Simplified

Years ago, I remember the day when Twilight opted to open up her own school. She at first thought she could establish a place that could model itself after her former mentor, the former high and honorable majesty Princess Celestia. The first batch of students were a pretty exciting bunch. Wouldn't have even guessed that same inaugural class would manage to house six element bearers, much less the bearers each being a different species from one another.

Sandbar never really caught my eye as anything special, he was just a run-of-the-mill earth pony who had that usual Ponyville charm, but he was awfully headstrong and determined. The others were literally a different breed. Yona, a yak from the northern snowblinds of Yakyakistan, she was enthusiastic, strong, powerful, but very emotional and empathetic of others. Gallus, the hotheaded, slick-beaked, wise-crack griffon of the group also happened to be the glue that bonded them all together. Silverstream was the cheerleading hippogriff of the pack, the one who was all for exploring the new things that she didn't have back at home. In a way, she was the driving force of their sense of adventure, but she wasn't the only one. Smolder, a dragon like myself, was the main conspirator who tied both Gallus and Silverstream into the fold of things. But there was always the one who they used as their get-out-of-class-free card, an adaptable mind and a hell of a deviant for forging signatures, faces, and voices.

Enter Ocellus, the high changeling of noble blood.

Years ago, there were a number of offspring Queen Chrysalis had that were considered as candidates for succession of the throne, that is if Chrysalis ever planned on abdicating her crown. Spoiler alert: She never did. So when the changelings got tired of being sent to do skirmishes against Equestria, and losing an unspeakable amount of changelings within the hour because of their run-ins with the new humans on the block, they soon found frustration with her methods. A species who thrived on the love of others were never taught to offer that same love to one another, but to ruthlessly take from everyone and everything else at all times, they starved often.

The first born of her bloodline was killed in the Everfree Forest. The second was brutally eliminated in a skirmish outside of Ponyville, the same skirmish that boosted the reputation of our residential human and his fellow kind. Then there was the third, fourth, and fifth born. The third born was exiled for his wanting to do things differently, and he eventually came back to redeem the changelings from being blood-thirsty, love-ingesting parasites, to a functioning clan of fairy equines. Thorax ascended to the throne after defeating Chrysalis for the title. Ocellus transformed along with the many from the hive, and Pharynx, the fourth born, soon changed after.

While Ocellus never had any interest in being royalty, she was always the one who got into all sorts of trouble, and even helped threaten the changeling kingdom with war with her shenanigans. While outwardly shy to many who she didn't know initially, she became a little more outgoing as time went on.

...Perhaps too outgoing.

"Hi there, mate." She says with a giggle, never minding the seemingly dangerous position she's in.

I pull my claws from out of the rocks and soften my approach. "H-how in Equestria did you get here? These are the dragon lands, they aren't safe for you."

The changeling rolls her eyes. "Dragon-shmagon, changelings have been known to infiltrate all walks of life, big or small. And dragons are no exception."

"Haven't you got a class to teach or something?" I question her, citing her employment at Twilight's School of Friendship.

"Spike, it's Saturday night. I don't have anything to do until tomorrow evening." She shrugs.

"Why, is that when you start grading your papers?"

She's quick to answer me. "Oh no, that's when I start getting my lesson plan together for the week. I do all my grading when I'm at the school in the afternoon. I spent most of today trailing you."

Curious development. "Why?"

She gives me a little smile and sits herself down. "Well a little fly on the wall told me that you were gonna get shipped off to here. It also helps that I was that same fly."

I forgot how messy she can be at times. If and whenever there's a moment some juicy details are bound to be shared, she's there in whatever shape or form to be able to hear what's going on, especially with her circle of friends. "So I guess you're here to make fun of me?"

"Nah. If anything, I'm just here to keep an eye on you."

"Enlighten me, how are you going to do that for a whole month when you have a whole ass class to teach?" She snickers after my question, displaying her morphed sense of humor. "Oh great, I forgot you're such a perv these days."

"Paid time off."

"How do you have that many days?" I question her in disbelief.

"I don't, but I do have more than enough days to stick around for a little while."

"For what reason?"

She tilts her head and places a hoof on my chest. "What, I can't do a friend a favor?"

My heart starts to beat a little faster as I find her looking at me with an intent that's far from innocent and wholesome. "Wait, what kind of favor?"

She scoots closer, wrapping her forelegs around the back of my neck while she whispers. "You know what kind, TiltedScales42."

"How did you know my profile name?" I ask in shock, trying to pull back.

Instead, I end up causing her to dangle off of my chest like she's a pony-sized chain. "Well, let's just say I did some perusing on your profile." She runs a trace of her magic on my chest. "You take a bunch of black-and-white pictures of your chest, but the scale pattern and creasing don't lie. Plus one pic had the bottom of your chin. Since I know you, I figured that you wouldn't show any face pics unless somebody asked you in a dm. I know you messaged me a week ago, but I was in the shower when you did. By the time I got back, you were offline. It took a little snooping to see what happened, and I found out what."

See what I mean, she's another level of deviant. "You went from the most pure and naïve changeling, accidentally nearly causing wars and playing hero, to being one of the most dangerous and perverted. What happened to you?"

She summons her own phone, a black Neighsay T420 touchscreen smartphone, one of the three models natively made here in Equestria as opposed to being imported from the human world. It's also complete with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capability. "Ah, the dangers of being engrossed in too much human media and technology. Their world's a mess right now." And of course, the Wi-Fi routers near the portals to the human world have human world connections. And given the school is seated right by one, it's pretty often that she has connection to human social media.

I mean I did too, but I didn't really care for their world that much to dig into it often. I just keep updated enough to hold a conversation whenever I see the residential human family in Ponyville. Meantime, I don't remember getting in contact with her. "So wait, you said I messaged you. What's your username?"

"BabyGirl339." She answers with a smirk.

I'm temporarily confused because I don't remember all too well who else I chatted with before my phone was taken, especially since Twilight became the highlight of that event... if you could call it that. "Uh..."

She pulls up her dating profile on Snuggle, the dating app that caused me and Twilight to run into each other. The first thing I see is a picture of her in a number of costumes, from that of perky cheerleader, to a stern teacher ready to deal out some overdue punishment, to a royal guard looking to keep you locked up in her dungeon, to even posing as a sultry slave stymied by steel shackles. "You didn't jump on my profile at all, did you? I do some cosplay on here to keep things interesting. I'm surprised you haven't seen any of it. It's all over my page."

I'll admit, the things I'm seeing scrolling down her media posts, I can't help but to let my imagination run for a bit, that is before I snap back and try to explain myself. "I didn't get a chance to find out. Twilight took my phone. Had I known you were doing all of this sooner..." I stop myself short of completing that thought.

"If you had known sooner?" She asks, leaning in and tilting her head. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." I try to turn away from her, but I feel a force keeping me from moving.

The nosy changeling takes it upon herself to get a closer look at me as her magic seals my feet to the ground. She's careful as to where to place her hoof, but her intent is as clear as day. "For a dragon who's not sure of what he means to say, your body sure is speaking for itself."

In all honesty, I am growing both nervous and excited, mainly nervous because I've never been in this situation before. I'm trying my best to cover my pelvic scales, but the changeling's touch is growing more enticing with every waning second. I try to diffuse the tension by swapping to a different topic. "Wait, you said you wanted to do me a favor. So what are you trying to do?"

"You said you needed a mate, right?"

...WAIT, SERIOUSLY!? I thought she was just teasing me, but she's actually for real! My mouth dries as rapidly as I feel myself growing into the palm of my claws. "You? But you're a changeling."

She scoffs, snatching one of my claws and tossing it aside to reveal her prize. "And? I can turn into a dragon."

Once more, I try to tilt myself away out of embarrassment, but her hoof soon finds me before I can conceal my loins. Instantly, I'm brought to a purr by her touch. I'm growing more anxious, still nervous but incredibly anxious. "But won't I hurt you if I'm too rough?"

"Spike, I can turn into lamps, rocks, walls, and weapons. Our skin is made to harden at will. I can be as rough as coarse iron..." She gives me caressing stroke, I wince from the jolt of enjoyment. "But I take it you prefer me being as soft as I am now."

Greed is slowly taking over my mind, replacing the restraint I once had. I want only one thing at this point, but I wanted to know if I was really dreaming this or if I'm really about to break dams with a changeling girl. "So you're saying that I can... do you?" ...I'm not used to talking dirty in person, as you can tell. I'm usually so formal, so dignified that I don't ever really get a chance to talk sexy.

She sighs and pushes off of me giggling. "Why do you have to make it sound so awkward?" She uses her magic this time to part my claws from hiding what I have. "Yes, Spike. I'll be sure to get you right before you go to sleep tonight."

My excitement overwhelms me and I don't even care about hiding so much anymore. I can already drum up one request I have in mind. "So you'll transform into anyone?"

"Dragons first." She says with a smirk, already beating me to the punch. "Can't let you get too rough with me in the state you're in."

As if I'm going to complain at this point. I'm a thirsty dragon looking at a well spring full of water, I'm taking what I can get out of it. "Ember?"

She motions her forelegs into an x shape. "I'd much rather not. Impersonating a ruler is still a big no-no. But I know who I can start you off with."

Her eyes briefly glow with a flame before her entire body is consumed by a similar flash from earlier. Before I could completely process it, I was suddenly looking at Smolder.

Figures she would turn into the one dragon who got me into this mess. "Oh, wow."

"Down to the last scaly detail. I see her everyday, so this one is pretty easy to pull off." She speaks in Smolder's voice, even rolling her wrist in careless fashion like she does in the middle of casual conversation. Everything about her is truly Smolder in every way.

But still, I can't help but to listen to a quiet part of me that would wonder if Smolder would be okay with Ocellus transforming into her for my sexual gratification. "I feel pretty weird about this, not that I'm refusing. But I don't know if Smolder would be cool with you doing this."

She creeps up towards me. "Here's a fun fact: She asks me to turn into you before I help her with her dragon issues."

My guard is dropped harder than my jaw to the floor. "Wait, seriously!?"

"Oh yeah, Spike. I'm surprise you never even noticed, but I guess you're too busy having rocks for brains to even care. My eyes were locked on you for a while." Aside from the sudden confession, she's doing a pitch-perfect replication of Smolder.

"I always thought she saw me like a platonic friend, or a little brother or something." I mumble to myself.

"Nope. Hard-stuck on you and you don't even know it... until now cause I just told you."

She turns around, lifts her tail and places her claws between a set of scales between her legs. She parts them slightly, giving me a more intimate glimpse of what the dragon looks like. "Holy fuck." My own claws start reaching for my own self and I prime myself at the sight.

"So how about it, rocks-for-brains?" She teases.

"C-can I?" I stammer as I get closer, more giddy than ever. I kneel down and start letting my claws feel the moistness of her folds.

It's different than what I expected. For such a hot-headed dragoness, she sure is cool to the touch. I take my time to get to know what it feels like to finally be inside of the opposite sex. It's invites me to go further, but it's also so constricting that I can barely fit a claw in.

However, my attention to the foreign sensations aren't without some call of complaint. "You're new to this, aren't you?" I know she's in character, but I felt that Ocellus was really the one asking me that question.

"I haven't gotten this far yet, okay!?" I blurt out in a blush.

Ocellus completely drops character, still appearing as Smolder in both voice and appearance, but not in words. "Aw, you should've told me that you needed this sooner, big guy."

I could've, but I was always nervous about it. "I just didn't want to seem like the type to fill in the blanks with... you know, something that ain't the person." Though to be honest, I didn't have many second thoughts of the possibility that she could turn into Rarity. If she did it right here and now, of course I'd turn feral and take it. But Smolder, I feel like she would probably deck me in the snout if she found out.

"Spike, do you know how often I turn into something else for the sake of my friends not wanting to break a bond, to walk that thin line between friendship and carnal disarray?" She seems to become all the more determined. "I'm to the point where I know what all my friends feel like, smell like, what all they like, how they speak, act, react, and even how they feel. If you want to, I'll be every bit of Smolder, feeling just like every bit of her. You won't even know the difference." She coils her arms around my neck, looking at me with a sultry glance. "You can even kiss me if you want."

It's not that I'm not attracted to Smolder, I am. But there's still some part of me that's not really sure if I can accept Ocellus taking Smolder's place. Ember and Rarity, not so much because I've accepted the reality of those being longshots. But she and I have been such good friends throughout the years. "I don't know. I just don't feel right." I confess.

She gives me a peck on the nose. "I'm pretty sure she won't mind."

My legs lose their strength as I feel her claws grip me, slowly working underneath me. I back off quickly, trying to not burst so quickly. But as I look down, I realize that I'm already done more than enough damage. A small stream of white oozes from within me. "Sorry." I begin to apologize profusely. "I just didn't─"

She giggles and places her hand back on me, whispering into my neck. "Aw, poor thing. Still pretty pent up, huh?"

More than ashamed that I just unloaded without even feeling it, I try to back off. "I'll just... you know."

But her grip is more than sufficient enough to keep me from drawing away. I begin to pant as I hunch over her shoulder, her claw slowly increasing it's pace as she mewls teasingly. "Spike, don't run from it. Let it go." My claws dig back into her, actively seeking which slit her folds were hidden behind. As soon as I discover it, she gasps in appreciation. "Plus I already made the trip out, might as well make something of it."

She lets me go and drops to her knees. One of her claws start to fill herself as she bats her own face with my still oozing form. From the immediate shock of her ministrations, I issue concern. "Wait, I still haven't─"

But my concerns for personal hygiene were ignored altogether as she succulently swabs her tongue around me before her lips enclose around me. I'm weakened, her head bobbing back and forth as she seems to gulp down the copious amount of seed I spilled against my mind's knowledge.

She's eager to tease me on that front. "Didn't expect you to be that easy to keep quiet."

I could only moan in response, getting lost in the sensation of the claws that gripped me closer. The sight of Smolder devotedly sinking her head upon me while I lose all will to think is hard enough on me as it is. Resisting the urge to palm her cheeks and drive myself into her with complete abandon becomes a taboo in my mind. She releases me to breathe for a moment, and a small stream of my seed land on her snout as she grins to me. She's kissing up against me and pleasing herself all the while.

I've had enough.

I leave restraint back at the front door of the castle, and finally indulge in the moment of carnal debauchery. Finally, I'm no longer 'Spike, the royal friendship ambassador' but the online brute that hides himself behind that mask, the one who takes selfies for the ladies, showing off my wares to those who inquire. I quickly grab her head, guiding her jaw back to where I demand for it to be. I'm brought to a pant as I feel the surge coming. I whisper and mouth words of praise as she accepts my sudden turn for the rougher approach. Her attention to self intensifies and my hips thrust on their own accord, feeling her struggle with each impact.

"Yes... yes!" I know even now she's struggling to keep up, but she's still doing her best to keep with it. However, there was only so much her thirst could handle, and I seemed to be too thick of a beverage to consume, especially in the quantity I so readily issue. I whisper in vain. "I can't... fuck... I can't stop... I can't─" Climax impending, I palm her forehead back to paint her face with what I have. Viscous ropes of cream coat her cheeks, her eyes, her teeth as her maw opens to collect as much as she could take in a single setting, the overflow glazing her neck, her upper back, and much of chest. My upper thighs tense, my shoulders seize as I pump myself empty onto her, and her eyes close to accept what is given.

I unleash a flame-coated scream to the ceiling of the cave, followed by more snarls of smoke and live embers. I fall back to my tail and look at the mess that I've made, but I'm basking in the afterglow of seeing Smolder's likeness marked in me. I still feel an inherent drive to continue, but I'm so worked by that one orgasm that I can't even stand.

While I'm still recovering from the orgasmic shock, Ocellus is eager to show her enthusiasm for the mess I've made. "Wow, there you go! You dragons really do produce a lot when you're in season."

I look back down at myself, finally noticing that I'm still finishing up a bit. I've never in my live blew one that hard. That was amazing. "Oh shit... I should definitely call you more often."

"What are friends for?" She giggles before transforming back to her true form. "But all fun times aside, I should probably start heading back now."

I'm suddenly a lot less willing to see her go. "Hey─"

She plants a hoof into my mouth to stop me. "Now let's be fair about this, Spike. I'm not for the pillow talk, especially in a place where there's hardly no pillows. When your month here is done, you can come and get me whenever you need me. Just try not to send nude pics to Princess Twilight this time."

"That was an accident!" I shout out as she hops up to the air and disappears from out of the cave. I try to follow after her, but she uses a teleportation spell to clear some distance.

All of a sudden, I'm alone again.

I meander back to the cave, take note of the mess that we made, and look back at that moment with some confusion over my own self, but also fondness for the changeling who gave me my first sexual experience. I couldn't believe that moment was what I was probably going to be cranking to for the next week or so, and I bet none of it will feel as good as that.

But in terms of tonight, I'm thoroughly spent.

It's been a week since I've managed to get used to everything that's been going on. Now that I think on it, I never spent more than two days in the dragon lands, for any specific reason. And I still didn't quite how my moments of self-intimacy end up producing way more than my usual output. My cave started to smell odd as a result, I might move elsewhere to try to keep things fresh. Garble told me after one visit that I should do just that, especially with me sitting there marinating in my own musk.

As he was helping me move things over, I asked him what was the deal about all of these changes I was going through. He then informs me that it's just more of the symptoms of dragon lust that's taking place. Everything from frequent masturbation, increased ejaculation volumes, strong after-scents, and drastically increased testosterone levels, all of it points to the affliction I suffer from. And it doesn't go unnoticed either, there have been a few females lurking around the parts where I was, but it seemed that none of them were interested in at least paying the afflicted a visit.

He went on to explain that female dragons are actually strongly attracted to the scent a male makes while he's in season. Because of that, they grow curious and start scoping out not just who's unloading the bait, but also who else is lurking about for competition. But so far, none of them seemed to even make a move on me yet, which I thought was odd.

I sure wouldn't mind the attention of getting my balls drained, I wonder what's the holdup.

Along the route for my new cave, we fly over the nesting area where the eggs were laid. I swoop down to greet the dragon lord, but she's quick to pick me out of the sky with a wave. "Hey, Spike!"

"Hey, Ember!" I hover just above ground as I address her. "Not as many eggs to look after today, huh?"

"Nope. A good group of them hatched yesterday evening." She informed happily before seeing Garble in the distance, waiting for me to get moving. Her smile is wiped away and replaced by an attempt of some stoic impression.

I pay it no mind, she's never really into showing her emotions in front of the other dragons. "Well that's good." I land and pick up an egg, feeling the life wobbling inside of the hard shell. "I guess their lives are only bound to get harder from here."

"We were all there at some point, Spike. There's no need to get too attached." She said as she plucked the egg from my claws and placed it back to the heating pit.

"Wouldn't you be attached if it was one of your eggs?"

She glares at Garble in the distance, who takes the cue and darts off to leave the both of us alone. "It's not for me to stay attached to something like that." She seems upset at the question I asked, but I still grill her a little on the topic.

"Even if it was your own little dragon?"

She grimaces and walks over to a boulder to punch it, cracking it into two halves. "I don't want to be that attached to something like this. It's better to just let things be what they usually are."

"You know, if I knew I had an egg here, I'd be running after the little miscreant until they molt." I announce before thinking a little more about what I just said. "Well, I wouldn't quite leave them alone then, I'd probably keep a good distance to protect them or something until they're done."

"Why would you do something that stupid?" She asks.

"Raised by ponies, remember?" I point out for the nth time. "I know the value of loving your family, even when they're at their worst. I know I had my times, and I still came out okay. Maybe if I do the same for them, they'd be the same way."

"You'll be teaching them to be soft." She criticizes sternly.

I quietly walk beside her and offer my own thoughts. "Well I think us dragons should embrace being softer to one another."

A slight blush appears on her face. Despite my slight move towards proximity, she's not easy to reciprocate the emotions. "Spike, we're already allied with the ponies of Equestria among with a myriad of other species. I already encourage dragons to be themselves. How much softer can we afford to be before it becomes a weakness that others of our own kind will seek to exploit?"

While I'm not exactly privy to playing my usual role in my current condition, I still impart what little wisdom I have to her. "Through unity, strength prospers. It's okay to stay true to you, and it's even better to encourage others to do the same instead of trying to fit in circles that aren't meant for you. And even in appeasement, what do you do when there are those who want to do bad by others? Do you forsake your own principles and desires for trying to look the part?"

She turns to me and offers a direct retort. "You and I are leaders on the global stage. I'm sure we've already had to make that choice."

"I never accepted that life." I argue back.

"Being a world leader?"

"Being who I'm not." I clarify to her.

"Spike, sometimes being who you are doesn't always get the job done. Sometimes you have to be what you're not to be able to keep things moving the way it should."

While I don't necessarily operate that way, I do however see the wisdom of her approach. "I understand."

She appears convinced that I just wrote off her statement. "Do you really?"

I look around the sky for a moment, becoming quieter as I ask her a most personal question. "Ember, what do you want for you? What do you want to be able to do, to become?"

For the years I've spoken with her, she always had one overall objective in mind. At this point, I'm seeing if her intent has changed. "I want to rule the dragons as a kinder and more understanding ruler, not just through strength alone." So far, not much has changed about that at least.

"Do you really?" I ask again.

She grows a little upset over me grilling her and pushes back at me instead. "Now hold on, I answered your question. Why don't you get to answer mine?"

"Because I do understand what you have to do. I understand because I'm sometimes forced to do what I do, mostly out of reputation and the obligation of that." Like setting myself and my personal wants aside for the sake of a country's image on the international stage. "Now I expanded on my answer, how about you? What do you really want for you?"

"Spike..." She's getting quieter as I ask her the one question she never really liked answering.

"C'mon. Out with it."

If there's anything about all the dragons I've gotten to know, its that they all hide their most selfish desires from the view of their fellow kin. I'm a little more outward about it, I like to sew, cook, play music, and live my life in the protagonist of a romance novel. Now that last one not everyone knows about, but anyone who knows me will point that out. For Smolder, it's being able to embrace that girly side of her. So for Ember... "I want to..."

"You what?" I ask.

"I want to be..." She looks away and murmurs her answer inaudibly.

"I can't hear you." I taunt playfully, earning the dragon lord's ire.

She yanks me by my throat and pulls me in, her cheeks running red. "You tell anyone, you're funeral will be planned out at sea by nightfall." I nod and await her whisper of an answer. "I want to know what romance is like."

"That's it?"

"YOU TELL ANYONE, YOU'RE DEAD!" She reiterates as purple flames leap from her lips. "So yeah, that mushy stuff ponies do, I wanna try it out. I know I want to show that side of me more often, but what do I look like being the dragon lord and getting all sentimental!? I beat up every male who tries to mate with me, much less someone trying to show me some affection. It's weird, but I want to try it out for once, no matter how nasty and icky it makes me feel inside."

I make an attempt to reassure her of her feelings. "Ember, it's okay to want something like that for yourself."

She folds her arms, rubbing them as she voices her thoughts and insecurities. "I'm the dragon lord, Spike. What do I look like if I'm just being all mushy!? Dragons don't like any show of weakness, so it's pointless to try and look vulnerable."

As she said those words, my mind starts to replay the moment when I saw her taking care of the eggs a week ago. I still remember the smile on her face, her being soft and gentle towards the unborn dragons. Almost motherly in a way. Now that I think about it... "Do you want my honest opinion of you?"

She turns off and start to go right back to looking after the dragon eggs. "If I know you, then this conversation sounds like it's gonna take a weird turn, so I'll pass."

I didn't even say anything yet. "Are you sure?"

"Certain." Her tone is harsh and bitter. It's a sign that she's tired of talking, and I should commence to, in a human's words, fuck right off.

"Okay." I take to the air, offering a final word for her before setting back out to my search for another cave. "But a little food for thought, you're pretty cute when you let your walls down."

She snarls back at me with her nostrils smoking. "Don't you have some stupid cave to go jack off in!? Get lost!"

"Later then!" I call out as I make a quick exit.

As I fly away, Ember kneels to the eggs and start tracing out a number of shapes on them with her nail. She smiles as she starts to think of the words that were spoken. Her eyes and voice soften by a great degree, becoming warm with thoughts of her own conflict.

And the underdog was winning. "Cute, huh?"

Another week passed, and it was time for two things. The first was the great dragon migration, which adds a lot more to the dating pool, both candidates and competition alike. The second thing it was time for was for me to change caves again. The females that lingered outside of my cave have gotten a little more aggressive, especially with the migrating females who seem to give fewer fucks than the non-nomadic types. Turns out that the stench of dragon semen can act as a potent aphrodisiac to attract mates across a good distance, almost as potent as the effects of the molt. That meant that for the past few days, my daily retirement ritual had been plagued by an altruistic pack of sex-driven dragonesses all looking to beat me into a pulp for exclusive mating rights.

Yeah, turns out that fighting for my own autonomy is becoming more of a diplomatic reality than it is an abstract thought.

I had to hurry and high-tail it out of that cave, I'll let the stench of my nightly releases keep them busy for a few more days like the last time before they catch on that I'm posted elsewhere. For now, it's better that I keep moving in silence until both the end of the migration, and the effects of my dragon lust starts to subside.

I can't say there weren't any close calls. One dragoness had waited until I had fallen asleep last night before straddling me to get me to perk up for her. Then when I woke up, she immediately started trying to choke me out in an attempt to keep me docile. But thankfully I'm pretty damn strong, and I still retained some mode of self-control as opposed to letting myself get angry and take things the other way around. I was fortunate, from what Garble told me, it would've been days before she was finished.

So yeah, I moved my cave a little closer to where Ember usually looks over the eggs. And since that's closer towards dragon lord disputed zoning, there's hardly going to be any females looking for a fight with her over a dragon she apparently shows interest in.

In speaking of interest, Ember and I have started to open up a little more with one another. Now we aren't communicating at the level Smolder and I have, but she is starting to accept the idea of me being around, whether idly hovering around or actively helping her with the eggs.

Today, I'm doing the latter of those two options.

When I get back to the grounds, I see an abnormal amount of eggs placed in warming beds around the crater. Poor Ember looks stressed as she's darting back and forth to keep the eggs warm. And as I show up, she sighs in relief and shouts out my name. "Spike!"

To my surprise, she flags me down and ushers me to help her. "Hey, you're looking like you're getting stretched thin. What's going on?"

She hands me three eggs and points me in the direction of a heating bed with some spare room behind me. "It's laying season."

As I put the eggs in place, I continue to question her over the sudden intake of precious cargo. "Didn't we just watch a bunch of eggs hatch this week?"

"Yeah, I even remember seven of them puking on you."

"I don't want to remember that." I groaned, still remembering the rich sulfuric smell of baby dragon vomit, and how hard that is to wash out of my scales. "So what's this 'laying' season?"

"Well it's not so much of an actual season, but it's more prevalent at this time of year. Shortly after the great dragon migration, the one we're having now, there are those who come by only to drop off their eggs. They straggle behind to lay them here before they head back their own way."

Well, I'm sure a bunch of deadbeat parents would hear of that little idea and perk up with anticipation. Imagine knocking up someone and leaving, then imagine being the one who gets knocked up and having the burden of motherhood completely left at someone else's doorstep. It's almost as if there should be infinitely more dragons in Equestria with the way this works, especially with how little responsibility there is. You'd literally get back to being irresponsible and mating with complete abandon.

Actually... that is a bit odd, and that's putting it mildly. "Don't you think there's something wrong with that?"

"With what?" She asks, apparently not seeing anything wrong with that.

"Just dumping the eggs on you and bolting?"

She seems to shrug it off like it's completely normal. "It's just how it is for us. My only responsibility is to make sure the eggs hatch. They can live however they want after."

"Who's gonna feed them?" I ask, trying to answer the logistics of this debacle in my own brain.

"They'll probably find themselves a nice lava pit, snack on a few lava mites before their teeth come in, then they'll start snacking on the mineral deposits around here. That's how we get used to what we are now before we molt."

Hands-off approach to raising the young. Yeah, I figured as much. "I didn't jump in lava pits, or snack on lava mites, or chew on rocks like you say we're supposed to do. And I came out just fine."

"That's because you were raised by ponies." She argues, despite not really looking at the truth of how that answer doesn't make perfect sense on it's own.

"Yeah, I learned not to snack on so many gems because I know that ponies use them as currency and high-end decoration, not for sustenance. They also fed me pony food too."

"And how many years did it take for you not to eat through someone's savings?" She asks as she folds her arms.

"I guess twelve to thirteen years, give or take."

"An awful lot of time to break a natural habit, don't you think?" She points out proudly.

"Well either way, I don't eat gems as often now. I actually know how to cook as opposed to snacking on gems like candy."

"Cook-schmook, can't beat a good gem." She bats off my argument before she notices a shadow passing over us. I look up to see a dragon darting past us overhead. The dragon appeared to be in a rush to one of the heating pits. As she lands, she glances around.

As she's scoping out the area, I feel a mighty force pull me towards the ground. Ember snatches me behind a sizeable boulder to hide with her, watching and waiting for the dragon to get done with her business. I whisper over to Ember. "Uh... is she going to the bathroom? Here of all places?" I asked as she squatted down.

Ember's cheeks flush as she keeps my head low. "Take a closer look, Spike."

While I am still inflicted with dragon lust, I'm not too turned on by the thought of watching another dragon conduct their personal relief in front of me. I avert my eyes to the dragoness beside me. "I don't know if I should."

"I'm giving you permission." She rolls her eyes and points at what's ahead.

"Still, it's not her permission." I answer.

"It's for education, now pay attention." This time, she forcibly turns my head to see what's actually taking place. I can already see the expression on her face, straining and blushing as she lifts her tail. "She's squatting down because she's probably three weeks done with mating. The eggs she's been carrying are fertilized and the shells have hardened. She needs to pass the eggs or it'll affect her digestive patterns."

"Still not certain I should be watching this." I voice with concern.

"She's laying her eggs now. You can tell by the contractions of her chest when she breathes." She explains quietly.

As I'm observing from a considerable distance, I can only gauge from the constrictions of her facial features that she was struggling. "She looks like she's in pain."

Ember keeps her head down as she quietly bats her tail against the ground. "Actually... not really."

I glance at her with piqued curiosity. "Why not?"

In the corner of my eye, I can see one of Ember's claws slowly crawl to her belly. She pets herself as she whispers quietly. "Spike, I'm telling you from the female dragon experience, especially having watched a few fight, mate, and lay their eggs, it probably feels like a really good weekend."

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I'm drumming up the thought of why she keeps petting her belly, why her tail keeps hitting the ground. Her jaw slightly falls as she's watching the dragoness squatting above the heating pit. Her claw wanders a little lower, not as low to give it away but enough to imply she's stirred by the sight. "You're kidding."

"Nope. She's enjoying the last leg of her pilgrimage before heading back home." I don't even see how she's being so calm with this. She's obviously turned on, maybe this is how she's been getting her gems polished all these years.

I glance back to the dragonness, this time seeing her rigorously working her claws into her slit. She's grunting pretty loudly, almost announcing her actions. I clench up as I start to feel myself harden. "What the hell?"

"It's common to stimulate the vaginal cavity to help ease the process. It amplifies secretions and makes it easier to pass eggs. If she lays more than three, that means she definitely had a really fertile mating session."

I'm not even paying attention to what's going on with Ember at this point, I'm more captivated with the sight of the dragon visibly masturbating to help her pass her eggs. My claws begin their own migration southward. "She's really... going at it."

"Oh yeah, big time." Ember slumps for a moment, her claws beginning to embark on their own journey.

"Does she know that she's being watched?" I whisper.

Ember lowers her voice almost to an airy quality I've never known her for having. I can hear the nervous trembles in her breathy voice. "If a female eyes a male watching, she's likely to come back for him in the next season. Some males do their best to catch one in the process. It's like setting an appointment."

I look down to myself, I'm already instinctually grasping and pulling, almost to the point where I'm buckling over. But as I'm working myself, my thoughts wander to the dragon beside me. "Do you ever... get excited watching this?"

Ember appeared embarrassed that I asked her such a question, she started lashing at me over my sudden pivot to her. "Why would you ever ask me that!?"

Realizing that I might have messed up, I turn completely away from her, offering myself the little privacy one can have with the given situation. "I'm sorry!"

"Do you think I'm just looking to get off or something!?" She turns away from me, not wanting me to see just how bad she is right now.

"No! I─"

I feel a shiver up my spine as she unexpectedly lays her back against mine. I feel the tip of her tail kick up dirt as she tries to hide her own apparent arousal. "Ugh, just keep paying attention to what's over there, and not at me, you idiot!"

While I know our current situation makes for awkward conversation later, I'm becoming enticed by just the meager contact she issues. But moreso, I'm brought back to being distracted by the grunting dragoness already having laid two eggs. She's beginning to intensify her motions, moaning freely as another egg breaches from within her. "That's her third egg."

As that one falls to the ground, Ember takes note of her ongoing efforts. "She's still got more."

I poke my head from behind the rock, seeing now how she's propped herself with one arm in her squat, fervently flicking at her now-exposed mound. "How do you know?" I whisper with a deep breath.

"She's still going at it." Ember whispers back.

"Has it ever occur to you that she might just be an exhibitionist?" I argue quietly.

"Spike, all females do this." Another shudder in her voice tells me that she's begun giving attention to self. The spear of her tail flicks up more dust as I see not just myself engorged and oozing, but her tail creeping towards my leg.

But her quiet statement further spurs my imagination. My claw reaches for hers to hold. "Really, all of them act like this?"

She glances back in feigned disgust. "What are you doing?" She knocks my claw away, all while accidentally getting a glimpse of what I was trying to quell. She gasps and her back tenses against mine.

I realize that she saw me and try to hide myself, using my tail to conceal my endowment. "Sorry."

Ember's brought to a quiet pant, I can hear already that she's began her promiscuous climb to the summit. "I understand dragon lust and it's effects. You and I, we're in the same boat. Male dragons do it all the time when they see a female like this. Just be careful not to blow a loud one across the badlands. You don't want any unwanted appointments."

With her given consent, I let my own self-control fall by the wayside. My claws go to work, and my tail straightens from the tension built up in my body. In the midst of my actions, I whisper to her an apology for my blatantly explicit display. "I'm so sorry you have to see me like this."

"Just get it over with. Do what you gotta do." She says with her own tension climbing.

"Fuck." I whisper, keeping a palm to my mouth to muffle my cry of pleasure. I look back to the dragoness in the pit, a fifth egg falls from within her. She reaches a climax in the midst of her actions, ejecting a stream of her essence onto the eggs she laid. "Fifth egg. She must've been feeling it."

But Ember points out her continued ministrations, all while greedily biting her own wrist. "Yeah, she is pretty fertile."

"Sixth one..." I mewl into my palm.

Her tail coils around my leg. "She's probably coming out of a bout of dragon lust herself. I bet she went for eight, that slut."

"Seven..." I count out as I lose a little more focus on her, applying it to a much better source right next to me. "Is she really that wet?" I ask the question about her, but my intent is now on Ember.

"Oh yeah." She's doing a decent job at hiding where she is in her ascension, but I can bet that she's pretty close with the way her tail just coiled around my leg. "I wonder how strong her mate had to be to keep going after all that."

My tail seek hers, she looks back with surprise as I whisper in desperation her name. "Oh Ember... shit."

Bashful to suddenly receive my mostly undivided attention, she hides her smile almost as well as she hides her own orgasmic approach. "Keep your eyes on her, not on me."

In a move of wanton disregard, I murmur to her with my eyes closed, imagining her being the one perched over that pit, laying egg after egg three weeks after I've given her my fill. "I'll give you your first clutch. I'll give it to you."

"Don't look at me, you idiot!" She says as she's the one staring me down, taking in the sight of my getting lost in the fantasy of being inside of her right now.

"Ember!" I'm not much paying attention to my own volume at this point.

Her claws find mine, she faces me at full frontal, her cheeks red, her touch as cool as our surroundings, but her breath as heated as the lava beneath these pits. "Don't call my name out like that. It's weird." She glances back to see the dragoness laying yet another egg. "That's her eighth one, does she seriously have another one?"

As our tails meld, I close the distance between us, frotting myself against her belly in a show of want. She clutches her claws into my shoulder as I start to bump into her repeatedly. "Ember... Ember... Ember..." With each thrust, I'm losing my mind until I at last unleash upon her belly what should be rightfully inside of it.

The mess I make prompts her to her own peak, her eyes clench shut while she buckles and her tail constricts mine much like a boa. Her shudders tell me of her release as she issues yet another complaint. "Spike, what are you doing calling my name like that?"

As we separate, I can see the mess we've made. Ember's claws emerge from within her own body, covered in her own mess, all while my close rub with her leave us both to be covered in my own offering. As I'm starting to climb back down, I pump myself of some residual seed and hold myself against the boulder in my recovery. "Holy..." As I was about to truly get lost in Ember's eyes, I felt something tug at my left claw, the one I used to hold myself up against the boulder. "WHAT T─"

Without warning, my jaw is pinched closed as a crimson claw covered in fluids covers much of my face. I peek over to see it's the dragoness who was laying her eggs earlier. She giggles with a satisfied and sultry tone, her voice deep and mature. "So young with all that spunk... I bet you're so pent up, aren't you? Poor baby needs a release." She makes sure I'm hard on breathing as her palm covers my nostrils. I can see Ember almost ready to tear her a new one behind her crimson digits. The dragoness quickly leaps up and flies off as she speaks one last time. "Tell you what, stew on me for a little bit, babe. I'll be in touch." Ember is snarling at the other female as she darts off. I finally collapse to the ground, finally able to breathe for a change.

But something goes wrong.

As I'm breathing, the relief I once felt after my initial orgasm is replaced by an incredible, insatiable, and insurmountable lust that consumes all rational thought. I breathe even heavier, my claws digging into the craggy ground I kneeled on. I don't understand what is happening, or why. But all I know is that I need to mate. Now. No questions, no warm-up, just sink my dick into whatever's living.

Ember looks at me with concern, worry even. She's backing away from me slowly, speaking just as slowly. "Spike... Take a moment and don't breathe too hard through your nose anymore."

I'm growing angry for no real reason. The slightest thing annoys the shit out of me, I don't understand what's going on but I hate it. All I can feel is the sensation of my loins refilling. "Dammit... cum." I try to prime myself, my last bastion of self control. And while I'm quick to culminate, my body's even quicker to refresh on what I need to dispose of. "It's not enough!"

"Spike!" Ember calls out, trying to snap me out of it. But my mind is consumed.

I'm relentless, spurting forth rope after rope, unable to control myself as I pump my fist in and away from me, up and down my veiny length. "Cum... Dammit... cum..." All I can do is grovel on the ground, spilling seed and grit my teeth out of the dissatisfaction of my claw not being enough for me.

A deep growl rattles from my throat, smoke leaves from my nostrils. My eyes focus towards the nearest female I can see. And she's backing away even faster, taking to the air to hover as she pleads with me. "Spike! No!"

"Ember... EMBER!" I scream her name, pouncing towards her.

She flies to the air, but I grab her by her tail before she's able to escape. Her eyes widen while I wrestle with her, I claw at her scales, violently trying to wear her down as she's showing every bit of resistance towards me. "Snap out of it! You're not you right now!"

She kicks me off of her, launching me a few feet away. As I stand back up, I can see the trails of fluid coating the inside of her legs. It bears a strong scent, an enticing aroma that beckons me to their source. I snarl and launch myself towards her again, but she's quick to think on her own feet. She finds a rock and waits until I'm close to her face before bashing me with it. While initially stunned, I shake off the blow as I growl her name. "Ember..." I align myself in an attempt to mate with her, but she begins to punch me in my face, throwing off my vision and further adding to the stun effect she gave earlier. She picks up another rock and smashes my head with it.

All strength falls by the wayside, and my world slowly drowns to darkness. The defensive dragoness looks over me, breathing heavily as she curses herself.

Before I pass out, I hear the faint words from her lips. "Not like this, Spike."

I awaken to the sight of a craggy ceiling not known to me. There's a pool of lava nearby, providing a rather dim light to the cave. I turn to my side to better take in my surroundings, noticing that this wasn't my cave.

But Garble is sitting at the entrance, looking just as annoyed as I am confused. "Just now waking up?"

"Where am I?" I question him.

"Back in my cave. You got laid out by Dragon Lord Ember."

As he states that, I can't help but to be reminded of the fact that she took a few rocks to my skull. "Ugh, my head." I hold myself, nursing my bruises and aches.

"She told me you got caught staring down a female laying eggs." Of course Ember would leave out the part where she was just as guilty, as if her claws weren't fishing for eggs inside of her own self. "Did she give you a parting gift?" He asks in reference to the the other dragon.

"She just grabbed my snout with her wet claws."

Garble shakes his head. "Wow, that's a hell of a way to make an appointment. But yeah, Ember told me you tried to mate with her out of a frenzy."

"I went into a frenzy?" I ask myself aloud. "I remember being really pissed off and horny, but I can't really recall much of what happened. The only thing I can still remember is the smell."

"Oh you'll be smelling it alright. You'll be smelling that for a year... unless someone else books an appointment with you." He explains with a chuckle.

Just as he mentions it, I'm already starting to think about that dragon laying her eggs, with about two claws deep inside trying to shove me into a corner and giving me the business. Hell, I wonder how many eggs I could've given her. "Dammit, all I can think of is sex right now."

"Tell me about it. When you get just a tiny whiff, you'll be hunting that girl down for the rest of the year until the next migration. I bet she'll be on the move all year too. They love to go nomad when they book appointments, a male can get worn out pretty easily if they chase a female around the world for a whole year."

Okay, I'm not going to be playing tag with some lady I just caught in a mood, especially for a whole damn year. My dick can't stay hard for that long, and I sure as hell don't want to be dealing with this dragon lust for even longer than I am now. I ask him for a solution. "How do you deal with it?"

"Duh, book an appointment with someone local."

"And how do I do that?" I ask.

"I guess catch a local girl laying a few eggs until you get her to mark you up like the last one. That or have a female just mark you for the hell of it. Sometimes you'll have some aggressive females who'll mark over an appointment just because they want that dragon for themselves. It happens."

"So I need to find an aggressive female and get her to rub her vag juice on my face─I cannot believe I'm saying that out loud." My cheeks were already red from being flushed with sexual thoughts, much less hearing that sentence coming straight from my mouth.

"Yeah. But I suggest you find one soon within the next month, or else you'll be chasing them for the next year."

Well there's a possibility I could get Ember to do me a favor, but then again she nearly put me in hospice care with those rocks. I can bet she doesn't want anything to do with me right now. "Wait, I attacked Ember. Why did I attack her instead of the one who got away?"

Garble then explained further. "The scent isn't closed to a particular identity unless you let it stay for a month. But after that month, you're all theirs. As for the initial response, it's a lot less controlled. especially if it's your first time getting done up like that. So in short, you'll be gunning for the nearest female you can find en route. If she fights you off, you're better off not trying again."

Ember almost knocked me into a coma, guess that means I'm well and out of the running. So it's probably better if I just try to come up with an alternative. "Is there any way I can cancel an appointment?"

"Dragon sneeze pollen. But you'll be stuck with bad allergies for a week." He recommends.

Seeing how bad I fucked up with Ember, I might as well clean house and keep myself separated from everyone else until this all blows over. Maybe I'll apologize to her in the future, that is if she's in any mood to see me. "Ugh... I guess I'll start looking for some dragon sneeze flowers tomorrow."

"Good luck, they grow on the mainland, plus you're locked down here for another two weeks." In other words, I can't leave the island, I'm stuck here. "I hate to break it to you, but you'll probably be out looking for that same female next month. Dragon sneeze are hard to come by."

"Not if I go to Canterlot, some of the gardens near the castle are rife with them." I reply.

Garble looks at me and rolls his eyes before glancing away. "Uh, yeah. Also, your mail is showing." I look down to see myself already staring to grow from out of my scales. Not only am I annoyed sexually, but I'm also embarrassed from Garble catching me like this. He walks out and starts to fly away. "I'll let you have a moment to work off your stuff, just try not to make too much of a mess. And if you do, blow it off in the lava so you don't leave a scent. I don't need aggro females trying to mount me in my sleep." And just like that, he's gone off to leave me to my vices.

This entire day has been one huge unexpected fuck up, this entire month has been nothing but that. First Twilight catches me in a mood, then she takes my phone, then she keeps me so busy that I can't even masturbate with the spare time I have in my schedule, then I get shoved on a train and told I have this dragon lust shit, and now I know just how bad this shit really is. I'm sitting in a cave with two different kinds of headaches, the first being the one caused by two rocks rocking my world, and the other's because I can't properly get my rocks off. Now I've gone and fucked up my friendship with Ember because I couldn't control myself, and I still have two more weeks of this shit. Dammit, why does it have to be like this?

...I'm gonna just try to get one off before I go nuts, this is just getting on my nerves.

My first thought is to reminisce the moment she lingered over that pit, rigorously servicing herself, the means by her soaked slit would part with every inflection of her claws' direction. I remember the crude calls she made, the vulgar vernacular her voice made, a voice that could be dipped in the richest chocolate and her words with the most delectable caramel consonants. The charge she took in grabbing me, setting up our very next playdate. What discipline I had for Ember would've probably been easily replaced by my obedience to her. I know that she would not be warm to my touch, but the moistness would do more than suffice.

But I am plagued by a significant deterrent. "Fuck, I don't even know your name."

It's a shame, her voice was really nice for a dragon female. In a way it almost reminds me of Celestia with how commanding it was, how mothering it was. I wonder if she would hold me down and force me to seed her next clutch, milking me for every bit I had left. It's too bad I don't think I'll ever see her again... But given the day this was, I do know who I will see again.

"I would do you a solid..."

Damn, she said that, didn't she? I can already imagine her temperament, especially being around ponies for as long as she's been. I'm willing to bet that she'll be a lot more agreeable. I can already imagine how gentle she'll be when I tell her I'm not into fighting. Hell, I'm willing to bet that she's not too into it now because of her being an element bearer. Maybe she would let me be close to her, run my claws down her scales, give me a smile, or even drag me into a sensual kiss or two just to see how it feels for her. "Smolder."

Moments of her image consume my thoughts, namely the ones from weeks ago. What I would give to see Smolder between my legs, providing me with her body to use in any way I see fit. What I would trade for her to talk her little mess, trying to sound sexy, how I would conquer and claim the deepest parts of her. Damn... where's that changeling when I need her?

"Ocellus..." She knows everything about Smolder's desires, what she would want out of me. I'm willing to bet that she's probably already had a grand time invading her without knowing the truth about me and my measurements. Perhaps she exaggerated the size, maybe even oversold me a little, but she's got to know how Smolder is at her most intimate and vulnerable moments. I'm willing to bet she does.

Hell, I can almost guarantee that Smolder and her experimented, often, as they were in the throws of their high school years. I won't even deny the tension they resolved in seeking one another, especially since Ocellus is so open. I wonder, has she ever just gotten tired of being other beings, and once requested a moment of clarity? What would that look like, what would she say? What would be the expressions on her face.

My mind flashes a vivid image of it's own artistry.

"Oh... FUCK!" I'm not even being subtle about it anymore. I'm curled up, furiously mending the flesh which my claws encircled. An unrealistic speed for penetration, a mismatch of breathing in contrast to the haphazard percussion of flesh on scale, I seize with nothing more than the ambition to meet the end of my expedition. I lock that image in my head, counting off until the rocket's ignition.

"You should be careful where you aim that thing."

The familiar voice startles me, all while accurately filling the profile of the changeling I imagined. Only this time, she was sitting idly in front of me, patiently waiting for me to finish. "Ocellus, where did you come from?"

She uses her magic to sever the bond between my claws and their intended, holding me away and denying me the closure I sought. "I saw you getting carried in by another dragon. You looked like you got it pretty bad with how you were knocked out and all, I thought some female had gotten the better of you and I was probably going to have to keep tabs on you. Turns out that other dragon didn't have an interest in you, and you obviously seem to have more interest in me right now."

"I know this looks bad, but I'll explain when I finish. Can you transform, please?" I beg so selfishly.

The changeling smirks as she steps towards me. "Wow, you must really have it bad. No 'hello', no 'how's it been', no 'what are you doing here', just an immediate request to transform."

"Please just turn into Smolder again." I ask again.

"Smolder?" She scoffs. "What where you imagining when you called out my name?"

I'm still throbbing in want, doing what I can to alleviate the pressure that drive me silly. "Do I have to say it?"

"I really wanna know why you just called out my name before you bust a load all over my face again." She mocks, placing a hoof on me, gently tapping against the firmness protruding from my body.

"I don't wanna talk about it. Alright?" I'm buckling, trying to thrust my hips to meet with her inquiring hoof.

The changeling uses her magic to pull me down, a means to further control me as she takes all initiative, climbing on top of me. "There's nothing to be ashamed of, Spike. I'm not as soft and tender as most ponies are..." I pant heavily as the unexpected warmth of her body lays onto my belly, my towering form now being introduced to a pleasantly moist sensation, an entrance so soft and warm, so enticingly inviting. "...Well, I can't lie and say that this part of me isn't."

I slow down, ready to take on whatever she was ready to give me. I'm anxious again, but I'm so close to finally being inside of her. I can't believe she's moving this fast. "Are you really doing this?"

She holds my face, petting my head as she leans into whisper, her warm breath tickling the relative coolness of my scales. "You called my name, Spike." Her hips begin to rock back and forth, I feel her greeting me with every stroke. She stays close to me, making sure that I'm bearing witness to exactly who it is that's giving me this level of attention. No distractions, no visual stimulus, just the luxury of prolong eye contact along with the eager acquaintanceship of our bodies. "That's my biggest turn-on right there. So you aren't getting anything but this lovebug today."

I look down to see past her, she teases me yet again by placing her face on my chest, biting her lip as she shakes her posterior against me. I whimper in submission. "Please, sit on it. Please. I need it."

"Nope!" She mouths intently with a cheshire grin. "Too dangerous, can't let myself just sink on down on a young, thick, bulging drake consumed by dragon lust. Though I always wanted to know just how you'd feel inside of me." I feel a ring of magic guide me closely, tracing the outside of her moist folds. I whimper in response, unsatisfied by the distinction I now know between male and female being so rudely denied. "Sadly, I have to play it safe and use what I already know." She lifts her body, parting us for a moment before she whispers a question to me. "You wanna see it?"

"Yes..." I beg. "Yes, please."

"Good boy." She coos sweetly, allowing me to flop to my own belly, fully engorged and oozing with the signs of my pre-release. She sits down, allowing me to see her hips achieve contact with mine. I'm greeted by the sight of her lower lips reuniting with the bottom of my shaft. I reach for her out of instinct, but her magic holds me back. "No grabbing, house rules."

I watch as her belly rolls slowly, her hips lagging just that much behind. Her motions are slow, almost as though she's grinding with the intent to warm herself up. Upon her kissing at my tip, I am greeted by an unusual smell, a musk that calls for me to worsen it. I grit my teeth as I feel myself coming to a peak. She takes notice and clamps her magic at my base, keeping me from drawing fire. I howl in desperation her name, she begins to speed up her pace.

It's in that moment I came to a realization, one that she already explained. Since calling out her name is her biggest trigger, all I have to do is bless her with me pressing on that very same thing more and more often. "Hah... fuck, you're so thick." She whispers under her breath.

I know that it isn't my intent to go so far, especially with one I'm not romantically involved with, but I sit up to meet with her. With the increased pressure against her, she begins to feel every ridge I have to offer. Her rhythm speeds to a hurry, and I open my lips to her. She dodges, but lets my blow land amidst her nape. She stops to readjust her position, finding more forwardness and change to her approach. This time, her grinding is hard and deep, she wants me inside of her but still has the discipline to keep to her principles.

Meanwhile I'm left to discover the scent of her body. I try to control myself as I bury my lips into her neck, but I end up opening my mouth a little too wide in ambition to taste her. I nibble at her neck before biting down softly to hold her. She gasps and shakes as we're both sent over the edge. Yet again, I make a mess of myself while she leaves much of a trail between us. Her body shimmers and falls limp on me. I look to her and almost get lost in what she is.

"Wow, you still leave one hell of a mess, Spike." She points out.

However, she's not as lost as I am now. Instead, her mind is a lot more sober, and she's quicker to break off from me. Her magic dissipates and I'm left to enjoy the afterglow of our encounter alone. It's a different emptying feeling, but it's not one I enjoy.

"Well, that was more fun than what I bargained for on a Saturday night."

"Yeah, it was pretty fun." The moment was fun, the release was fun, but the not getting to break my cherry and getting left high and dry wasn't. I'm sure it shows on my face. But for her, she's easy to shrug it off. Maybe it's a changeling thing.

She takes out a notepad and quill, writing down what I can assume is her experience with me. "So, since that's how it goes for dragons, I wanna see if this is a thing that goes beyond dragon physiology. I guess I could write a report of my findings and send it in to the sex-ed teacher for next semester."

"Um, aren't you teaching sex-ed?" I point out.

"This semester, yeah." She confirms. "It's a pretty trying course to constantly teach on the things that turn you on in an official capacity to a bunch of horny teenagers. But headmaster Starlight thought it would be an appropriate punishment for me treating Miss Trixie in her office while I was playing as Vice Headmaster Sunburst. Moral of that story: Go in with at least three towels, one for the desk, you, and the wall."

That's... that's a story if I heard of one. "Right... Can you not list me by name in your research?"

She stops writing and looks at me with an annoyed expression, it seems she already had me down by name. "Fine... Subject designation: 5P1K3. Species: Dragon. There, anonymized."

"Thank you." I nod as I start to think about cleaning up my mess. But before my claws start finding their way into the lava, I pause and look back to the changeling who already started to sneak off. "Hey! Isn't that's just my name with some of the letters replaced as numbers?"

"What, nooooo. I would never..." She lies before darting off at break-neck speed. "Gotta run!"

"OCELLUS!"

Time went by a bit slower on the day after my uncontrollable run-in with Ember. But I soon found myself not wanting to deal with the embarrassment of being near her. So I had to find ways to make the day feel faster, since I wasn't going to be around her. Talking to her really made my day go by faster, but since that was removed from the equation it was time for me to find alternatives.

There were times where a dragon or two was sent my way to escort me to Torch, I wasn't taking that appointment because of obvious reasons. And then finally came the envoys from Ember herself, which really pissed me off because of the incurred dragon lust issues affecting my temper. In time, I've learned to relocate caves from day to day. Can't send envoys to me if they don't know where to look. And besides, the reason why she's sending those guys to me is because she doesn't want to speak with me. So why should I put myself in a position where I go on to embarrass myself further?

"Fuck it, I'll just be alone until my last two weeks are done." That was my ultimatum.

I ran short of my hygienics, so I had to start doing what dragons do, take a dive in lava, pop a few loads in lustful thought, hop back out without a scent or trace to be found. I never much liked the smell of sulfur, but since I was covered in the stuff, I eventually grew used to it. I missed laying on my pillows since some asshole decided to take a lava nap after stealing them, and they were also custom made by Rarity to boot. You wanna talk about a fight almost broke out that day, I was about ready to rip the dragon lands apart for that one.

Two weeks of being a dragon of the lands, bathing like one, smelling like one, acting like one almost, hoarding gems like one because I had to keep myself busy, time flew by eventually. I haven't seen trace of Garble since I left his cave, not that either of us mind, I did bring some unwanted attention to him the morning after I left.

The good news is that my lust has waned over these past two weeks. The temperamental outbursts have toned down, I don't feel nearly as confrontational, I'm back to my sarcastic self. I feel great with the exception of some lingering thoughts on Ember, but I'm just fine now. It's only a few days left before I can finally leave this place and integrate back into pony society, get back to being the royal friendship advisor, take overtly long trips to other lands and resolve the problems of others before having to find some time to unwind some of my built-up tension. Sure, the sexual tension will still be there, but it won't be as dominant. I'll be able to get by with reading a book or something.

Yup, a day or two more and I'll be right back to my regularly-scheduled programming.

"Hey."

...And I was only a day or two off of not having to worry about seeing Ember anymore. Guess who shows up. "Sorry. I'm a little busy." I lie, picking up a large boulder to just push around for the sake of looking like I'm busy.

She sees right through my actions and walks beside me. "Spike, can you please look at me."

"Sorry, not now." I tell her as I keep pushing the boulder.

In a fit of anger, she flies to the other side of the boulder and drives a claw into it, shattering the poor thing into a thousand hapless chunks. Suddenly, she's the only thing in my line of vision. "How about now!? Can you see me now that the big boulder isn't in the damn way!? I've been trying to call you for two weeks, you haven't answered! Normally that level of disrespect is worthy of my foot up your ass!"

I guess that's her way of saying she's been worried sick. But still, I'm not really in the mindset to deal with her today. "Can you please leave me alone?"

"Dammit, Spike!" She grabs me by my wings and holds me still as she grumbles an admission. "I want to talk."

"What's there to talk about? Me nearly raping you? I know I wouldn't wanna talk to me either." I bluntly explain as I shake off her grasp.

"Spike, you couldn't help it." She tries to reassure me, all while keeping pace with me.

I look back to her and shake my head. "So? I lost control. That's all that matters."

"Do you honestly think I'm faulting you for what happened when I'm the one responsible?"

"You should." I rebutted very quickly.

"Spike..." She grabs my arm, pulling at me as she appears hesitant to speak. "Look, I knew what I was getting myself into. I just didn't know how to say it clearly to you. But the fact that you tried doesn't totally ring all that bad with me."

"You don't even like me like that. So what does it matter?" I reply sarcastically. "You used to look at me and think I was weird for hugging you. Just admit it, I'm different and I'm not what you're looking for."

"Did I say that?" She asks angrily.

"You beat the shit out of me. Twice. According to dragon code, I can't fuck with you, so I'm not gonna deal."

"I beat you up that second time because you attacked me! I'm the dragon lord, I can't just let you take what you want without you earning it the right way!"

"And I'll never beat you in a fair contest. You know this. So what does it matter?"

"...I..." She stops to argue, but then thinks about her argument. Even she knows that she's possibly the most powerful dragon in the lands outside of her father. She hesitates to say something, but appears to change her mind at the last moment. "Never mind. I guess it'll hit you whenever it hits you."

"Yeah, I know. That dragon is gonna be the one I'll be chasing after in a week or two."

Saying that appeared to have made her even more upset, probably at both herself as well as me, but mainly me. "Sure."

I turn back to her and shrug. "But hey, look at the bright side. It's been a month, and I feel better. Don't need to crank one out every two hours, I'm not even mad anymore. I still haven't found a mate yet, but it's bound to happen eventually, right? So I think it's better to cut this thing short and I go back home."

She rolls her eyes and replies in a sarcastic manner. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I do need to let you go."

"Something else we can agree on, I suppose." I turn away, accepting the consequences that may be.

Ember bats her tail against the ground as she takes to the sky, appearing infuriated as she flies away. I can hear her mutter one final insult before she disappears. "Fucking dumbass."

Finally, I'm back to my lonesome.

Honestly, I feel pretty satisfied with this not working out. Like what would I do to make this work, become what I'm not and do what I didn't like doing in the first place? It's bad enough I went a whole month essentially not being myself, much less getting into scrums at times. I don't need that kind of energy, not on the regular.

Ember means well, I'm sure. But she doesn't seem to get past herself when she wants something, and I'm not interested in trying to fix and mold something into existence if she's so headstrong on image. I'm not going to force her to be something different, to feel something different...

I'm not trying that again, I had enough when I tried to compete for Rarity's attention all throughout the years, always getting overlooked by some random stallion, or she nabs him and end up getting her back beat in, her heart broke, and then I'm getting my mind broke over having to play rebound. And just as naïve as I was, I stayed in spite of her telling me outright that we would never work. I played the fool then, thinking that I would make something of it, I learned my lesson.

Maybe I'm being short-sighted, or bitter. But I think it's better this way, for my mental health at least.

*SCREEEEEEECH*

That noise instinctively made every nerve under my scales crawl. The recoil of my neck turn could've been enough to break it with how fast I looked up above me. And just as my eyes turned to the sky, I was greeted with an uncomfortable shadow being cast across the ground where I stood. With hulking wings as large as hydras, a beak strong enough to crush rock, and talons that can scoop up any dragon of mostly any size, the beast proudly soared inland towards the settlement.

For me, that only spells trouble. "What the hell is a roc doing here?"