The Writhing

The letters had been sent. Of course, the first one had gone to Spike. His was a little different. For the others, she’d started with her fellow princesses.

‘There’s magic in Canterlot. Please help me spread it.’

She didn’t know why she felt compelled to write such a short and cryptic missive. Was it the excitement? The relief? The influence from the thing underneath? It didn’t matter. She’d do anything to save her ponies. She’d become anything. Whatever it took, she would grab it.

And it would writhe.

Quivering strangely, she called for Dreams. The little earth pony had promised her a party tonight, and she fully intended to partake. She needed to partake.

There was a knock at the door, and Twilight opened it with her magic, relieved at how easy the movement was after years of magical lethargy. The guard standing at attention wasn’t Dreams. He was a blue pegasus, a big one, and he seemed startled by the door’s rapid movement.

Twilight shook her head, dismissing her disappointment as quick as it arrived. “Have you seen Sergeant Dreams? She promised to visit me tonight.”

The guard saluted. “No, Ma’am. Sergeant Dreams is out sick tonight.”

Twilight frowned. “Oh dear. Is she all right?”

The guard was surprisingly professional as he continued on. “Yes, Ma’am. She says that she’ll be back tomorrow. I also have a missive saying that she left a couple of special friends for you in the guest wing. Would you like for me to send for them?”

Twilight licked her lips and smiled as something inside of her squirmed. “Oh, yes please.”

The guard gave her a strange look. “Right away, your highness!”

As the heavy door closed, she watched the guard stallion scrape it across the floor. She wasn’t normally particularly interested in stallions, but something about his blue fur just made her want to touch it. It looked so glossy and still, strangely set too tightly against his skin.

She coughed, causing him to pause. “How long until they get here?”

He furrowed his brow in confusion. “Once I send for them it will be a few minutes.”

“Good. Please do that. And then can you do me a favor?”

The guard saluted. “I live to serve, your highness!”

Twilight shivered in anticipation. What a strange reply on his part. She really, really wanted to touch his fur and run her hooves through it. Her laminae eagerly quivered within her hooves. “Mmm… Can you step inside and let me stroke your fur? It looks so gorgeously smooth…”

The stallions answer was quick, if confused. “Of course, Ma’am.”

Twilight’s hooves tingled with excitement as she watched the guard send a missive, then step back through the door.

She used her magic to close it for him, as she used her hooves to take off his armor.

Cherry Burst was giggling with excitement as she chatted with her sometimes sex-buddy, the ever indulgent Orange Glow. “I still can’t believe Shield hooked us up like this!”

Orange, her coat the color of her name, smiled back smugly as she lifted another dessert off the tray. “I guess all that teasing her about it finally paid off.”

Cherry laughed, using her wing to grab one for herself as she snickered. “This totally makes us actual whores, you know that?”

“No, it makes us concubines, but only if she keeps us around. Princess Twilight is royalty, so this doesn’t count as whoring. If it’s a one night thing, it’s just helping out a friend like we usually do. Just, a, you know, super important royal friend. Who maybe isn’t exactly our friend just yet. Besides, she’s not paying us.”

The tart was exceptionally sweet as Cherry nibbled on it, somehow feeling more real than any tart she’d had in the last couple of years. “Please, we’d never be allowed into the private area of the castle, let alone put into a royal guest suite and given treats. The experience alone is worth a fortune in bits. It’s better than money.”

The unicorn contemplated this, lighting up her horn to poke at the walls again. “I suppose, but let’s be real. We’d both bang her for absolutely nothing. I think that makes it not whoring? If she wants to take care of us, that doesn’t change our minds either way. She could have met us in a bar downtown and I’d buy her drinks, even if I couldn’t afford it.”

“Why do you keep doing that?” Cherry frowned, waving her light red (not pink, never pink) wing at her friend’s horn.

Orange blushed. “Oh. It’s just, the magic here is strange. Since we’ve gotten in the castle it doesn’t feel like any magic I’ve ever felt. It’s warm, and it keeps, um, wriggling? So it’s hard to pin down. But it’s also got a lot of ‘umph’ to it, you know? It’s just so fascinating. And it’s weird that it’s in the walls and stuff. Must be some super important royal enchantment.”

Cherry waggled her eyebrows. “If you don’t stop being a nerd then I’ll give you a lot of ‘umph’.”

The horn fizzled out. “Sorry. It’s just so strange. Maybe I need a little ‘umph’. I’m honestly a little nervous. I mean, this is The Princess.”

Sighing, Cherry put her wing over Orange and pulled her into a hug. “Relax, ya goof. Princess Twilight’s been weird the last couple of years, but Shield said she’s doing better and that she fixed whatever the thing was that’s been messing with stuff. Just like she always does. She just needs a little boost, and we’re here to help her with that! We’re like, the special secret super sexy royal treatment team.”

Orange snuggled her back. “What if we’re not good enough? What if I’m not good enough? I feel like I’ve lost my mojo over the last couple years. I used to love things like this, but lately my heart hasn’t been in it. Ever since… I’m just…”

She stared silently at the wall, distracted by the magic again.

Cherry gave her a re-affirming squeeze. “It’s not just you, Glowstick. We’ve all been a little tired. But we’re in this together, okay? If we’re not good enough, then you can count on me to make it spectacularly not good enough so that we’re at least memorable.”

Orange snickered. “Don’t you dare.”

Cherry licked her lips, then leaned in to whisper in her friend’s hair. “What’s a little pineapple between friends?”

Her friend started to laugh. “You will not pineapple the princess, Cherry.”

Faking a pout, Cherry snuggled into her now chuckling friend, enjoying the softness of the poofy orange hair, and the lingering scent of magic.

Twilight smiled at the two mares as she appraised them. They were cute, and their fur was so straight. They’d clearly done themselves up to the best of their abilities for the night. The orange unicorn was blushing something fierce, and it made her adorable. The pink pegasus was unabashedly letting her eyes wander over Twilight—it was incredibly inappropriate and that only made Twilight want to giggle.

She let herself grin, maybe a little too eagerly. “Welcome to my parlor, friends of Dreams. I assume you’re the beautiful mares she asked to accompany me tonight?”

The pink one bowed, and used her wing to press the orange one gently down. “Cherry Burst and Orange Glow guilty as charged.”

Orange only uttered an awkwardly sharp “Hi” in response.

Twilight took a step back from the door, and motioned them in with her wing. “Please, come in. I’ve been looking forward to your company.”

Cherry walked in, gawking at the finery on the walls as she practically dragged her friend with her. “Wow, Your Majesty. I never thought I’d be in your room to party! You sure know how to live big.”

Twilight smiled, amused. “Well, I’m trying to get back in the swing of that actually. Dreams gave me a little push last night, and I think I’m ready for another.”

Cherry winked at her. “I think we can give you a little push. Maybe a little more. Isn’t that right, Orange?”

Twilight’s gaze drifted to the unicorn, who was staring at something in the dark corner. The unicorn’s eyes lingered in the dark, then looked questioningly at Twilight. “Umm… why are there two suits of armor absolutely saturated in that squirmy magic?”

Cherry smacked her in the head with her wing. “Orange! Stop nerding out! The princess wants to bang, not explain her dirty clothes.”

Twilight laughed. “It’s fine, Cherry. Orange is certainly feeling a little overwhelmed after being mana starved for so long, and suddenly feeling so much. And actually, I do a little nerding out myself. The armor is less interesting. Dreams left one of them this morning, we were both in a bit of a daze. The other…” Twilight frowned. What was the other one from?

She shook her head. “Well, don’t worry about the other one. The important bit is about the magic! That’s actually one of the reasons I was eager to meet you tonight. Can I tell you a secret? An important one, the kind that Dreams has been sworn to keep.”

Orange slowly nodded, her eyes earnest and focused. Cherry frowned. “You’re not going to tell us that you eat ponies or something, are you?”

Twilight’s smile widened. “Only if you ask nicely, but that’s not the secret.”

Orange returned her grin. “Then yes please, Princess!”

How fun these two were. “Well, the last few years you may have noticed that you’ve felt lethargic. Almost like the magic was gone from your life. Have you?”

Orange nodded grimly, and even Cherry squinted suspiciously.

“Well, you’d be right. Magic died. Everypony you know is dying.”

Both of them widened their eyes, then looked at each other. Clearly they hadn’t expected to hear this tonight.

Twilight let her wings drape over them, pulling them both gently but firmly into a hug they seemed entirely unprepared for. “But now it’s okay. Dreams helped me solve it. We can save Equestria.”

Cherry pried herself out from under Twilight’s wing, while Orange stayed deathly still under it. The pegasus frowned as she spoke, “I’m not sure what I expected tonight, but I don’t think it was this. I’ll admit that I’ve been feeling down for a few years, but magic can’t die. I don’t know what you’re on about, but I’m kind of getting a weird vibe here, Princess. And it’s not the sexy kind of weird vibe like cat ears and hoofcuffs. No offense.”

Twilight nodded. “None taken. You’re right, this talk isn’t particularly sexy, but it’s important nonetheless. What happened with Dreams and I was an accident. Both of us were taken by surprise, but you can’t argue with the results. Can you, Orange?” Twilight’s eyes drifted down to the orange unicorn still wrapped in her wings.

Her voice was breathless, and tears lingered in her eyes. “No. You can’t. You and Shield made this? It’s real? We’re not going to die?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow, surprised. “You knew?”

The unicorn hugged her tightly. “Yeah. It’s been pretty obvious for a while now. It was kind of a conspiracy for a bit, but lately most of the unicorns I know have just sort of quietly accepted it.”

Cherry narrowed her eyes at her friend. “Wait, this is real and you and the other stick heads knew it? I thought you were messing with me with how you always talked about the lack of magic.”

Twilight sighed loudly, letting her magic spread into the air. “Please, be kind. Orange and her friends made the same choice I did. What can one pony do against the inevitable?”

Orange and Cherry slightly relaxed as the aura of friendship magic touched them. Orange’s voice wafted out from under Twilight’s wings. “I’m sorry, Cherry.”

Cherry’s apology felt heavy and tired. “I didn’t mean to call you that, Orange. You know I love you.”

Twilight ushered Orange from under her wing to stand with her friend. “Regardless, I think we can fix it. Dreams and I had a beautiful accident. With you, I’d like to do it on purpose. I’m asking for your consent.”

Orange stamped her hoof forcefully, her eyes flashing to the armor swarming with magic. “Of course, Princess.”

Cherry frowned. “I’m not exactly sure what we’re talking about, but I’m going to be honest here. I’m a very easy mare, and there was a rumor I might get laid tonight. If that’s still on the table, then I’m still in.”

Orange glared at her friend. “Cherry, we are going to help bring magic back to Equestria.”

Cherry glared back at her. “Yeah, but like in a hot sexy way right?”

Orange’s glare grew cross, disbelieving her friend’s audacity.

Cherry repeated herself, a little more frantically as she appeared to grow slightly more concerned. “In a hot sexy way, right?”

Twilight's smile turned into a smirk as she took a pointed step towards the awkward duo.