Of Her Master...

by Eight Star

Rating: mature
Tags: Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Romance, Sex, Random
Length: 6283

Pickpear misses her Master Eight Star, leading to a sticky tale of two OCs.

With the nights in Gallopmere becoming more and more frustrating, Pickpear evacuates to the Everfree Forest in order to see her master Eight Star, a trip that she never regrets.

Confessions of love are but a fleeting thing spawned by desire. Is it all worth it? See you at the end...

Published 2012-12-08 04:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2012-12-08 04:00:01 UTC

For the Master

A pear-green unicorn trotted through the Ever-Free Forest. Her head was lowered, and her face was slightly enveloped by her chestnut colored mane. Energy emanated from around her short horn, as a glimmering white stone floated before her. Her rose eyes were locked with the stone, only leaving for a moment or two to avoid tripping over the old roots and rocks scattering the woodland floor.

At last, the stone changed to a golden color and she stopped. Scanning the area around her, she spotted a gnarled old tree. Approaching it, she put a hoof on the trunk as she got up on her hind legs, and with a stretch, she pressed against a large knot above her head. Suddenly, a thumping noise erupted from the tree, and she fell back down onto all four hooves. The front of the tree peeled away like curtains to reveal a hollow inside and a grey marble floor.

She took a deep breath and smiled. Soon, she thought, I will get to see him again. She walked onto the marble floor, and the tree slowly closed behind her. The gem changed from gold to green, and she levitated it into her pack as the floor began to move beneath her in the darkness. It dropped downwards, not slowly, but not too fast either. She looked around expectantly with wide eyes, but as the trip grew longer, she sighed lightly.

Once the platform came to a stop, she was at a doorway before a large circular room. She looked around a moment, surprised to see a lack of anypony other than her. The dull sandstone and desert colors of the floor and walls didn't really set a feeling of comfort, but she had gotten used to them. This was, in fact, the Chaos Sanctum, her home and place of employment in a way, but more importantly it was his home.

She cleared her throat and called out, though not loudly at all. "M... master?" After a moment without response, she wandered about the room and peered down the three corridors which branched out from it. Her horn glowed again as she pulled a parchment from her pack and looked it over. The entrance dropped me off in mid-sanctum, she thought, how odd.

As she wandered through the halls, she noticed a lack of activity. She decided that instead of going to her quarters, she would stop at the Master's Study, where she would hope to find Eight Star.

Upon arrival, she found the lights were off, and a strange scent was in the air. She heard heavy breathing nearby in the tell-tale manner of napping. How curious... she had never caught Eight Star napping in his own study. She resolved that she did not want to wake him, but at the same time she wondered how it looked for him to be sleeping. A blush rose to her cheeks as she imagined how cute he must look while asleep, and decided that she must look upon him!

As she crept towards the sounds of his slumber, her horn illuminated with a dim white light, shining with little more power than a candle light. So as she approached she saw him there, slumped back in his study chair in a position obtained only by one who has passed out with exhaustion. His long red hair enveloped his crimson face, and parted prominently at his sizable horn with its slight corkscrew shape. She tried to stifle her giggle as she noticed his mouth agape, and a trickle of drool beading at the left side of his mouth. As she noticed a sound escape her lips, she clapped her hoof up to her mouth. In hind-sight, she regretted the movement, as she made enough noise that his eye-lids twitched. She gasped and backed away, her horn's illumination going out quickly as she did, hoping not to have woken him.

A few moments passed, while she dared not even breath. Finally, she felt safe and let out a reassured sigh.

Then, his golden eyes glowed in the dark as they opened, and worry struck her.

Suddenly, Eight Star knew he was not alone in his study. He dove from his seat, and his hooves met her chest as he pushed her back to the floor. His horn burned with dark energy as weakness and sickness painfully enveloped her entire body. She let out a squeal of anguish as he growled dangerously. "Who dares?!"

She cringed back against the ground as fear and pain took over for a moment. If he were anyone else, she'd stay paralyzed. However, this was Eight Star, and she knew that if he knew who she was then he would never show such aggression against her. Her hooves lifted to his as her horn lit up with white illumination.

As soon as he saw her face, he stopped his spell and became stricken with worry! "Agent Pickpear!? Ah, what a silly thing to do, sneaking up on a sleeping sorcerer. I do hope you're not permanently damaged!"

She smiled lightly as she felt the pain stop as quickly as his spells did. "Of course not, Master. I'll be just fine." The darkness around them was calming to her, but only because it made her feel like they were closer in the small glow.

He gently got off of her and his horn flashed a white color. The rest of the room suddenly illuminated. Crystals hanging from the ceiling by steel chains gave off a bright white light. They weren't in a study, but a fairly sizable library with wooden shelves that reached three stories tall. He turned and trotted back towards his seat. "You are back fairly quickly, agent. Something wrong?"

Pickpear was slightly disappointed by the illumination, but understood. She stood up and shook her head. "No... actually, the mission was a lot easier than we thought. So I've already retrieved the package, Master."

He seemed distraught for a moment, and then he turned to face her, waving a hoof in her direction. "I told you, mares needn't call me Master. That's reserved for my apprentice."

She smiled, "It's a term that commands the respect you deserve, and for me... I use it as a term of endearment for you Master." They had this conversation every time. It was just one of the things they shared.

He sighed and shook his head as he turned back around and crawled back into his seat, sprawling onto his back without a word.

She could tell something was wrong. He always said "you'd best be careful with those terms, mare. I have a special somepony else." Plus, she never ever remembered him acting so hostile to being woken up. This time was different, and she couldn't bear to see him troubled, and certainly couldn't let anything come between him and her unique relationship with him. "Is everything alright? You're not acting yourself, and you appear worried."

He sighed and slumped in his seat, running a hoof back along the leather side of the chair. "You believe me worried? Perhaps I am. I over-reacted in public and Darkshine Dancer had me apprehended by the royal guard." Pickpear was astonished to hear such a thing, and Eight Star continued. "So of course, I got to spend some time in royal jail while they retrieved Princess Luna, who was more than a little vexed over the matter. She seemed upset I used my real name, but what matter is it of hers?" He sighed and twirled his other hoof in the air. "Well, long story short, me and Darkshine Dancer are at a bit of a bad time, you see."

She was surprised he opened up to her so quickly! Then again... perhaps this was her opportunity. She didn't want to get too brazen though. "I'm sure things will get better with you two again quickly. Just give it another chance. You've been together this long, after all."

"Yes!" He spouted, throwing his hooves in the air. "We have been together so long it is expected that we work it out and stay together! Do you even realize, Agent Pickpear, that this is probably the Twentieth time we've had such attrition?" He growled and pulled a hoof back, rubbing it against the side of his head with a scowl. "The crystal told me I needed a mare, but any time I ask it for help when such events arise, it can't offer but riddles. I'm beginning to think I was silly to take love advice from a rock!" At that moment, the crystal lights flickered and Eight Star looked up in worry for a moment. After the flickering stopped and calmed he commented, "It knows I'm right. Pony emotions are too far outside of its realm of understanding, even as it knows so much more about other things."

Pickpear gave him a warm smile as she approached, and gently rested her hoof on his thigh. "Perhaps like the crystal, you don't understand as well as you want to. Four hundred years isn't enough when you've only had the experience of one faithful mare."

Her voice was calm and soothing, and he smiled with a short sigh. "Never have I felt so good to hear of my own ignorance. Though, who else would stand by a monster as insane as myself?"

She didn't hesitate to act, rather than speak. Gently, she laid her head against his chest, closing her eyes with a smile. She had longed to be close to him like this.

He paused, astounded as she rubbed the side of her head against him. He seemed to snap out of it after more than a minute and he put a hoof to her back. "You? You, too, are but a child to the ways of love. What chance would we stand?"

"I am no child, Master." She lifted her head and looked into his eyes. "Remember that my appearance belies my age. I have dated before, but..." She wanted to tell him how she really felt. How he held her heart so tightly from all he'd done for her. Her personality began to fight her heart. What if he told her he didn't feel that way about her? It would create a most horribly awkward life for her with the order.

Eight Star, however, had other plans. He helped her get past her low confidence in many other situations, and so he would again with four well-planned words. "Prove it now, then."

She was stunned, and stared at him quietly, both of them stock still as her mind galloped through the possibilities of what kind of proof he was looking for. She rushed the history in her head, and he had never actually asked her to prove anything, not even her loyalty. It was like he knew he had everything from her, but this was something very different from that. Her heart pounded as she gazed into his golden eyes. She wanted to just embrace him and kiss him and never let go.

Well... what was he waiting for? What if it wasn't what he meant? Would he hate her forever?

No, of course not. Even if that's not what he meant, he was so incredibly understanding with her, and that was one of the things she loved about him.

So she threw herself on him! She was small for a pony as it was, so she had no reservations about embracing him and pressing her lips right to his. Eight Star met this with shock at first, the kind of shock that made his eyes shoot open wide. As he felt her soft young lips meet his, he smiled against her, and his eyes slowly closed to match hers. Even her stunted horn rubbed against his, and the tip gently caressed the curving bump of his.

The sudden burst of emotions was exciting for Eight Star, and try as he might to hide it, his body was plenty eager to show her just how excited he was.

Pinned against him, she groaned lightly into the kiss, as her hoof held the side of his face. Suddenly, she froze as she felt his length against her leg. She broke the kiss and lifted herself up, peeking down. Her blush deepened as she locked eyes with him. “M… master?”

At first, he was prepared to say something romantic… but instead he crossed his hooves and stated, “I can’t help it. You have not only your body, but your lips pressed against mine, and my body cannot ignore such a pretty mare.”

She smiled again and laid back against him, running her nose up along his neck and to his ear. “Then let’s not help it together.” She nosed her way back along his neck before taking a few soft nibbles.

He craned his neck and closed his eyes partially as she made attempts to arouse him further. It wasn’t doing much for him, but the fact that she was trying was exciting enough. Finally he rested a hoof on her shoulders and whispered, “Like this.” He pressed his lips to her neck and kissed it once before giving her loving bites to her sensitive neck.

His bites made her stop and shiver. They weren’t too hard, but enough to send waves of pleasure down her spine, and before she knew it, her excitement had more than doubled. She let out a whimper as her face became flushed, and that whimper drew out to end in a quiet shuddering moan.

He could smell it, like he had pushed her into a sudden heat… and that scent was enough to stiffen his shaft between them. The stiff member made her squeak as she pushed away a little. As her eyes gazed upon it, she became afraid. “Wh… it…” She swallowed and took a breath before asking, “Will it fit?”

He lifted her chin with his hoof to match gazes with her again. “My dear, it will only fit if you wish it to.”

She paused and looked into his eyes, then back down to his solid erection. Did she want it? Well, the answer was pretty clear. She’d wanted him inside of her for a long time now.

So, believing herself ready, she nodded affirmatively and pulled herself up into an awkward position on top of him. Eight Star was about to speak when she rose a hoof in an uncharacteristically brazen manner. “No. Let me do this.” Well, he leaned back and didn’t speak, but watched as she tried.

She rose her hips up and put her hooves on the back of the chair, a position which gave him a good view of her erect nipples. Looking behind herself, she used her levitation to raise his shaft into position where the head pressed against her youthful flesh.

Biting her bottom lip, she leaned her head down closer to his as she pushed back, trying to seat herself on his erection. She felt it push against her skin, as if everything was folding in, and she let out a short cry as she stopped. It didn’t feel like it was really going in and that wasn’t good.

She looked at him, and he looked like he was about to say something, but then she shot him a determined look. She tried bending and arching herself, and thrusting against it, but all she was getting was sore and slightly frustrated, and the way he flinched wasn’t productive.

She sighed and laid against him as she gave up for a moment, looking up into his eyes pleadingly. He gave her his trademark grin and said, “It’s not wet enough for that. You need to make it slippery first.”

She thought about what he said. She felt like she was a little bit moist, but not exactly wet, and he seemed mostly dry. Well, she wasn’t in the mood to disappoint, and she crawled back off of him slowly. Her hind legs made it to the floor, but her fore-hooves were still around his waist. She was going to get it wet, alright.

She looked up at him as she opened her mouth and slowly ran her tongue up along the underside of his shaft. She heard him take a sharp breath before advising her, “Just watch your teeth.”

Taking that as the go ahead, she focused her attention more, slathering him with her saliva. She slid her tongue up and down in long strokes before using her lips to lift the tip from his mid-rift and take a few inches into her mouth. She suckled on it with a gentle groan. The taste was unique, and she liked it. Her ears perked up as she heard the sounds of enjoyment he made, and she liked that as well. So she teased his tip with her tongue a little more, just to hear his sounds, and covered it in saliva. Suddenly after feeling his shaft convulse once, she tasted something new, something that didn’t really taste good at all, and she slipped her mouth off. Her tongue hung from her mouth and a strand of drool hung for a moment between them before it finally fell down to join the rest of the wet mess.

She gazed into his eyes and gave him a questioning glance down, and he replied to her silent question. “Not quite yet.” He slipped out of the chair, dripping carelessly on the floor as he trotted around her. “Keep that position.”

So instead of having her hooves around him, she had them pressed into the chair, afraid to move them an inch or disrupt what he was doing. She did feel him back there, gently pushing apart her hind legs a little, and as she complied she could feel her own arousal to his touch. Then she felt his nose gently massaging against her sensitive flesh, causing her to let out a quiet moan. It didn’t take long before she was feeling his tongue rubbing against her, flicking and rolling against her clit. It made her legs quiver as the sensation went up her spine, and she fought to keep herself upright. His tongue caressed and teased her tight folds, massaging and moistening them. He rolled his tongue and flicked it up and down through her folds quickly, and it was that kind of motion that made her moan louder. She couldn’t hold herself up, and collapsed onto her folded arms, pressing the side of her face against the chair. He even took a moment to spread attention to her sensitive nipples, lashing his tongue against them and causing her to quiver more. Going back, he pinched her supple flesh between his lips and sucked it outwards, working it around a little before releasing it again.

When he retracted his head, she was dripping wet, leaving slowly drooping strands of juice to drop to the floor. She panted slowly and turned her head to try and look back. His face met hers as he gave her another gentle kiss, and she moaned in appreciation. Slipping away from the kiss he said, “Now we are ready.”

Her face was flushed and her legs were quivering with want as she nodded back at him. “O… okay.”

Rather than try and move her, Eight Star went back around behind her, and she heard him grunt a little before she found his hooves on either side of her back. Oh how she’d waited for the day he would mount her! With delight, she pulled her tail out of the way and closed her eyes.

As he thrust slowly into her, the sensation was much different than before. There was a slippery parting sensation, which felt good. However, a large dose of pain hit her as he stretched her open when he went deeper and deeper. She buried her head against the chair and pinned her ears back with a whimper, but he didn’t hear it. He was moaning loudly at the tight feeling of being inside of her, and even groaned “Ohh, it feels so good to feel a mare so tight!”

His enjoyment was what she really wanted, and that made it feel a bit better. As he began to pull and thrust with his throbbing shaft, she felt a better sensation pour over her. The pain was melting away and all of it was turning into pleasure. Sheer, uninhibited pleasure! Her ears went back up as she moaned into the chair, drooling against it as he filled her up so well.

Her moans egged him on as soon as he heard them, and he began to pound his hips against her plot, ramming his massive shaft deep inside of her. “Ohh, Pickpear, you feel so good!”

She quivered underneath him, trying to keep her rear from collapsing under him as she moaned out louder and louder, losing her quiet nature in the moment. The sounds of her pleasure echoed through the library as the lights became slightly dimmer.

He continued to ram his hips against her, violently pounding her as he hunched against her body, his own grunting and groaning mixed in with her sounds. Then he closed his mouth to her neck and bit her lovingly, latching on and groaning through his teeth. She pulled her head from the chair and moaned into the air.

Her whole body tensed up, and her insides quivered, rippling with the pleasurable sensations. Her teeth clenched together and she let out a pressed whimper through her teeth.

He felt her clench around him, and couldn’t hold himself anymore! He offered one or two last forceful thrusts as he pushed her into the chair, and growled in an almost bestial manner as he erupted inside of her. Filling her more and more as he pushed against her, and as her insides pulled and milked at his strong, throbbing shaft.

She let out a whimpering sigh of happiness as she collapsed against the chair, and soon found him collapse against her. She was stuck, and he was a little bit heavy, but she didn’t care. Not now, at least. “Master, you show me the true meaning of pleasure.” She closed her eyes in satisfaction, and felt him get off her. The sensation of him leaving her made her one leg twitch, like a bit of a tickle, and she could feel she was dripping. Then she had the sensation of floating for a moment, and opened her eyes.

He had floated her above him, and he took the chair again. He gently laid her back down on top of him, and she immediately wrapped her arms around him and kissed him deeply. She even felt the connection of their horns touching lightly, and smiled as her eyes closed in the loving embrace.

Her eyes opened slowly and she saw a dim grey, and had the strange taste of cotton in her mouth. Her eyes almost closed again before suddenly shooting open. She had her lips locked with her pillow! Her horn was rubbing against one of the corners of it, and she had both fore-hooves wrapped tightly around it. As she slowly pushed it away, and leaned up in bed to take a look around, she noticed she was in the Boar's Tusk Tavern in Gallopmere... and it figured!

It must have all been a dream, but what a realistic dream it was, she thought. She smelled the strange scent lingering in the air that she smelled when she entered the sanctum study, and she still wondered what it could be.

Then, a glow caught her peripheral. Looking over, she saw her calling gem was glowing with magenta energy. It hadn't done that before, but when she moved out of her bed, the stone flashed gold and then suddenly went dim. "Right... you're going back in the bag." She commented out loud as she levitated the stone back into her pouch. That dream... so vivid, so realistic, she felt every bit of it. Was this the crystal's doing? If so, did Eight Star have the same dream?

She smiled to herself and began to pack her bags. "I think a visit to the sanctum would be nice. I need to restock on herbs, anyway."

[END]

For the Master - Minus the Sex

A pear-green unicorn trotted through the Ever-Free Forest. Her head was lowered, and her face was slightly enveloped by her chestnut colored mane. Energy emanated from around her short horn, as a glimmering white stone floated before her. Her rose eyes were locked with the stone, only leaving for a moment or two to avoid tripping over the old roots and rocks scattering the woodland floor.

At last, the stone changed to a golden color and she stopped. Scanning the area around her, she spotted a gnarled old tree. Approaching it, she put a hoof on the trunk as she got up on her hind legs, and with a stretch, she pressed against a large knot above her head. Suddenly, a thumping noise erupted from the tree, and she fell back down onto all four hooves. The front of the tree peeled away like curtains to reveal a hollow inside and a grey marble floor.

She took a deep breath and smiled. Soon, she thought, I will get to see him again. She walked onto the marble floor, and the tree slowly closed behind her. The gem changed from gold to green, and she levitated it into her pack as the floor began to move beneath her in the darkness. It dropped downwards, not slowly, but not too fast either. She looked around expectantly with wide eyes, but as the trip grew longer, she sighed lightly.

Once the platform came to a stop, she was at a doorway before a large circular room. She looked around a moment, surprised to see a lack of anypony other than her. The dull sandstone and desert colors of the floor and walls didn't really set a feeling of comfort, but she had gotten used to them. This was, in fact, the Chaos Sanctum, her home and place of employment in a way, but more importantly it was his home.

She cleared her throat and called out, though not loudly at all. "M... master?" After a moment without response, she wandered about the room and peered down the three corridors which branched out from it. Her horn glowed again as she pulled a parchment from her pack and looked it over. The entrance dropped me off in mid-sanctum, she thought, how odd.

As she wandered through the halls, she noticed a lack of activity. She decided that instead of going to her quarters, she would stop at the Master's Study, where she would hope to find Eight Star.

Upon arrival, she found the lights were off, and a strange scent was in the air. She heard heavy breathing nearby in the tell-tale manner of napping. How curious... she had never caught Eight Star napping in his own study. She resolved that she did not want to wake him, but at the same time she wondered how it looked for him to be sleeping. A blush rose to her cheeks as she imagined how cute he must look while asleep, and decided that she must look upon him!

As she crept towards the sounds of his slumber, her horn illuminated with a dim white light, shining with little more power than a candle light. So as she approached she saw him there, slumped back in his study chair in a position obtained only by one who has passed out with exhaustion. His long red hair enveloped his crimson face, and parted prominently at his sizable horn with its slight corkscrew shape. She tried to stifle her giggle as she noticed his mouth agape, and a trickle of drool beading at the left side of his mouth. As she noticed a sound escape her lips, she clapped her hoof up to her mouth. In hind-sight, she regretted the movement, as she made enough noise that his eye-lids twitched. She gasped and backed away, her horn's illumination going out quickly as she did, hoping not to have woken him.

A few moments passed, while she dared not even breath. Finally, she felt safe and let out a reassured sigh.

Then, his golden eyes glowed in the dark as they opened, and worry struck her.

Suddenly, Eight Star knew he was not alone in his study. He dove from his seat, and his hooves met her chest as he pushed her back to the floor. His horn burned with dark energy as weakness and sickness painfully enveloped her entire body. She let out a squeal of anguish as he growled dangerously. "Who dares?!"

She cringed back against the ground as fear and pain took over for a moment. If he were anyone else, she'd stay paralyzed. However, this was Eight Star, and she knew that if he knew who she was then he would never show such aggression against her. Her hooves lifted to his as her horn lit up with white illumination.

As soon as he saw her face, he stopped his spell and became stricken with worry! "Agent Pickpear!? Ah, what a silly thing to do, sneaking up on a sleeping sorcerer. I do hope you're not permanently damaged!"

She smiled lightly as she felt the pain stop as quickly as his spells did. "Of course not, Master. I'll be just fine." The darkness around them was calming to her, but only because it made her feel like they were closer in the small glow.

He gently got off of her and his horn flashed a white color. The rest of the room suddenly illuminated. Crystals hanging from the ceiling by steel chains gave off a bright white light. They weren't in a study, but a fairly sizable library with wooden shelves that reached three stories tall. He turned and trotted back towards his seat. "You are back fairly quickly, agent. Something wrong?"

Pickpear was slightly disappointed by the illumination, but understood. She stood up and shook her head. "No... actually, the mission was a lot easier than we thought. So I've already retrieved the package, Master."

He seemed distraught for a moment, and then he turned to face her, waving a hoof in her direction. "I told you, mares needn't call me Master. That's reserved for my apprentice."

She smiled, "It's a term that commands the respect you deserve, and for me... I use it as a term of endearment for you Master." They had this conversation every time. It was just one of the things they shared.

He sighed and shook his head as he turned back around and crawled back into his seat, sprawling onto his back without a word.

She could tell something was wrong. He always said "you'd best be careful with those terms, mare. I have a special somepony else." Plus, she never ever remembered him acting so hostile to being woken up. This time was different, and she couldn't bear to see him troubled, and certainly couldn't let anything come between him and her unique relationship with him. "Is everything alright? You're not acting yourself, and you appear worried."

He sighed and slumped in his seat, running a hoof back along the leather side of the chair. "You believe me worried? Perhaps I am. I over-reacted in public and Darkshine Dancer had me apprehended by the royal guard." Pickpear was astonished to hear such a thing, and Eight Star continued. "So of course, I got to spend some time in royal jail while they retrieved Princess Luna, who was more than a little vexed over the matter. She seemed upset I used my real name, but what matter is it of hers?" He sighed and twirled his other hoof in the air. "Well, long story short, me and Darkshine Dancer are at a bit of a bad time, you see."

She was surprised he opened up to her so quickly! Then again... perhaps this was her opportunity. She didn't want to get too brazen though. "I'm sure things will get better with you two again quickly. Just give it another chance. You've been together this long, after all."

"Yes!" He spouted, throwing his hooves in the air. "We have been together so long it is expected that we work it out and stay together! Do you even realize, Agent Pickpear, that this is probably the Twentieth time we've had such attrition?" He growled and pulled a hoof back, rubbing it against the side of his head with a scowl. "The crystal told me I needed a mare, but any time I ask it for help when such events arise, it can't offer but riddles. I'm beginning to think I was silly to take love advice from a rock!" At that moment, the crystal lights flickered and Eight Star looked up in worry for a moment. After the flickering stopped and calmed he commented, "It knows I'm right. Pony emotions are too far outside of its realm of understanding, even as it knows so much more about other things."

Pickpear gave him a warm smile as she approached, and gently rested her hoof on his thigh. "Perhaps like the crystal, you don't understand as well as you want to. Four hundred years isn't enough when you've only had the experience of one faithful mare."

Her voice was calm and soothing, and he smiled with a short sigh. "Never have I felt so good to hear of my own ignorance. Though, who else would stand by a monster as insane as myself?"

She didn't hesitate to act, rather than speak. Gently, she laid her head against his chest, closing her eyes with a smile. She had longed to be close to him like this.

He paused, astounded as she rubbed the side of her head against him. He seemed to snap out of it after more than a minute and he put a hoof to her back. "You? You, too, are but a child to the ways of love. What chance would we stand?"

"I am no child, Master." She lifted her head and looked into his eyes. "Remember that my appearance belies my age. I have dated before, but..." She wanted to tell him how she really felt. How he held her heart so tightly from all he'd done for her. Her personality began to fight her heart. What if he told her he didn't feel that way about her? It would create a most horribly awkward life for her with the order.

Eight Star, however, had other plans. He helped her get past her low confidence in many other situations, and so he would again with four well-planned words. "Prove it now, then."

She was stunned, and stared at him quietly, both of them stock still as her mind galloped through the possibilities of what kind of proof he was looking for. She rushed the history in her head, and he had never actually asked her to prove anything, not even her loyalty. It was like he knew he had everything from her, but this was something very different from that. Her heart pounded as she gazed into his golden eyes. She wanted to just embrace him and kiss him and never let go.

Well... what was he waiting for? What if it wasn't what he meant? Would he hate her forever?

No, of course not. Even if that's not what he meant, he was so incredibly understanding with her, and that was one of the things she loved about him.

So she threw herself on him! She was small for a pony as it was, so she had no reservations about embracing him and pressing her lips right to his. Eight Star met this with shock at first, the kind of shock that made his eyes shoot open wide. As he felt her soft young lips meet his, he smiled against her, and his eyes slowly closed to match hers. Even her stunted horn rubbed against his, and the tip gently caressed the curving bump of his.

Her eyes opened slowly and she saw a dim grey, and had the strange taste of cotton in her mouth. Her eyes almost closed again before suddenly shooting open. She had her lips locked with her pillow! Her horn was rubbing against one of the corners of it, and she had both fore-hooves wrapped tightly around it. As she slowly pushed it away, and leaned up in bed to take a look around, she noticed she was in the Boar's Tusk Tavern in Gallopmere... and it figured!

It must have all been a dream, but what a realistic dream it was, she thought. She smelled the strange scent lingering in the air that she smelled when she entered the sanctum study, and she still wondered what it could be.

Then, a glow caught her peripheral. Looking over, she saw her calling gem was glowing with magenta energy. It hadn't done that before, but when she moved out of her bed, the stone flashed gold and then suddenly went dim. "Right... you're going back in the bag." She commented out loud as she levitated the stone back into her pouch. That dream... so vivid, so realistic, she felt every bit of it. Was this the crystal's doing? If so, did Eight Star have the same dream?

She smiled to herself and began to pack her bags. "I think a visit to the sanctum would be nice. I need to restock on herbs, anyway."

[END]