Thomas awoke in a very familiar position, with his chest against a mare’s back and his dick still buried inside her. He heard a contented moan as a familiar pair of butt cheeks grinded against his groin. Finally he opened his eyes to the silver-gray fur of Silver Bell, who was staring happily at him out of the corner of her eye.

“Morning, sleepy head,” the bat mare greeted with a Prench titter, gripping the human’s palm set around her waist.

Thomas smiled and nuzzled into the back of the mare’s neck, enjoying her warmth. “Morning to you too.”

Silver sighed happily. The human’s bare skin was no less pleasant than it was yesterday. “Ai think Ai could get used tou vaking up laike zis.”

“You and me both,” Moonlight announced. Standing beside the bed, she clapped her hands together with an eager grin. “Up and at em, you two,” she said as she tore the sheets from their bodies, instantly exposing them to the chill of the room and causing them to huddle closer.

The human and bat mare tried to protest, but Moonlight would have none of it as she opened the curtains, letting the last light of the setting sun fall upon them.

“Sorry, you two, but working ponies have to get used to waking up at working hours.”

“I already get up at working hours,” Thomas whined into Silver’s fur. “Can’t I just get five more minutes?”

“Ai…” Silver stuttered, realizing where Thomas’ morning wood was. “Ai concur.”

But Moonlight was not fooled. With the grace and dexterity befitting someone with years of combat training, she shoved Silver off of Thomas’ rod and quickly set about the task of his morning relief. The added flavor of the bat mare’s juices was an appreciated bonus, which she generously shared with the concubine-to-be in a nice bit of female on female affection. Then, returning to command mode, she ordered the others into the bathroom where they jumped into the shower to wash off yesterday’s activities.

“Thomas,” Silver said, presenting her partially flared wings to him. “Could you vosh mai back?”

“I… sure,” Thomas eventually answered as he grabbed the soap and wash rag. As soon as he finished lathering up the cloth, Moonlight seized the soap from behind him, her intentions for his back made clear.

“Are zere any activities Ai should bee aware off?” Silver asked as she leaned into Thomas’ scrubbing. “A bitt lover.”

Thomas complied, dragging the cloth to just above her tail. “Actually, while we’re here, I was hoping to talk to you two about some stuff,” Thomas said, all the while Moonlight was lathering up his back and shoulders.

“Shoot,” Moonlight said, her gaze alternating between the two finely shaped plots in front of her. “What’s on your mind?”

“It’s about this herding thing,” Thomas said, pausing to collect his thoughts. “Since the three of us were, you know… together…”

“Vhy are you so embarrassed?” Silver asked worriedly. She shook her rump for his viewing pleasure, hoping to entice the little stallion into reconsidering any last minute misgivings. “Itt sounded as zough you enjoyed yourself.”

“Not at all,” Thomas corrected. “You were great. You both were,” he added with a glance over his shoulder at a smiling unicorn. “I just wanted to know, ya know, where we stand.”

“Ai see.” Silver nodded and glanced back at the orange unicorn. “Moonhoney?”

With a good natured sigh, Moonlight rolled her eyes and leaned down until her nose was pressed against the human’s ear. “Do you like her?”

“I…” Thomas hesitated, caught off guard. I think we’re moving a little bit too fast. “I do, but…”

“But?” Silver asked.

Seeing the panic in her stallion’s eyes, Moonlight realized she’d inadvertently pushed him into a corner. “Sorry. Really sorry,” she said to Thomas and Silver respectively. “But the lead mare usually makes the invitation while the stallion, or stallions,” she glanced off to the side, “get the right of veto.”

“Alright,” Thomas answered after a moment’s pause. “I get that, but don’t you think we’re moving a little, you know, fast?”

Silver blinked questioningly and pulled away from Thomas so she could turn to face the herd. “How would this be fast?” She glanced rapidly between the mare and man, her mind racing with all the mistakes she might have made to warrant such a question.

“Ugh,” Moonlight groaned as she saw the rising fear in Silver’s eyes, as well as the worry in Thomas’ at the realization that he’d upset her. “Humans tend to court each other over a longer period than ponies,” she explained for them both before facing down at Thomas. “For ponies, our date yesterday would have been the first step in formal courting. She’s not in the herd yet, but…” Moonlight paused to consider how to phrase her next words. “I… I like her.” She smiled at Silver.

Silver’s chest swelled as her wings fidgeted, though she remained silent to hear what the unicorn had to say.

“She’s smart, cute; knows her way around a gathering of nobles, which we can all agree will come in handy in the future.” Moonlight waited for Silver and Thomas to finish nodding. “But more than that, I just like her,” she said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “We might have had a rocky start, but she’s proven herself a loyal friend and I’d like her to be a part of my life.”

Thomas knew what Moonlight was thinking but not saying. He knew that she was thinking about their status as reincarnated lovers. And while it bothered him the way the mare just seemed to be going with the flow just because an authority figure told her it was destiny, what bothered him more were his own feelings telling him to do the same. I like Silver. It was just so easy to say. He liked Silver and she seemed to like him right back. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more right it felt to picture himself, Moonlight, Luna, and Silver all sleeping in the same bed together. If this was pony Destiny, then it already had a hold of him.

“Thomas,” Silver said. As the human turned to face her, she found her gaze focused on his eyes, those beady little emeralds that seemed to hold so many secrets. “I do not wish to pressure you,” she said, free of her Prench accent. “And I would be fine if, Luna willing, we simply work as colleagues in service of Her Highness. But I want you to know that I really do like you.” The words flowed smoothly as she glanced up at Moonlight. “You and your overprotective bodyguard.”

“Proudly protective, if you don’t mind?” Moonlight asked with mock haughtiness.

“Of course.” Silver bobbed her head in a low bow before returning her focus to Thomas and seized his hands in her gentle fingers. “Whatever decision you make, know that I’ll be happy just knowing we can still be together as friends.”

With a heavy sigh, Thomas looked up past Silver’s breasts into her indigo eyes and gave her his best reassuring smile. “In that case, I decide that we need a few more dates before making any final decisions,” he declared confidently before leaning forward and seizing a peck from the unsuspecting mare’s lips. Destiny be damned, he thought. We’re gonna do this our own way and we’re gonna like it.

However, Thomas didn’t make it far as the bat pony immediately seized the back of his head and pulled him back for a much deeper kiss. For Silver, Thomas’ words were as good as formal acceptance and she planned to share with him just how grateful she was for his consideration. It wasn’t long after that the bat mare and man found themselves engulfed in the embrace of the unicorn as she teased their respective wings and ears. It was a long shower.

Although they briefly lost track of time, the trio managed to clean themselves up, get dressed, and make it to the dining hall just in time for breakfast with the Princesses and other concubines. It appeared that the trio had also failed to properly wash themselves off as the keen noses of the ponies at the table immediately picked up on their earlier activities. Questions, teasing, and congratulations were hurled without mercy as the trio struggled to eat their breakfast in peace. The task was made all the harder as Silver did her very best to pretend that Luna wasn’t shooting her romantic glances whenever the alicorn thought she wasn’t looking. After which Talon decided she’d hang out with her solar concubine buddies and just leave the new trio to themselves to become better acquainted, but not before Luna reset Thomas’ wards.

**********

“They’re certainly moving fast,” Steel Hoof said as he stretched out in the hall.

“Well they gotta,” Red Amber commented as he leaned against the minotaur’s muscled arm. “They’re catching up on lost time. Besides, Luna’s still not fully recovered yet. She’s gonna need her full harem pretty quick and I don’t think they can really afford to wait as long as they’ve been doing.”

“What’s the matter, Amby?” Talon asked with a swipe of her lion tail to the stallion’s rear. “Worried you might get volunteered?”

“Damn right, I am,” Amber said with a nervous chuckle. “I don’t know about you, but I’m rather fond of flying, and also walking. I’d rather not be like one of those over eager whorses who come in loud and proud and get carried off in a wheelbarrow.”

“Hear him talk, you’d almost think that were a bad thing,” Steel said as he pulled Amber in close. “Don’t worry, little buddy, I’ll protect you from the scary alicorn.”

“But he does raise a valid point,” Misty Glade added. “They’re really going to have to start interviewing applicants a lot faster. Start with the ones who are basically a sure thing and start bringing em in two or three at a time.”

“Sound theory,” Talon said skeptically. “But I’m not sure the chimp really has the nerve for that kind of rush job.”

“What about Silver?” Misty asked. “She seems to know her way around things. If Thomas can’t handle the job, maybe he should step down for somepony who can?”

Talon frowned. As much as she liked the little guy, there was no denying that he really wasn’t leadership material. There wasn’t anything wrong with that. His timid nature just made him more of a follower. On top of that, Silver had literally been bred for this kind of work, not to mention that she was a bat pony. It all just fit into place that she should take the lead. “I’ll talk to Moonbutt about it later, but I think we’ll need to wait until after Sweet Wings is official.”

The other concubines agreed and they went on their merry way.

**********

“Oh… my!” Silver gasped as she sat naked on Luna’s bed. She’d been reading the sample chapters offered from Thomas and Moonlight’s book, Lotus Blossom. Unsurprisingly, her wings had been driven stiff almost from the start.

“You’re pretty much the first one to read it outside of Tali,” Moonlight said as she watched Silver expectantly, studying her every flinch for signs of disapproval at what she read.

“Any thoughts or constructive criticism would be more than appreciated,” Thomas added with an anxious fidget from his position beside Moonlight at the writing desk.

“I…” Silver finally looked up from the papers. The corner of her lip was twitching and threatening to grow into a smile. “This is wonderful!”

“You mean it?” Moonlight asked, bouncing excitedly in her seat. “You really like it?”

Silver glanced to her left at the extended wing. “In a manner of speaking,” she giggled. The story was good and she was happy to see Moonlight so excited, but Thomas, even by his standards, seemed oddly neutral.

“So… No typos or comments?” he asked warily.

“None that I could see,” Silver replied, eyeing Thomas carefully. “Why? Was there something I missed?” she asked, directing her question at Moonlight.

“Thomas?” Moonlight asked, leaning forward for a better view of his face.

“What?”

“Oh,” Moonlight said in understanding as she straightened back into position and gave Silver a reassuring smile. “Thomas just prefers it when somepony can point out a few flaws in his work. He likes making the corrections to help improve things.”

“I see,” Silver said understandingly. “Well, if I must nitpick,” she smiled as she noticed Thomas lean in. “I think this sentence here could use a little reworking.” She held out the papers and pointed to the line in question. “For some reason it just sounds awkward to me.”

Thomas retrieved the papers and showed the spot to Moonlight. After a brief period of discussion, they agreed that the line did sound awkward and promptly revised it to Silver’s approval.

“So is this what you two do all day?” Silver asked as her eyes roamed across the familiar room. “Not to say I am not enjoying myself, but…”

“Umm…” Thomas looked up at Moonlight for help, unable to think of anything on his own.

“How about a game?” Moonlight suggested.

“I am up for games,” Silver said as she bounced on the mattress. “What’d you have in mind?”

“Thomas,” Moonlight said as she turned a predatory eye on the human.

“Moonhoney?” He asked cautiously.

“Stories wouldn’t happen to be the only thing you brought over from the human country, would they?”

“Human games?” Silver asked in intrigue. “Now that sounds like fun. Anything for three or more players?”

Put on the spot, Thomas could only blurt the first thing to come to mind. “Twister.”

“Twister?” The mares questioned as one. “What’s that?”

“The idea,” Thomas began as he stood and gestured to the carpet, ready to explain his alien game. “Is that you have this paper mat with a whole bunch of large colored spots on it. You also have this spinner that points not only to the different colors, but also body parts.”

“What kind of parts?” Silver asked, earning a soft glare from Thomas.

“Nothing perverted, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“I think you might have a different idea of what qualifies as perverted than I do, but go ahead,” Silver teased. She knew how Thomas would interpret her tone. She also knew how into things he got whenever he was called upon to explain things from the human country.

“Things like hands, knees, the nose, or other stuff like that. Like, let’s say I spun the spinner.” He spun the imaginary spinner on the floor. “And it said left hand yellow. I place my hand onto a yellow spot on the mat.” He moved as he described, picking a random spot on the carpet. “And for the remainder of the game I have to keep my hand on the yellow spot until the spinner tells me to move it somewhere else. If I remove my hand, or any other part of me, from the designated spot, then I lose.”

Silver nodded along. “So you just keep pressing different parts to different spots on the mat.” She envisioned herself twisted into an unbearably awkward position, only for the spinner to tell her to make some impossible move and cause her to collapse in a heap. “Would not that get uncomfortable after a while?”

“That’s the idea,” Thomas said with a shrug. “Last player standing wins.”

“And you can play this in a group?” Moonlight asked.

“Sure. I mean, it’s been years since I played it, but I’m pretty sure it’s a lot more fun with more players.” Thomas was glad that the mares seemed interested. However, the more he studied their expressions, watching the gears turn in their minds, the more nervous he became.

Silver was the first to jump into action, her braless breasts bouncing as she did so. She quickly walked over to the bell post and pulled the one marked for general service. A butler arrived and stood patiently outside the door as Silver gave her instructions, requesting the butler bring up a large sheet of paper, a piece of cardboard, various paints and drawing instruments, and other materials all to very exact specifications. Thomas and Moonlight didn’t have long to look impressed by how efficiently Silver addressed the butler before he returned with the desired crafting supplies.

The next half hour was spent with Silver drawing the outlines of circles on the paper while she, Moonlight, and Thomas all negotiated on what colors there should be and what body parts should be included in the spinner. It was a debate befitting any house of politics, only with fewer asses. Thomas had compromised that hooves would be an acceptable and universally understood substitute for feet. Moonlight was insistent that flanks be included, but had to concede that such a thing would be impractical with the inclusion of knees, and so agreed to Silver’s proposal of the general pelvic region. They also agreed to include slots in the spinner for wings and horns, but agreed that any player without such appendages would have to re-spin. Finally they had come to an agreement. Moonlight wrote the rough draft of the rules while Thomas and Silver did their best to color in the circles.

“You’re really excited about this, aren’t ya?” Thomas asked as he casually scribbled his brush over the yellow spot.

“And you are not?” Silver asked as she worked on a blue spot.

“Agreed,” Moonlight said from her spot across the floor as she listed out the rules as neatly as possible. “Honestly I’m embarrassed no pony thought to do this sooner.”

“It’s just a game,” Thomas countered.

“A game brought to you by the same minds behind Halloween,” Moonlight said, sounding like she was impersonating a movie announcer. “And one simple enough for the whole family to enjoy.”

“Now let us not get ahead of ourselves, Moonhoney,” Silver said gently, never tearing her eyes from her work. Already she had twelve circles to Thomas’ eight. “It would be most foolhardy for an up-and-coming entrepreneur to release a product to the public without first testing it out themselves.”

“Very true.” Moonlight paused from her writing to nod at Silver. “We owe it to our customers to ensure that this is a product worth purchasing.”

“When did we become entrepreneurs?” Thomas asked.

“That butler arrived about forty minutes ago?” Moonlight asked.

“Thereabouts.” Silver nodded in agreement, redoubling her coloring efforts.

Thomas decided to refrain from any further questions and just go with the flow. Moonlight quickly finished her writing and joined them in coloring. The pattern was red, purple, blue, green, yellow, and orange. Once the paint was dry, the only matter left to settle would be who would go first.

“Seniority,” Moonlight declared. “Those who’ve been in the castle longest get to go first. That’s me, Thomas, and then you,” she said, gesturing at Silver. They agreed and, after the unicorn stripped down to her linens, knelt beside the spinner and flicked the thin piece of wood. “Left hoof green,” she announced and set her hoof down on a green circle near the middle of the row. “Easy enough, so far.”

“My turn,” Thomas said as he flicked the same piece of wood and watched as it spun. “Left hand blue.” He approached the mat and squatted down until he picked a blue spot directly beside Moonlight’s hoof. “Wait a second. If I’m over here, how do I get the spinner if both my hands are in use?”

“And that is exactly why we need a trial run,” Silver announced before picking up Moonlight’s list of rules and held a pencil on standby. “Should there be a designated spinner, somepony to watch as everypony else makes fools of themselves?”

“How about we just omit left hands from the roster so ponies always have something to spin with?” Moonlight suggested.

“I think you’re allowed to remove a hand from a spot temporarily if it lets you flip the spinner,” Thomas chimed in.

“I like that one,” Silver said as she scribbled the note down. “Alright. Now it is my turn.” She said as she flicked the spinner. “Left elbow green.” Smiling broadly, the mare moved up to the mat and crouched down with her back turned toward the others as she picked a spot near the edge. It was a shameless excuse to present her covered flanks for the others to view, but the bat mare had already rationalized that this was exactly the kind of fun this game was meant for.

And thus the game went on. Twenty turns down the line and Thomas and company had moved halfway across the mat. Somehow Thomas had found himself with his butt arched high in the air while his front splayed above the mat. To compound his plight, Silver was positioned directly beneath him with her butt against his chin, her tail tickling his throat and chest, wings spread for balance, and nose pressed dangerously close to his loincloth. Moonlight had somehow coiled herself around them both with her nose pressed against Silver’s left flank, arm worked between the other mare’s legs, and back twisted very uncomfortably alongside them as Silver did her best to support the unicorn with her extended wing.

“So,” Moonlight winced. “You two having fun?”

“Silver keeps licking me,” Thomas complained as the bat mare finished her latest dab at his inner thigh.

“Stop licking,” Moonlight urged. “That’s cheating… I think.”

“It is not my fault you have such a divine taste,” Silver tittered. “Besides, I don’t recall the rules saying anything about licking.”

Moonlight readied herself to argue further, but then realized the opening she was presented with and gave Thomas a playful grin. Before he could inquire further, she shot her tongue out and tasted along his cheek. “Mmh,” she moaned. “You’re right.”

“Hey!” Thomas whined, trying to shake off the assault on both fronts. “Now that’s double teaming. You can’t do that.”

“It’s not in the ruuule booook,” Silver teased in a sing-song voice as she nuzzled his groin.

“Agh,” Thomas gasped as he gritted his teeth. “Of course you realize this means war.”

Silver was about to ask what Thomas meant, only to shiver as she felt his smooth skin slide up her back. Next she felt a boney pressure, presumably his chin, against her tail bone, followed by the briefest tug at the base of her tail. Silver went rigid and her eyes shrunk to pinpricks. She dared not look behind her for fear of having her suspicions confirmed.

“Thomas,” Moonlight cautioned. “Let’s not do anything rash, alright?”

With utmost rashness, Thomas yanked at the tail between his teeth. Silver gave a short yelp before falling out beneath them. Spitting the hairs from his mouth, Thomas looked down to examine his work and beamed in pride. The bat mare was groaning as her body splayed out across the mat. She was giving him the stink eye, but the creeping smile on her lips suggested she wasn’t too angry.

“You are cruel,” Silver said through gritted teeth.

Thomas smiled, beaming as if she’d praised him. “I’ve been called worse. Also, looks like you’re out.”

With a stinging flick of her tail against Thomas’ chin, the bat mare did her best to crawl out from under him and stand beside the mat. Silver enjoyed the envious looks the others gave her as she stretched, popping the various kinks from her back. She also saw fit to turn her back on them and touch her toes. On an unrelated note, Moonlight suddenly lost her footing and fell, accidentally taking Thomas with her.

As the human rested atop the unicorn, face buried between her breasts as his body rose and fell with her breathing, the pair soon burst out into giggles. The bat mare quickly joined them on the floor, cozying up beside the unicorn and resting her head on the larger mare’s shoulder. They stayed there for a while, unmoving and enjoying each other’s body heat as they swam in one another’s eyes.

Silver was the first to break the silence with a soft giggle. “This is nice.”

“No argument here,” Thomas said with a smirk, nuzzling his face between Moonlight’s breasts. “Mattress and pillows all in one package. Mares make the best bedding.”

“I agree,” Silver sighed, nuzzling closer against Moonlight and stroking her hand across the mare’s muscled stomach.

“Is that all I am to you two?” Moonlight asked in mock hurt as her hand casually stroked along Silver’s wing. “Just some cheap mattress to sleep on?”

“Not at all,” Thomas assured as he gave Silver a lascivious look. “Beds are for other things, too.”

“I am not complaining, but there is one thing I would like to say before we get any more carried away,” Silver added hesitantly.

Picking up on the mares’ movements, Thomas joined in with gentle caresses to their jaws, earning very satisfying sounds from his two lovers. “Go for it.”

Silver swallowed the lump in her throat. This question had been plaguing her all night and she decided that now was as good a time as any. “Pardon me if this sounds a bit presumptuous, but is there anything I need to know about wooing Princess Luna?”

And another one gone. And another one gone. Another one bites the dust!
But this was a brief bit of cuteness. The trio are getting along, finding ways to pass the time, but the plot must progress. (Pun optional) Silver still has a job to do, or rather, to apply for. At the same time, the others are beginning to express concerns of Thomas’ suitability for his position. There’s general agreement, but the real issue will be breaking it to the little guy. What’s gonna happen next? Probably a bunch of cute fluff mixed with awkward erotica as I scamper around trying to make this thing into a coherent narrative.