area, but there's a few sections that really catch her attention with things more befitting of her style. Nothing too flashy or revealing, but enough to go with her colors and body style. A couple of cute fully-sleeved shirts mostly fits her wants for now, considering the choices are a little limited…

That is until she'd managed to discover the adult apparel in the back. Not at all embarrassed with her findings, she picks out some fishnet and regular stockings, the latter luckily having a hoofless option for her paws to move freely. She decides the food market would be a good next choice while Chestnut adventures the shop designated mostly for domesticated animals, or at least the kind that can't talk to ponies.

He'd wound up finding a rather big ball of yarn! Feeling humorous, he decides to buy it out of curiosity—CJ might like it, or she might take offense to it, he's not sure. He recalls seeing her rolling around in a field in the west side of the property where wild catnip had been growing as well, so he picks up a jar of the stuff since she seems to really like it. The two cross paths as they're moving to separate stores, agreeing to meet up within a certain time frame at the middle of the market.

It's Chestnut's turn in the clothing store, and he also decides to pick up some shirts. He picks a couple of white t-shirts to go with the jacket his father had gotten him for his birthday, as well as a hemp-braided necklace with an assortment of earthy colored beads on it to go with an outfit. Having been in this store before, he heads to the back due to, again, his own curious nature…

There's lots of revealing clothing back here, though most of it seems more centered for females. Unwavering to the idea that he's in a section that mostly girls browse, he looks through the aisles anyhow, making discoveries and keeping mental notes in case his new partner mentions liking anything.

When he stumbles into a rack of collars, he becomes a little confused. As inexperienced as he is in the bedroom, still pretty new to it all, he doesn't quite get the gist of anyone wearing a collar for any reason other than aesthetic. Spotting a white collar held together with a hollow silver metal heart in the middle gives him the idea that it might look nice on CJ, so he picks that up as well. It's meant to be bought with a leash, but he doesn't know that. It's just one of those choker things, right? Like a necklace, but closer fitting. It would contrast her brown fur nicely!

Each of them spot a few more things that either they like, or that they think each other may like. With the hour coming to an end, they meet up at the center of the market, though they don’t share their purchases with each other just yet.

“Pretty quiet for a weekend at the market,” Chestnut notes aloud, his eyes scanning the surroundings. There're about a dozen ponies in comparison to the usual, sometimes going upward of forty or fifty.

“Ready to go?” he asks, receiving a nod from his feline companion. She’s carrying her bags neatly between her teeth, ready to return to where they came from. He picks his own bags up, the couple once again returning to a trot as they return to the farmhouse and put their things in Chestnut’s room, or at least for now. They’re surprised to find Cedar wandering around the apple trees near the backend of the property, just walking around.

“Looks like he got bored,” Cloudjumper says, pressing her cheek against Chestnut’s neck as they look out the kitchen window at the stallion roaming. Cedar makes another round, circling the trees before starting to walk back toward the house.

“I gotta use the restroom real quick, be right back,” CJ says, giving Chestnut a little smooch on the cheek. She plods off, leaving him to do his thing for the moment. Deciding against staying indoors, he moves out to the porch and plops himself on the patio’s bench. With the season fading into fall and without the summer heat beating down on pretty much everything, it’s actually pretty comfortable!

Chestnut hears hoof steps on the patio, silently hoping that Cedar isn’t gonna turn the corner just to pick at him more. As those steps draw nearer, he looks up to see his darker-colored, green-eyed older brother turning the corner to take a seat beside him. Feeling a little annoyed, Chestnut remains quiet for the moment. He doesn’t want to engage in conversation when he’s just trying to peacefully relax.

Cedar has other plans, however.

“Ya got pretty pissy earlier, you feelin’ better?” Cedar asks, already prodding at his younger brother. Chestnut simply nods, doing his best to just stay calm and not escalate things. He would try to ignore Cedar’s clear want to antagonize, but that often results in Cedar just doing it more if anything.

“Saw you two carryin’ bags on the way back up to the house. Whatcha get?” Cedar asks, clearly prying.

“Some food,” Chestnut lies, resting his head on the cushioned arm of the bench.

“Yer tellin’ me they use those fancy bags at grocery stores now?” Cedar asks, prying harder. He knows darn well that they didn’t get just food.

“I guess,” Chestnut responds simply, trying to convey the message that he’d like to enjoy some peace with his tone. The older brother pokes his brother’s flank with a hoof, trying harder.

“Y’sure you weren’t gettin’ yerself somethin’ fancy fer yer cat friend?” he asks, before wiggling his eyebrows. Chestnut gives him one of those looks, the one that asks without words: Really? You’re questioning this?

“I got some shirts for the jacket dad got me on my birthday. There, ya got yer answer, now lemme get some peace,” Chestnut huffs, frowning at him. He’s doing well enough at remaining calm, so there’s that.

“Sounds like you need some ass, not some peace, partner,” Cedar says with yet another prying poke and a laugh to pair with it.

Cloudjumper had just started to head back to the patio, quietly making her way out of the door. The two brothers out front on the porch are a little too distracted to hear her, and she can hear them talking quite clearly as she approaches the front of the household. Deciding against getting in the middle of it, she doesn’t go around the corner, no—instead just opting to listen in to make sure things go smoothly.

"That is, assumin' she lets you get it,” Cedar says, continuing. Chestnut gives him an annoyed look, his ears half splayed.

"What?" Cedar asks, noticing the look from Chestnut.

"Don't tell me yer twenty-one and still ain't had yer dick wet."

Cloudjumper grimaces, wondering why Cedar would think he has the right to know something that personal.

"Don't tell me yer twenty-four and you still pick on others like a school kid," Chestnut counters, though instead of receiving aggression from Cedar, he gets a laugh.

"Yer defense tells me what I need to know."

Chestnut stares at Cedar, squinting. Why is he like this? Why does he feel the need to act the way he does? Trying to process what exactly Cedar means, Chestnut pushes.

"Whattya mean 'what ya need to know'?" he asks.

"You don't talk to others much, do ya?"

Chestnut recoils slightly, knowing well enough that that's true.

"Still not seein' the point."

Cedar rolls his eyes, looking at him as if he's a child.

"Yer still too focused on the farm, ain't ya. Took granny almost dyin' to get yer bum ass from bein' lazy, and now yer sittin' out here waitin' patiently for her like a lap dog."

The fur on Chestnut's neck starts to stand up, and he sits a little more upright. It seems Cedar wants to continue.

"I wouldn't be waitin'. She's fuckin' cute. That cat's got a nice ass on her," Cedar says, smiling. That causes Chestnut to make a turn in mood rather quickly, prodding his brother roughly on the shoulder with a hoof. Cloudjumper almost even steps in, wanting to voice her disdain, but she keeps herself quiet for now.

"That's enough," Chestnut says sternly, glaring at Cedar. Cedar cocks an eyebrow, his smile widening.

"What? You act like I'm gonna fuck her," he replies, bringing his hoof to his chin as if to think over it.

"...That wouldn't be a bad gig, actually. I’d bargain she’d be a fine romp in the hay—"

Cloudjumper's claws come out, digging into the porch as she starts to head toward the two siblings, well, that is until she hears a loud thmp!, a noise of pain follows before she flinches as a fully grown stallion flies through the air. That’s… a rare sight. It would appear the older earth pony has been gifted the ability of temporary flight, courtesy of his younger brother.

Cedar crashes through the porches' wooden fencing, landing on his shoulder before rolling through the garden into the yard. The older stallion is holding his nose, cursing loudly as Chestnut bounds off of the porch over the side garden, quickly walking up to his grounded brother and slapping his hooves away from his face.

Cedar, with his nose busted and his eyes watering, looks up at his assailant. Chestnut's headbutt really did a number on him—he's bleeding all over his own face.

The younger brother doesn’t say a word, simply staring down at his older sibling as if to bore holes with his eyes alone. It’s painfully clear that Cedar’d struck a very touchy nerve.

Cedar attempts to look up at his brother trying to say something, but instead winds up coughing as he realizes being thrown knocked the wind out of him. On top of that, his shoulder feels like someone had just stomped on it, he can't see anything with his eyes watering, and he's certainly not speaking while his nose is bleeding the way it is.

"Get up." Chestnut demands. Cedar isn’t exactly on the winning side of this battle, so obeying feels like an obligation.

So he obeys, rolling to his good side while he wheezes for air, his nose dripping blood into the grass. All it took was a headbutt and a throw—he knew Chestnut was capable, but not that capable. Coming to a stand, he turns to face his younger, but bigger brother. He can't stand on one of his forelegs, his shoulder hurts too much. Usually he'd feel enraged in a situation like this, but getting this kind of treatment from someone he's known for as long as he can remember, well…

“Yer lucky I don’t have the heart t’keep goin’,” Chestnut mutters, staring daggers at Cedar. The latter pony swallows thickly, avoiding eye contact with the farmhand that’d bloodied his nose and messed up his shoulder. Cedar never felt scared of Chestnut up until this point—the younger of the two always seemed scared of conflict, be it physical or verbal. It would seem that he has something to fight for, something Cedar should’ve foreseen rather than used as a utility to piss Chestnut off.

“Gettin’ a rise outta me feels a lot less worth it now, doesn’t it?” Chestnut asks. Cedar seems fixated on the grass for a moment, before catching something in the corner of his eye: Cloudjumper. He was already hurting, but now he just feels stupid. Judging by the look on her face, she’d heard what was said before Chestnut threw him.

Chestnut walks in front of Cedar to block his brother’s line of sight from CJ, lowering his head just enough to be eye level with Cedar.

Cloudjumper, still on the sidelines, is surprised by Chestnut’s attitude. In her weeks with him he’s been calm and collected, busy and focused. In a way that’s not demeaning, she’s never really envisioned him as a commanding or dominating type. With her involved, however, it’s clear that he’s wanting to get a message across.

And despite Chestnut’s description of Cedar’s antagonistic habits, it seems to be working.

“I’m sorry,” Cedar finally manages to get out. Chestnut remains where he is for another moment before turning toward the house, walking to the porch. Meeting his gaze with the part of the porch that’s now in need of repairs, he mentally kicks himself. Mom, Dad, Granny and Gramps? They won’t be pleased.

“Are you alright?” Cloudjumper asks as Chestnut walks onto the porch. He nods, before nodding toward Cedar.

“Probably a better question for him.”

“Fair enough,” she smiles weakly, looking at Cedar. Despite what the asshole’d said about her not even five minutes ago, she can’t help but wince, sympathizing just a tiny bit for him. Cedar’s nose is dripping like a busted faucet, eyes watering from the pain of being headbutted right on the muzzle. She’s accidentally smacked her nose against things and that’s no fun, but having Chestnut’s forehead and weight thrown into someone’s face…

She grimaces, Chestnut catching her expression right as he goes back into the house. Cedar plops himself onto his ass in the grass, muttering as he tries his best not to sniff, knowing he’ll only wind up swallowing blood.

Cloudjumper starts turning to go into the house after Chestnut, but is surprised to find him walking right back outside, carrying two towels in his mouth. One is wet and the other is dry—Chestnut bounds over the porch’s garden and steps in front of Cedar, dropping the towels in front of him before turning around once more, going right back inside. She gets a good look at his face, and...

His expression sends chills down her spine. Mostly, because… well, he was expressionless. Such a stone-cold stare, giving no particular attention to anything other than looking straight forward. He doesn’t even give her a passing glance, which surprises her even more. It was probably just in her head, but the air almost felt chillier around her when he’d passed by for that moment.

Determined to help him feel better, the sphinx look-alike follows. She can tell, expressionless as Chestnut may’ve been, that he wasn’t feeling well at all regarding what he’d just done to his brother, even if Cedar was deserving of being put in his place, violent or not. She hears Chestnut going upstairs as she goes inside, following with some distance in mind as he heads toward his bedroom. He’s being completely silent, not even letting his ears pivot back to acknowledge her presence.

She can’t shake it, sensing his instability. Maybe giving him some space is a better idea? She’s never been this unsure of what to do before, caught in between following or retreating back downstairs. Standing beside the banister at the top of the stairs, she watches him walk toward his room with a worried look on her face.

“I’d like your company.”

She flinches, startled as Chestnut breaks the silence and turns to look at her. She scans him, hesitant at first, until she sees his eyes again.

They’re… glazed, watering. He’d looked inscrutable moments ago, even feeling scary to be around, but now?

He’s crying, tears rolling down his cheeks. He’s no longer so hard to read, those crying eyes clearly articulating sadness, grief. Seeing the massive lug who’s usually so warm and kind crying is certainly a disheartening sight, almost heartbreaking for Cloudjumper.

That creates a couple of realizations for the winged cat, one of which is realizing that she loves this guy. The other she’ll think about later, focusing for now on plodding along after Chestnut, walking with him at his side when she catches up. They gather together on his bed, Cloudjumper unfolding one of her wings in an attempt to wrap around his shoulder to pull him closer. He seems to have other plans, laying down on his side, pulling her with him.

When her head hits the sheets, she discovers her face is level with his neck. She looks up, silently questioning what he’s planning.

“Sorry,” he mumbles, clearing his throat, sniffling once.

"Don't apologize. You feel bad for hitting Cedar, right?"

"Yeah. I… still don't think violence solves anythin'. Just hurts others."

Cloudjumper frowns slightly, agreeing but also disagreeing. She believes some creatures may need a firm slap to the face. Sometimes it's hard getting a message through to others purely because they're incapable of listening to anyone else's reason but their own.

But she agrees that it only serves to hurt others. That's… kinda the point. She's kicked some ass before, and made friends with the same ponies just after. It didn't always end badly! Bruises heal!

"I know he's your brother, but don't let him pick on you, okay? I'm glad you stood up for yourself, personally," she says with an assuring smile. He shakes his head, seeming to disagree.

"I didn't stand up for me, I stood up for you. He was talkin' about… well, unsavory things, and—"

"He was talking about fucking me."

Chestnut purses his lips, nodding and clearing his throat again.

"Y...yeah. You heard?"

Cloudjumper's brows raise slightly, resting a paw on one of Chestnut's hooves. Her tail flicks gently, thumping against the sheets as her smile grows a little wider.

"I heard. I didn't expect to see you hurling him through the porch railing, I was on my way to giving him an earful," she says, kneading her paw against his hoof in an effort to assure his comfort. His ears fold back slightly, so she pulls a string that might make his attention shift from getting upset at himself.

"You could've just told him you fucked me, I wouldn't have minded. It's already happened, right?"

Never has she seen a stallion turn so red so quickly, his cheeks flushed in record time. Wriggling in place, he pointedly frowns at her, nose wrinkled in protest. He also seems a little confused.

"What's lyin' gonna solve? He'd just ask for details," he counters.

"We ain't uh, tied that knot anyhow. And that's fine. I'm plenty happy waitin'."

Cloudjumper struggles not to laugh, before lightly tapping his nose with a paw, tossing him a smirk as if to ask, 'Are you sure about that?'

"But you have fucked me. Remember?" she asks, winking at him, a small portion of her tongue poking out of her mouth, wiggling… oh!

Chestnut is at a loss of words for a moment, swallowing a metaphorical lump as he remembers having lodged her throat full of… him. He still remembers the sinful scene of his batter dripping languidly from her used maw, her moans trickling through the sound of her gasping for air.

"That's… different," he manages to weakly protest, but she had a feeling he'd say something like that.

"Not that much different. You still had your dick in me!" she confidently chirps, playfully patting his hoof with her paws. The feline raises her head to kiss his cheek, trailing her nose up to his ear just after.

"If you'd like to tie that knot, though, we're in a pretty good place to do it…"

Cloudjumper nips the base of his ear, a gentle purr rising from her throat as she retreats back to original position of laying beside him. She doesn't expect him to jump at the opportunity so much as she expects him to get flustered. She watches him for a few minutes as he continues silently blushing, his ears folded against his head with his tail lashing around behind him.

She doesn't expect what follows.

"D'you want me to mount you?" he asks.

That's… actually a really good question. She's by no means a small creature, bigger than the average stallion even! But…

Does she really want him to mount her? That'd actually be pretty fucking scary. As gentle of a giant as he may be, that doesn't stop the fact that he's enormous, and strapping to boot. She'd be sore for at least days, not counting the fact he'd probably pound her cervix into a coma. She's had some wild sex before, but…

Chestnut is in his own league of size and strength. Without restraint he could actually hurt her, even though she's by no means frail.

She reminds herself of the fact that she'd just witnessed him throw a stallion a head taller and far heavier than herself not even fifteen minutes ago like he was a sandbag.

Or how he operates a solid steel plow through heavy, damp mud like a hot knife through butter as if it's a cakewalk.

Or the other day, when he'd almost entirely uprooted a tree stump. A dead tree stump, but still. That takes some borderline herculean strength!

She ponders over that question for a little while, unsure of the answer. Well, until she realizes her inner loins feel like they're on fire and she's been rubbing her thighs together. There's no mistaking the feeling of her own twitching sex, or the result of her ongoing arousal; she's soaked, and she's been kneading at his hooves with her paws for the better part of the past ten minutes.

He's just been patiently waiting for her to answer.

So, does she want him to mount her? Well, the horny half of her is screaming yes, to finally let herself fully submit to a stallion—this one especially!—to get completely and utterly railed by him until she can't do anything but breathe for the remainder of the day.

But the sensible part of her is screaming to consider rationality, to keep in mind that it'd be his first time. If she were to redo her first time, she'd want it to be more memorable, something she could look back on positively. Her first time was, at best, 'Okay, I guess'.

Probably because the guy just wanted to get off and go. Chestnut doesn't strike her as the type to resonate with that, thankfully.

"Yes. Absolutely! But.. a part of me is saying no," she finally responds.

Chestnut, confused but not complaining, blinks curiously at her. He seems to be expecting an explanation which is understandable.

“I value my uterus, no offense. But at the same time… goddesses, yes.”

Chestnut still seems equally as confused. Right, he’s never had sex. What she’d just said was clearly an exaggeration, but she can’t help but feel like he’d batter her internally pretty hard if she just let him do what he wanted. Maybe elaborating for him is for the best.

“What I mean to say is I’m kinda worried you’ll get carried away like how you did with my throat,” CJ continues, twirling one of her paws to show she’s thinking of what to say.

“And you aren’t exactly a… small pony. That thing is practically a weapon,” CJ says with a little giggle, pointing toward his sheath. Chestnut peers down at his ‘weapon’, his confusion only continuing.

Goddesses, she has so much to teach him.

“It’s a metaphor. You have a huge dick.”

“Oh.”

He blinks once or twice, before shrugging.

“Again though, I can wait for another day. Right now honestly feels… poorly timed. I’m not really happy with myself and I don’t think sex would solve anything.”

That’s… honestly something she never thought she would hear come out of most stallions. Viewing personal problems before bedroom endeavors as priority is usually a girl-centric thing in most cases… sort of. That, or she’s heavily overthinking it.

“No offense, of course.”

“Oh no, none taken!” CJ responds in a comforting tone, patting Chestnut’s shoulder in an attempt to soothe her stallion. He smiles appreciatively, before tucking his head into her chest, taking a deep breath to admire her scent, finding comfort in his partner so close to him. It’s really sweet to see for the feline, such a goliath of an equine showing so much of himself to her outside of physicality.

Honestly, it’s refreshing.

“You wanna take a nap and sleep this one off, big guy?” CJ asks, to which Chesnut shakes his head ‘no’.

“No, I still have a couple things to do. I had an idea for that check that granddad gave me.”

Oh?

“What’s the big idea?” she asks. Chestnut stirs, hugging her a little tighter, though she can sense some anxiousness in his actions.

“It’s a surprise.” he answers, sounding somewhat short. It’s clear he wants to keep it to himself, at least for now.

“Mnnh, fine.” CJ insists before she gets herself in too deep. She can’t help but think about what he has in mind, though. It could be anything.

She rests with the stallion for a few minutes, absorbing the silence as she listens to the gentle rises and falls of his breathing. One of her paws traces along his side gently, helping the large earth pony to relax.

She must be doing something right, because that signature, gentle smile of his gradually returns to his face. As he calms down, she continues her affectionate actions by throwing in a few smooches and whispers of admiration for the brown-colored stallion in front of her.

It seems to perk him up quite a bit over the course of an hour.

Eventually, Chestnut decides that getting up and actually doing something rather than moping would be a better idea. Having essentially assaulted his brother earlier is still weighing on him some, but he’s at least feeling better now.

“I’d like t’go check somethin’ out. I’d like it if ya came along.”

Cloudjumper’s ears perk, her paws still rubbing against his side and flank. Oh?

“And what might that be?” she tries again, hoping he’ll slip up.

“Mmh… my statement implied it bein’ a surprise, so I’d like t’keep it that way.” Chestnut claims, before coming to a rise. Cloudjumper watches the massive earth stallion lumber about his room for a few moments before coming to a rise herself, stretching briefly before she follows him out of the house.

Cedar seems to be hiding somewhere. CJ picks up his scent, but she’s unaware of his whereabouts.

“Fair enough. Is it down in the market?” she asks, plodding alongside him. He seems content on indeed keeping it a surprise, his cheeks reddening as he smiles a little wider. If anything, she’s more than happy to know that he’s in a better mood.

If anything, she’s more than happy to know that he’ll only continue to get in a better mood. She’s never felt that way for a guy before, typically uncaring on whether or not they’d give half a shit about her, but now?

Goddesses, she’s unsure how she’d react if they were to suddenly separate. After today, and after him assailing his own sibling, after their escape to a more comfortable place to soothe his nerves…

He’s put in his effort in seeing that she’s comfortable in as many ways as she can think. She’d really, really like that next step with Chestnut. Sex has… honestly? Appealed to her since the start, but that’s probably because of her libido. Well, that and the fact that that’s what she was used to. Things have clearly steered course during the time she’s met Chestnut, but…

“You hungry?” he asks her, her face warming up. She’d been deafeningly quiet in the time they started heading toward town, and she’s only realizing it now.

“Yeah, a little. I could go for a bite.”

Chestnut steps closer to Cloudjumper on their walk, his side brushing against hers. It seems his mood is picking up!

With a nod, he continues toward the marketside of the nearest town. And when they’ve reached their destination, well… she can see what he seems to be up to!

Till then, though? Well, she’s perfectly happy being at his side, trotting alongside him. The smile on his face is contagious, and the way he acts makes her belly tingle in a wonderful way. Not to say any stallions she was screwing around with before were inherently bad, but she can tell that this one is certainly, at the least, good within heart.

Maybe she’s thinking a bit far ahead of herself, but… she could see herself spending a long, long time at Chestnut’s side.

She’s definitely looking forward to it.

Author's Note

Sorry for the delay. Life is hell, but I'd promised myself I'd pump this story out. I'm sure there are plenty of flaws within this chapter, as I forced myself to rush and glance over it in a night while drinking, but fuck it—it's still following the same general path I'd wanted it to.

Enjoy.

Chapter 7: New Wheels

“Treated hickory!” the seller shares, patting the vehicle on the side. Cloudjumper tilts her head. She has no idea what the differences between wood are besides color.

“It’s larger than what most are lookin’ for, but… if you’re eager to see the most of Equestria, this will do the trick. It can survive different climates better than the maple one over there, and I guarantee a warranty of at least fifty-thousand miles. Quite a lot of miles to be walkin’, don’tcha think?” the wagon salespony asks with a grin.

“Yeah..” Chestnut says, looking around the wagon. It’s bigger than any other wagon he’s seen, mostly in the sense that it’s longer, not necessarily taller.

“How many bodies are required to pull this?” Chestnut asks.

“At least two. That’s if you have a lot of things, but they’re light.”

“I plan on pulling it mostly by myself. Maybe something a little smaller will do?” Chestnut asks, to which the seller, his name tag reading ‘Framewood’, nods. He nods toward a different row of wagons, indicating that Chestnut and Cloudjumper follow along.

“So… you plan on traveling with a wagon?” CJ asks Chestnut. She’d realized his intentions when they’d arrived, his plan coming out swiftly without words.

“Yeah. Didn’t wanna tie you down at the farm, and really, I do need to get out more. Only made sense, doin’ somethin’ like this. I should’ve gotten out more as a teen and didn’t, and… well, I can’t fly…” Chestnut starts, before being shouldered by the feline beside him.

“I get it. We’re gonna travel Equestria together, mmh?” she asks, and he nods. Yes, that’s the plan!

“And you can do it in this wagon!” Framewood suggests aloud, pointing to a hickory-built, sturdy-looking and sizable vehicle that’s smaller than the bigger one they were looking at, more affordable, and far more realistic. This could house three on a decent journey, while keeping things cozy enough to eat, sleep and keep warm during those chilly nights.

“That looks better. Good for one puller?” Chestnut asks. Naturally, Framewood nods eagerly.

“Yup! A couple of passengers and your friendly feline here shouldn’t be too hard on you. That wagon earlier was admittedly a bit overkill, yes—but I have to make a living too, I hope you understand!” Framewood says with a bashful blush. Commission workers, unparalleled in the act of marketing, at least generally speaking.

“Casted cylindrical bearings that’ll last an incredibly long time in the blazing heat or bone-chilling cold, taking a step out of the ordinary with wheels that have rubber around them for a cozier ride, as well as a spring-loaded and softened suspension so your snoozing companion doesn’t get jostled awake on a bumpy hill. It’s magic-compatible—stoves, ovens, heat and air conditioning, water heating and cooling, you name it! Though… admittedly, those are separate purchases. Most aren’t thinking of living out of a wagon, no matter the luxuries they provide.” Framewood points out, though Chestnut merely shrugs. He’s given it some thought; what better way of traveling than doing it yourself? He’s all for that.

“And the price?” Chestnut asks.

“We have financing, or leasing. Which would you prefer?”

“Buyin’ it outright. I won’t be able to make the monthly payments if I’m on the trails a thousand miles away, so…”

“A fair point. Well, this particular wagon will cost you right around…”

Chestnut cocks an eyebrow as Framewood tells him a price. Kinda expensive, even if it has those fancy add-ons… so he goes back to the office to talk with Framewood’s boss, willing to pay in full on the same day, managing to barter it down a couple thousand bits.

Though, of course, he gets the aforementioned accessories as well. Again, he manages to barter a reasonable deal, something Cloudjumper honestly hadn’t expected him to do. Then again, he was raised by farmers, so thinking of him as incompetent is probably foolish.

And now? They’re walking back to his house, him lugging the wagon along. He doesn’t plan on leaving immediately, of course. First things first; packing belongings, and he wants to be sure Cloudjumper gets an opportunity to either purchase or take along what she likes. With her bags at the house, it’s only sensible they make their stop and really plan things out.

He’d bought a map as well, the most detailed one he could find for this area. That will lead them to the next few towns at the least, where they can get a hold of a bigger, better map. One that’ll likely wind up on the wall inside of the cabin, but with destinations in mind!

Cloudjumper feels excited! While she enjoys working with Chestnut at his home, she's been itching for some travels since being stuck at the farm. Being a busy body is something they have in common, though hers is with moving place to place, his with physical labor. It's funny how well that'll work out, actually! He'll get his labor in through pulling the wagon, she'll get her travels in while doing so with him simultaneously.

“Hey, big guy?” CJ queries as they approach the house. He seems to be having no trouble pulling the new wagon he’d purchased.

“Hm?”

“I… appreciate you doing all this.” Cloudjumper says, walking alongside him while he’s strapped to the wagon. They arrive on his property, the dirt path indicating a driveway.

“What’cha mean?” he asks, looking puzzled. She blinks, honestly having guessed she’d figured out what exactly he was doing.

“Well… the wagon, the accessories? Traveling Equestria, knowing yourself that I’m also traveling Equestria. It kinda sounds like… well, y’know. You wanna travel with me, stick by my side…” Cloudjumper says, almost sheepishly falling off into a murmur at the last bit of her sentence.

“Oh. Yeah, that’s the general idea. Figured it’d be healthy for me to get out more ‘n’ all that, however… so is it a compromise? It seems like it.” Chestnut asks, CJ nodding. Yeah, it seems that way!

“Well. It’s a little flattering, knowing you’re so interested.” CJ states. The strapping earth stallion smiles as he parks the new wagon, undoing his attachments to free himself from the mobile home.

“Well.. I’d certainly hope I’m interested. We’ve spent a small deal of time together in the grand scheme of things, and I’m pretty much askin’ to run off with you in this wagon. It’d be a darn shame if it fell through.” Chestnut says, grunting as he walks away from the strap rubbing against his back. That will have to be adjusted. It’s a little annoying, and it’s only the first time he’s used it.

“...Yeah. And… a part of me feels guilty about that. You, leaving your parents and grandparents to themselves, even your brother, taking off..” Cloudjumper says, her ears flattening against her head. Chestnut walks over to the sphinx, kissing her between her ears. Naturally, Cloudjumper looks up at him just after.

“They suggested it. Well, not Cedar, but he’s besides the point—I’ve always been by their suggestions, and it’s only ever done me nothin’ but good. I’ll happily stick by that.” Chestnut says warmly to his partner, which makes her smile. She does recall his grandfather, ‘Oak’, having suggested he get out more. This would certainly fall into that category.

“There’s other reasons, too. Not just family pointing me in a direction that lets me enjoy myself.”

Oh? Cloudjumper is interested in the full context of that.

“What would that be?” she asks with an inquisitive smirk.

“Ahh, nothin’ to be too worried about. Just run-of-the-mill stuff when a guy likes a lady.”

Her inner ego is getting to her now. When a guy likes a lady, mmh? She’s a little flattered!

“Oh? Feel free to elaborate.” CJ says, clearly in a flirtatious way.

“I.. think you should let me reveal that at my own pace, honestly?” Chestnut admits, flushing deeply. Ohoh, she has to know now! Prying is a specialty she’d picked up too long ago!

“C’mon! You say that and expect me not to push a big reveal?” Cloudjumper asks, laughing. Chestnut seems to be on the other side of the field, however.

“...Yes.” he voices, somewhat sternly. Mildly taken aback, CJ gives him a shove of her shoulder.

“Pleaaaaasssee?” she begs, staring him down with her best begging eyes. Chestnut’s ears flatten, and he can’t help but… smile, though… she swears he looks a little concerned?

“I think you know what it is.” he claims, walking off toward the house. The cat watches him, her persistence in pestering put on the side as worry starts to build. She stays with herself for a moment, not moving, thinking over what she may’ve said that could’ve aggravated him.

The begging, of course. It was impulsive, but she’s realizing it now rather than a moment ago. By no means is she perfect; like most, if not all cats, just curious. Still, she should respect the fact that he’d been strongly hinting at ‘no’.

She jogs up to the house, thinking to herself as she reaches the porch, the door, inside… it’s obvious, the whole ‘buying the wagon’ thing, purely for travel? Chestnut wants to get out, experience the world, and do it with her. That goes without saying, it was painfully clear the moment they’d arrived at the lineup of come-along vehicles at the dealership earlier.

What are his further intentions? She doesn’t know. She can’t read minds or predict the future. Is it so shameful to be questioning the full extent of what’s going on?

There are some thoughts that trouble her, that she’d have serious trouble doing so. Their relationship so far has been nothing but fantastic—but there’s that period for every couple when they get used to each other enough that they get… nasty toward each other, sometimes—not in a good way.

She hopes that’s not their future, certainly not. But to say it’s impossible would be silly, in a logical sense. She can’t help but be cautious, especially considering the fact that he wants to stick so closely to her side after less than two months. That’s not factoring in the whole schtick, either! He’s been here since he was little, and according to his parents and grandparents, he’s hardly traveled further than the little market a mile down the road.

“Cloudjumper? Are you okay? You look down.” a feminine voice asks CJ, and looking over… oh! It’s Cherry, Chestnut’s mother.

“Oh! Yeah, for the most part. Just… confused. Probably overthinking some things.” the feline says with a sheepish smile, Cherry tilting her head at this.

“Confused and overthinking about what, honey?” Cherry asks, politely pressing the topic so that it can bubble up and become a conversation.

“Chestnut. He bought a wagon, and I’m pretty sure I know what he wants to do, but…” Cloudjumper starts, before Cherry walks up to her. Thankfully, they’re pretty much eye-level height with each other. A large part of CJ loves that all of Chestnut’s family can, at the least, see eye-to-eye with her! It’s refreshing!

“Oh, you should’ve heard him a week ago. Fawning over you, saying he wants to travel throughout Equestria with you, the look in his eyes… I’ve never seen him like that before. It’s nice knowing he wants to get out.” Cherry says, smiling happily.

“Yeah, but… I don’t wanna keep him away from his family. It makes me feel like I’m stealing him, somehow. I just… arrive one night, and a little while later he’s leaving with me? That doesn’t bug you?” CJ asks, tilting her head slightly at Cherry.

“Sweetie, he’s my son—of course I’d love to keep him around—but! That doesn’t mean he’s an object, or for me to hold on to forever. I want him to have his own life, to make his own decisions, be his own stallion, accomplish other goals other than pulling a plow.” Chestnut’s mother reassures Cloudjumper, the feline settling a little as Cherry, to her surprise, gives her a friendly nuzzle. Cloudjumper’s face reddens at the affectionate gesture, silently happy that Cherry has grown this cozy with her. They haven’t talked a whole lot, but it’s always refreshing to know when you’re trusted and welcomed, and this little nuzzle of Cherry’s shares that without a word.

“Just treat him well, no matter what happens. I know he will for you.” Cherry says, backing up to give CJ some space. Cloudjumper nibbles at the inside of her lower lip, honestly a little nervous about what the future holds. It really could go any way! At this point, it’s been creeping into more of an excited nervousness more than anything, but that pessimism seems to be lingering in the back of her mind. It’s not like she’s taken relationships seriously up until now, after all.

“I’m just… worried.” Cloudjumper shares, frowning.

“About?” Cherry asks.

“That I’ll bore him, or that one of us will… get bored.” Cloudjumper admits while looking at the ground, fearing the worst for the current moment. Cherry frowns, but with a smile—as well as lifts a hoof to lift CJ’s chin, looking at her.

“It’s something you’ll have to talk with him about, honey. I seriously doubt him breaking it off with you, but… if you feel like it’s a concern to you, he’s your partner. Be transparent with him, ask him questions, talk with him, get to know him better.”

Cloudjumper stares at Cherry for a few moments, before… hmm. Yeah, she’d have to say Cherry is right. Dwelling on it and not saying a word will only worsen whatever thoughts she has accumulating in her head. In that moment, she decides that having a serious conversation is likely necessary with Chestnut, even if she agrees with his mother.

“It’s also like, a thing, where…” CJ starts, Cherry’s ears perking to listen.

“...like, I’m concerned that, um. Gods, how do I explain this… he’s been working on a farm for several years, right? Hasn’t pursued a relationship. He doesn’t know how to handle—”

“Whoa, hold on. Respectfully, you don’t either.” Cherry interrupts, bumping CJ with her elbow. At first, Cloudjumper is ready for a fight-response, but… well, Cherry’s right. No matter how red it makes the feline in the face, she can’t bring herself to know why or how Cherry knows that.

“Which is why I think you two will work. Astonishingly well, if I’m honest.” Cherry claims, that smile of hers once again brightening to proportions that it’s damn-near contagious. Cloudjumper, with her lack of knowledge and wisdom, being ever-the-younger between herself and Cherry, purses her lips. She’s allowed to have her own concerns!

“I care for him, okay? Really, I do! I just… can’t fucking explain it. It’s aggravating. Like an insecurity that’s digging at me deep down, having realized he wants to travel this part of the world with me. I can’t shake it.” the cat finally manages to admit, sitting herself down right in front of Chestnut’s mother.

Cherry sighs, her frown reappearing as Cloudjumper seems to vent. Chestnut had told his mother quite a bit about Cloudjumper, and Cherry’s pretty sure she knows why the cat is thinking in such a way. If she had any suggestions? It’s love; something Chestnut’s partner hasn’t seen much, if any of in the past. And with Cherry knowing her own son better than anyone, she’d have to argue that Cloudjumper will be seeing plenty of that. Chestnut genuinely is a loving stallion.

“Then care for him. Give him all the things you want the most.” Cherry says to Cloudjumper, patting the feline on the back. CJ stays in place for a few long moments, before sighing herself—she stands up, her tail flicking, before heading off toward the stairs to go find Chestnut.

“I will.”

Chestnut is busying himself in the bathroom. Warm water flows out of the spigot, the stallion testing it with a hoof as he rotates the water with that same hoof in the tub, trying to even out the temperature. It’s hot, but not too hot, just enough to relax his muscles and help him relax for the remainder of the day. It’s almost full, just another half a minute and he’ll be good to hop on in and scrub off whatever sweat he’d worked off from the morning.

With Cloudjumper walking into the bathroom behind him, he smiles and turns to look at his partner.

“Hey pretty kitty. Wanna join me?” he asks, nodding toward the tub. Cloudjumper once again starts biting her inner lip, but… she can’t help but smile. She’s seriously grown a massive liking for this stallion.

“Yeah, I’d like that. Can we have a talk while we’re at it?” she asks, Chestnut nodding. He turns back around to focus on the tub for the remainder of time required to fill it before stepping in, Cloudjumper approaching and standing next to the tub as she watches the massive shire settle and enjoy what he’s prepared. She looks him over head-to-hoof as she busies herself with what to say, a blush forming on her cheeks as well as the tips of her ears as she does so.

“Do you really want to travel Equestria with me?” Cloudjumper asks, nervousness creeping into her voice already. Chestnut’s natural reflex is a frown, one of concern.

“Wh…? Yeah, o‘course! Might be rushin’ a little, but… well, I love ya.” he says, and without a shred of hesitation.

It’s the first time in a long, long time that she’s been told that. And really, the last time was from her mother.

‘I love you’. It’s a serious claim, no matter how soon or late. It makes her heart ache in a good way.

“But… why?” she asks, pressing the matter.

“I mean, do I really gotta explain? We’ve spent the past couple’a months gettin’ to know each other, and we’ve done nothin’ but get along. The talks we’ve had, the cuddlin’ and kissin’, workin’ together, the… rest.” he says, clearing his throat at that last bit just a little.

“So… you’re sure it’s a thing you want to do?”

Chestnut stares at her for a moment, pursing his lips. How much convincing does this cat need?

“Get in the tub.” he demands, which seems to change Cloudjumper’s face. Regardless, she obeys with little reluctance, settling beside him, neck deep in water on her back. Looking at him, her ears fold back; she still gets that feeling of being ‘small’ around him, and it’s oddly amazing.

“Cloudjumper?” he questions, clearly trying to capture her full attention. It’s caught, and it’s hooked hard. He places a hoof gently on her chest, another sweeping under her body to pull her close, essentially forming a body-hug that feels… unusual in the water, but far from unwelcome.

“I’m sure I wanna spend my time with ya. I’ve wanted to since the day I met’cha, if I’m honest. I’m glad I didn’t kick you out after findin’ you in that goodland tree.” Chestnut says quietly, though certainly loud enough for CJ to hear. She brings a paw down to rub at one of his hooves, smiling up at the stallion as he rubs her fur and holds her close.

“I’m just worried that this is taking off too fast for either of us. I’ve never stuck around before, and you’ve never been in a relationship before. You get where I’m coming from, right? Like, obviously I don’t wanna leave you, and I’d long-since picked up that you don’t wanna leave me, but…” Cloudjumper starts, pressing her nose into the crook of Chestnut’s neck.

“I just don’t want this feeling to end. It’s amazing, and I’m a little infatuated with it, and I just… don’t wanna ruin it and make it out to be like…a glass cannon scenario, if that makes any sense?”

Chestnut laughs, all too familiar with the ‘glass cannon’ reference. In his experience, it was for anaerobic exercise and the many times he’d exhausted himself too quickly, but it still relates to some degree.

“I get where you’re comin’ from. Again, though—I wanna stick with you. I think things will go well. If you don’t, well… I don’t own you, and I won’t force you, and I hope you would say the same for me. I just know that I wanna stick around you.”

For the moment, Cloudjumper is satisfied with their talk. There’s some loose ends that surely need to be tied up, but… for now? She’s comfortable with the idea of traveling the many biomes that Equestria has in store for them to visit. She’s sure that sense of adventure will be fulfilled while traversing the lands unvisited by either of them!

“Chestnut?” she asks.

“Yeah?”

“When do you wanna start?” she continues.

The stallion cocks an eyebrow at her, completely unsure of how to answer that.

“Well… as soon as you’re ready. I’m rearin’ to go if I’m honest, but I’m not gonna rush ya.”

CJ cozies up to him a little closer, her nose poked against the underside of his jaw while she wriggles her way to lie atop him. With him being so much taller, his chest is poking out of the water rather than his neck, much like she was lying just moments ago.

“A week, tops. Is that okay?” she quietly asks. He nods, using the sharper end of his hoof to scritch at the base of her neck, elated to find her starting to purr seconds later.

“Mmh, that’s good. Gives us time to plan some things out, get our stuff packed, all that.” Chestnut confirms. His hoof wanders southward, kneading between her wings. CJ shivers as he starts rubbing circles into her muscles, the cat melting against him as he essentially prods her on switch.

“A-and… um. When about…” CJ starts, a long pause following. She finds herself hesitating. Not because she doesn’t want to, but…

“When about what?” Chestnut asks back, lowering his hoof further to pat against the base of her spine. Being part cat, she can’t help but raise her butt just a little, giggling against his neck.

“When are we gonna… y’know. Do the do?”

The shire’s petting stops, and he starts sitting up. Uh oh. She assumes she timed that badly. Cloudjumper watches as he adjusts himself in the tub, looking down at her, his ears twitching and his eyes staring as if in thought.

“...Whenever you want.”

Her eyes widen slightly, her hindlegs attempting to squeeze around him, thighs squished tightly around his hips. O-oh! Well then…heh, that implies whenever she wants beyond his first time, right? The task is a daunting one, given how large he is, but…

“Not here in the tub of course, um—but… am I being too fast?” she asks, her ears folding back. Her golden eyes peek up at him, meeting with those light blue irises she’s grown so fond of.

“If you were, I wouldn’t have said whenever you want.” Chestnut says, smiling down at her with a cocked eyebrow. Blushing, Cloudjumper squeezes his hips another time with her thighs. It's an odd decision; risk rushing it to see what it's like with him, or take it slow, wait at least another month or two.

Being completely honest with herself, she'd ride him like there's no tomorrow right now. She's been thinking about it for at least a few weeks, and goddesses be damned, she wants it now.

“If I said let's do it now…” she quietly suggests, eyes meeting his.

“Would you?”

Chestnut barely contemplates an answer.

“No. We're in the tub, hon. That'd probably cause some problems..”

Well. Fuck. He actually has a really good point. Water of any kind, hot or cold, would definitely ruin sex past a minute or two. Something about dissolving her natural lubricants.

“Tonight?” she asks. It's midday, late afternoon at most. They can mentally prepare, ready themselves for getting over that hurdle.

“You sure?” he asks.

What the fuck? He keeps making her second guess herself. What is she supposed to do?

“‘Cause you don't seem sure. You're nervous.”

Going silent, Cloudjumper buries her face into his wet fur, her loins feeling warmer than ever.

“I just wanna feel you inside me..” she decides to blatantly answer, trying to be uninhibited by whatever's causing her to stop herself from admitting it. She looks up at Chestnut again, shivering as he looks down at her, his face riddled with seriousness, as well as what may be loving concern.

“When we’re both ready, okay? No rush.” he calmly says, stroking the back of her head gingerly with a hoof. Her eyes close while she melts against him again, one of her ears twitching as he rubs behind it.

“I am..” she whispers, nosing against his collar. He continues to pet her, wordlessly thinking to himself as he helps his partner relax and cleanse, his brain rummaging through ways to respond to her. Some spare thoughts, ideas and concerns come to mind, but he wants to ask her something first.

“Would tonight be okay?” he asks, watching the cat shuffle her forelegs before trying her best to hug most of his upper torso. He can feel her claws gently pricking his skin, the feline’s angst showing through without words.

A hasty nod follows as she begins making biscuits on his upper back.

“Let’s clean up, big guy.” CJ murmurs, her forepaws pressing against the bottom of the tub to leverage her into a standing position. She looks him up and down briefly, that funny, pleasant airy feeling returning to her tummy as she checks him out. She’s salivating, so after a brief swallow to fix that issue, she swipes a bottle of shampoo up and brings it over to Chestnut, indicating with a beckoning paw for him to sit upright.

It starts their bathing time, which in turn starts them dipping their hooves (and paws) into a somewhat intimate setting. Rubs through scalps and fur, digging to work out whatever they’ve built up through the day. Little pecks of appreciation turn into teasing kisses, those kisses turning into nibbles, those nibbles turning into adventurous licks and kisses along each others’ bodies. By the time they’re done scrubbing in the tub, they move onto the shower to rinse proper, which only prods them into being *slightly* more adventurous than they were in the tub.

Chestnut, oh dear Chestnut… he’d treated her to something wonderful in that shower. He’d improved so much in such a short time with his tongue, lapping along her thighs, pinning her down at the hips while flicking his tongue between her folds, teasing her for a full twenty minutes before she’d came so hard that her body is habitually twitching even after drying off and returning downstairs. Chestnut’s relatives seem to be doing their own thing, so luckily they don’t notice—but each little spasm of her wings, twitching of her significant muscles, or even squeezing of her sex has her reminded every time of what they’ll wind up doing together later.

And by Luna’s starry mane, she’s just as nervous as she is excited about it!

In the meantime, while her and Chestnut are enjoying some cuddle-and-talking time on the living room couch, she’s coming up with all sorts of ideas for their upcoming ‘event’. Her mind is ablaze with all the different things they could do to each other, slow or fast, rough or gentle, timid or daunting.

She’s so ensnared with her own thoughts that she dozes, falling asleep with Chestnut.

Hell, if she had to make a bet, they’ll likely need their energy for later.

Author's Note

Didn't do any spell/punctuation-checking, due to procrastination and lack of an editor. I also didn't proof-read, because I feel I've been neglecting this story and am trying to work on chapters 8 - 10 at the moment and not have them too fucked up.

Regardless, thanks for reading! Expect Chapter 8 in... I don't know, a millennia or two. :twilightsheepish:

Chapter 8: Cool Mom (NSFW)

Chestnut grumbles as he awakens, wriggling gently on the couch as he starts returning to consciousness. There’s a sharp stinging pain, somewhere on the back of the base of his neck, as well as between his shoulders… his eyes open, and the reasoning for that pain becomes slowly, but surely clear.

Cloudjumper is hugging him, quite tightly in fact. Whatever she’s dreaming about must be intense, so he backs his head down and away from her to get a good look at what the feline is doing. At first, he thinks: Maybe it’s a nightmare? But, with the realization that her eyes are open, revealing that she’s definitely awake, plus the purring he’s now noticing, he frowns at the cat currently subjecting him to her claws.

“You alright?” he asks quietly. Her claws seem to dig in more, and he’s left arching his back away from her—why?!

“Mhm..” she hums back, relinquishing her claws for a moment. Chestnut silently thanks his lucky stars she didn’t continue; he might wind up with scars elsewise.

“I’m not y-yer scratch pad, hon..” he mumbles, relaxing back into her grasp with caution.

“I beg to differ..” she laughs, lapping at his throat, nipping him… something is up. Not only can he tell from her current mannerisms, but from something hitting his nose as well. Something fierce.

“Big guy…” she says, her voice low and sultry. It takes a moment for Chestnut to recognize that something is different from the Cloudjumper he’s typically used to. She’s acting funny. Nothing is necessarily different from her scent, but something is awry; a scent he’s smelled before, and frequently in the past couple of days.

“Yeah?”

“I had a dream about you..” she murmurs, stuffing her nose into the fluff of his neck. Oh! Well, that sounds sweet!

“What kind of dream?” he decides to ask.

“You… and I were out in the apple orchard. Picking those Goodland trees, chatting… and, well. Sexy stuff.” she reveals, a paw traveling down his side, slinking to his lower stomach.

“And this..” she emphasizes while groping his sheath.

“All of it.” she punctuates.

“Was..” she starts, trailing that same paw to his foreleg, guiding his hoof to her tummy now, gently traveling down her lithe body… to have him directly contact her lips—the ones between her hips, of course.

“...in here.” she finishes, smirking up at him. Ah. Chestnut swallows at the idea, though there’s no denying he’d like to see how that dream went first-hoof.

“Ya… ya dreamt of us, uh… screwin’?” he asks. CJ stares at him blankly for a long moment…

He’s a dense fucker. He really is. Something about tainting that innocence has always entertained her, however…

“I dreamt of us mating.” she says sternly, prodding his nose with a single digit of her paw.

“Having sex. Fucking. Reproducing.”

Chestnut, once neutral and calm, now has cheeks so red that he may as well be the color of a ripe apple himself.

“Ah.. heh..” he weakly responds, ears folding back as he tries to avoid eye contact. Having enough of whatever front he’s trying to put up, she rolls herself over to be on top of him rather than the couch. With her ass seated on his lower belly, she snatches up his forelegs and forcibly pins them beside his head, rolling her hips all-the-while.

“Cordiality is great, sweetheart…” she says with a smoothness in her voice, Chestnut staring plainly back at her.

“Uh..” he mumbles.

“But you should be more confident. You’re a big and strong guy, handsome, sweet as can be… and you’re hung—”

“—yep...” he interrupts, referring to their conversation almost months ago. She can’t help but smile, putting more of her weight onto his forelegs to keep him in place. She knows he can lift her up whenever he wants, but she also knows that he won’t.

“Yeah..? Now… that wagon you picked up yesterday. It came with a mattress, right?” she questions.

“...Yep.”

Cloudjumper grins, releasing his forelegs so she can sit upright, bringing her paws to her soft-looking and slim form, notably her belly.

“So… imagine us, on that comfortable, big bed?” she asks, to which he nods. Of course he can! They’ve been sleeping together for over a month now.

“Can you imagine me riding you in this position?” she asks, rolling her hips once more as she sits upright, her bottom seated against his sheath, her lower lips mere millimeters from where his dick would spill out. He stares downward, tilting his head, seeming to really, really think over it…

“I uh… can’t. Never done it.”

Feeling one of her eyes twitch, likely from annoyance, she stops rolling her hips. Turns out there’s a barrier with virgin males as well, obviously comparing a hymen to their imagination.

Gotta break that ‘hymen’ to give them insight to what they’re missing. Once that’s achieved… well? It makes them hornier! That’s the point for some.

The more they fantasize, the more they’re willing to act upon that fantasy. That’s what she requires currently, though she’s willing to step down in favor of Chestnut’s lack of experience. Taking a breath, she smiles down at him and nods in agreement.

“True, you haven’t. D’you wanna change that?” she queries.

“I mean.. yes. But… maybe in a bit? Haven’t had breakfast, and I’d really like a glass of water to go with it…”

Cloudjumper’s brows raise, and she looks up at nothing in particular… she hadn’t considered breakfast, or even water. She was mostly thinking sex in a way? That’s ironic. It’s something guys usually do, but… here she is on the other side, gaining insight completely out of nowhere.

There is one thing, however.

She wants him. That’s really all there is to it. Two lovers coming together, doing… that love thing. Yeah!

“You’ve got fish in the fridge. Hardly two days old.” he mentions to her, which makes her ears perk. Fish? She loves fish!

If she recalls correctly… salmon! Her favorite!

“...Yeah, breakfast wouldn’t hurt…” she mumbles, rolling her hips a final time before getting off of him. Chestnut, secretly relieved that she’s relenting, rolls off of the couch alongside her to lead the way to the kitchen.

He decides on a variety of fruits and veggies to start the day. Apple slices, carrot shavings, lettuce and spinach, starfruit and baby onions, the works of what’s needed to keep a large-stature stallion of his caliber full of energy. He even tries a bite of Cloudjumper’s fish; and it’s surprisingly tasty! He’d initially thought it wasn’t his thing, because fish isn’t something he’s familiar with, nor are draft-based ponies around here. Turns out he can eat it just fine! Well, as long as it’s paired with something else, like bread.

Cloudjumper sticks to her dietary needs; primarily protein, that being the fish. Of course some greens and berries, roasted walnuts and pistachios… they’re thrown in, since that stuff is the right choice for a healthy diet. It also makes for a nice, crisp attentional texture for what is elsewise tender, raw and fatty fish.

Oh. And salt. Salt is fuckin’ bangin’.

Doing the dishes alongside her mate, Cloudjumper eyes him up as he scrubs and rinses, meanwhile she’s drying and putting away the ceramic plateware. She’s sure to garner as much attention as she can out of him, a kitty on a mission. Each time he passes a dish to her, she gives stronger hints; a lingering touch of her paw on his hoof, a long pause to assure him she’s watching, even a kiss gets mingled in with something so simple; a chore.

“Ya really are eyeballin’ me, aren’t ya..” he quietly notes.

“Mhm. The living room floor would be fine, too.”

Chestnut can’t help but glare at her for a moment, brows knitted.

“Yer far too horny. But… I love ya.” Chestnut shares with a gentle grin, shutting the water off and backing away from the sink. The massive stallion walks to his partner, leaning down to give her a much-deserved kiss on the lips—and there’s zero chaste in it. She’d expected gentleness, much like he always gives, but no no no, he’s forward!

His tongue assaults hers quicker than she could’ve ever expected, and it’s throwing her a curveball beyond fierce.

“You’ll get yer fun, okay? Just lemme warm up to that idea.” Chestnut assures, breaking the kiss to transfer from her lips to her forehead. All things considered, Cloudjumper can’t help but smile! Sweet as he is, pensive as he may be about, well, screwing her, she can’t deny he’s awfully considerate of her. It’s nice!

“Can you at least tell me how hard?” Cloudjumper asks, clearly in the mood for teasing.

“...Iunno?” he half-answers, sounding pensive. She huffs through her nose, mind rampant with ideas, scenes in her head, and far less than basic formalities when they get down to pick that bone.

Mmh… bone. His bone. His boner.

She likes his boner.

And that admittedly raises some suspicion. She’s a horny little shit, there’s no denying that! But!—she’s not typically so horny that her brain feels fuzzy and her loins are tingling so much that she desires anything other than the air itself being between them. The moment she woke up, she was thinking of Chestnut railing her so hard that he wouldn’t recognize the color of his own cock after, utterly spent after filling her womb so full that her belly grows a small size…

…hmm. Stopping to think for a moment, CJ comes to a staunch realization.

She’s in heat. Early, worst of all.

This could be really bad.

This… could be really amazing, too.

“You smell funny.” Chestnut says, startling her out of her daze.

“Thanks?” she frowns, stuffing her nose into his neck. Her nips continue, her thighs feeling alight with a fire she hasn’t felt in years.

“You okay?” he asks, Chestnut feeling a grumble along his collar.

“I.. don’t know…” she mutters. She’s practically inhaling his scent, like her sniffer can bottle up his aroma for safe-keeping.

There’s an obvious sense of silence for the both of them. Questions asked? Unanswered. Feelings provoked without resolution, the closeness between the two of them merely growing more immediate. They both want something, but both are nervous to take on the act for their own reasons.

“...I’m in heat, I think.” Cloudjumper answers, Chestnut’s ears perking at the news. That explains her ‘funny’ scent, his nose picking up something he’s unfamiliar with. Given she’s partially, if not mostly feline, it explains why he isn’t familiar with the smell.

He’s been around mares in heat, or estrus, or whatever it may be called. Never has he been around a gal that has griffon and pegasus lineage, that’s also in heat… or any gal, really—but whatever! The griffon bit threw him off, that’s for certain.

It explains why he’s struggling to keep himself sheathed. As ‘funny’ as that smell may be, his mind is far from calm. He’s simply skilled at being calm.

“You wanna do something about it?” he daringly asks, feeling a sharpness in his collar that wasn’t there before. She’s biting him, quite hard, and irrefutably in a possessive manner.

“Didn’t think you’d be asking to put a kid in me so soon…” she whispers, moving lower to nip at his chest.

“I, um… I wasn’t...” Chestnut responds with a gentle bout of nervous laughter, pressing his nose between her ears. He’s still thinking about the whole sex thing, how it could go, trying to put down his nervousness to do that deed in full.

They’ve been together for well over a month now. Is it too soon to do that deed? They’ve fondled each other, rubbed each other off… had their mouths between each other's thighs, kissed for at least an hour a day since being with each other.

Would sex really be so out of place, given what they’ve done already?

Reality? No. But also reality, maybe, purely based on time together. There’s no denying that Chestnut would much rather his first be his last, and given he mentioned that to Cloudjumper, he’s sure she’d understand.

But Cloudjumper is thinking in a way that may surprise him.

She wants him to be her last, that’s certain. But…!

She also wants him to feel like her first. Gentle, calm, inexperienced, angsty, pressured and unusual, almost even foreign. But pleasurable, intense, exciting, and most importantly…

Like it means something other than simply getting off.

That’s what sex has been for her up until she met him. That night he yanked on her tail as she tried to rest in that tree… at first, she’d wanted to maim him. Curse him out, slap his face, bare her teeth. She’s glad she hadn’t taken that route! Because... now?

She wants to fuck him. She wants him to fuck her. She’s hoping he’s in the same boat!

“Probably best we don’t do that if yer in heat, though..” he comments with an apprehensive tone.

Her tail twitches, smacking against the floor. She agrees! But she disagrees even more. Going through heat without relief is, for lack of a better word, gross. The sweating, the higher body temperature, the clenching of her sex even when she’s doing mundane things like reading or preening? It turns a typically nice and enjoyable day into something that’s more of a hot, humid, sticky, scatter-brained mess.

“Do you go through rut?” she asks, peering up at him. Chestnut tilts his head at her, pursing his lips.

“Yup. Usually a few times between spring ‘n’ fall. It ain’t as bad as gals going through estrus, I dun think…” he answers. He doesn’t know how bad most girls go through estrus, but he knows rut is significantly easier to deal with. It’s mostly just being a bit hornier than usual; rut, that is.

For him, at least. His is pretty manageable, nine times out of ten. There was one time, however… the time he’d broken the mount at the clinic. That was a rough one, literally and figuratively.

“When’s the last time you went through it?” CJ asks.

“Couple weeks before I met ya.” Chestnut responds.

Oh… wait. It’s nearing the middle of fall. There’s a good chance he’ll go through it again!

“...Yer wantin’ to be in… heat. While I’m in rut. Right?” Chestnut asks, and sharply at that.

His lack of quick-witted retorts is typically known, so CJ hadn’t expected that.

“W-well, yeah. It’d be awesome.” she chirps, rinsing off the remainder of their dishes, putting them in the strainer. She cocks her head up at him, eyes glancing rapidly from his face, to his chest, attempting to glance at his underbelly from where she is and failing… to his neck. Face. Neck. Face. Lips, neck, face, lips…

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asks, going as far as speaking slowly. That southern drawl of his is almost entirely nonexistent for a moment.

She thinks about that for a moment. She’s never done the dirty while she’s in heat. She’s not even sure she’s okay. Taking a deep breath, she tries to think rationally, if only for a moment.

“Definitely not. We haven’t even… y’know, and I’m thinking babies. Probably not great.”

Chestnut seems relieved by her admittance, stepping around her to take the strained dishes and give them a final shinedown with a towel, silent for a few long moments as he puts them away.

“The wagon came with a bed.. pretty big one, really.” he murmurs under his breath, wrinkling his nose for a moment. She knows that look, despite her lack of ‘sex during heat’.

She’s affecting him. Her scent, that is.

That’s… great! And hideously worrisome! This entire situation is so damn confusing, and neither of them caused it. Causation or not, neither of them are sure of how to solve it without instinct getting the better of them, either.

“Did it?” she asks cautiously. She knows herself. Were she in a clear state of mind, she wouldn’t press the issue. Well… that’s a partial lie. She would, but hardly at all.

“What are those called again..” he continues muttering, furrowing his brow.

“What?” she asks, merely remaining confused.

“What’s what called?”

He stares blankly at a cupboard, squinting at it as if offended.

“The… the thing a guy puts around his piece?” he asks, eyes scanning the corners of the cupboards he’s been staring at.

What, condoms?

“Rubbers?” Cloudjumper asks.

“Condoms! That’s it!”

“Yeah, rubbers.” she laughs, nudging his side with an elbow.

“Let’s get some.” he says, face lighting up as he turns to face her.

“...Are there any in your size?” she asks, giggling at his sudden change in demeanor.

“There damn well better be!” he laughs, though his cheerful expression quickly deadpans, a realization halting his excitement.

“...But I reckon the trip to town and back would be at least thirty minutes. I guess I could go for a gallop…?” he half-says, half-asks.

“Dude. I have wings. Ten minutes there and back, fifteen tops. D’you know your, uh… dimensions?” she questions, tilting her head awkwardly at him. Once again, his face goes blank, his brows slowly furrowing once more.

“I… don’t. Wait. You play with my ding-a-ling all the time. Shouldn’t you know?” he asks.

Cloudjumper nearly chokes.

“Oh my fucking goddesses, Chestnut—you aren’t five. It’s a dick, not a ding-a-ling, you shit.” she snorts, smacking his shoulder with a paw, pressing her nose into his chest… mmh…

He smells so fucking great. If she could just bottle him up and spray that scent around whenever she could… she’d be out of stock before the sun rises in the morning. Snapping herself once again out of her absurdly… impassioned state, she backs up, clears her throat and looks up at him. Be serious! This is serious! No matter how horny-or-not-horny!

“I have a decent description in mind. If I can find the right ones, I’ll bring ‘em back.” she confirms, smiling.

Ugh. Her thighs feel like they’re being torched.

She needs some lovin’.

“Right. Just… one sec?” he says, briskly trotting to the stairs. Watching him disappear behind the walls of the home is admittedly disappointing for the sphinx, but her brain’s complaints are quashed as Chestnut returns less than a minute later with a small sack of bits.

“Here. This should be plenty.”

She admires the heft of the bagged coins in her paw.

His balls are heavier.

Good gods. She’s gonna blow a load before she returns—she’s almost sure of it. Contain yourself, kitty…

“Definitely. I’ll be back shortly, babe..” she whispers to him, giving him a kiss at the base of his throat. She may’ve added a lick and a nibble or two, but… that’s not up for discussion.

In the next dozen seconds, she’s out the door and in the air. Chestnut is left by himself to his own thoughts, prepping for his partner to come back within ten, maybe slightly more minutes. Mentally preparing himself is a bit of a challenge… he’d initially planned to let her run and get them, and maybe fake some emergency ‘thing’ that doesn’t exist because of his own nervousness.

But the more he caught himself inhaling her scent, that wondrous aroma, admiring her body with sight and touch even though it’s been so regular for multiple weeks now… he felt like giving in was natural.

Not even a couple hours ago? He was on the fence about sex.

Now? He… wants it. Badly.

He wants to put the muscles he’s built over the years to use on something other than a plow, other than heavy lifting, other than monotonous work.

She will be his work. She will be tied to him. She, although not very heavy at all, will be subject to his vigorous physical acts.

Vigorous sounds like the right word to him, at least. He has no idea how accurate his presumption is.

It’s hardly been a full minute since she’s left, and he can’t stop thinking about his tongue between her hindlegs, or his teeth gripping her nape. Or how she laps that sharp, barbed tongue across his throat, teases him with her slightly raspy, but alluring voice as he uses her thighs as a means to get off while she strikes his neck with her canines, releasing all over her belly and chest before he’d bitten her back so hard that she’d actually whimpered.

They did that recently. Two nights ago, recently. The imagery in his head makes him feel like he has photographic memory, remembering it so vividly that he could probably get off to it alone before she’s back from the store.

But he won’t be doing that, no, definitely not. He’ll be saving his ‘getting off’ for a much more suitable place.

Snapping himself back to reality while her aroma isn’t present, he rushes to the wagon after running to his room to gather some rather important things. As quickly as they’re going today, he wants to at least make sure this is something memorable, special, sweet and loving… and he’s surprisingly efficient! His large hooves, typically only good for the farmhand work he so regularly does, is provably dextrous thanks to his interactions with not only Cloudjumper, but things she’s introduced him to as well; such as preening! Yes, that’s not only done with the mouth…

Candles, different types of flowers, a singed lip from trying to light those candles with matches, an incense on the main deck to allow it to slowly and subtly flow into the bedroom of the wagon… he activates the magically-powered crystals, allowing a dim, pinkish light to peek through the semi-transparent curtains of the bedside, thanks to their lighting power. He fluffs the pillows, makes sure the bed is made right, checks over the ventilation doors on the upper walls and ceiling to be sure it’s not too warm… he even goes as far as using another crystal, this one blue and more ‘arcane-powered’, as the dealer had mentioned, to use one of the five records that was included with the wagon.

It’s a low-tempo, bassy and subtle tune. No lyrics, no sudden uprise in beat, just a calm backdrop for whatever carnal acts they’re to perform upon each other.

Upon completing his tasks, he realizes it’s only been an additional four minutes. He’s rushing, and quite heavily.

She’s probably only just found the isle she’s looking for, and he’s breaking a sweat in the wagon he’d purchased barely yesterday.

Still, he double-checks. Is there water? Yes, yes there is. To his surprise, there’s wine as well—just how much came with this wagon? There are even wine glasses, an ice cooler, a fridge, heated and cooled mattress—there’s air conditioning?! That’s really rare!

No wonder this thing was so damn expensive, even after bartering with the owner of that dealership.

Besides the point! Prep-time, big guy! You only have five more minutes, seven if you’re lucky! That damn cat is a fast flier!

He’s scrambling to make sure everything is right. No wrinkles in the bed, no funny smells coming anywhere from within or outside of the wagon, testing the bed to ensure it can endure whatever it’s hit with, making sure the water is cold, but not too cold, wafting out some of the incense in case it becomes too powerful, being sure the wicks are stable on the candles—literally everything. Never has Chestnut been so anal about completing such mundane tasks, but never has Chestnut ever had the experience of loving up to, well, a lover.

By the time he’s sure everything is good-and-well, he looks at the clock sitting on the nightstand beside the bed.

It’s been eleven minutes, total. She’ll be back within… what, four or five minutes? Probably a good time to…

Get a fan going.

Fuck. He races toward the front of the wagon, practically ripping open a drawer that contains different fans for different places—he grabs two, rushing back to the bedroom to place each on their corners, places their crystals in their compartments, and places the bi-crystals in the crystal compartments fitting for them on the big crystals—fuck, it’s confusing in his head, but it is complete! There shall be airflow! There shall be comfort in all forms!

He’s panting, sweating, eyes skeptically scanning every corner of the room. Another two minutes used up, she’s still not back… but everything looks good. Everything is adorned with what’s proper, and he feels satisfied!

Sitting on his rump for a moment to relax, he wipes his brow with the back of a foreleg, allowing himself a full breath since he’d started.

“You okay?”

Two words? Oh geez, how terrifying!

“Yes!” he yelps, head snapping to look at the newly-arrived Cloudjumper. She’s back a full minute earlier than expected!

She recognizes his stress immediately, settling the bag she’d brought back on the counter in the bedroom he’s trying to wind down and cool off in. She can see all the fancy stuff he’d put up… the fans, the readied glasses of water beyond the glass-door of the fridge, the flowers in the bed, the candle, the incense… it’s painfully sweet of him.

Cloudjumper admires his work for a few moments, taking in everything. This has never been done for her. Honestly, she’d expected nothing less of Chestnut—and this was done in less than fifteen minutes on a whim. Upon arrival, she was most certainly ready to get her mouth and cunt abused, but… as she takes more and more in, from the distressed lover stressfully sitting on his ass to the stuff he’s put together for the both of them, well…

Her heart swells, and her eyes feel more moist than usual. Her lips purse forcefully, quivering slightly as she looks around the room… it’s not perfect, no, not at all. It’s rushed, anxiously put-together, there’s even water all over the counter that he may not have realized he even spilled—but none of that matters to her. She’s never received this kind of treatment to any capacity, ever, in her lifetime.

And here he is, staring at her, gauging her body language, her facial expressions, even the way her nose is twitching as she takes in what he’s done in such a short frame of time. He’s on the verge of freaking out, though he’s done nothing wrong… no, really. For her?

He’s done everything perfectly.

“I love you.” she squeaks, voice trembling noticeably. Chestnut’s eyes snap to her mouth, her eyes, then her face in full.

“I… I love ya too.” he responds, obviously sounding a bit breathless.

“You know… I’d uh. W-wanted to screw your brains out twenty minutes ago..” she eeks out with a sniffle, rubbing her nose as she looks around.

“I… caught on, yeah..” he nervously laughs back, closing his mouth, swallowing thickly. His eyes remain on her expressions, which seem to change with each place she looks at.

“I just… I wanna spoil you now. Since the day I intruded here, you’ve been kind to me. I don’t think you realize just how sweet you are. You’re all about your best effort, you know that, right?” Cloudjumper asks, her eyes finally averting from the scenery around her to the stallion she rushed so quickly back to from the store.

“I… try.” he murmurs, biting his lip, clearing his throat. The poor sod’s trying to get over that bridge of anxiety.

“You did a damn good job, hon. Join me on the bed?” she asks, nodding her nose toward the mattress, adorned with sheets, comforters, flowers, and a gentle lighting that fits the mood absurdly well.

Chestnut looks up, the bed seeming larger than it ever did, somehow. He almost feels small.

Sex was an after-thought—what the fuck?—before. But now?

It’s actually happening—he could be engaging in such an activity. He’s too darn worked up to consider his reaction to her being in heat.

“Y-yup, right with ya.” he huffs, graduating his sitting position to a stand, plodding onto the berth alongside her.

“Surprisingly soft! Springy, too.” she shares with a laugh, trying to ease her tense stallion. It seems to help some, but not to any significant degree.

“Mhm, that’s… that was a sellin’ point for me. No point in buyin’ it if it had a crap bed..”

She tilts her head, her smile still vastly apparent, eyes traveling up and down his form to collect information.

He seems to be having some sort of anxious attack. He did this before, when they’d graduated ‘bases’, so-to-speak; cuddling, kissing, adventuring each other’s bodies, mutual masturbation, oral, and what lies beyond that isn’t intercrural sex.

“Hey, big guy?” she asks, wriggling closer to him. She wraps her forelegs around his neck, her claws peeking out just enough to strike at any moment.

“Try and relax. You’re alright. We can go at your pace, hon. Slow, steady, rough, hard… I’m yours, okay? Do what you wanna do, and don’t be scared to ask me questions. Sound good?” she asks, looking into those icy-blue irises of his. So… captivating, cold because of their color even. But kind, warm at the same time.

He silently nods, looking right back at her. He seems to get the memo, and that’s what she’d needed to continue.

Her claws gently prick against his skin, Chestnut’s body tensing as she gently scratches his skin from the base of his neck to the small of his back with her claws, watching his look of worry and nervousness fade into something calmer; enjoyment, pleasure, easing into relaxation.

“Atta boy. Better?” she asks. He nods, and she kisses his chin—which seems to help him ease up even more.

“S-sorry I’m so nervous. I… want you to enjoy it too, and… and ya voiced yer concerns earlier, about me possibly hurtin’ ya and—”

“Hey, hey, hey… It’ll be a hurdle, I can’t lie. But I’ll be fine, okay? If at any point I feel it’s too much, I promise you, I’ll let you know. Trust me?” she asks, a paw leaving his back to reside on his cheek. She can tell he’s biting the inside of the same cheek her paw is resting on, she can feel it.

“Okay. I trust ya.” he whispers back, earning a smile from his soon-coming mate in front of him.

“Good. D’you wanna kiss?” she asks. He nods.

Perfect.

She leans upward, pressing her lips to his as her other paw continues teasing at his paw, slowly and carefully raking against his skin with her claws up and toward his shoulders. As if it were some sort of medicinal treatment, he relaxes further and digs into the kissing, subtly firing up a playful competition of smooching, something she doesn’t plan on losing this time around.

Nor does he.

But as she advances more, she finds herself being overtaken. His kisses go from gentle to intense rather quickly, like he’s pushing aside his reservations to adapt himself into the moment faster. His sweet kisses turn into heated swathes of his tongue across hers, his hooves finally coming up and around her to pull her closer, the hot puffs through his nostrils tickling her cheeks while his forelegs lock her body to his.

Her hindlegs play into the action as well, wrapping around his hips, pulling every part of him closer that she can muster. His sheath is already bulging; she can feel it against the top of her sex, pulsing, warm and thick. It’s soft and slightly fuzzy, despite it being swollen by his swelling length. It’s ironic, somewhat.

His hips roll, passing a gentle shock up Cloudjumper’s nerves. His length spills out more, right as her already-moistened lips start swelling once more, greeting his length with a vibrant warmth he’s only ever felt from her mouth before. He’s definitely not in yet, no, not even close… but his protruding mass is pressing against her from its underside, that’s certain.

“Chestnut?” she calls out as she pulls from the kiss.

“Yeah?” he asks back.

Cloudjumper pulls herself up, muzzle beside her partner’s ear.

“I want you inside me...” she breathily mewls into his ear, that ear flicking in response. A part of her expects him to be even more nervous by this, but to her surprise?

He nips sharply at the place between her shoulder and throat, something between a yelp and a squeal emitting from the cat.

“Soon. Do you need any warmi—”

“No—!… uh, do you?” she halts him, but then asks. The stupendously warm, throbbing thing between speaking the obvious. It’s obvious he doesn’t need any preparation.

“I don’t..” he almost silently responds, rolling his hips, the both of them softly groaning to each other. Her eyes flick downward to the mass of flesh that’s since protruded from his sheath, fur bristling, breath shuddering.

“That’s good… you wanna continue?” she asks, her nerves tensing at the idea that he might not want to. He’s been somewhat awkward about it, after all…

“Fer some time, yeah. I, uh..” he says, looking down, just past her chest and belly to the scene between their lower halves. He seems stuck between a rock and a hard place.

“Don’t know where to start?” she asks, almost immediately being given a receptive nod from the giant atop her.

“I… do, but also don’t..” he admits, shuffling his hindquarters. Uh oh, that anxiousness of his is returning quickly. Reel him in, CJ!

“First time’s always a little awkward, big boy. D’you mind being the one on the bottom?”

He shrugs. It… really doesn’t make a difference to him, top or bottom.

“Naw, I’m fine with whatever yer more cozy with.”

She’s relieved with that, really. He would destroy her by himself. Taking the role of topping, she swiftly rolls the both of them over so that her body has the height rather than his. Her paws rest on either side of his fluffy, barreled chest as her butt comes to rest on his hips. Her claws peek out to ‘grab’ hold of the sheets beneath them, already starting to tear into them before they’ve even started. She’s soaked, dribbling messily all over the lower half of his crotch…

It could be argued that the feline is, indeed, aroused. Who would’ve guessed?

“This okay?” she asks, a smirk creeping onto her face as she rolls her hips, Chestnut’s reaction immediately showing pleasure. He was excited before, but his arousal seems to be accelerating… she plans to capitalize on that.

“M-more than great—”

Knock knock knock!

Chestnut and Cloudjumper look at each other, confused and startled. What?

“Chestnut, honey?” a voice calls from outside. Cloudjumper seems to shrink a hair, eyes widening in realization; it’s Lavender? Chestnut’s mother… she’s never come seeking them before, not like this… hell, not at all.

“Yeah?” Chestnut calls out, and to Cloudjumper’s surprise? He looks a little annoyed. It’s a face she hasn’t seen from him before, not since he’d assaulted Cedar.

“Could you be a dear and help your father and I with this cart we brought in from town? It’s a bunch of building material, and we need to get it unpacked tonight before the rain comes early tomorrow morning and—”

“Yeah, sure!” he huffs, rubbing a forehoof against his forehead. He looks between himself and Cloudjumper, his face far redder than it was just a minute ago. Is… is he angry?

He looks angry, or maybe frustrated. Is he overreacting? Well, that’s hard to say… but it’s as likely as it is unlikely, given that expression.

“It’s okay, babe..” CJ offers, even though she’s a little frustrated as well. He’s been the sole farmhand for years here, so it’s only natural that the hard bulk work would be assumed to him; he’s the bulk worker, after all, or at least until he’s off from the farm.

He takes a deep breath, exhales slowly… and his expression returns to one that CJ’s more familiar with. Calm, soothing, kind. She understands his frustration, wanting some privacy with her, having it interrupted. That’s gotta be a little infuriating, for more reasons than a few.

“First time it wasn’t me causin’ delays.” he quietly jokes, chuckling to himself. She gets herself off of him, staring between his hindlegs for a moment before he rolls off the bed. She nearly whimpers as she watches him walk to the door, sheathing that amazing dick all the while, and… out the door he goes.

She’s dribbling on the floor. Dripping… no, she’s like a damn sieve. She’s fucking horny.

Her lover, partner and relief just walked out the door in frustration, which only leads to her being just as if not more frustrated. She grumbles to herself for a moment, that discomfort growing for barely ten seconds before she finds herself bursting out of the door of the cabin, kicking the door shut before she’s following Lavender and Chestnut.

“The barn!” she exclaims, almost yelps. Naturally, both mother and son turn to look at her, confused at her sudden appearance. A notable dribble is still languidly dripping from between her hindlegs, something Lavender’s eyes catch.

“The barn?” she asks, Cloudjumper nodding hastily.

“Yeah—maybe park it in there for now? There’s plenty of… of room, and uh, it’d do the trick for now, right? No rush?” she asks, her voice almost sounding like she’s pleading. This definitely isn’t something she’d typically do, but for now it’ll have to work.

She wants, no—needs the stallion that’s standing beside the mare she’s talking to.

Lavender, thankfully the most understanding one on this farm, has her answer ready before CJ gets a chance to form some excuse. CJ’s idea isn’t a bad one, even if it means waiting for the rain to pass to work in the humidity following.

Plus, the poor cat’s practically shivering. She needs some love. While Lavender isn’t essentially fond of the idea of her son losing his remaining innocence with this feline, she’s not going to stop him from making his own adult decision at her side, either. She did encourage him to date in his later years of school, after all. It’d be unfair to strip away the fun now.

“Sure. Red and I can put it in the barn for now.” she says with a smile, Cloudjumper’s heart jumping at the response Chestnut’s mother has to give.

Fuck yeah! Cool mom!

“Cool—sorry, I don’t mean to cause delay, I—”

“I understand. No explanations! That okay, sweetheart?” Lavender interrupts, passing a sly wink to the cat that’s clearly in need of attention.

“Mhm!”

Chestnut looks at the both of them, confused and still agitated. Is he going or staying? Does he have any decision in this?

He hardly has a chance to question what’s going on before he’s being whisked away by CJ. Her foreleg around his, tugging him back toward the wagon while his mother trots off to the house…

And while Chestnut and CJ are re-entering that wagon, Lavender briskly enters the home, kissing her husband as soon as she finds him in the kitchen…

“Red?” she asks, before he gets the chance to question her disposition.

“Yep?”

“Don’t go out into Chestnut’s wagon, okay?” she asks as she nuzzles against his chest.

“What?” he asks, confused. Concern seems to be building on the earth stallion’s face. She kisses the base of his neck…

“Stay in here. With me. Preferably in our room.” she whispers, looking up at him with a sultry smile, leaning against him. Much like his son, he’s not the sharpest tool in the shed, but he does catch on.

“...Oh. Ohhh. Well, good fer him..” he quietly responds, leaning down to kiss at his wife’s neck, nipping between her shoulder and throat. Lav croons quietly, nipping back, but she holds her bite as she starts attempting to drag him a few rooms over.

“Reminds me that we haven’t had our fun in at least three days. They’re having their fun, and I want some with you, big fella..”

Redwood smiles. That sounds like a good time! He follows her to their room, kicking the door closed and locking it behind them…

Cloudjumper looks down at Chestnut, now back in the wagon, her rear seated on his hips once more. He’s quickly spilling out of his sheath all over again as CJ smears his sheath with her arousal, her bites along his neck bruising his skin.

“Wh—ah, easy!” he yelps, but his protests fall under deaf ears. She continues her biting, a paw finding his balls to give them a gentle, but still eager squeeze. She lets his words resonate in her mind for a moment, before she slows down, taking a deep breath.

It’s his first time. Take it easy on him.

“Sorry, big guy. Heat’s screwing with me—I feel like I could ride you for at least three days right now, seriously. I want some fun, and… and I want you to have fun, too.”

Chestnut’s brow lifts. He’s not really surprised with the information, he knew she was in heat, but… three days??

“I… don’t think I could last that long.” he voices aloud.

“I couldn’t either. It's a purposeful exaggeration.”

Ah.

“So… sex?” he asks. She nods.

“Yeah. If that’s okay?” she queries, being sure he’s cozy.

He nods.

“Yeah. I’m cool with sex.” he says, doubly-affirmative.

Cool. Totally not a corny interaction! Better safe than sorry as well!

They stare at each other for a few moments, the awkwardness climbing as they figure out how exactly to start. Chestnut swallows thickly, and Cloudjumper looks down between them, admiring the difference in size, the way his girth spreads her labia, her nose taking in his scent, the way his breathing is getting slightly quicker over time.

“...D’you want me to start?” he asks, seeming to grow a little nervous. He hasn’t the slightest why she’s sitting still.

“N-no no, I’m… admiring.” she mutters, but she doesn’t get a moment after that—it would seem that the stallion beneath her wasn’t so fond of being the one on bottom, at least for now.

He’s flipped the both of them completely, practically racing to find a place that’s better than staring at each other. His head’s lowered, chest at her hocks while his muzzle is between her hindlegs, already starting to nuzzle at her thighs. Well, this day is a flurry of surprises!

“I really don’t need warming up..” she mumbles as his tongue teases just beside her sex. A near-silent cry leaves the sphinx as Chestnut nips her inner thigh, as if he were giving her some gentle punishment.

“But ah like doin’ this.. It’s fun. Plus, you said it’s better to warm up before, y’know, gettin’ into the dirtiest deed.”

Well played, Chestnut. She can’t deny, she thought he may’ve lost him at explanation, but he was paying attention! She wraps her hindlegs around his back, succumbing herself to the inevitable ministration of the farmhand’s mouth doing its dutiful work to her nether region, her paw coming down to tousle his hair before tracing a claw around the back of his ear.

“I’m all yours.” she says with a smile; it’s a shame that she has to keep reminding herself that it’s his first time. She does her best to cement that in her head, pushing her desires to the side to let him be at his coziest, even if she suffers a little.

It’s hardly suffering, after all. There are loads of guys that wouldn’t do what he’s completely happy to! Equine culture is an odd thing. It’s pretty clear that country folk have a different idea of how to enjoy their bedroom lives out here.

“I know.” he says.

Two words is all it takes to send a nice little wave of pleasure down her spine. He knows she’s all his? The confirmation is… mmhh, yes. Wonderful.

A lap of his tongue across her opening silences further thought, and she allows any mental restraints to be fully dropped. His forelegs wrap around her hips, his lips clasping around her sex, his ears splayed back to protect his hearing from her incoming cries as he starts his oral performance. He’s gotten so damned good at this, and the moment she starts arching her hips, he forces her lower half back down onto the bed, keeping her in place—perfect.

A hum adds onto the sensation, leading her to know she’s in for a great ride. She closes her eyes, bringing her spare paw up to muffle her noises as Chestnut’s tongue prods into her, immediately going for the sensitive spots he’s found thus far—the prodding of her g-spot causes her to tense, thighs squeezing his head, a mewl into her paw…

Warmup? Yes please. He’s good at it now!

Plus, she’ll need it.

That tongue is hilariously small in comparison of what’s to come.