His first thought was of apples. That probably wasn’t very surprising- Apple Bloom and all that. But it was more than just her name, or some silly thought about how her lips tasted (which was actually just like slightly-sweeter-than-normal skin. Not bad, but not appley) or anything. No, it was that she felt like it, reminded him of apples. Firm, unyielding, soft skin and coat hiding something stronger. The sheer heat of it was incredible, although maybe that was just his lizard-like nature or something... Then again, he could breathe fire. Was he warm? Was he cold? He didn’t actually have a frame of reference for that, so he got a bit paranoid... But then Apple Bloom made a soft little sigh into the kiss and he realized she was enjoying it, so who cared what temperature he was.

For just a second, he thought the kiss was about to get a lot different, because she started to open her mouth a little against his and lean forward, but then there was a sudden yelp as she collapsed, falling face-first and knocking them both to the floor.

“Scootaloo, what are yew doing?”

The pegasus looked down at the two of them, having just bucked Apple Bloom’s legs out from under her. Off to one side, Sweetie Belle had a dopey smile and a dazed appearance as she hummed and cleaned up the tub.
“Stopping all this crazy mushy stuff right here! I mean...”

She looked back over her shoulder at Sweetie. Spike couldn’t see, but he could tell the filly was smiling when she did so.
“OK, yeah, it’s not that bad after all, but should we really be doing this kind of thing in front of each other?”

“Ah don’t see why not.”

“It’s just weird, OK! I mean, Dad always-”

She went quiet. The entire room went very, very quiet. Scootaloo suddenly started blushing and made to bolt for the door. Spike had the presence of mind to stop her, because he knew this was going to be an issue and he wanted to get it over with.
“...Scootaloo, you pretty much never talk about your family. Why bring it up now?”

The filly rolled her eyes at him and tried to muscle past, but he knew from experience (with a caffeine-deprived Twilight) exactly how to keep anypony from getting through any door in this library. The frame was just wide enough for him to dig a claw into each side, and for once, the pony trying to get through wasn’t even any bigger than him.

“Look, I just... It’s something silly, nothing else.”

Sweetie had finally broken out of her daze and trotted over, looking a bit concerned now.
“Are you totally-”

“Nothing. Else.”

Clearly, the little unicorn had learned something from her older sister, because she immediately shot Scootaloo a cold look and said one of the most dread phrases that could be summoned in any relationship.
“Explain that ‘nothing’ or no more smooches.”

“...Ever?”

“...OK, maybe like a week. I think? It is really fun...”

“Guh, fine! Fine. Let’s just... Let’s get out before Twilight and her guests get back, this is going to be embarrassing and silly enough without other ponies around.”

Satisfied, Sweetie went back to being all smiles and cheer, even leaning in to kiss the other mare (Are they marefriends now? Is that how it works? Are me and Apple Bloom...) before they all filed out the door. Even though he had just gotten to know her pretty recently, Spike knew that hearing anything at all about Scootaloo’s family was a rare thing for anypony, even the other Crusaders. So while he could have made an excuse and hung back at the library, there was no way he would miss this.

--------

Fluttershy had her eyes closed as they took off, but a few moments later she could feel the environment shift... There was pressure, but it was the comfortable dense feeling of swimming in a cool lake on a brutally hot day. She could breathe freely (especially given that she normally breathed a constant haze of dander, pollen, and animal pheromones) and there was a faint tingling at her feathers. Luna was travelling casually, slow powerful strokes of her wings pushing them forward. After several more seconds had passed, she finally had the courage to open her eyes and look...

An endless field of grey and black stone, smoother than any she had ever seen before. The air, if she could call it that, was crisp and cool against her skin as she looked out, up, and around. There seemed to be a surface above them, but this was not water, and that light was too diffuse, too silvery, to be coming from the sun. They were...

“Welcome, love, to the space behind the stars. I call it the Lunar Abyss.”

“A-abyss? That isn’t a terribly nice word...”

Luna chuckled.
“No, but it isn’t a terribly nice place. Well, neigh, I speak mistruth-- It is neither nice nor cruel. It simply is, unyielding and endless. It can’t be cruel any more than wind can be cruel, cannot be nice any more than a hill could be.”

“So it’s all... natural?”

“For given ways of thinking about nature, I suppose. It’s an extension of the power that lies within each night. If I made the right motions, we could fly from here directly into dreams, but that would involve leaving this place. Instead, we carry on to Canterlot.”

Fluttershy continued to look around in wonder, any moment expecting a school of fish or a massive wave of kelp to pop into view. They never did, however- There seemed to be no other things, living or not, in this place.
“How is this going to get us there? If, um, that’s not a problem for me to ask.”

“It is never a problem for you to ask, dearest. This place... It is not part of normal time, or regular space. It is, I suppose, the conduit between myself and my domain. Travel here can take much, much less time without actually being faster, you see.”

Something about the entire concept tickled a spot in the back of Fluttershy’s mind, but she shoved that aside to focus on Luna. It was a beautiful place, although she was getting rather distracted by the fact that she was riding Luna. She hadn’t really ridden on another pony like this in a long time, and certainly not a pony she had been intimate with. It was... weirdly comforting.

“So, um, you said I could ask questions and it wasn’t a problem right?”

There was a little sigh, but Luna’s patience with her seemed to be without limit.
“Of course.”

“I’ve, um, never heard anything about you having an assistant. Who is this pony we’re going to meet, and pick up?”

“Ah! Well, ‘tis quite the humorous tale! I could regale ye as we travelled, if thou wish.”

“Oh, please! That would be... Really nice.”

Luna looked across the (seemingly) featureless trenches, adjusted her course slightly, and cleared her throat.
“To begin with, there is an ancient hereditary post within the Canterlot government...”

--------

“...And that’s why one of my Dads is pretty much never ever home. Which, yaknow, kinda bites, but... He always sends letters, and talks to us using this spell he can do, so it’s not that bad. And he comes back home on holidays... usually!”

Scootaloo had been explaining the situation with her parents as they walked, heading in a direction that Spike was pretty sure didn’t lead back to the clubhouse, but he wasn’t sure where it did lead, so he just figured she knew where they were going. Sweetie Belle had gotten a little teary-eyed during the story, and Apple Bloom was quiet, although she did still lean closer every time his claws grazed against her coat. He just couldn’t help it-- She was soft!

Sweetie perked up as she realized something, suddenly looking a lot more cheerful.
“Oh, so your Dad’s a unicorn?”

Apparently that wasn’t something Scootaloo had wanted to bring up, because she winced.
“Yeah, they... they both are.”

Nobody said anything, and Scootaloo walked faster, apparently embarrassed by that somehow.

“...And?”

The pegasus spun on the spot, completely stopping with her wings flaring.
“AND? Come on, do you not get it? They are both unicorns, and I am a pegasus! Why do you think I’m still a blank flank who can’t even fly a little at this age? It’s just the most completely uncool...”

She plopped down in the middle of the path, heaving a huge sigh. Sweetie Belle drew closer, and even Apple Bloom was moving in to comfort her, but Spike waved them both away- If there was one thing he had learned about the filly, it was that she didn’t like being coddled.
“...But it’s not even their fault. I can’t blame them- They do everything. They are so cool about everything. Always so happy to hear about my day, asking me stuff like...”

“Hey there Scoot, how’s the week treating you?”

She perked up, smacking one hoof into the other.
“Yeah, exactly like that! Hey, that was actually a really good impression. I thought none of you... knew...”

Scootaloo turned around and looked a bit further up the path. She blushed, and buried her face in the dirt with a loud sigh.
“...Hey Dad.”

--------

“Hello, Mr. Starfall!”
As they made the last leg of their trip through the Lunar Abyss, Luna had been pleasantly surprised to learn that Fluttershy already knew her assistant. Of course, she had always known that he was technically a citizen of Ponyville, but given his long absences and the obscure location of his home, it was interesting to see that anypony from the town proper knew him well.

The gray-coated unicorn smiled and got up from his bedside, levitating his packed luggage up from beside him. As always, Luna was a bit surprised to see somepony like him having come from a rural town like Ponyville-- Rather than the modest muscle of one who lived off the land, he had an almost mare-like frame, while his light-brown mane was worn short, giving a clear view of his blue eyes as he took in the unexpected extra visitor.

“Oh, Miss Fluttershy! It’s a... pleasant surprise to see you. Good evening, Princess - can I take it that your visit was, ah, satisfactory?”
Starfall shuffled back and forth from his front to back hooves as he spoke. To somepony who did not know him extremely well, it would seem like he was having trouble balancing his luggage within his magic. To Luna, however, it was clear that he was trying to be subtle. Given the unusual way he had gained his station, he still had the occasional nervous tic when her royal presence was involved. ...None of which had anything to do with how she had confided in him her interests regarding the pegasus she had just brought home. No. Of course not.

Rather than leave him in a state of further confusion or worry, she decided to be blunt. A quick flap of one wing, which settled around Fluttershy’s hips comfortably, preceded her reply.
“Very much so! Thou art prepared, and I apologize for any delay in retrieving you. As thou can see, I was quite... Preoccupied.”

Fluttershy, pressed against her, was blushing as she looked back and forth between Luna and the unicorn. It was a good sign, however, that she wasn’t pulling away.

Starfall blinked a couple of times. “Oh! Sorry Princess, I had - I mean, I assumed that I would follow you to Ponyville by train or chariot.”

“...Ah. Right. I... We shall be perfectly honest and state that we did not think to do such.”

What could have been a tense moment was broken up by their shared laughter at the ridiculous situation- Royalty travelling such a distance to fetch her servant, rather than the other way around. And all because she had been too focused on the mare beside her to come up with a better plan... All in all, a worthwhile distraction.

“Um, Luna, Mr. Starfall...”

The unicorn frowned a little, picking his words carefully. “Miss Fluttershy, please, you can simply call me Starfall.”

She seemed surprised at that, but nodded with a quiet understanding smile.
“Alright, Starfall. But in return, you call me Fluttershy. Just Fluttershy. OK?”

“Uh, that’s very-” he began, shooting a quick look at Luna-- and catching her subtle nod-- before returning his gaze to her, “very kind of you, Fluttershy.”

She was happy to see her personal aide and her (lover? is that too presumptuous? neigh, we have already...) companion getting along so well, but they had obligations to attend to. And even travelling the Abyss, carrying that much extra weight would extend the time they took.
“Art thou both prepared to travel back to Ponyville?”

A nod from Starfall, and a nuzzle from Fluttershy, told her it was a good time.

“Well then... Once more we shall go. Hold tightly, and do not lose sight of thine luggage.”
A blink, a stretch, and the smell-feel of frozen air above the balcony, and they were gone.

--------

It had been nearly two years since the Crusaders first met, if not a little longer, and in all that time, Sweetie Belle had never, ever, not even once heard Scootaloo talk about her parents. To suddenly go from that being the norm, to having one of those parents right in front of her, was really surprising. To top it off, she had just spent a pretty big chunk of the day making out with Scootaloo, which meant she had been making out with this stallion’s daughter. And Rarity had once told her...

----

“Now Sweetie Belle, darling, I fully understand if you don’t yet have anypony you find... interesting in that way. BUT...”

She groaned and tried to keep her head from falling on her hooves. Rarity had spent like a whole -hour- talking to her about all sorts of grown up stuff because, “Mother and Father certainly would never have the nerve to do so”, and now she was talking about relationships. It was just like Rarity to do that, but... What her big sister didn’t know was that Sweetie did have somepony she liked. So she subtly (she thought) started to pay more attention. Anyways, she already knew all about the -other- stuff, the adult stuff, from the magazines Scootaloo “hid” (very poorly) in the Clubhouse.

“...Sweetie, you have to realize one of the most important things when you care for another pony...”

“How you treat them?”

Rarity paused, looking at her sister.
“N... Well, yes. But what I had meant was-”

“If they really like you back?”

“...Yes. BUT, if you will stop interrupting with perfectly good and reasonable points, the most important thing is their -parents-.”

She looked at Rarity in confusion, her voice cracking (like it always did).
“Their parents? What about them?”

And now there was a sort of fire in Rarity’s eyes, a passion as she spoke on the subject, pacing across the Boutique’s upper floors.
“Their parents are the ones, especially at your age darling, with ALL of the control! Oh yes, the two of you may be in love, quite deeply so... But who sets the curfews?”

“Their parents.”

“And who makes sure they have the bits to go out and do nice things in their free time?”

“...Their parents.”

“And who, dear sister, decides if they are even allowed to go out at all?”

This time she didn’t even answer, just looking grimly at her hooves. Sweetie had never thought of this angle before, but now that it was in front of her, it seemed so obvious. If she ever had any hope of being with Scoo... anypony, she’d have to be approved of by her... their parents. And if she didn’t know the first thing about them, then...

“And most important, most worrisome of all, is the father.”

“W-why?”

“Well, admittedly not every filly or colt will even -have- a father, but one of their parents will certainly take up the role I’m speaking of...”

Now she was almost over-eager, but didn’t care to hide it any longer.
“What’s that!?”

“Obstructionist. Over-protective. The one who has all the power, who calls all the shots, and who cares for little else in the world than protecting their little filly or properly raising their young colt. Be very careful with the father of somepony you care for, Sweetie dear- They are the greatest of risks.”

If she had been thinking a little more clearly, she might have asked Rarity to elaborate, to explain. She may have even asked if her sister had -personal- experience with this topic. But as it was, she went away with her head buzzing with plans, ideas for if (WHEN) the day ever came. If Scootaloo’s father ever came up to her and started asking questions...

----

Finally, at last, that very obstacle was before her. And her worries and imagined terrors, the worst possible things, had not come true. She had pictured a terrible swift warlike pegasus with a fierce passion to protect his little girl, or a massive goliath of an earth pony with all kinds of family traditions, or even some wizened and scholarly unicorn with a book full of reasons she simply could not date his daughter.

Instead, it seemed she had gotten the worst parts of all three. A deep brown mane prematurely streaked with grey was split by an abnormally long and sharp horn that cast a shadow over steely eyes. His coat was rough and dust-pocked, a paler orange-brown than his mane, covered with a vest she was very sure hadn’t come from the Boutique. Said vest was a rugged, battered green and grey piece, covered in pockets and loops, and she could swear she saw blades sticking out from some of them. He was muscular, not huge but strong, and his tail had the rough jagged cut of somepony used to risky, dangerous work. If there had ever been a potentially horrible roadblock on the way to her becoming Scootaloo’s fillyfriend, this was it.

“H-hello sir!”

This couldn’t end well.