“...I don’t think I’ve seen a stallion get that flustered since Sandbar!” Celestia giggled. “It was actually kind of adorable.”

“Wow, sounds like you’re getting swarmed by mares and stallions of all kinds.” Fluttershy said with a cheeky smile.

Fluttershy and Celestia sitting outside on one of the Crystal Castle’s balconies, taking in the view and laughing about their month so far.

“Well, it is one of the few perks of the challenge.” Celestia leaned in closer towards Fluttershy, giving her a playful nudge. “Though I’m surprised you aren’t having the same problem.”

Fluttershy let out a bashful giggle. “I used to…” Her smile faded with a heavy sigh. “But those plans got eaten up.”

“Ah, right. I heard about that,” Celestia solemnly nodded. “Well, I don’t exactly have his knack for impossibilities, but I can try my best to fulfill some of those fantasies you had planned. Even if it’s with different company.”

Fluttershy looked up at Celestia, her wings getting a flitter of excitement and hesitation. “Oh, are you sure there’s going to be room for me?”

“Only if you don’t mind Sandbar gushing about how big I am…or the taste of chocolate cake,” the princess winked.

“Heeheehee, I wouldn’t mind, but Rainbow Dash might…” Fluttershy giggled.

As the two laughed and shared their moment, they were joined by their host walking in.

“Sorry about the wait, ladies!” Shining Armor said. “Just had to…finish a few things first.”

Celestia and Fluttershy turned their heads towards the stallion getting their attention, then their attention quickly trailed downwards to his attention.

“Are you sure? You don’t look finished to me,” Celestia snickered.

“Yeah yeah, I know!” Shining grumbled, stiffly walking towards them. “The damn shield is acting up again!”

“Is it…supposed to make you throb like that?” A transfixed Fluttershy asked with hungry eyes.

Shining shot Fluttershy an exasperated look. “It’s supposed to make things easier, but I’ve been going crazy trying to make sense of all these random tingles! Some days it’s working as intended, but then it suddenly feels like I’m being sucked off and I can never figure out why!”

Celestia lowered her head to try and identify a problem while simultaneously getting a better look at the goods. “Hmm, well, as the creator of the spell, you’re the one who has the most knowledge on how it works, but I can try my best to identify any problems I can spot.”

“Ohhh, you’d be a lifesaver, princess!” Shining sighed in relief, but backed his hind legs away from how close she was getting. “I think the worst of it is over. What were you two talking about before I interrupted?”

“Well, Princess Celestia was just telling me about her meeting with Feather Bangs yesterday!” Fluttershy explained.

“Oh yeah? Lemmie guess…” Shining cleared his throat, tossing his mane in a flippant manner before closing his eyes halfway. “I know you’re a princess, but I wanna treat you like a queen.”

Celestia burst into giggles. “That’s exactly the line he used!”

“Yeah, he used that one on Twily already,” Shining nodded. “That pony’s really getting around, huh?”

“But I think it’s admirable at least,” Celestia shrugged. “Aside from Cadence and Chrysalis, I haven’t seen someone participating in No Clop that’s been so dedicated to love.”

“No kidding. I think he’s hit on every female in the competition.”

Fluttershy briefly thought back through everything that happened to her in the month so far. “Really? I don’t think he’s met up with me yet.”

“Well, get ready then, I’m sure once you get back to Ponyville he’s gonna tell you how he wants to make your heart flutter or whatever,” Shining snickered. “Bonus points if he flips his mane before he actually says it.”

“Oh gosh…” Fluttershy put her hoof to her chest, unsure whether to feel embarrassed or appalled.

“I think I’m starting to understand why Cadence invited him to participate this year,” Celestia said.

Shining nodded with just a twinge of jealousy in his eyes. “Yep, think I realized that about a week ago.”

Fluttershy scrunched her muzzle while recalling the current roster of participants. “But…why would she invite Chrysalis, then?”

Both mares turned their heads towards Shining, who thought for a few seconds before shrugging in resignation. “I’m…sure she’s got a plan in mind, but I’m kinda terrified to find out what exactly it is.”

“Well, you and Princess Cadence have done a great job hosting this event so far!” Fluttershy said. “I really liked all those little crystal hearts with all our faces in them!”

“Indeed. I also appreciate how you two have handled the eliminations this year, making them less…” Celestia held on that last word, hissing as she quickly tried to describe things as delicately as possible. “...Intrusive.”

“Y-Yeah, it’s nice just finding out when it happens on your own,” Fluttershy chimed in. “...And not seeing it unfold when you’re in the middle of eating.”

“Or sleeping,” Celestia said with a hint of a smirk.

“Yeah…At least we know Cadence doesn’t have recordings of all the eliminations like Twilight would,” Fluttershy shrugged with a reassured smile.

Shining’s sharp inhale through his teeth quickly shot down Fluttershy’s confidence.

“...Really?”

Celestia also turned towards Shining with a look of bewilderment. “Yeah, did Twilight secretly help out this year?”

“Hey, it’s only still images!” Shining said, as if his defense made anything that much better. “It’s not like Cady can put a crystal heart on a projector to make it easier to get off on. I can show you two what it looks like if you want.”

A little bit of reassurance washed over the two, and a bit of excited curiosity started to take over.

“Well, since you’re offering…”

“I…kinda wanna see, too…”

“Yeah, speaking of, Tempest got eliminated yesterday,” Shining said matter-of-factly. “It was…surprising, to say the least.”

An eager spark lit up Celestia’s eyes. “Ooh, really? What happened? Risky edging? Sabotage?”

“You’d have to ask her yourself what happened, though if it’s anything close to how I’m picturing it, she’d rather die than admit anything. But I think I could put together some of the details from what I saw in the crystal.” Shining Armor gave a quick glance to Fluttershy before motioning Celestia to lower her head.

As Shining Armor whispered his theory in Celestia’s ear, Fluttershy watched the princess’s face go from surprised to amazed to curious to giddy all in the span of a few seconds.

Holding back some giggles, Celestia pointed her hoof towards Fluttershy. “Oh, that’s amazing! Though I thought if anyone were to go out that way, it’d be her.”

“...Huh?”

Shining walked over and whispered all the little details he knew in Fluttershy’s ear.

Pomf!

“...Buh.”

“Envious, Fluttershy?” Celestia teased. “A fantasy of yours perhaps?”

Fluttershy’s mouth opened, but only a timid squeak came out. The poor pegasi’s face was quickly turning redder by the second.

“Perhaps you’d like something…” Celestia spread out her large, fluffy wings to show off and entice. “...more?”

Before Fluttershy fainted on the spot, Shining intervened, trying to push Celestia’s wings back down to her sides. “C’mon Tia, let’s not put Shy out of commission just yet, alright?”

“Fine, fine,” Celestia sighed as she folded her wings. “Let’s go see how silly Twilight’s o-face looked this year.”

As Shining started to walk back inside, Celestia quickly turned back towards Fluttershy before the stallion took notice.

“So? What do you say, Fluttershy?” Celestia said, waggling her eyebrows. “You, me, Shining Armor, and a dungeon’s worth of endless possibilities…”

“It…sounds wonderful, Princess Celestia,” Fluttershy nervously giggled. “But that’s a dream for another day.”

Sandbar let out a brisk shiver as the chilled autumn air hit his fur. He let out a sharp exhale as he started trotting in place, trying to warm himself up before setting off into town square.

As he walked down the bustling roads, he noticed a familiar friend looking rather worried. The stallion kept turning his head, as if constantly on the lookout. “Yo! You alright, Feather Bangs?”

Feather Bangs’s ears perked up, turning to where Sandbar was calling him. “Oh hey!” He immediately started trotting towards the other stallion. “What’s up, dude?”

“Could ask you the same thing. You seemed lost back there, were ya looking for something? Maybe someone?” Sandbar chuckled.

“Hah, ya caught me,” Feather Bangs shrugged, casually laughing off the ribbing. “I was trying to find Fluttershy, actually. I know the mare keeps to herself, but I still wanted to chat with her. Do you know where she is, by any chance?”

“Ah, you’re kinda out of luck there. Professor Fluttershy’s at the Crystal Empire right now. Should be back in Ponyville in a couple of days.”

“Really? Dang.” Feather Bangs dejectedly kicked the dirt path in front of him. “She was the last one I wanted to talk with, too.”

Sandbar’s eyebrows raised. “Last one, huh? You really went and talked with every other eligible female in the past…three weeks?”

“Mmhm!” Feather Bangs nodded, puffing out his chest and running a hoof through his mane. “Wasn’t easy, but I’m almost done!”

“So…after you talk to Fluttershy, what then?”

“Then comes the hard part, Sandbar.” Feather Bangs wrapped his hoof around Sandbar. “Choosing who I wanna be with.”

Sandbar couldn’t help but sputter out a laugh. “You’re the only one I know who’s using No Clop to intentionally find love.”

“Well it’s not like it’s a crazy idea, right? After all the stories I’ve heard, I might as well take a shot at it, you know?”

“Yeah, I guess…” Sandbar sighed, smirking and shaking his head. “Still, that’s a lot of girls, have you at least narrowed down the list?”

Feather Bangs tapped his chin. “I had to leave out all the ones that are already taken. I don’t wanna get in between what you and Yona got going on, for example.”

Sandbar chuckled. “Appreciate it. Though I’m pretty sure some couples wouldn’t mind having a third join them.”

“It’s…huh…” Feather Bangs’s expression dropped. “Even with some of the eliminations, it’s still not an easy pick. I wanna say…Silverstream, Twilight, or Harshwhinny? But even then, I still have my doubts.”

Immediately, Sandbar started to entertain the thought of Silverstream and Feather Bangs together. He wasn’t against the idea, but it was pretty funny to picture the two on a candlelit dinner. His shoulders started to bounce as he tried to stifle his laughter.

“Hey, c’mon, it could happen!” Feather Bangs grumbled.

“Sorry! Sorry!” Sandbar giggled. “Just…I was imagining Silverstream slow dancing with you. Any other candidates? Who do you think you made the best first impression with?”

“Oh, that’s easy! Princess Celestia, no question.”

Sandbar smiled warmly. “She’s pretty great, isn’t she?”

Feather Bangs let out a longing sigh. “Yeah…”

“I mean, she’s majestic, beautiful, kind…”

“Wise, playful, energetic…”

“Big…”

Feather Bangs did a double-take. “Uh, r-right…”

“Well if you’re so blown away by her, why don’t you give her a shot?”

“Oh, like she’d ever be in a relationship with me!” Feather Bangs sputtered. “I mean, she’s the ruler of Equestria, ya know? Surely her standards are really REALLY high!” His hooves started to tremble and waver underneath him. “I mean…I-I could never!”

Sandbar gave Feather Bangs a light punch in the shoulder. “Hey, you never know. I managed to score with her in the orgy a couple years ago and I’m still riding that high! You bet your flank I’m gonna do it again this year if we both make it!”

“I…” Feather Bangs’s voice cracked as he fidgeted around. “I guess it’s worth a shot.”

“There ya go!” Sandbar clapped. “So, there’s your long term plans, what are you gonna do at the orgy?”

“...Uh…”

Author's Note

Alright alright, I'm done with my brand of bullshit for now.