Apple Scented Love
A ShinyMac tale
Shining Armour looked around the cramped quarters he shared with his billet mate, a grouchy pegasus called Shear Feather. Having competed basic training a few weeks before, he had been posted to the small village of Roanbay, a fairly rustic hamlet that was a major agricultural producer for the surrounding areas, even going so far as to being a primary supplier of grain to Canterlot itself. The Apple clan held a controlling interest in the land, but there were plenty of smaller producers that tilled for wheat or other foodstuffs. Its position as the primary food producer for the region had warranted that the town received a small contingent of royal guards, even though it was a peaceful place that had never experienced more than minor theft as far as crime went. Many recruits would be sent here as an easy first post and to test how they could handle the monotony that made up most of a soldiers life. Some, like Shear Feather would become irritable, but Shining felt that it was a good time to gain some experience and impress the higher ups. It was by standing fast in his duties that he would be able to earn the respect of his fellow guards and maybe one day see his way to wearing that captains armour.
His quarters were fairly spartan, but that was the way he liked it. A simple bed, covered in a clean set of sheets served as his sleeping arrangements. Beside that, there was a desk and a cushion for dealing with the reports that he would have to write as part of his stay. On the other side of the room, Shear had brought in and set up a dense layer of clouds to serve as his bedding.
“Hey Shear, what’s with the clouds man? Your bed not good enough?” Shining asked his roommate good naturedly. It was important that they get along; they would be sharing this room for the next few months at least.
Shear was stretched out on his cloud, which hovered just above his bed. He raised his head up and looked over to Shining. “You drills just wouldn’t understand. Ya gotta be a pegasus or a griffon to ‘get’ clouds. Once you go cloud, a bed like yours just doesn’t cut it.”
Shining scowled slightly at Shear’s casual usage of the term ‘drill’. Drill was short for drill head, a slang term for a unicorn and one that usually had negative meaning. Shining was proud of his horn and didn’t consider his magic to be a crutch. He could go hoof to hoof with any recruit in his training platoon any day of the week. If Shear was willing to call him that to his face, then it was going to be a long tour out here. Still, Shining would bear it out. He wasn’t going to go to the sergeant for something this small, as the sergeant would just tell him to ‘pony up and tough it out.’
“Whatever, I’m going out on patrol,” Shining said, getting up off his bed and walking over to the armour rack by the door. While he didn’t think that he would actually need it, it was regulation that a royal guard be in uniform at all times when on duty, and he could always use the extra acclimatizing to the weight. He never knew when he would have to wear his barding for an extended time, and he tried to wear it at every opportunity so his body would be used to it.
His armour was nothing special, just a suit of mail with a plate overlay. Functional, but nothing to look at. He wouldn’t get the fancier armours until he began to progress in rank. Shining slipped the chest plate on and grabbed his helmet with his magic. Shear watched him leave, but didn’t get up from his cloud.
Shining stepped out into the bright sun and put his helmet on, taking a moment to line up the horn hole before securing it on his head. The metal was cold, but he knew that it would quickly heat up once he was wearing it. Shading his eyes with a hoof, Shining looked around at the town that was to serve as his home for the next year. Roanbay was mostly farm houses and storage silos. The guard house was just a set of converted grain stores and sheds that had been built together. It was just big enough to house a dozen guards at a pinch, though the squad rarely had more than five or six ponies assigned to it at any one time.
Movement in the sky above drew Shining’s attention and he looked up to see an acid green pegasus shifting clouds around towards a series of paddocks just outside of the town. Earth ponies tilled the ground and one appeared to be directing the pegasus to shift the cloud towards the far end of the paddock. With a swift kick, the pegasus knocked the cloud from the air and it dissolved into water which soaked the field below. Shining has seen this kind of work every day since his posting here a few days before. Honest work for honest rewards.
Shining turned away from the farm work and began to walk in the opposite direction. Here and there he could see ponies pulling farm equipment around or digging up crops. One thing he noticed was that there were no other unicorns around. Shining had known that Roanbay was an earth pony settlement, like many of the farming communities, but he hadn’t expected there to be no unicorns around. Where there was farming, there were Pegasi to move clouds around and control the weather, but unicorns were often the odd ones out in places like this. Most communities had at least a hedgewitch on hoof, a unicorn who trained in healing magic to mend cuts and small injuries sustained through farm labour, but Shining hadn’t seen any evidence of such in the time that he had been posted here.
Outside of Canterlot, unicorns were sometimes regarded as arrogant or entitled, thinking that because they could use magic, that instantly made them the superior race. Most of the ponies he had talked to had seemed pleasant enough, though there were a few older earth ponies who clearly didn’t like him. If there was some type of discrimination at work here, he would just have to bear it and work hard to change their minds. He resolved to ask about that at some point and filed it away under ‘curious’ before returning to his rounds.
Shining made a slow circle around the town, taking time to stop in with each farming family and inquire if they had any issues to which he could help. Most of them responded happily that they were doing fine, or that they just needed an extra pegasus for a moment or two to shift a cloud around. On one of the farms, he caught sight of a pretty young mare with what looked like three fried somethings on her flank. Her green hair was tied back in a functional tail. She winked at him when she realised that he was staring before turning to start planting a new line of vegetables. Shining could have sworn that she flicked her tail to the side as she did so, giving him a momentary flash of pink under her mustard yellow coat. It was over in a flash and she didn’t make any other signals towards him as she tended to her field.
Shining turned away and returned to his rounds. If that mare really was teasing him, then he would have plenty of time to try and seal the deal over the coming months.
Shining’s route took him to the second largest farm in the area, one which provided the barley used in fermentation of alcoholic drinks. One of the workers there repeated the same requests as the other farms; they could use a pegasus at some point. Rather than just promise to send a pegasus over when he had a chance, Shining had an idea of how he could try to help out. The Barley family’s water reserve was about to run dry, and all the towns pegasi were occupied for the next few days with new planting and watering detail. The Barley family’s farm was on the list, but it was a few days down. Rather than go looking for a pegasus to do the job now, Shining closed his eyes and concentrated on a weather spell he had learned while teaching his sister before she enrolled at Celestia’s school for gifted unicorns.
Heh, the little tyke probably knows more magic than I do by now. Shining though as he remembered the letter he had gotten from his parents. Twilight had somehow managed to attract the eye of Celestia herself and became her personal student. That guaranteed a first class magical education for his little sister and almost certainly some kind of ennobling for his parents. Sir and Lady Sparkle fitted them well. Shining only wished that he could have been there himself, but he was away on exercises at the time.
Shining’s horn glowed softly as he gathered his magic around him, drawing the water vapour from the surrounding air and compressing it into a moderate sized storm cloud above him. Using his telekinetics he started to shift the cloud towards the almost empty pony while several of the workers looked on at him in amazement.
Things were going smoothly until Shining felt a hoof punch him square in the jaw, right where the helmet ended, shattering his concentration and launching him towards the ground. Above him, the cloud instantly dissipated in a surge of static magical discharge. Rolling for a moment, Shining’s combat training kicked in and he rapidly rose to his hooves and assumed a combat stance, head down and horn pointed directly forward in case he needed to gore or launch a beam spell. What he saw was a tan earth pony stallion holding almost the same position. Behind him were the same workers who had been standing around before, many of which now had less than friendly looks in their eyes. Shining let his eyes roam over the lead pony, noting his deep brown eyes and single stalk of barley as his cutie mark. The stallion was glaring at him as if Shining had just tried to screw his daughter in front of him.
“We don’t need your stinking magic tainting our crops, boy. You filthy drillers think you’re so high and mighty. This town doesn’t need your help and we sure as hay don’t want it. We said we needed a pegasus, not one of your breed. Get off my land, and don’t come back,” the earth pony spat at Shining. The workers behind him echoed similar sentiments or just looked at him with undisguised hate. Shining looked at the group and briefly considered trying to take them all. He was sure that he could do it, a quick levitation spell and half of them would be stuck, then a swift buck to this stallion who was clearly the leader. Shining was sure that once the leader fell, the others would back down. He had excelled at shield spells at the academy, so he wasn’t worried about taking a hit himself, now that he was ready for it.
Well, this answers why there are no unicorns around here Shining though to himself. Eventually he released his stance and made for the edge of the farm, making sure to keep a passive magical sensor net behind him, just in case one of the workers decided to make a move. It just wasn’t worth making even more of an enemy out of this group now. He was going to be here a long time, and making an enemy for life in his first week wasn’t the way to go. Even as he left, Shining could feel the group’s eyes boring into him all the way up to the edge of their farm.
Shining made directly for his quarters in a huff, not bothering to finish off the rest of his rounds. He slammed the door open with his magic, causing a crack to appear near one of the hinges from the force of his grip. Shear Feather, who had been sleeping on his cloud jumped up and instantly took to flapping around in a panic. “Where’s the fire, save the foals first,” he shouted in confusion before zeroing in on Shining who just flopped down on his bed, armour and all, which caused the bed to creak under the added weight.
Shear calmed down and floated down to the ground before trotting over to Shining. “Hey man, what’s wrong? You left here like it was graduation day.”
Shining looked over to his partner. Shear was being unusually concerned. Maybe Shining had misjudged the pegasus. “I just noticed something while I was out. I’m the only unicorn in this town. I found a bunch of hicks who made it very clear that my kind wasn’t welcome here. I knew that unicorns had a bad rep in some places, but I didn’t think it was this bad.”
“Who was it?” Shear asked.
“Didn’t catch his name, but he was a tan earth pony out on the barley farm,” Shining admitted.
“Oh, yea, him. Called Verdant Green. We were warned about him at basic when we got this post remember. Local troublemaker, views anything not an earth pony and unicorns in particular as inferior. He tolerates pegasi because he needs them for weather management, but unicorns are scum to him. You didn’t do anything foolish like use your magic around him did you?”
Shining sighed, rubbing his jaw, “Yea, I did. He clipped me pretty good for it too.” Shining vaguely remembered somepony mentioning the name before he shipped out here, but he hadn’t been paying attention. His thoughts had been focused on how good he would look in a captain’s chest plate. Seems he was paying for it now.
Shear gave him a quick pat on his armoured shoulder. “Relax and forget about Verdant, I’m sure it ain’t that bad. You just gotta earn their respect first.” Shear’s comments echoed his own earlier thoughts and it was probably the right course of action. Shining would just have to work hard and earn a place, show these farmers what a unicorn could do any maybe change their minds.
The problem was that they may not want to change their minds.
That evening marked the start of a two day pass for Shining and he planned on getting in a few drinks before polishing up on a few of his spellbooks and getting in some sparring practice with some of the other recruits. Just because he wasn’t on duty, it didn’t mean he was excused from all responsibilities.
Grabbing a bit bag, Shining walked out of his room and towards the largest structure in the town. The Town hall also had the bar attached to it, and it was fairly well stocked with a selection of alcohols. Some of them were imported, but most of the available drinks were made from the town’s local produce.
Shining reached the bar and wandered inside, taking a look around at the selection of ponies already in various states of drunkenness. To his dismay, he recognised Verdant and a few of the other farm hooves nursing a bottle of the local wares. Shining wasn’t about to turn around and leave, else he would never hear the end of it, so he strode up to the bar to order something.
“What do you want?” the barkeep asked him. Shining couldn’t tell if it was merely a drink order or a more general question.
“I’ll take a, uh, got any Apple family ciders?” The Apple family had an orchard here, so it wasn’t unreasonable.
“Yea, 6 bits,” the barkeep replied, and produced the requested drink. Shining hoofed over the amount and grabbed his mug and took a swig, the cold liquid calming his nerves followed by the light after kick of the alcohol.
Jeering laughter from Verdant’s table caught his attention and Shining turned to look. He saw Verdant approaching him with an empty bottle in his mouth. Verdant made it up to the bar and put the bottle on the counter before motioning for a refill. “Well, will you look at that? The drill can’t handle his drink,” Verdant said as he picked up a full bottle of amber coloured liquid. “This here is whisky made and distilled from one hundred percent pure earth pony grown grain, not that swill your Canterlot fops drink. I doubt that you could even handle one shot of this stuff before it upsets your delicate constitution,” Verdant field called out. Around him, his posse made jeers and hoots. Shining didn’t say anything, but he was fuming inside. All he had wanted was a quiet drink. “Oh, what’s the matter? Too good to try a real stallion’s drink?” Verdant continued.
Shining stomped his hoof down on the floor of the bar, he had finally had enough. He was going to settle this now, one way or the other. “I’ll take you on, any time, any day,” he snorted. His horn glowed slightly as he allowed his frustration to vent through it. No wonder there were no unicorns in this town if this was how they were treated.
That got a gasp from the ponies around him. Clearly none of them had actually expected him to accept the challenge, but a space was quickly made at one of the tables.
“Fillies and Gentlecolts, the challenge has been accepted. Who here will defend the honour of our settlement against this drill head?” Verdant asked, looking around.
Coward Shining though. Not even willing to face me himself
Most of the patrons of the bar didn’t seem all that impressed with Verdant. Clearly he had tried this trick before.
“Ah will,” came a deep voice from the back of the crowd. Everypony parted to reveal a hulking red stallion with a shaggy blond mane. Shining got a quick look at his flank as he approached. His sparkling green half apple marked him as a member of the Apple clan, and he looked every inch a farm pony. His chest was almost solid muscle and Shining could easily imagine this brute dragging a plough around all day without breaking a sweat.
The stallion came to a rest before Shining. He stood at least a good half head taller that Shining did and Shining found himself having to look up in order to meet the stallion’s eyes. Shining estimated that this stallion was maybe a year or two older than him, and not quite fully grown.
“Names Big McIntosh, but ya’ll can just call me Big Mac fer short. Ah’m here overseein’ tha new plantin’ goin’ on in tha Apple orchard, but ah figure ah can put ya in yer place,” the stallion said. Shining noticed that his accent was vastly different from the other Apples he had met. Big Mac must have been from out of town.
Within a minute several bottles of whiskey and dozens of glasses were brought out to the table. The bartender poured the whiskey into each glass, making sure that each one was filled to the same level.
“Alright then, here are the rules. First one to pass out looses, no funny business, hooves only, and absolutely NO magic,” Verdant called out, directing the last comment to Shining. “I got 50 bits that say you can’t even finish your second shot boy. This here is real drinking,” Verdant said, slapping a small bit bag onto the table.
Giving Verdant a level look, Shining picked up his first glass from the table, easily balancing it between his hooves and brought it to his lips. In one quick swig, he emptied the glass and felt the liquid burn its way down his throat. He had to clamp down hard on his will to not cough or splutter when the kick came. Verdant hadn’t been lying when he said it was strong stuff. Shining wasn’t about to back away though, he had the honour of the Royal Guards, and of all unicorns everywhere to uphold in this challenge.
Shining flipped the glass over and dropped it back to the table. Across from him, Big Mac settled down and did the same, picking up the small shot glass with a practiced ease and draining the contents with a single gulp. All eyes on the bar had turned to look at Shining and he picked up his second glass.
This ones for the guard corps Shining thought as he sculled the second shot of whiskey. The second shot went down easier than the last, his throat having become slightly numb from the effects of the first shot. Smacking his lips in satisfaction, he slammed the glass down directly in front of Verdant, who looked like he was going to burst a vein. “Fifty bits was it? Guess us unicorns aren’t quite as frail as you think,” Shining said, feeling pleased with himself.
Verdant glared at him, but shoved the bit pouch over to one of his group, who quickly opened it and began to count out his new riches.
Engrossed in the exchange, Shining didn’t notice that Mac had already finished his second glass until he heard it hit the table. He turned back to see that somepony had already refilled the first glasses. He grabbed the next shot and prepared to gulp it back.
Twily, this is for you. I know you will knock them dead he thought as he downed the liquid. Within seconds of having swallowed this one, he could feel himself begin to get light headed. Either this stuff was stronger than it looked, or he wasn’t as tolerant of alcohol as he had always thought. He decided that it was likely a bit of both and regretted not getting a look at what the alcohol content of the whiskey was.
The night dragged on, with both he and Mac getting progressively drunker as they attempted to match stomachs in defence of their respective causes; Shining to uphold the honour of unicorns around Equestria and Mac just for this single town. Around about the eighth shot, Shining found it hard to keep his balance and he was running out of things to dedicate each shot to. He had used his family, his sister, the guard corps, unicorns in general and Verdant Green getting what was coming to him a couple of times, but now everything was more of a general haze than a series of clean thoughts.
Fumbling around to pick up his ninth shot, Shining felt that the five Big Mac's sitting opposite him had a large advantage. Each of them swayed around in almost perfect unison and Shining nearly lost his glass as he tried to down just that one more shot of drink. He couldn’t even taste it anymore, it was just a smooth coolness that dropped down the back of his throat.
He dropped the empty glass down to the table on an unsteady hoof, and around him he could hear what sounded like ponies calling that he was about to drop. Shining swayed in his seat and brought a hoof up to his head to steady himself. The crowd held its breath as he wobbled around and closed his eyes for what seemed like a moment. He sounds of laughter and cheering brought him back and he slammed a hoof on the table, silencing all celebration with a slurred “I’m shtill here, bring itsh.”
The cheers turned to moans as Verdant realised that Shining was still in the game, although just barely. Instead he turned to watch Big Mac tackle the next glass of his family’s prized whiskey. Mac picked up the shot in equally unsteady hooves and appeared to struggle to get to his mouth, spilling a few drops on the way. With a grimace, Mac gulped the liquid down and turned his eyes to face Shining.
In a brief moment of what seemed like clarity, Shining watched as the middle of the five Big Mac’s smiled at him for a moment before slumping forward and knocking almost all the glasses off of the table. Somewhere in his alcohol soaked brain, he realised that he had won, he had managed to beat the earth ponies at their own game. He was so happy that he felt like his throat was shortening. When the first taste of bile reached him however, he realised what was happening and he leaned over the side of the table and retched. The ponies around him jumped back to avoid the splatter and Shining fell off his seat, following his lost booze to the floor. The last thing Shining saw was several ponies crowding around him and then he blacked out.
Shining woke up on an unfamiliar bed with a splitting headache. Even just trying to get his head off the mattress was enough to make him feel like he was going to hurl. The ticking on a clock on the sideboard was like a hammer on the inside of his skull and Shining tried to bring a hoof up to massage his temples. He missed and managed to wind up face hoofing himself instead.
“Ya feelin’ okay?” a gentle voice asked him, the voice carefully whispering just enough to not set off the alarm in his brain.
Shining blinked a few times and managed to make out a red pony shaped blur standing next to the bed he was sprawled on. From the accent of the voice, he had a pretty good idea as to who it was, though he wasn’t sure he wanted to be here.
“Ugh, I am hung to the over,” he muttered, desperately trying to think of some way he could shut his brain down for a while.
Mac moved up alongside Shining and pulled a tray off of his back. On it was a pitcher filled with a murky green liquid. “Drink this. It’ll take tha edge off. Old family secret.” Mac said softly as he poured a glass of the brew and lifted it to Shining’s mouth. Shining took one sip and quickly spat it back out. The stuff tasted horrible.
Mac chuckled for a moment before refilling the glass. “Eeyup, that’s what ah said tha first time ah tasted it. It works though. Drink up and ah’ll make ya some breakfast.”
Shining felt the glass press against his lips again, and this time he tried to swallow as much of the bitter liquid as he could. Just as Big Mac had said, it did indeed begin to take the edge off of his hangover, though Shining felt that the cure was almost as bad as the cause.
Slowly, his headache receded and Shining was able to drag himself out of bed and followed the noises coming from the kitchen. Every time a pot banged against something, or he head Mac move around, the noise was like a cannon going off in his mind. Silently he swore never to booze up like this again, even if his honour was at stake. Walking into the kitchen, Shining saw Mac stirring a large pot with a wooden spoon held in one hoof. Mac looked up and pointed to the seats around a large table.
Shining sat down and hung his head in his hooves again. A spider up in the corner of the ceiling was moving around far louder than it had any right to.
Soon Big Mac moved away from the pot and put a steaming bowl of oats covered in honey down in front of Shining. The smell of the food was mouth watering, but Shining waited until Mac had sat down with his own bowl before beginning to eat. Out of respect for Mac’s actions and not wanting to risk upsetting the earth pony, Shining picked his spoon up clumsily in his hooves rather than use his magic as he would in any other situation. Bic Mac watched him nearly drop the spoon a few times and quietly smiled before putting his hoof on one of Shining’s own. “Ya can use that fancy magic oh yer’s, if ya want. Makes no difference ta me.”
Shining set his jaw and kept on trying to use his hooves. This was now a matter of pride. He wanted to prove that he could do anything that this earth pony could without having to use his magic, that he didn’t think of it as a crutch. After he managed to get a few spoonfuls of his meal into his body, he began to feel better and the throbbing in his head started to calm down. He could tell that he would still be hungover for a while. Once he felt that he was calm enough and could concentrate, Shining called on his magic and cast a sobriety spell on himself. It stung for a moment, and he had a sudden urge to let out a loud belch. He tried to cover his mouth as it came up, but it came out anyway.
BBUURRRRPPP.
The rancid smell of old alcohol filled the room, but Shining felt a lot better and the lingering haze that was clouding some parts of his mind vanished. It was only then that he realised that Mac was staring at him.
“Detox spell,” he explained. “Any toxic substances in the blood get converted to a gas and expelled from the body as either a burp or a fart. Not the most pleasant spell to be around, but it does the job. You want a hit?”
Big Mac looked a little uncomfortable at the idea of such a spell and shook his head. Shining shrugged and returned to his food, not noticing that he had started to levitate his spoon rather than grasping it. Mac noticed though and he smiled slightly before going back to his own oats.
The pair ate in a comfortable silence for a while until Shining decided to ask a question of his host. “You threw that contest last night, didn’t you?” Shining asked. He was sure of it. Mac was bigger and older than he was, and as such he should be more resistant to alcohol than Shining was. Shining almost never drank, certainly not in the quantities he had had last night.
“Eeyup. Ah saw how Verdant was treatin’ ya, and he were insultin’ mah family’s cider. Ah had ta do somethin’ and it seemed like a good idea at tha time.”
“Thanks Mac, I don’t think I could have drunk much more if you hadn’t given in.”
“It were worth it, jus’ ta put that stallion in his place. Verdant is known all over Equestria as a backwards isolation pony. He woulda had ya drink until ya died if he or one oh his were facin’ ya. Ah wasn’t about ta let ya suffer jus’ cause of what ya were born as, so ah stepped in.”
“Well, whatever your reasons were, thanks. I still got another day of leave, is there anything I can do to help you out to repay you?”
Big Mac nodded slowly to him. “As a matter oh fact, there is. Ya can help out with the plantin’”
Shining nodded, eager to do his part to thank the stallion who had already done more that he knew for Shining. “You got it. Friends?” he asked, holding out a hoof.
Mac nodded and met Shining’s hoof with his own. “Friends.”
Over the next few weeks, Shining and Big Mac forged a deep friendship, the pair of them united as outsiders to the community. Mac was able to get Verdant Field to stop constantly trying to get Shining to leave, but the older earth pony would never really stop hating unicorns.
Shear Feather complained that Shining never seemed to be around anymore; that they didn’t do anything beyond their assigned duties together. Shining figured that he was still sore that Shining hadn't included him the the drinking contest. Shear was getting restless and had said more than once that he was looking forward to a good bar brawl for some exercise. Shining had replied that Shear was welcome to join him in doing some farm labour if he wanted. Shear had fairly quickly backed off after that suggestion, though Shining still did feel bad once or twice. Shear just wanted some excitement, the same as any new guard recruit.
As a result of their developing friendship, Shining found himself quickly adopted by the Apple’s as an honorary member of the family and he tried to spend his off duty hours helping out on the orchard and farm. Mostly he just placed baskets or pulled wagons. As a unicorn, he just wasn't as in touch with the soil as the earth ponies were and he doubted that he would be able to grow anything remotely edible. He even caught a few more glimpses of the mustard yellow mare he had seen that first day, mostly when they were both out in separate parts of the field. She wasn’t at meal times and Shining just decided that she wasn’t an Apple, but just a pony who they had hired to help around the farm. When he did see her, she seemed eager to tease him like she had before. Shining was sure that she was flashing herself at him, but never more than just a moment and she never made any attempt to follow up with him.
One evening found Shining and Mac resting in the orchard after Mac had spent the day planting new trees and Shining’s guard rounds had come to an end. It was a pleasant night, with a cool breeze flowing through the trees. Gentle rustling from the leaves made for a relaxing time.
“Let’s go out and try to pick up some mares tonight. There was a pretty young thing I saw earlier out in the fields, yellow coat, green mane done up in plaits. I think she is in to me. We should totally try to pick her up tonight.” Shining said, sounding eager. He had decided to be more proactive about that mares flirting and Mac would make a great wingpony.
Mac didn’t seem so in to it. “Uh, hate ta break up yer party there Shinin’, but that mare is mah cousin Apple Fritter. Ah don’t know what ya heard, but Apple’s don’t grow that way.”
Shining quickly back away from the idea. “I’m sorry Mac, I didn’t know. She’s never around at dinner.”
“It’s alright. She likes to go off by herself when the day is over. Besides, ah’m not really…” Mac trailed off halfway through his sentence.
“Not really… what?” Shining asked.
“Not really… in ta mares, if ya get mah meanin’,” Mac finally admitted, dropping his face in shame as he let out his secret.
“You’re gay?” Shining asked. It wasn’t a big deal to him, but he was willing to bet that some of the locals wouldn’t be quite as understanding.
“Yea… No. Ah’m not really sure. Ah think ah am, but ah’ve never managed to actually do anythin’. Folk’s round here ain’t exactly understandin’, and ah never worked up the nerve back home,” Mac said quietly.
Shining sat down next to him and draped a leg over Mac’s back. “It’s okay. I understand if this is difficult for you to admit. I know that high society isn’t exactly open to this sort of thing and many ponies here seem to be a bit backwards in their beliefs. This doesn’t have to change anything between us and I won’t tell anypony about this if you don’t want me to. It can just be our secret.”
“Thanks fer that Shinin’. Ah figured ya wouldn’t mind much. Ya seem like a good sort”
The pair fell back to looking up at the stars. The moon hung above them, the image of a pony etched into its surface. “Legend has it that somewhere up there, Nightmare moon is just about to break free and return to cover Equestria in darkness,” Shining said as he gazed up into the night sky. Celestia did an admirable job of controlling both day and night, but from what he had read, these were still just a hollow copy of what her sister, Luna had been able to do.
“Ah don’t know about that, but it sure is peaceful out here,” Big Mac said as he lay back down on the soft earth. Soon though, he spoke again. “Shinin’, ah gotta tell ya somethin’ else. Ah gotta go back home in a few days. Tha plantin’s done and ah got mah own farm ta take care of back home.”
Shining felt his face fall. He had known this on some level, that Mac was really only visiting from some other place and he would have to leave eventually. In some ways he had deluded himself that they would both be here forever and be best buddies, but he knew that it had to come to an end. “I know Mac, and I am grateful that you are telling me now. I’ll write to you when you leave and I will visit next time I get a decent pass.”
“Ah’d like that,” was Mac’s rumbling reply.
Shining laughed slightly and the two stallions resumed looking up at the stars.
The next two days passed rapidly for Shining Armour. By now, life for the royal guards assigned to Roanbay had reached a simple routine. One pony was out on patrol, checking in with all the farmers around the community. Shining would always just report that the Barley family was doing well when it was his turn, and he suspected that his commander knew that he was just making it up, but didn’t care as long as he had something to put in his report. Another pony would be in the watch tower above the barracks, keeping an eye on the main road running through the town.
The other remaining recruits would be given general tasks as dictated by the needs of the day. Often they would be assigned to help out with a farm if their help had been requested or they would practice sparing and what not.
Shining regularly found his thoughts turning to what he would do when Big Mac returned to his hometown of Ponyville. From the way that Big Mac had described it, Ponyville was very similar to Roanbay, but less agriculture and a slightly wider economic base. It also sounded far more tolerant to unicorn’s as Mac had told him that there was a sizable population living there and occupying a variety of jobs and trades. Shining thought that it sounded like a nice place to live, but its proximity to Canterlot, being just a short train ride away or an hours flight by pegasus meant that it didn’t rate its own garrison. He wouldn’t be able to go there until he had a string of at least three days of leave in a row, something he wasn’t likely to get until he was promoted at least once.
The evening before Mac had to leave found him and Shining back out in the apple orchards. Shining had needed to trade duty shifts with Shear Feather to get the night off, and Shear was going to make him pay dearly for it later. Still, he wanted this time, and considered it a fair trade for whatever Shear wanted later on. Shining had been thinking about what Mac had told him earlier and he wanted to give him a lasting gift before they had to part ways.
Almost as if Celestia knew what he had planned, Shining found that the night was exceptionally bright and beautiful, each star was clearly defined and the moon hovered above all, casting down a soft silver light to bath the world in its glow. It was the perfect setup and Shining just hoped that Mac would accept what he had to offer.
The pair settled down under one of the larger apple trees, and lay back to look up at the stars. Mac had shown a surprising interest in astronomy and Shining had been all too eager to help him out with the names of the constellations that he knew. The two ponies had spent many hours over the last few nights staring up into the sky, just talking or even just being content to enjoy each others company.
Eventually, Shining rose up to his side and called Mac over to him. “Mac, the time that we have spent here has been some of the most important of my life. Your friendship and that of your family has really gotten me through this time here. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t helped me out that time in the bar. Probably would have been either arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct or for staring a brawl, thrown out of the guards and had to go back to my parents in shame to find a new dream for myself. You are a truly great friend and I want to do something special for you.”
Shining Armour took a deep, steadying breath before taking the plunge. He had thought long and hard about this and he was certain that he wanted to do this for his friend. “I want to be your first.”
Big Mac looked a little confused. “Mah first what?”
Shining leaned in slightly, closing the distance between the two ponies. “Your first stallion,” he said before reaching in and softly kissing Big Mac on the lips.
Apple Scented Love
A ShinyMac Tale
Chapter 2
Big Mac’s eyes widened as he realised what was going on. His best friend was kissing him and had just told him that he wanted to be his first stallion. Mac didn’t know quite what to do and he froze up. Shining seemed to notice and he pulled away slightly to see the fear in Big Mac’s eyes. The older stallion was terrified of what was about to happen as this was the moment that would likely establish his sexual identify for a long time to come, if not the rest of his life.
Shining gave Mac a reassuring smile and ran one of his hooves down the side of his muzzle. Something prodded him down at his hips and Shining looked down to see as the tip of Mac’s shaft unsheathed itself from his body and began to grow between them. Big Mac’s mind may not be sure about this, but his body was more than eager. Mac tried to back away and he tried to cover himself with his hooves. Shining gently gripped Mac’s hooves in his magic and pulled them away, allowing Mac’s dick to come back into view. In the moonlight, Mac’s dick was an impressive sight, and Shining was sure that he would prove to be a superior specimen of the male form. Shining’s own dick began to rise up in response and the tips lightly touched for a moment, sending a jolt of feeling through Shining’s body.
“It’s okay. You don’t need to feel embarrassed,” Shining said as he noticed Mac’s face begin to burn with heat. “This is what we are here for.” Shining leaned in and gave Mac another light kiss, lingering slightly longer this time than he had a moment before. Big Mac still froze up, but he didn’t resist as Shining came in again, this time remaining joined to Mac’s lips.
Slowly, Shining felt Mac begin to relax into the embrace, and Shining brought his hooves up and wrapped them around Mac’s head, tentatively drawing him in closer, while still allowing Mac to pull away if he wanted to. Mac didn’t, but leaned in deeper before returning Shining’s kiss with more passion. Between them, their dicks had reached full mast and were pressed up between them as they intertwined their bodies.
Shining increased the urgency of his kisses, opening his mouth slightly and pressing his tongue up against Mac’s mouth. Big Mac opened his mouth slightly, and Shining quickly pressed forward and forced his tongue inside Mac, eagerly tasting Mac’s body. Big Mac tensed up as he felt Shining invade his mouth, but he quickly realised what was happening and copied the gesture, the two stallions tongues duelling for supremacy as they both got more into the mood.
Shining felt small wet patches begin to form on his belly and he broke away from Big Mac’s mouth and look down. His dick was seeping sticky pre-cum, as was Mac’s and it was rubbing into his fur. Shining smiled at the thought that it had been him who had managed to cause such a thing to happen.
Pulling himself off of Big Mac, Shining slowly kissed his way down Mac’s toned body, leaving small damp spots on his fur to match those from the splotches of pre-cum until he reached his goal. Mac’s stiff rod touched the bottom of his chin, and Shining gently rubbed the flare with his face, marvelling at how something could be both so hard and so soft at the same time. Slowly he rubbed one of his hooves along Mac’s length, eliciting a moan from the earth pony. A small bead of clear liquid began to well at the tip of Mac’s cock and Shining inhaled the musky scent, a combination of sweat, hard work and Mac’s masculinity. Without breaking eye contact with Mac, Shining Armour slowly extended his tongue and made a long, gently lick up the base of Mac’s cock until he reached the tip and engulfed the tool in his mouth. Big Mac moaned loudly as Shining took him into his mouth and one of his unshorn hooves came to rest on the back of Shining’s head. Shining took that as a sign that he was doing well and he tried to take more into himself.
As soon as he first licked the tip of Mac’s cock, Shining tasted the liquids that had been slowly seeping out from the flare. The clear pre-cum was sweet with a hint of salt. Shining wasn’t sure if he liked it or not, it was so different from anything else that he didn’t have a point to compare it to. Gingerly, he began to work the shaft into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the hard flesh. As he sucked on the shaft, Shining’s hooves moved to cup Mac’s balls and he squeezed the gently, eager to please his friend.
Big Mac was in heaven. Despite Shining’s inexperience, he was doing a first rate job. He shivered as he felt Shining’s hooves stroke his balls. Shining’s mouth was warm and inviting and all he could think was that this felt right. He could feel every bump and shift of Shining’s tongue as the white stallion flicked and twirled around his shaft. As much as he wanted to make this last, he could feel pressure building quickly and he knew that he would not be able to hang on for long. Shining was looking up at him, his eyes sparkling and eager as he opened up his throat and tried to swallow even more of Mac’s dick. It was a arousing sight and Big Mac’s hips gave a involuntary thrust off the ground.
Shining felt Mac’s cock hit the back of his throat and he held himself still. Big Mac’s penis throbbed inside his mouth and Shining sucked on what he had managed to swallow. All the while he was looking directly into Big Mac’s eyes, wanting the farmer to know just how much this was pleasing him as well. He wanted to keep lowering himself around Big Mac, but he gagged every time that he tried to go further. Instead, he pulled back until he was just suckling on the tip and the salty taste of Big Mac’s freely flowing pre-cum landed on his tongue again. Grinning to himself, he began bobbing up and down around the shaft, occasionally pausing to lick the underside or lightly scrape his teeth over the crown. He could feel Big Mac shudder with each pass and it urged him on.
“Uh, ah’m gonna… Shinin’ pull off,” Mac managed to get out between his moaning. Shining took that as a cue and pulled back from the base of Big Mac’s cock, but he didn’t take it all out of his mouth. He wanted to taste Mac’s cum. It was the natural conclusion to what he had been doing and he wasn’t about to disappoint. He could feel Big Mac swell in his mouth and he knew that he wouldn’t have to wait long.
“Ah’m commin’” Big Mac groaned and he released his seed. Shining’s eyes went wide as the first burst of searing semen hit the back of his throat. It was slimy and very salty on his tongue and he nearly gagged as a second blast followed the first. Big Mac’s balls jerked and twitched in his hooves and Shining redoubled his efforts on rubbing them, eager to tease out every drop of cum that he could manage. A third twitch of Mac’s cock and Shining’s mouth was full near to bursting. Having no other choice, he gulped down everything that was in his mouth, the cum being replaced by new ropes within moments.
Shining had to swallow twice more to keep up with the flood of seed filling his mouth, but finally the torrent came to an end and the last rope of cum squirted from Mac’s cock and it ceased twitching. Shining could feel it begin to soften in his mouth and he allowed it to slip from inside him. Giving it one last suck on the way up, he rose up and opened his half filled mouth to Big Mac, letting his lover see his pooled cum before swallowing down the last mouthful and smiling. Big Mac watched him before falling back to the ground and panting.
“That was tha sexiest thin’ ah have ever seen,” he muttered.
Shining nuzzled into Mac’s chest and he listened to the regular beating of Mac’s heart. Idly he stroked Mac’s half limp dick with one of his hooves, smearing the remains of Mac’s cum over his forehoof. Within a few moments, Shining felt Mac’s dick begin to rise up again and it was soon hard again. Shining marvelled at Mac’s power as it would have taken him easily twice as long to regain his hardness. His own cock was poking out and aching for some attention, but Shining ignored it as this moment was all about Mac.
Shining got up to his side and reached over to kiss Mac again. Mac eagerly returned the kiss and the pair just held each other for what seemed like hours.
Soon, Shining broke the kiss and leaned in to whisper to Mac. “I want to feel you inside me. I want you to push yourself within me and I want to feel you cum for me.
Shining Armour turned around and presented his plot to Big Mac. He felt Mac mount him and he prepared to feel Mac’s hard dick press up against him, to push forward and penetrate his body. Instead he heard Mac whisper in his ear “Turn around. Ah want ya to face me.” Shining turned back to face Big Mac and found him resting on his back. His hooves were holding his cock up and he gestured for shining to climb on top of him. Shining licked his lips and did so, coming to rest so that Mac’s cock pressed up into his butt grove.
Mac’s dick was still very slick with Shining’s spit and his own cum and Shining rose up and moved his ass until he felt the tip of Mac’s crown press up against his opening. It tickled and Shining had to wriggle around slightly. The motion spread Mac’s lubes around his pucker and Shining felt his ass twitch in anticipation of the coming penetration.
Leaning forward, Shining reached down and ran his free hoof down the side of Big Mac’s face. “You are a special stallion Mac, never doubt that,” he said before planting his lips back onto Mac’s own. As he felt Mac melt into the embrace, Shining pushed down with his hips and felt his sphincter stretch open as Big Mac’s member slid inside his ass.
Shining’s eyes snapped open as he felt the searing pain and strange sensation of being stretched beyond anything he had experienced before. For a moment he wasn’t sure that he would be able to contain Mac’s girth, but he didn’t want to quit just yet and he pushed down harder and allowed more of Mac’s dick to flow inside his body.
“Ahhh, yer so tight, ya feel so good,” Big Mac moaned, his words garbled as he didn’t break away from the kiss he was sharing with Shining. That was enough to convince Shining that he had to follow this through to the end. Big Mac was as solid as a tree branch inside him and he could make out every ridge and vein as it passed by his muscle ring and filled his body.
Shining sank down around Mac’s member, not allowing the pain to slow his advance. Pain wouldn’t prevent him from performing his duties in the guard corps and it was no different here. Down and down he lowered himself until he felt his butt press against Big Mac’s legs and he knew that he had bottomed out as far as he would be able to go. Giving Mac one more deep kiss, he pulled back and rose back onto his haunches, allowing his ass to take in the very last inches of Mac’s dick. Shining felt kinda proud that he had managed to take it all and he began to experiment with clenching his anal muscles around the hard rod. He could feel it in his belly, a hardness that hadn’t been present before and Shining sighed in joy as he rubbed his stomach with his hooves. Below him, he could see Big Mac’s face contort every time that he squeezed the dick within him and he figured that Mac must be enjoying this just as much as he was.
After a few moments, Shining felt that he was ready to begin with the main event and he rose up slowly, allowing Big Mac’s dick to withdraw from within him. It was a strange feeling, as it he was taking a very long and very pleasurable dump and the friction on his insides was nearly enough for him to blow his own load right there. He didn’t want to waste his first cum like that however and he focused his mind on several breathing exercises that he had been taught to focus his magic. As he concentrated on his breathing, the tingling in his balls receeded and Shining knew that he had managed to hang on a bit longer.
Eventually, Shining rose up to the point where he could feel Big Mac’s flare forming a plug against his sphincter and he knew that he was as high up as he could go without allowing Mac to exit him totally. With a manic grin, Shining dropped back down, hissing as he felt Big Mac’s fill his body a second time. His own cock was bobbing wildly between them, erratically spurting globs of pre-cum in every direction and Shining couldn’t care less about that. As soon as he hit the bottom on his stroke, Shining began to rise up again, Big Mac’s dick moving smoothly inside him. The initial pain had nearly vanished and he could feel only the pleasure as Big Mac prodded his prostate.
A pair of hooves touched his cock and Shining was distracted from his breathing exercises to see Big Mac’s hooves now gingerly jacking his length and stroking against his testicles. It looked like Big Mac was getting ready to return the favour and Shining slowed his pace to give the red stallion easier access to his junk. Big Mac’s movement were clumsy but Shining didn’t care, it just felt too good. His cock began to release a steady stream of clear pre-cum and Shining could feel the tingling return to his balls, signalling the start of what he could tell would be a massive orgasm.
Big Mac seemed to notice it as well as he increased the pace of his jacking, his hooves now well lubricated with Shining’s pre-cum and sliding easily over his hard length. Shining tried to focus down his breathing again, but the combination of Big Mac’s hooves sliding over his dick and the feeling of being fucked at the same time sent Shining over the edge.
“Uggghhhh,” He cried out as the first wave of his seed burst from his dick, sending a stream of off white cum arcing through the air to land on Big Mac’s face and mane. Big Mac instantly stopped his jacking and held Shining’s member in place while it spewed forth ropes of pearly liquid. Shining had to shut his eyes against the sparkling pleasure washing over him but he could feel his body clenching hard around Big Mac’s dick with every twitch of his own cock.
A sudden burst of wetness brought him out of his daze however, and Shining looked down to see Big Mac sucking on the tip of his dick. The larger stallion was a mess, semen now covered his chest and mane, the strands beginning to ooze into his fur. One strand had covered his face and forced him to shut his right eye. Shining thought that he looked sexier right then than he had ever done and he closed his eyes again as Mac continued to suck out the last of his sperm.
Experimentally, Shining leaned down over Mac and gave his face a quick lick, scooping up some of his own cum into his mouth and wiping Mac’s covered eye clean. At once, Shining could taste a slight difference between his own and Mac’s cum. Where Mac’s was thick and salty, with an almost loamy after taste, Shining’s own had a more tangy taste and made his tongue tingle like he had eaten fizzy rocks. Shining wasn’t sure if he liked the taste or not, but he was sure that he wanted to taste it again at some point.
Below him, he watched Big Mac give one more powerful suck on his deflating dick before pulling back. A sliver of his cum had escaped the stallions mouth and was joining up with the copious amounts already coating Big Mac’s chest. Shining sighed at the idea that a piece of him was now inside Big Mac and he focused his attention back on the cock working its way into his ass.
“Shining’, in or out?” Big Mac suddenly asked after swallowing. Shining wasn’t quite sure what he meant.
“Uh, in?” he replied to Big Mac. Big Mac grunted and thrust up with his hips, filling Shining to the hilt and holding himself still. Mac’s face tensed up and he grit his teeth together as the first signs of orgasm hit his body.
It was at that moment that Shining felt Big Mac’s dick swell inside him and a second later, a warm gooey feeling began to spread throughout his body. Shining realised what Mac had meant and he was now letting his seed fill Shining’s body. Big Mac’s flare was acting as a plug, so no cum escaped and Shining could feel the pressure building inside his rectum. It was an intense heat and pleasure and Shining didn’t want it to end; that Big Mac would just keep filling him further and further with his cum.
It had to end however, and to Shining’s disappointment he felt Big Mac’s dick begin to shrink inside him. The pleasurable pressure began to decrease and a few stray drops began to seep out his ass around Mac’s shrinking dick. With a soft tug, Mac came totally free and Shining felt his cum begin to bubble out after him. Shining rolled off of Mac and fell down to lay on his chest, heedless of the fact that he was resting in a puddle of their combined sweat and fluids.
“Was it good for you too?” he asked Mac as he rolled over to look up at the stars again. He felt content despite the fact that he was covered in dirt and sexual secretions. His ass still tingled and he knew that he would be sore in the morning, but it was totally worth it if it meant that Big Mac could finally come to terms with himself.
“Eeyup,” Big Mac confirmed. “This was a kind thin’ ya did fer me. Ah don’t know if ah would have ever had tha courage ta do this myself.”
“You deserve it and any stallion would be lucky to call you their own. I’m going to miss you. Roanbay just won’t be the same without you in it.
Big Mac gave Shining a long hug and the pair slowly drifted off to sleep wrapped up in each others hooves. As he did, Shining thought about when his next leave would be coming. Ponyville wasn’t all that far away.
Unbeknownst to either Shining Armour or Big Mac, they were not alone. From behind one of the various apple trees surrounding them, a mustard yellow mare was clopping herself furiously as she watched the carnality take place before her. Apple Fritter had planned on being the first Apple to get her hooves into the hunk of a stallion that was Shining Armour but she had quickly seen the signs of Shining’s deepening relationship with her cousin and she had stepped back. She had known that Big Mac was gay for a long time now, possibly longer that he himself had known and she had sensed that it was the royal guard recruit who held the key to allowing him to accept it, so she had stayed in the background and allowed nature to take its course. She hadn’t kept her hoof out totally however, and she was sure that Shining had noticed her teasing him over the last few weeks. He would be putty in her hooves once Mac left in the morning.
’A mare has needs after all. Sleep well cousin, I’ll make sure he is still has the taste of an Apple in his mouth when you return’ She thought as she rubbed her nub and a blinding orgasm rocked her body.
Author's Note
And there you have it, my return to the halls of gay clop, written over a few days as a short break from my human story.
This was just a short little piece to make up for the lack of ShiningXBig Mac stories. A quick search revealed only three to four stories of this nature, and only one of those rated well.
A few little things
1. This is not related to the Fathers Love series in any way, despite similar plot themes or characters.
2. Shining Armour is not going to turn totally gay or bi from this. This was a one time only gift to his friend who was in the closet, with some potential friends with benefits later on. As far as this story is concerned, all canon events in the actual show occur as normal from this point on.
3. The clop scenes were loosely inspired by the Sweet Apple Secrets tumblr as drawn by the talented Braeburned. If you enjoyed this story then go check out tumblr.
