The Prince's Predicament

After informing Cadance privately of his plans, but keeping to himself the results of his medical tests as not to worry her, Shining went down to the gym. Cinnamon and Mustard still needed time to prepare for their date. They had insisted that he give them time to clean up the house.

In the meantime, Shining had organized to meet with Pyre and his choice of stallion. Sure, it might not be necessary to meet with them anymore, as he now had Mustard and Cinnamon to guide him, exactly as Pyre had suggested. Clearly, things were moving along as intended.

Unfortunately, Pyre wasn't in the gym when Shining arrived. Sure, they spent a lot of time together at the gym, but Pyre had other things he did, and it wasn't unheard of for him to be elsewhere, or even running late. Perhaps he was even home, sick with a stomach bug. Who could say for sure?

Deciding to just wait for him, Shining made his way over to the weights bench and loaded up the barbell with his regular load. As he considered the fact that he was without a spotter, however, he shook his head and removed five more kilos. If he balked, which was possible with the sensitivity of his breasts, there was nopony around to help him, so it was better to play it safe for now.

He managed two sets before Pyre showed up. He was with another stallion, a mottled red and yellow earth pony with a bright yellow mane. He looked kind of doughy to be a guard.

"Sorry for the wait," sighed Pyre as they approached. "The princess, here, had to prepare for her date."

Shining raised an eyebrow. "You're a princess?"

The stallion giggled at that and offered his hoof. "Gala Applewaites."

Shining Armor grabbed the hoof and shook it. "I was told you were a member of the guard."

"I am, kind of. I'm employed as a guard, but I'm not an active member. More of a caretaker. Specifically, I'm a cook."

"He's met the minimum requirements to be a member of the guard," clarified Pyre, "but his specialty is in making pies and tarts. We have him operating almost exclusively in the kitchens."

Shining nodded. "I see."

"Best not to interrupt your workout," said Pyre. "We'll hold off on the main event until you're ready, so feel free to continue. Need a spotter?"

Shining nodded. "Having a spotter means I can go back to my normal weight. I'd reduced it for a problem with my chest, but with a spotter, I can rest assured that I'll be safe."

After increasing the weight back to its normal level, Shining lay down and Pyre stood over him as a spotter. Shining made it all of two lifts before he had to stop.

He'd never noticed before how big, heavy and saggy Pyre's balls were. He'd lifted with him scores of times, and had been in this exact position on hundreds of occasions, but had never stopped to take a look. They were just hanging there, right in front of his eyes, and a simple flick from his horn would see them rubbed.

"Shining? You alright?"

Perhaps it was the smell. The used jock strap had pulled him into the locker. He closed his eyes and sniffed at the air. The scent was there, hidden amongst his workout sweat. But also, something sweet, like Cadance's body butter. It was an intoxicating mixture of adventure and joy.

He snapped back to his senses as Pyre pulled the weights off of his hooves. "Perhaps you were wrong about bumping up the weight," he observed. "What happened?"

"I guess just stress," lied Shining. "Kind of lost myself."

"When you're holding almost fifty kilos of steel above your neck is a bad time to lose yourself," scolded Pyre. "What if I hadn't been here? What if you'd dropped that with nopony around?"

If he hadn't been here, Shining wouldn't have had a sudden craving to sniff his balls. "I guess I'd be in deep shit."

"Damn right," sighed Pyre. "Still, I can tell you that the blood wasn't rushing to your brain."

"How so?"

"This thing," answered Gala, running his hoof along Shining's thunderous erection. "You sure it was stress that distracted you, and not the eye candy hanging in front of your nose?"

Shining didn't answer. He didn't need to answer. His face turned beet red at the assertion, so if he tried to deny it, they would be able to tell right away.

"Perhaps it's time we hit the showers?" suggested Pyre. "I don't know if you want that on full display out here. I know I don't."

Shining couldn't help but look again, and Pyre was beginning to slip from his sheathe. Apparently, being ogled was a turn-on for him.

"Perhaps it is time," agreed Shining. The weights were returned to their rack and the trio went to the showers.

While privacy curtains hung between every stall, they were seldom used. A lot of stallions liked to show off their muscles and physique, and a lot of the guard training promoted positive interactions between its members, and conversations in the shower were totally allowed, as long as none of the conversations caused problems.

Today, the curtains would see use, and for once, it wasn't by a new recruit who was embarrassed by his smaller frame. All three of them disappeared into a single stall, and Pyre turned on the water to a low pressure. This created a low-pitched whine and a rumbling from the pipes, with only a small amount of water spattering them.

"What's that for?" asked Shining.

"Drowns out the noise so nopony will hear us and ask to join in," explained Pyre, leaning his back against the wall. "Some stallions can be pretty curious about weird noises."

"How many times have you done this?"

"For the record, sir, I've never done this before in my life."

"Off the record?"

Pyre paused for a moment. "About once or twice a month. If they're going to be loud, I'll take them somewhere quieter, like my apartment."

"Enough talk," groaned Gala, dropping down to his knees. "If there's anything I've learned growing up in the Apple family, it's that actions are way more important. Whip 'em out, boys!"