Jason inhaled deeply as he looked over the open field, enjoying the fresh smell of the morning air. He adjusted the rifle that was slung over his shoulder, moving it to a more comfortable position before turning his attention to Twilight.

"This seems as good a place as any. Lots of open ground and plenty of burms we could use." He said.

"Excellent!" She responded. She removed her saddlebag, which was brimming with various books and pens. "Honestly, I didn't think we would ever stop walking!" She rolled her shoulders, working some feeling back into her appendages.

They had spent a good portion of the morning hiking through the landscape outside of Ponyville. Jason had been quite insistent that they find a location far away from the town before he demonstrated the workings of the weapon. Twilight had objected at first, believing that she would be able to contain the use of the rifle with her magic. Jason had no doubt that she could, however he always liked to err on the side of caution, especially when dealing with the rifle. He had far too many memories of Marines being injured because of bad ORM, and as such wanted to find somewhere that risks could be reduced to negligible levels.

Jason smiled as he unslung his rifle and laid it against her bag. "Here, go ahead and get yourself situated while I go put up the target." He pulled a large piece of paper out of her bag. He had brought it just so he would have a target to shoot at. He wanted to demonstrate the weapons accuracy, as well as how it worked. Of course he didn't really need the designs that normally adorned range targets, but he had painted a large black spot on it to be used as an aiming point.

"How about we rest for a bit first?" Twilight said. Jason glanced in her direction. She had moved to a nearby tree and sat in its shadow. "We've been walking for hours, and I'm sure even you could use a break."

It had only been about a three-mile walk, not exactly a grueling distance for him. Nonetheless he smiled and walked over to where she sat and laid next to her, leaning his head against the tree. Twilight turned to face him and laid down, resting her chin on his chest and closing her eyes, her lips forming a comfortable smile. He rested his hand on the back of her head, slowly running his fingers through her purple mane.

She sighed in contentment. "You know, I've never heard of anypony with stamina quite like yours. We just walked nearly three miles and you're in the same condition as you were when we left. Most ponies would at least have broken a sweat by now." She said, obvious fatigue creeping into her voice.

He chuckled. "Well, I'm not exactly like most ponies now, am I?"

"Mmhm." was her only response. he could feel her breathing deepen as she drifted to sleep on his chest. He smiled and craned his neck, planting a single light kiss on her forehead before resting on the tree again.

How could a guy be so lucky? Jason thought to himself, feeling sleep approaching quickly. This girl is spoiling me with her love, although I've been trying my damnedest to return the favor. And if New York was anywhere near as peaceful as Ponyville, I probably wouldn't have enlisted, hell if Earth was like Equestria we wouldn't even need a Marine Corps.

He chuckled as he imagined various human political figures as ponies. The thought amused him as he drifted to sleep.

The past couple of weeks had passed quickly. Twilight's friends had expressed their approval when they revealed their relationship to them. As Jason had assumed, they all had their suspicions, however, they knew Twilight and trusted her judgement. It also helped that they had met him while he was in the hospital since they were able to draw their own opinions.

When they had spoken to Fluttershy about Jason's diet, she was surprisingly understanding.

"Oh... I-I'm quite aware of your diet. I'm very happy that you came to me before taking matters into your own hoo...h-hands." Fluttershy said. She had the softest voice Jason had ever heard. It was almost as if it was trying to hide behind the ambient noise of the room.

Jason had been surprised at her revelation. "How did you know? I'm pretty sure I've only told Twilight and Spike that I was an omnivore."

She shied away from him at the question, covering her face further with her long pink mane. "U-Uhm i-it was your teeth. I saw them when I first met you. I was only able to see your front teeth though, which are shaped like a meat eater's. Honeslty I didn't know you were an omnivore, I thought you were a carnivore."

"So that's why your teeth are shaped like that!" Twilight blurted out. Fluttershy jumped at the exclamation, emitting a small squeak before recoiling further into her personal shelter. Jason glared at Twi, who had quickly covered her mouth with her hoof. She looked at him apologetically.

Jason sighed before moving directly in front of the yellow pegasus, peering through the small gap in her pink hair.

His voice was gentle when he spoke to her. "Fluttershy, if you understand my biology, then I'm sure you understand the importance of a varied diet to my health. If I don't have a proper amount of protein in my diet, my muscles will begin degenerating. I wanted to make sure you understand why I need to occasionaly consume meat. I was hoping you might have some suggestions as to where I would be able to acquire some without affecting your ecosystem. I would be able to survive on fish alone if that would make it easier for you."

Her response was quiet, but she had slowly emerged from her cocoon of hair while he was explaining. "W-well, when I need to care for my bear friends, I usually get some fish from a small stream that runs out of the Everfree Forrest. The fish from there are wild and often times swim into Ponyville's primary river and do a bit of damage before I am able to retrieve them. You would actually be helping if you could stop them before they begin eating the local fish."

Jason smiled at her gently. "That would be perfect. If I can help in any way, I will. Thank you for being so understanding Fluttershy."

Jason spent the next few days wandering from job to job. As it turned out, Planer had given him quite a bit of praise because of his assistance. As a result, his skills were in high demand and he had no trouble finding work from ponies who required the use of his versatile hands.

He had spent time mostly as a repair man, using his nimble fingers to fix smaller pieces of machinery which hooves had trouble handling. He helped in gardens, lent his muscle to some building crews, and many other odd jobs around town. The spa ponies Aloe and Lotus Blossom even approached him one day and asked if he would try his hand as a masseuse. Evidently, part of Planer's payment for his chair contract had been a massage, during which he explained in painful detail exactly how flexible and strong his hands were. The two beauticians were curious as to how Jason could impact their spa medicine.

That job hadn't lasted long. His first two customers were an earth pony and a unicorn. He had no knowledge about the art, much less the anatomy of the various subspecies of ponies. He mainly paid attention to the back and joints, which the ponies seemed to enjoy. When he had finished his time with them, they gave plenty of praise and a generous tip. However, his third customer was a pegasus. When he attempted to massage the joints where her wings attached to her body she squealed and quickly sat up. Jason was shocked and took a step back. The pegasus mare stared at him viciously, a slight blush on her cheeks.

"W-What? What did I do?" Jason stammered.

That just made the mare more angry and the next thing Jason knew was her forehoof making contact with his face, knocking him to the floor. And that was the end of that job.

Twilight had been sick with worry when Jason showed up on her doorstep with half of his face bruised and swollen. Despite his protests, she tended his wound. During that time, she of course asked what had caused it. Jason explained the events leading up to the pony equivalent of a slap.

Twilight burst into uproarious laughter, which lasted a good minute before she was able to control herself enough to speak. "You...You tried...to massage her flight muscles? *Snerk*" Jason was a little bit irritated at her fun, considering he was the butt of the joke.

His response was short, him trying to suppress his anger to the back of his mind. "And what, might I ask, is so funny about that?"

Twilight chuckled a bit more before responding. "Let's see... how do I put this...A pegasus' flight muscles are a major...erogenous zone. Most of the time, you shouldn't touch them. Unless you're in the bedroom that is."

Oh...OH! Oh fuck. So, not even five minutes into her massage and I was already feeling her up. Great. Now I'm a pervert. Fuck Jason brought his thumb and index finger, placing them on the bridge of his nose as he looked toward the floor. He snickered at his own embarrassment.

Twilight chuckled lightly at his realization before leaving to the kitchen. She returned a few minutes later with a bag of ice, which she handed to Jason.

He gratefully took the bag, holding it against the now swollen side of his face. He winced slightly as the cold seeped into his bruise before the coolness gently numbed his injured nerves.

He leaned back on the sofa, enjoying the sensation. Twilight wandered over to one of her many bookshelves and removed one of her countless volumes before returning to the couch and hopping up beside him. She leaned against him lightly before opening the book and beginning to read.

Jason lifted his arm, embracing his marefriend. "Hey Twi, I have a question." Jason said.

"Yes?" Twilight said, looking at him from the corner of her eye.

"How exactly does your economy work? From what I've seen, almost everyone in this town does their own personal hobbies on a day to day basis."

Twilight didn't seem to understand the question. "What do you mean? Why would anypony do something they didn't want to?"

Jason sighed. "You see, back on Earth, people have jobs to make money in order to survive. A lot of people have to do things they don't normally want to. Sure people have their own hobbies, but apart from a few individuals those hobbies make them very little income, if any at all. So they work for larger companies in order to mass produce goods and services to the common populace. The way Ponyville is, it seems everyone manages to survive off of their hobbies, with very few individuals, like myself, doing various jobs to make other's lives easier. I can understand how a situation like this could work for small towns, but I can't see an entire nation's economy working like this. Isn't there anything that can't be made here in Equestria? Things that needed to be bought or traded from other countries?"

Twilight thought for a moment before responding. "I think I see what you mean. I think I have some references I could give you on the topic, but yes there are a few things we must trade for from another region. For example, coal is a very limited resource throughout most of Equestria, which is unfortunate since so much of our technology is steam based. There are a few deposits scattered around, but the largest concentrations of coal were found in Saddle Arabia."

*Snerk* Jason could barely suppress his amusement at the pun. Twilight looked at him in confusion, but Jason waved off her question, motioning for her to continue.

"Anyway, while they are rich in coal, their deposits of gemstones are nearly non-existent. Now gems are important because a lot of magic users use them for enchanting, and the enchanted jewels can be attached to common tools, allowing the magic to function in the hooves of non-unicorns. So Princess Celestia set up trade agreements between them and the rest of Equestria. They would provide coal, and we would provide gemstones."

This was eerily similar to the way things were back on Earth, which drove him to ask. "So...um...has this caused any problems? with Saddle Arabia I mean. This situation is a lot like what is going on back home, only with different resources. We trade technology and money for oil to a region called the Middle-East, and unfortunately a lot of their locals have taken offense to everything we have given them. Call it a difference in ideology, but they see a lot of the stuff we give them as 'corruption by the infidels'. A lot of this tension is what's been keeping the war going for so long. They are attempting to drive us from their homeland, to remove our presence from their society, trying to make it 'pure' again."

Twilights expression became somber. "No, we haven't had any issues like that. Although there are rumors that the supply of coal peaked a few years ago. The Saddle Arabians are having more and more trouble locating new deposits and so they are beginning to be overworked, trying to get as much coal from existing pockets to meet with demand. Our scientists are working diligently to research alternative forms of energy, but until we find a stable source we need that coal."

"I hope they find it soon. We have been having that same problem back home with much the same results." Jason said quietly. "It's only a matter of time before someone will snap under the pressure."

They sat together in silence, each thinking about the conversation before Jason finally cut through the dark atmosphere that had befallen them.

"So Twi, got any plans for the weekend?" Jason asked, curious.

Twilight looked at him, grateful for the change in topic. "No, not really. Was gonna catch up on some reading. Why?" She raised an eyebrow toward him, her head tilting in curiosity.

God she's adorable. Jason thought to himself as he smiled. "Well, It's been over a month now and I still haven't seen if my rifle still works. I was planning on taking it out of town and doing some shooting. I know you were interested in learning about it, so I thought you might want to come along."

Twilight's eyes widened in excitement. "Oooh I was hoping you would say that! I've been dying to learn about it since you first explained it to me! When are we going? What should I bring? Oh I can't wait!" She sat back on her haunches, bringing her front hooves up and tapping them together, her eyes closed and a happy grin flowed across her face.

Jason chuckled at his marefriend's excitement.

Jason opened his eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the afternoon sun. The back of his head hurt from resting against the rough bark of the tree for so long.

His hand still rested on the back of Twilight's head, though she had snuggled up closer to him. Her forehoof was draped over his chest and her head had come to rest under his chin, supporting his own head. He slowly moved his hand down to caress her cheek, tilting his head slightly to plant a kiss on the top of her head. She stirred slightly at the contact and began to awaken.

He craned his neck slightly and whispered into her ear. "Good afternoon, Twi." The light rush of air from his breath gently brushed against Twilight's ear, sending a shiver through her body. Her tail gave a slight twitch. She nuzzled her head against his chin.

Jason noticed her reaction. "So, you like that do you? I'm gonna have to remember that." He continued to whisper into her ear. Twilight was fully awake now, her body temperature rising due to his teasing.

She put a stop to it by leaning up slightly and giving him a kiss. Not one of the short kisses they shared in passing, but a full, passionate kiss. It was several minutes before they finally broke contact, panting for breath. Jason looked into Twilight's eyes, which had closed part-way. The same way Octavia's had the night he met her. He felt a tightness growing in his trousers.

Twilight, who was now laying fully on top of him, felt it too. When she realized what it was, her eyes opened fully and she quickly stood, slipping off of Jason as she turned her head away from him. A furious blush took over her features.

Jason propped himself up on his elbows, looking at Twilight with a mixture of concern and curiosity. "Twi, is something wrong?"

He could see the nervousness flowing from her. "N-no, nothing's wrong." She stammered. She shook her head, attempting to shake off her arousal. "I just wanted to make sure we actually did what we came out here to do."

There was something else, hiding beneath the surface of her words. Jason knew her well enough to know she wasn't telling the full truth. He decided not to pry as he sighed and got to his feet. "Ok then, I'll go set up the targets."

Twilight watched as he went about his task. Why did I push away from him like that? I'm a grown mare! I should be ready for that! But...But I'm scared. What if I'm no good? Sure I've read up on it, but that's hardly a substitute for experience. I love him so much, but I don't want to lose him because of that! She shook her head. Come on Twilight, you should know he's not the kind of stallion who would leave you because of that! Twilight continued to argue with herself as Jason finished setting up the large piece of paper and made his way to where he had laid the rifle earlier. He examined the weapon to ensure there was no dirt or rust which would interfere with the rifle's operation. Satisfied, he reached down and pulled out the two magazines he had bought. He looked over to Twilight who was still lost in her own thoughts.

"Hey Twilight! You gonna come watch or are you going to sit and examine worms all day?" Jason called in a playfully mocking tone.

Twilight jumped slightly as her thoughts returned to the present. She shook her head before standing and walking over to where Jason stood. She silently took out a pen and the small notebook she had been using to record everything Jason had explained to her about the weapon.

Jason had spent hours in the past explaining every detail he could remember about the weapon to her. Everything from how the mechanism inside functioned to what the rifle was made out of. The only thing She did not yet know about the weapon was an actual observation of the rifle in use.

Jason could see that she was still lost in thought. "Hey, are you sure everything is OK?" he asked with a worried tone.

Twilight sighed lightly. "Yes, everything's fine. Just...need some time to think about things."

Jason smiled at her reassuringly. "Here, let me help you take your mind off of things. Follow me." He turned and began walking toward what he had marked as the one-hundred meter line. It was a rough range estimate, as he didn't have the tools to get an accurate distance. He used a pace count he remembered from land-nav courses he took during training and used that to measure the distance. It was close enough for military work.

Before he laid down, he pulled out two sets of ear plugs he had gotten from Planer. The carpenter used them when he operated his various power tools and Jason had asked for a couple of pairs in preparation for the trip. He handed a set to Twilight before squishing his own pair into his ears.

Twilight eyed the ear-pro curiously before asking. "What are these for?"

"To protect your hearing. You forget that this guy operates off of explosions. As you can imagine, it is not the quietest of instruments." His voice was almost a shout, his body naturally increasing the volume so he could hear himself through his blocked ears.

Twilight nodded as she squished her own earplugs with magic and inserted them into her ears. She picked up her note taking equipment and sat facing Jason.

He assumed a good prone position and inserted the magazine into the weapon, tapping the bottom of the mag twice with the palm of his hand to ensure it was fully in position and locked in place by the magazine catch. He pulled the charging handle to the rear and released it, letting the bolt slide into place and lock into the chamber. He then canted the weapon at an angle and pulled the charging handle halfway back, checking to ensure a round had chambered properly. Satisfied, he released the handle and tapped the forward assist with his right hand to make sure the bolt was locked.

He explained in detail every step he took and why he did it. Twilight furiously scribbled on her notepad as he spoke.

He was just about to sight in when a thought crossed his mind. He glanced to his right. Twilight was sitting perpendicularly to the rifle to get the best observation point she could. "Hey Twi?"

"Yes?" She asked.

"You might wanna move to the other side of me. You're directly in the path of the ejection port and I don't wanna see you get hit by hot brass."

"Oh! Right, Ok." She said as she stood and moved to his opposite side.

"Much better, thank you." Jason said as he got a good cheek weld on the weapon's stock, aligning his right eye perfectly with the telescopic sight.

In addition to the large black spot on the center of the sheet, Jason had drawn three large plus signs to one side, targets he would use to adjust the optic. He placed the tip of the illuminated chevron upon the top target, closing his eyes and reopening them to check his natural point of aim. He adjusted his position and repeated the procedure until the chevron was dead on when he opened his eyes.

"Ready?" Jason asked, not moving from his position.

"As I'll ever be." Twilight responded anxiously.

Jason used his thumb to click the weapon's fire selector to semi-automatic. He steadied his breathing, waiting for his natural respiratory pause before slowly pulling the trigger.

*CRACK-OW*

The weapon's sudden report caused Twilight to jump, both at the volume and the small shockwave that emanated from the weapon.

"Wow..." Twilight said in wonder, her adrenaline pumping.

Jason was already preparing for the second shot. He would complete this course of fire before speaking to her.

There were two more rounds fired before Jason clicked the weapon to safe, removed the magazine and ejected the loaded cartridge from the chamber. He laid the weapon down before reaching over and collecting the live round, slipping it back into the mostly full mag. He pushed himself up to his knees and looked toward Twilight. "So, What d'ya think?"

"That was amazing! I wasn't expecting it to be so loud"

Jason chuckled as he pulled out his ear-pro. Twilight mirrored the action. "There's a reason I had you wear these. Now then, shall we go see how we did?"

"Let's." Twilight said. They both stood and made their way out to the target. The shots were ever so slightly high and to the right. Twilight, however, was impressed nonetheless.

"Wow! That thing is incredibly accurate! Where did the bullets go?"

Jason chuckled. "Well paper isn't exactly good at stopping anything, especially not something moving at supersonic speeds. The rounds most likely buried themselves in that hill." He jerked his thumb toward the burm directly behind the target. "Now then, I still have fifty seven more rounds. Shall we go fire them?" Jason asked, a grin on his face.

"We?" Twilight asked, puzzled.

""Yes, we. You didn't think I was going to have all of the fun now, did you?"

Jason finished zeroing the RCO before turning his attention to the large circle in the center of the sheet. As he fired off the magazine, he went into the finer details of marksmanship. Describing exactly what he did and why he did it. The special position he held his arms and how it affected his control of the weapon. His breathing pattern and why it was important. Where he aimed with the RCO. He even fired off a few rounds with the weapon on burst, just to show her every function of the rifle.

As he fired the last round, the bolt locked to the rear. After canting the weapon to ensure the magazine was empty, he clicked the weapon on safe and removed the empty container. Using one hand he pushed himself to his knees, still grasping the rifle in one hand. He twisted his legs and assumed a sitting position facing Twilight. "OK Twi, Are you ready?"

She nodded in excitement. Her horn began glowing and a shroud of magic enveloped the rifle in his hands. His grip tightened. "Now hold on there, skippy. There's a couple things I need to teach you before I let you handle this."

He began to teach her the many safety rules used while handling the weapon. "There's a little ditty you can use to memorize the safety rules, it goes Treat, Never, Keep, Keep. Treat every weapon as if it were loaded. Never point the weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot. Keep the weapon on safe until you intend to fire and keep your finger, or in your case magic, straight and off the trigger until you are ready to fire."

Twilight repeated the rules aloud, demonstrating her confidence and knowledge at the new information. Jason nodded. "There is a fifth safety rule as well. It wasn't taught during training, but it is fairly known among almost every fleet Marine. It says 'know your target and what lies behind it.' As you saw, that paper is not good at stopping bullets. As such, you should always make sure there isn't anything behind the target that can't take the hit." Twilight nodded in understanding, her eyes still wide in excitement at the prospect of handling the weapon.

Jason smiled. "Ok Twi, looks like you're ready." He extended the weapon towards her, offering for her to take it. She eagerly extended her magic, levitating the rifle from Jason's grip. He spoke up. "Ok, the first thing to do is check the safety and the chamber, make sure it's on safe and clear."

She looked at the little lever on the side, ensuring it pointed toward 'SAFE', before beginning to rotate the weapon to look into the ejection port.

Jason reached out, grabbing the barrel and stopping it before it aimed towards his face. Twilight jumped in surprise, releasing her magic. Jason snatched the weapon before it could fall to the ground. She looked at him. He was glaring at her and she shrank in stature.

He sighed and let his anger flow away. "What is your second weapon safety rule?" he said calmly.

"Never point your weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot." Twilight murmured meekly, understanding that she had almost broken it.

"Good!" Jason said lightly, attempting to ease the tension. "Now, let's try that again." He once again held the weapon toward her and she gently took it from him.

She once again checked the safety before rotating the weapon, keeping the barrel pointing downrange, to check the chamber. Satisfied the weapon was clear, she returned it to its original position before looking at Jason curiously, wondering what to do next.

"Excellent! Now, go ahead and lay down in a comfortable position. Make sure you're lined up with the target."

Her anatomy made it impossible for Jason to teach her the proper firing positions, so instead he concentrated on teaching her correct cheek weld and sight usage. Her magic would compensate for the lack of body support. She laid down facing the target, hovering the weapon to her side. Her different facial structure made it difficult for her to get the proper cheek weld and she had to tilt her head down slightly in order to get proper eye relief. Her familiarity with telescopes meant she was able to get proper alignment down the optic without much trouble.

"Ok Twi, make sure you have a good hold on the weapon and be ready for the recoil. You don't want to let it fly back and hit you." Jason said as he knelt down on her left side. "Center the tip of the chevron on the black circle and check your breathing. When you're ready, go ahead and switch off safe."

Her breathing steadied and she switched the weapon to semi-auto. Jason observed as magic gradually enveloped the trigger. After a few more breaths Twilight exhaled and held it. The weapon twitched in anticipation as she jerked the trigger. The rifle moved slightly as it recoiled. As soon as it returned to its original position, Twilight lifted her head, attempting to see where her shot hit the target.

The round went wide, missing the circle entirely and impacting near the left support. Jason had expected as much from her first shot, however now that she knew what to expect from the weapon, he knew that her following rounds would be better.

"Good, Twi. You hit the target! Now, make sure you don't jerk the trigger next time. A slow, gentle pull is all you need. And now that you know what to expect, you know there isn't anything to be worried about. Don't tense up before you fire, that's why you missed the circle. Be calm, be controlled and you will be accurate." Jason said reassuringly.

Twilight nodded in understanding before sighting in again

"Good. now try again."

Her breathing steadied once more as she prepared to fire again. She was much more relaxed this time as she slowly moved the trigger to the rear, the rifle remaining steady. The round flew true, impacting dead center on the black disc. Twilight made a happy sound as she observed the fruits of her labor. Jason gently set a hand on her head, congratulating her.

"Great shot, love! Absolutely perfect. Now, do you think you can do it twenty-eight more times?" He asked in a teasing tone.

Twilight grinned at the challenge and braced herself for another round.

Jason stood in front of the target, mouth slightly agape at what he beheld. A two-inch diameter hole had been roughly cut out of the center of the black disc. Jason had concentrated his fire to the upper left corner of the target, in order to give Twilight a large portion of the circle to fire at.

He was amazed at the tightness of her grouping, each round seemed to touch at least one other hole. He was a good shot, yeah, but he had never seen marksmanship of this caliber before.

Twilight stood next to him, beaming with pride at her accomplishment. Adrenaline continued pumping through her body, both from the excitement of firing the weapon, and from learning how good she was at it.

"This...This is amazing Twi." Jason said, still in shock. "How are you so good? Heck, you're a better shot than I am! And that's saying something!" He looked down at her, a half grin replacing his amazed expression. "Are you sure you've never done this before?"

She giggled lightly and returned his gaze. "Or maybe I just had the best teacher in the world."

The sentiment was too much for him. He turned to face her and dropped to his knees, throwing his arms around her neck and embracing her tightly. "How could a guy like me be lucky enough to have a girl like you?" He asked, his voice a whisper.

She returned his embrace eagerly. "That's what I should be asking. You are kind, generous, smart, unselfish, incredibly loyal and confident. You put every other stallion I've met to shame. You make me a better pony just by knowing you." she pulled back from the embrace slightly, looking deep into her stallions eyes. "I'm the luckiest mare in all of Equestria to have the chance to know you. I love you, Corporal Jason Sinder."

Jason responded by leaning forward and kissing her. Deeply, and with more passion than ever before. Their tongues running together, exploring every detail of their partner's mouths. She lingered slightly on the sharp points and serrations of his front teeth. Jason reciprocated the action by running his own tongue over the flat, grinding surfaces of hers.

The kiss lasted for a few, long minutes before they reluctantly broke contact, both panting for air. They looked deeply into each others eyes. Jason became painfully aware of the tightness in his trousers.

He loved the mare in his arms more than anything he knew. More than his home. More than his family. More than the Marine Corps. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

The next question came from him as a whisper, still staring into Twilight's eyes. "Are...Are you ready? To take this to the next level?" He wanted to solidify their relationship, but he was a gentleman. He did not want to push her into an uncomfortable situation.

She looked at him with confused arousal. He could feel her shivering, see her face reddening with her increased blood pressure.

The thought had taken her by surprise, and her earlier nervousness came back. Shouldn't I be the one asking that? From every book I've read, it's usually the mare who initiates...this activity. He seems more than willing, but am I ready? Celestia, I want to be with him. I want him to be my first.

Jason noticed her nervousness as he waited for her response. "Twilight Sparkle, I love you. I want to be with you forever. I don't want to risk losing you by pushing something you're not comfortable with." He said gently.

Twilight's heart swelled at his words. she sighed lightly. "Jason, I love you too. More than anything. I want to be with you...but you should know. You are the first stallion I have ever gone this far with. I don't want to risk losing you by not being good enough." she looked away from him in embarrassment.

Jason was appalled at the aspect. What the fuck is that? Are the males here really so shallow that they would leave just because of that? Humans I can understand, but we are selfish creatures. Maybe the difference in the gender balance here has made the males shallow fucks, but not me.

Jason moved his hand, caressing her cheek lightly as he turned her head to look at him. She looked into his eyes, a hopeful glimmer shining within them. Jason leaned forward and kissed her again, trying to take Twilight off of the emotional roller coaster he had thrown her on. As they kissed, he shifted his body weight forward, gently rolling Twilight onto her back, her hind legs protruding limply on either side of his stomach. He supported his weight with his elbows, his hands beneath her head.

He kissed her until his lungs burned and he needed to breathe. They separated and he looked down at her with a half-lidded gaze and a warm smile. "Twilight, nothing that happens today could possibly lessen my feelings for you. I love you too much to be affected by physical means. Besides, I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing it for us. And I'll be damned if I leave you disappointed."

Twilight's nerves calmed as Jason kissed her again. His hands slowly moved to her ears, gently caressing the sensitive skin. Twilight let out a small gasp at the contact. Her skin was burning and she could feel a dampness forming between her hind legs. She began to moan softly at Jason's soft touch, she was becoming more and more aroused at his teasing.

He noticed a faint light that began emanating from her horn, her arousal releasing the tiniest flow of magic to parts unknown. Experimentally, he took his right hand and gently ran his fingertips along the length of the magical appendage, feeling the smooth spirals.

Twilight shuddered in ecstasy at his touch, her moans becoming louder as her arousal rose. Jason smiled at her reaction, his tongue still running along hers.

He was still woefully incompetent in terms of pony anatomy, but he seemed to be doing alright, based on her reactions anyway. He slowly took his left hand away from her ear, moving it underneath his own abdomen and gently slid it along her chest.

Come on, She has to have them. She is a female after all. He continued searching, his hand sliding more and more toward her hind legs. They've got to be down there some... His hand brushed lightly across one of her sensitive nipples and she shuddered once more. Her breathing was becoming labored and he could feel the air flowing over his cheek from her dilated nostrils, her eyes closed in passion.

He stopped his ministrations on her horn and broke the kiss. she made a disappointed noise and looked at him with desperation. He began sliding down her body, planting light kisses on her neck just below her jaw line. He continued the light kissing as he moved further and further south. he stopped briefly at her nipples, giving them tender kisses and a couple of gentle suckles.

Please, oh please don't stop...Ah! I-I'm almost there! Twilight thought to herself as waves of pleasure coursed over her body.

He moved his arms between her hind legs, looping them around her hips and holding them in place with his shoulders as he continued his southward journey.

What's he doing? Surely he isn't going to...to...Oh! Ooooh! AH! She lost herself as Jason lightly kissed her labia. The fluids of her arousal were flowing freely now and coated his mouth and chin as he began to work.

He teased around her wet marehood with his tongue, tracing intricate patterns along her sensitive skin. Her moans were becoming louder and more frequent as he brought her closer to climax. He finished his teasing as he slipped his slender tongue between her lips, penetrating her. Twilight shuddered hard and her back arched in pleasure as he slowly moved his tongue along her inner walls.

His upper lip brushed against a small bump towards the tip of her slit. The brief contact causing a rather loud and obvious moan to escape her throat. He turned his tongue's attention to the cause of the outburst and began tracing circles around her sensitive clitoris.

He switched between licking playfully around the sensitive nub and diving deep within her marehood. He continued his effort for what felt like a small eternity before Twilight felt a pressure building deep within her.

"Jason! OH! I-I'm close! Oh sweet Celestia don't stop! Ah! Jason I'm...I'm! AHHhh!"

Her back arched severely as her body rocked with the orgasm. Her horn glowed brightly as purple sparks of magical energy flowed from its tip.

Jason had opened his eyes to watch the fruits of his labor as his partner came. The sparks that emanated from her horn, however, brought flashes of memory across his mind.

The Osprey swerved through the air, bolts of purple lightning striking all around them. LCpl Reese held onto the mounted gun for dear life...

Twilight's body shuddered a few more times before the orgasm finally subsided. She collapsed against the ground, her breaths coming in harsh pants. After a few minutes she realized Jason hadn't moved. She lifted her head to gaze down at her lover.

He stared back at her in shock, a single line of liquid running from his chin, still connected them.

"J-Jason?" She asked, worry creeping into her voice.

"It was you." He said. His voice was a whisper, barely audible over her still labored breathing

"W-What?"

"You brought me to Equestria. Your lightning destroyed the helicopter."

She stared back at him in stunned silence, the gravity of his statement finding purchase in her mind.