I roused from sleep to find Sandra and Neon watching me patiently. "What's up?"

Cindy burst into a bright smile. "You're looking especially colorful this morning."

That made Neon shuffle just faintly, and I noticed that she was quite colored and living up to her name. Where had she been feeding from?

Sandra lifted a hoof to direct to herself. "That was me. I wanted to talk about our... herd status."

I stretched out, getting the stiffnes of sleep to go away and spreading my ill-used wings wide. "What about it? Everything alright?"

Sandra quickly nodded. "It's fine, nothing bad. It's just... It's kind of weird, but I... I was reconsidering us being solo."

That surprised me. "I thought you only wanted me? And you got upset the last time it looked like someone was interested in what I was packing."

Sandra shrugged softly. "I grew up... I feel closer to other members of our herd, and I think we should both be free to do as we want, inside the herd. Me, you, Neon, Cindy there counts. Even Dusk and Dust, if they want it. No barriers, inside the herd." Her ears sagged to the side. "I'm sorry if this is upsetting you."

I shook my head a little. "No, no. I mean, if you want, sure, but I'm not sure who else I'm going to be... with. I'm a bit large."

Neon stepped forward. "Then it's settled, and if you allowed me, I could show you there are things that can be done with you, peacemaker, that aren't hindered by your stature or girth." She glanced off. "I prefer mares, but I'm not clueless, or cruel."

I wasn't sure I liked the tone of that. Cindy spoke for me. "We don't need pity attention, thanks."

Neon just shrugged and walked off into town. Sandra looked back at me. "She's pregnant."

"What? By who?" That was more surprising news. "Did... you do it?" I glanced under her and just then noticed that she did have a sheath, even if I couldn't see any matching balls.

She flushed brightly. "Well, yes, Dusk Hope too. I gave the egg we made together to Neon, who is now pregnant with it. I had no idea that was possible, but the thing inside me really wanted to be... intimately close. To Neon, I mean. As soon as she was filled with an egg and she accepted the affection, it calmed down, and it gets happier when she's around, and happiest when she's being affectionate back."

I frowned with the thought. "So you're being coerced into making love to her, and it's driving us apart a little."

She winced at the accusation. "I didn't mean it like that. I still love you, Will, a lot. I don't want to lose you, Will."

Cindy tilted her head. "But it's not your choice. Not all the way. Your guest isn't another head like me, you can't argue with it. It's in your thoughts, and it has strong opinions. It clearly still adores Neon, and now so do you."

Sandra's flush grew progressively worse as Cindy spoke. "I... I guess that's true. I do like Neon." She shuffled on her feet. "A lot... But Will, you're different. You're my oldest friend, my most special person. I don't want this to come between us."

Though anger licked at me in the form of jealously, I didn't want to lose her either. I could have sworn Cindy was cutting off some of the anger, a theory she confirmed with a little nod. I wasn't sure if I should be more enraged for her interference, but I didn't want to send our relationship, with Sandra that is, further into disarray.

I advanced on Sandra and grabbed her in my hands. I hefted her from the ground and sat down, and I pet her. I stroked her from the top of her head down to her broad tail. I squeezed the base of that tail and teased all the way to the tip, and she began to rumble and whicker with joy at the affection. She loved being petted, and I loved petting her. "We really do need to talk to what's hiding in your head. We've put it off for too long as it is. I still love you, Sandra. Do you love me?"

She bobbed her head quickly. "Yes! Yes, god fucking yes. I'm sorry this worked out the way it did, but I don't want to break up, Will." She nuzzled into my front just underneath my breasts. "Can we do it now?"

Cindy's horn began to glow. "Yes. Now is good. Are you ready?"

I nodded, as did Sandra, and we all slipped into the dream world.

I found myself standing beside Cindy. She had a body of her own. She pressed up against me, rubbing her breasts against mine as her hands pulled me closer. "Do you love me? Like Sandra?"

I stiffened in surprise before returning the hug, and soon we were kissing. Her tongues slipped into my snout, and gently twined and danced with mine. I felt stiffness growing between my legs as we squeezed all the tighter. She drew back with a smile. "I thought so. I'm glad we're together, but it makes me sad too. I wish we could...be together, like mates. Come on, let's find Sandra."

We took one another's hands and with barely a thought, I pulled us to Sandra. There were two of her as well, though one was clearly different.

The new Sandra had multifaceted eyes and her tongues never withdrew. They tasted at the air and caressed over the other Sandra. "Why would you be upset? I've done nothing wrong."

The original Sandra nodded. "No, no. I'm not saying you're bad, um, what's your name?"

The new Sandra tilted her head. "I never had a name before. I didn't need one." She looked across at Cindy. "What about you?"

Cindy put a hand to her chest. "I didn't have a name before either, but they gave me one, and I like it. I'm Cindy."

The new Sandra smiled brightly. "That's a nice name."

The old Sandra reached out a hoof and threw it over the other Sandra, hugging her. "You can be my, hmm, Karen. Karen's a nice name."

Karen nodded in agreement. "Karen it is."

I sat down lightly, looking between Karen and Sandra. "Nice to meet you, Karen. Do you understand the situation? You're not in Neon anymore. You're with Sandra, who wants to help people, not control them."

Karen snorted softly. "Neon had the right idea. With me she was larger and stronger. Why shouldn't she be the leader?"

Sandra huffed. "She was a mean leader, and hurting a lot of people. With us, she's becoming a better person, and helping people, not hurting anyone."

Karen turned to Sandra. "She is close! I feel her. She's touching us!"

Cindy tilted her head. "She came back while we were sleeping. She's probably confused."

Sandra let out a little sigh. "We like Neon just fine, Karen, but focus on us please."

Karen muttered annoyedly. "But she's cuddling close. I want to hug her. She showed me how this world works. I like her."

Cindy snorted softly. "Act with some dignity. We're bigger than that."

Karen squinted at Cindy a moment. "What were you?"

Cindy pointed at herself. "As an energy? I was a bright band of light, going from infrared through orange, on the visible spectrum."

Karen snorted. "Figures. You think you're so special. I was 'just' a bit of interference. But I was one of the better ones, a smarter one. I was never as high minded as one of you colors."

Cindy scowled a little. "You were a parasite then, and you're hardly better now."

Karen hissed, her tongues waving as she looked ready to fight, and Cindy seemed just as ready.

I wrapped an arm around Cindy and pulled her back a little. "We're together now, in physical bodies."

Sandra took charge of her other half, nuzzling at Karen. "We should get along."

Karen looked at me specifically. "I'll never lift my tail for you."

Sandra paled. "Don't say that! He's my husband, for god's sake! He hasn't done a damn thing wrong."

Karen turned to face Sandra. "Really? Why do you love him so much? Look at him, bonded with that snooty color. I bet she just calls my kinds worms."

Cindy chuckled a little. "Guilty."

I stepped towards Karen, getting her attention as I reached out. She lashed out her tongues defensively. Being her natural parts, she was quite fast with them, whipping at my dream hands easily, but it was just a dream, and she couldn't do real harm to me. I softly pet over her ears and across her sides. "I love Sandra, completely. Please don't stand between us."

She looked up at me, and accepted the petting, but her attention slid onwards to Cindy. "Even if you don't mean any harm, she does. She hates me, and I don't think I like her much either."

Cindy flashed a bright color, and suddenly she was across from Karen, and I was beside Sandra. "We should settle this between ourselves. Our hosts love each other, and don't deserve to be the middle ground of our trouble."

Karen pawed at the ground and lashed her tongues. "Fine! How do you plan to settle this? Dissonance?"

Cindy cringed. "We both have something to add, we shouldn't do that."

Karen paused. "You... You really think so? I thought I was 'just' a parasite?"

Cindy smiled gently. "We've both grown, by living. We're both more than what we were."

Karen advanced, circling around Cindy. "So you're going to cut out the name calling?"

Cindy took a slow breath before she nodded. "No more name calling. Truce?" She held out a hand.

Sandra rubbed against my side, and we were soon cuddling as they spoke. They seemed to have settled things, and the air between me and Sandra was just that much clearer. We awoke in one another's embrace, and I was certain everything would be alright in the end. I still had my girl, and she still had me.

Neon stirred at our return and nuzzled Sandra's cheek. Sandra pointed at me. "Stop treating him like a second class citizen. If you want my love, you have to share."

Neon grumbled a little, but scooted closer and nuzzled my cheek. She sniffed a little and tilted. "Are you a mare or a stallion? You actually smell mostly like a mare."

Cindy laughed a little. "We are mostly a mare. Does that bother you?"

Neon suddenly pressed in a kiss with Cindy, trying her for the first time. I could feel Cindy's surprise, then enjoyment. Our relationship, as a group, got better that day.

Author's Notes:

Today we learn a tiny bit about the ecology of the energy world, and Sandra's other half gets a name! Hello Karen!

Do worms cause typos?