It wasn’t even an especially good orgasm, really, but Sunburst was quite pleased with the accomplishment. His body shuddered as he felt his groin tense, the feeling deep inside him radiating out, his cock twitching as cum oozed out onto the floor. He had taken the whole dildo.

This is nothing special necessarily. He had gotten close the very first time he had tried. The second time he succeeded but didn’t get off from only the dildo. This time he did. It was more a symbolic victory for him: the first time he had gotten a hooves free orgasm from 8 inches of silicone dick.

He didn’t know why he woke up this morning with an itch that only a stallion could scratch, but he was glad it didn’t take too long. He still had plenty of time to get ready for Shining Armor’s birthday party. He would see Twilight for the first time in a long time. He would see Starlight, of course; she would even stay into Sunday so the two of them could go…Sunburst still hadn’t thought that far into it. He would see Shining.

Oh! He still needed to wrap Shining’s present. Building up resolve, he twisted his lower back and wiggled his butt side to side, feeling the sinking, kind of slimy feeling of inch after inch sliding out of him, finally ending with a light…

***

POP!

The champagne fizzed and the partygoers all cheered. It was an extravagant affair, Sunburst noted. He forgot that Shining was a prince sometimes. Almost a hundred attendees, all dressed to the nines in the most contemporary fashions from around the Crystal Empire and Equestria. It was an interesting intersection: the Crystal Empire nobles all wore modern revivals of ancient styles, something out of a history textbook; meanwhile the Canterlot nobility donned its ever antiquated tailcoats and frills. The normal atendees, not bound by some noble tradition, dressed plainly with the modern trends, dark colored suits and evening gowns.

Sunburst was in the third camp. He had a dark blue suit on, one that felt a bit tight around his stomach, but he was assured by Twilight that it “brought out the best of his figure.” She ordered the suit for him from Sassy Saddles a few months ago, so he would never complain about it to her now. Something about looking a gift horse in the mouth.

Twilight’s friends were all sitting at their own table, seemingly reconvening with friends they had made in Canterlot. He made a mental note to try to say hello to them later. Parties were a lot for him though, so he promised to not hold himself to it if things felt like too much.

The main table had Shining at the head, of course, dressed in a red and gold tailcoat with a little laurel atop his head, a Crystal Empire tradition for royal birthdays, and flanking him at either side were Princess Twilight and Princess Cadance. Apart from them were esteemed guests, Luna and Celestia, some Canterlot high nobles like Blueblood, some Crystal high nobles. It seemed like a stuffy table. Not unbearable, however, as Sunburst noticed Celestia repeatedly stealing pastries from the platter in the center using magic when she thought no one was looking.

Starlight still wasn’t here. Apparently the map had called her away at the last moment. While sad, of course, awkward was the main theme of the night. Sunburst didn’t really know any of the ponies he sat with. As head researcher he was the only one in his staff to get an invite, so he was seated with other heads of royal staff like the chief armorer and the head cook. Everypony was friendly, but Sunburst preferred to focus on his food when social situations were this hectic.

Focus on his food he did. Most of the evening drifted away into not one, not two, not three, not four, but five and counting glasses of wine. An appetizer, a serving of cheeses and bread, a main course, and a dessert all raced by as he felt that sinking, pathetic feeling in his gut again. Such a wide, ornate hall packed with so very many voices talking at once, no easy access to anypony he knew, and the one pony he was waiting to talk to not being here, tonight was fun.

With another sip of wine he looked over to the main table. Shining was talking to Twilight, the two of them forcing smiles. Twilight apparated a newspaper for a moment, rolled it up, and bapped Shining on the nose with it. Sunburst found himself chuckling. Cadance leaned in too and Sunburst transfixed himself on them, following along without hearing anything they were saying.

It was a fruitless effort, of course. They were keeping all of their body language subdued; the three of them all well used to acting regal and reserved in public. Sunburst couldn’t read lips either. However, even without being able to glean any of the actual content of the conversation he was still enthralled. Like an outsider looking in, he simply marveled at the ease and power of those ponies, the way they so casually talked with each other and those around them.

Shining had at least organized the light blue stubble on his chin, but had gotten away with not shaving it entirely. Sunburst wondered why he decided to try and grow facial hair.

Oh.

He wasn’t a complete idiot. He knew that Shining seemed to like him. What do you do with that though? He could only really ignore it. Shining had quite a lot of emotional pull on Sunburst’s life right now as his chief male friend, so much so that it felt like a situation that was too hot to touch. Shining wanted to hold him, and kiss him, and rut him, and that was something Sunburst found himself excited by. He had never felt all that attractive before, and the flattery was pretty appealing. Shining was his friend though. He really didn’t want to lose that.

He swam through the room, out of his chair before he had even realized it. Another glass, maybe two, maybe three, he slid between the crowds, bouncing pony to pony while smiling. He felt like his eyes would leak from his teeth, the sheer number of sights and sounds that shoved their way into his head. He talked. He heard himself talking. Magic and artifacts.

Twilight.

He was talking with Twilight.

Some words crept through the haze, words that felt more real than any other part of the conversation: “…marefriend or coltfriend?”

She was gone already. His answer was sputtering and chirping, he thought. He thought. He was thinking about his life. He was on a balcony.

The cold air pulled him free, whipping his mane to the side and making his ears sting. Inside and around the corner he could hear the sounds of the party ending. It was over. He was thinking.

Starlight wasn’t there. Meanwhile—

“I’m out here!” Shining shouted in from the doorway. Sunburst almost jumped over the rail in fright. He looked pale, his wide, pupils like needle points.

“Woah, buddy, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Shining paused, the wind lashed around them. “Are you okay?”

What a question. The answer was no, Sunburst knew. He was drunk and scared, not just because of Shining, but because of the whole evening. He was scared that he would be lonely. He wanted to tell his friend the awful night he had had. He wanted to cry about being stood up. He wanted Shining to carry him home to his bed again. Sunburst gulped. He was scared of heights.

“Yeah I’m fine. How was the party?” He moved to the side to let his friend step forward.

“I would say ‘you were there,’ but from your breath I can tell you weren’t. Still aren’t.” Shining was grinning.

If Sunburst’s face wasn’t already deep red from the wine and the cold he may have been worried about blushing.

“You’re blushing,” Shining commented with a smirk.

He couldn’t really blush any more so no harm no foul.

“Never took you for a drinker.” Shining looked over the city as he spoke. It was a beautiful view, but one that Sunburst couldn’t process in his current state. Nonetheless he stared out into the open air. The stars seemed to so thoroughly outnumber the lights on the ground, the candles and windows and street lamps, that it made Sunburst nervous. He looked at the moon, trying to soak it into his eyes.

“I was just passing the time,” he responded. He would get the moon in his eyes, he just knew it. He needed to stare hard enough. He could pull the moon into his eyes and give it to Shining. A gift.

“Not much for parties?”

Sunburst was fidgeting in his coat while Shining watched. He had utterly ignored the question; it was a silly question. Clearly not. Shining giggled. Sunburst felt a climbing fear, something closer to a rage or a panic, at how alluring the simple, guttural laugh was. It was a pony. It was his friend. In this moment Sunburst was not alone, alone in his cottage. He wanted Shining with him.

The gift wasn’t in his coat. It was magic. He remembered, blushing (but not visibly) at his own foolishness, and poofed the present between them. Shining just stared at it on the ground, his laughter slowing.

“Aw, thanks, man.”

“Open it.” Sunburst was falling, and he knew where he wanted to land. The stars and the sky were swirling around him. The universe was spinning and he was it’s axis. He had the moon in his eyes.

It was a careful, shocked, deliberated movement, Shining opening the box. He recognized exactly what it was immediately, Sunburst could tell, the white noise in his head overpowering this quiet, tender moment. Sunburst told himself he was sure he could feel Shining’s heart skip a beat.

A cloak. Dark blue, lighter blue trim, stars, it was Sunburst’s cloak. Shining was utterly paralyzed. Sunburst took the initiative, fully willing to push Shining around in this state. He took the cloak and, wafting his aura up and over Shining, lightly laid it on his back. It sank down over his evening clothes. Shining kept staring at the box the cloak came from, but his own aura took hold around the neck, gently holding it closed.

The wind slapped against the two of them so hard that it felt like a warning, like a mother slapping a foal’s hooves away from stealing icing off of a cake.

The lights had started to go out below.

Sunburst was falling. Not yet. He was passing out. Not yet. Shining was staring at him. He was looking into his eyes. He had the moon in his eyes for Shining, and he wanted to give it to him. Looking at Shining, little goatee on his chin, cloak on, Sunburst wasn’t alone. He wasn’t alone and he wasn’t scared, not anymore. He needed to get closer so he could give Shining the moon.

It was explosive and intentional, sloppy and passionate. It took so long to get to him. Sunburst fell into Shining, bracing his hoof on his friend. He didn’t pay attention to Shining as a whole, to the surprise in his eyes, he only saw his lips. He only felt them against his. It was a short kiss, his first kiss. He may have been scared of heights, but at least right in this moment he wasn’t scared of falling.

He slumped into Shining once and for all, falling asleep.

Author's Note

Idk I feel like this was an important chapter but I can’t tell.

Hang in there, party ponies, I wanna try to finish this story up for New Years. We are rounding the final bend if you couldn’t tell. I came up with this story at the beginning of this year and I am so deeply grateful for those of you who’ve come to join me along the way. Thank you so much for reading, cya in the next chapter.