Somehow, the blue light of the orb made Princess Luna’s face look even bluer. She held it up, inches from her nose, and peered into it with narrowed, curious eyes. For a moment, Tarnish thought of Mellonella Moth, the big blue earth pony, an acquaintance, and the generous soul that had given Maud a chunk of moon rock. There was no denying it, there were similarities between the two.

Distracted by his own thoughts, he looked away from Princess Luna staring into his orb and looked over at Octavia, who was having an unspoken conversation with Vinyl. He wondered how she knew so much, how she became so knowledgeable, and wondered how he would ask her about it. This was a question that required tact, and he wondered if there was a way he could ask without being blunt or upsetting about it.

“This is most wondrous,” Princess Luna said in a soft voice, “it is like a phylactery, but without the stain of evil about it. There is something else about it as well… something…”

“It holds the very essence of poison joke.” Tarnish looked over at the curious blue alicorn and saw that her face was almost foalish. She had wide, curious eyes and she was looking at him. “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine because you are near me. I figured that out after Trixie and I examined the orb together. I am probably the only pony that can safely handle the orb without resorting to preemptive cures or alchemical protection.”

“In my experience,” Twilight remarked as she too, peered into the orb, “artifacts choose their owners. I learned quite a bit studying the Elements of Harmony.”

“Trying to steal away an artifact from its chosen bearer can bring about dire consequences.” Princess Luna turned her head and looked over at Twilight, then returned to staring into the orb, her ears perking as she tried to discern the orb’s many secrets.

“With this being the vital essence of poison joke, this orb would be wonderful for magical stabilisation in hostile environments.” Twilight’s brows crinkled into deep furrows, and her muzzle developed a few creases. “Tarnish, with your talent and this orb, there could be situations where you would have quite an advantage.”

Tarnish nodded, having already thought of what Twilight was thinking. As he sat there watching, Twilight turned her attention away from the orb and began to examine his shield. He couldn’t help but notice that Twilight’s curiousity was almost cat-like, with similar facial expressions and body language. Well, if a cat had wings that is.

“I can’t tell what it is made of,” Twilight said in a low voice.

“Neither can I.” Maud leaned forwards. “It isn’t steel. It isn’t any metal I can recognise. And I can’t make out what the glass-like substance is either.” The earth pony looked Twilight in the eye, then looked over at Princess Luna, and then her eyes fell upon the strange shield. “It is feather light but when it hits something, it strikes as though a falling star has impacted. The shield does not obey the laws of physics.”

“Princess Luna, have you seen anything like this?” Twilight asked. When Princess Luna shrugged, Twilight let out a disappointed sounding sigh. She set the shield down, gave it a final glance, and looked at Tarnish. “Okay, Tarnish, I need you to tell me everything you know about the centaur spirit in the orb, the timber wolves with poison joke, and every detail you can remember about your visions into the past. Do you think you can do that?”

Heart heavy, Tarnish nodded, and made ready once again to tell Twilight everything.

Nopony said anything. Tarnish had told Twilight just about everything he could remember and then some. Princess Luna’s expression was unreadable and Twilight’s seemed to be one of distracted curiousity. Vinyl looked thoughtful, Octavia looked a little confused or perhaps befuddled, and Maud, well, Maud looked the same as she always did. There was something about this that Tarnish found reassuring. Maud was his rock.

Something needed to fill the silence that had descended upon the group. It grew awkward with a cringe inducing rapidity that Tarnish thought was a bit disturbing. He felt enormous relief when he saw Twilight take a deep breath and then opened up her mouth to say something.

“There’s a lot of weird things going on right now,” Twilight said to the group. “There’s reports of harpies to the south. There have been some vicious harpy attacks far, far to the south, beyond Equestria’s borders. There are also reports of raptorians—”

“What’s a raptorian?” Tarnish asked, cutting Twilight off.

“I’ve never seen one,” Twilight replied, “but I’ve read about them in an old book. They’re a bit like harpies, they have the bodies of birds and the heads of dogs.” She paused and her lips pressed into a straight line for but a moment before she continued, “Thing is, raptorians aren’t supposed to exist anymore. They were said to be wiped out almost two thousand years ago. The raptorians were the airborne shock troops for the war pigs, a group led by some kind of horrible pig witch named Princess Porcina. Not much is known about them and what little information I’ve been able to find is conflicting in nature.”

“The centaur that gave Tarnish the orb and the shield was turned to stone to survive the ages.” Maud’s eyes glittered with a keen intelligence. “The ages were not kind to her however. Discord’s statue survived for a thousand years. What if the raptorians were turned to stone, stored away for safekeeping, and then revived when the time was right?”

Twilight shuddered at Maud’s words. “Well…” Her words trailed off and she shuddered again. “That’s one way to time travel, I suppose.”

“Not all of the raptorians were bad,” Princess Luna said, her soft, sorrowful sounding voice cutting into the conversation like a sharp knife slicing through soft, fluffy cake. “Just like not all diamond dogs are bad. There were good ones and bad ones. They tore themselves apart in a vicious civil war. The survivors fled, with the good ones heading off to the far east and the bad ones becoming mercenaries and sellswords. The bloodshed and the killing was so terrible that it made their homeland uninhabitable. There is still a swamp far to the south where their homeland used to be. Everything there rots now and nothing grows healthy or true.”

“How do you know this?” Twilight asked.

“Once, a long time ago, in my youth, I traveled there while hunting a powerful warlock. We dueled there, and our skirmish woke up the horrors of the swamp. The dead rose, having heard the siren’s call of battle. I left him there, and the dead pulled him down into the murky depths to join them in their fetid, rotting misery. I do not regret mine actions.”

“Ugh.” Twilight’s whole body made a very noticeable shiver.

“We have known peace for a time, but that time is over.” Princess Luna’s eyebrows formed a concerned ‘V’ upon her forehead and the corners of her mouth were tugged downwards. “Princess Cadance says that the ice orcs stir at the top of the world, they are an ancient and terrible enemy of ponykind. Yakyakistan has had much success in holding them off, at least, so far.”

“In the dragon lands, the lava demons have been more than a little unfriendly.” Twilight glanced at Princess Luna, then met the eyes of each member of the group one at a time. “Thankfully, the dragons are well equipped to deal with lava demons.”

“It is quite a curious thing.” Octavia paused, her lower lip protruding, and she shook her head. “It is funny how things from the past can come back to haunt us. Why, just the other day, we found a guard tower and met a dutiful spectre guarding some gaudy bit of jewelry—OW! Vinyl, don’t poke me so hard!” She glared at the unicorn beside her and rubbed her ribs where Vinyl had poked her. Eyes narrowed, she continued, “He mentioned the war against Catrina. Would you happen to know who she is?”

Twilight looked puzzled, but Princess Luna did not. Her eyes narrowed, but the princess said nothing. Octavia gave the alicorn a hopeful look, but information did not seem forthcoming. The two princesses exchanged a glance, but nothing was said. Octavia realised that she was going to have to live with disappointment.

“He was guarding a ring of elemental authority that is attuned to fire.” As Tarnish spoke, he watched Twilight’s eyebrow rise and form a concerned arch. “I gave it to Vinyl for safekeeping. She’s more magical than I am and will get more use out of it.”

Twilight, looking alarmed, leaned forwards. “Now wait, I don’t know about—”

“Keep it safe,” Princess Luna commanded as she leveled a cool stare upon Vinyl Scratch and cut Twilight Sparkle off mid-sentence. “Artifacts must stay with the owners that they choose. Powerful weapons on the other hoof, must remain with trusted keepers.” The alicorn of the night’s eyes narrowed and her stare became flinty. “Do not disappoint me, or else I shall descend upon you in the night, and you will behold mine terrible majesty.”

There was an audible gulp from Vinyl Scratch and a large lump could be seen sliding down her graceful, slender throat. The unicorn squirmed under Princess Luna’s harsh glare, then bowed her head, and nodded.

“Vinyl Scratch is a recognised graduate of Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns.” Princess Luna turned her head and focused upon Twilight, who sat there looking astonished. “She is a skilled wizard with exceptional magic. I would rather have such a weapon in her keeping than locked away in a vault somewhere gathering dust.”

“Yes, Princess Luna.” Twilight nodded her head and her ears drooped in a submissive gesture. “Thinking about it, I see the wisdom in it now.”

“Good,” was Princess Luna’s terse reply. “There is much to be done. We must be ready to head north soon.”

“Yes, we could both do with a nap I think.” Twilight let out a yawn, then shook her head, causing her ears to flap. “It will be nice travelling at night, when it is a bit cooler and the moon is out.”

“Everything is better at night,” Princess Luna replied as she turned to look at the four ponies sitting together. “Mine moon and stars will watch over thee. Best of luck upon thine endeavours. Thou art blessed with thine companionship.”

A soft breeze blew, causing the grass to ripple like waves on a pond. The heady scent of clover hung heavy in the air, almost hiding the inviting smell of a sleeping willow that was some distance away. A sleeping willow, not to be confused with a weeping willow, caused those who fell asleep beneath its drooping bows to never wake up again, giving the tree what it needed to survive. Fresh fertiliser.

Much to Tarnish’s relief, he finally had Maud alone and all to himself. Just a bit of time was all he wanted, all he needed, and then they would return and say their goodbyes to those heading north. Looking down, he saw Maud’s smock laying in the grass. Looking up, he saw Maud standing in the shade, her tail twitching from side to side.

He approached, his head low, and gave her a little lip nibble, which she returned. The lip nibble became a kiss, which became a smooch, and then it intensified into something else entirely as they stood facing one another. With a bit of fancy hoofwork, Tarnish repositioned himself, sidestepping and turning while he kissed Maud, until he was standing beside her and he could feel her swishing tail slapping his hind legs.

With time being so short, there wasn’t much time for the slow vagaries of romance and letting the situation develop. He pulled away from the kiss with a slurp and wasting no time whatsoever, he slipped a foreleg over Maud’s back, repositioned himself on top of her, and mounted her. He wrapped his forelegs around her middle, sliding them along her ribs, and he was tall enough now that she was able to stand beneath him quite comfortably. He heard a soft, almost unnoticeable moan and he rubbed his neck against hers. He felt her tail flagging and her dock made an inviting rub against his belly, causing his muscles in his hind legs to quiver.

Closing his eyes, he thought about how it would be. He would grip her, take a deep breath, and then, the same way he always did when they were in a hurry, he would ease himself inside of her. The first few thrusts would almost always be a little clingy, she would be stretched tight all around him and there would be the sort of friction that would make him go rock hard.

But with patience, she would loosen up a bit, become slick, and then the magic would happen. He would go deeper, and deeper, and deeper still, until he had hilted himself. Just beyond his medial ring, in that spot between his ring and his balls, there was a patch of rough, textured, somewhat knobby skin that nature had so helpfully provided, and he was learning how to use that, how to grind it against Maud in such a way that made her get her rocks off. All he had to do was pay attention to what he was doing, time his thrusts with her winking, and let the rough expanse of skin slide back and forth against her eager, winking flesh.

It was all about working with a rhythm.

Eyes still closed, his whole body tensed as he readied himself. His legs were tense, too tense, and if they kept this up, they would cramp. He drew in deep breath, braced his back, and just as he was about to make entry, his brain balked at the very idea. He let his breath out in a flatulent lip flapping raspberry, his entire bulk collapsed against Maud’s back, and then, pulling her with him, he fell over into the grass as though he had been speared.

He lay on his side, now spooning with Maud, and he pulled her closer, as he still had his forelegs around her middle. He didn’t care that she was laying on his left front leg and that it would soon go to sleep. He buried his face into the back of her mane, along her crest, and breathed deep. He snorted and felt a shiver in Maud’s neck muscles.

“Ummm…”

“I’m sorry, Maud.” Tarnish felt Maud’s ear twitch against his cheek, near his lips.

“Are you okay?” Maud asked.

“Yeah,” Tarnish replied as he heard a wet schlurp sound from Maud’s other end. “Yeah, I’m great. I, uh, well, I uh, you see—”

“You just wanted to spoon with me?”

“Yeah.” Tarnish’s muscles went limp and he settled a bit more into the grass. He didn’t know what was wrong with him, but this was good. This was great. His body was happy with this, for some reason, and he couldn’t quite figure out what was going on. “I’m sorry… I hope you’re not disappointed.”

“I’m not disappointed, I’m worried. My husband was about to drill for oil in my bedrock. He was about to pump water out of my well. He was about to frack my fronk-hole. Exciting things were about to happen. Really exciting things. Messy biological things outside of my field of specialty.”

Not knowing what to say, he tightened his grip around Maud, needing to feel her against him, to feel her living body against his, to feel her breathing, he needed to smell her, and he had the vague inkling of an idea that he needed intimacy at this moment, and not necessarily sex. The faint flicker of an idea became a spark, and the spark ignited into something that was almost a burning, blazing epiphany.

A quiet, seldom heard voice in the back of his mind wondered if he was growing up.

“I love you so much,” Tarnish whispered, his voice husky and a little bit gritty. “I love everything about you. The way that you walk. The way that you talk.” He felt her tail swishing against his stomach and the inside of his thighs. He lay holding her in the sun dappled shade, never wanting to let go, he wanted this moment to somehow endure forever. “I even love all of the funny faces that you make.”

He felt Maud’s body tense in his embrace, her neck stretched out, and as he watched, Maud began to nibble upon the sweet clover that was just within reach. He heard another moist sounding schlurp from Maud’s southern expanses and his belly muscles quivered, connected to his ears in some strange way. The sound of Maud chewing on clover filled his ears, as there wasn’t much else to listen to. There were a few bees around, some other bugs, and the sound of wind rustling the grass.

“Maud…”

“Yes, you silly hornicorn?”

“Sometimes, I wonder, what defines a relationship.” Tarnish closed his eyes and enjoyed the cool breeze blowing over his ribs and other hot, sweaty places. “We’ve spent a lot of time exploring the sexual side of our relationship, but what about the rest of it?” After he spoke, he heard Maud sigh.

“We dance,” Maud replied. “We go off into the wilderness and have adventures. We sometimes end up in life and death situations. We bathe in frigid waters and look up at the stars like two feral mustangs that have never heard of modern plumbing or hot water heaters. There’s a lot that we do that we probably don’t think about, probably because we’re too busy doing it, or trying to survive some extraordinary situation or circumstance.”

“So we have a good relationship that is fleshed out, well developed, and healthy?” he asked.

“Yes, I think so,” she replied.

“I was worried.” Something about the admission made Tarnish feel better. “I mean, we finally got a moment alone, I gave you a little kiss, and then I just sort of mounted you and got down to business and then I’m not sure what happened, but now we’re doing this.”

“There was a sense of urgency because time alone to ourselves is currently in short supply.” Maud’s tail swished and her dock quivered against Tarnish’s belly.

“Good,” Tarnish said and then he took a deep breath. “Good… good… by the way, I’m about to stab you in the butt with my boner—”

“You say such romantic things…”

Author's Notes:

Can you count all of the G1 references? Can you? Brony, do you even pony?