I sighed in relief as I sank up to my chest in the soothing heat. My eyes closed as I leaned back against the edge of the baths, letting the warmth and steam ease the aches from the last race.

This feels nice, Nilak drawled as he relaxed on my left, his head resting on the edge of the pool while his body was submerged in the deeper section.

I smiled as I glanced over at him, “I couldn’t agree more. This is the best I’ve felt in a long, long time.”

The baths were a huge building attached to the racer headquarters, made entirely out of polished white marble. The entire inside of the massive structure was one giant room, save for the changing areas for the mares and stallions. Large pillars supported the roof and the water had two areas for anyone to use. The deeper section was sloped downward from the shallow, allowing dragons of any size to rest fully submerged in the soothing water. Around the edge of the pool on all sides was a shallow ledge that would allow riders to relax near their mounts, as I was currently doing with Nilak. All and all, it was simply amazing to relax for a change. No Blood Claw to attack us, and no races to take up our time. The next race wasn’t for a week and a half, so the team had all agreed that we needed to take a break.

“I wonder when the girls are going to show up?” I muttered, more to myself than anything.

Who knows? Nilak replied with his eyes closed. For all we know they’re still back at the room trying to choose the appropriate swim wear.

I chuckled, “That’s true, although Ivy was always the one to fuss over fashion and the like. Lucky never really paid much mind to that kind of thing.”

He snorted, just wait until they show up. I’m sure both of them will be wearing next to nothing, if anything at all.

I used my hoof to bop him lightly on the top of his muzzle, rolling my eyes at him, “You do remember that ponies usually go everywhere in the nude, right?”

He huffed in annoyance at my blow, but otherwise didn’t comment. However, not a moment passed before his head lifted off the ground and I saw his eyes widen slightly in shock. I rolled my head backwards to see what had shocked him so much, only for my lips to part in a wide smile as I saw what it was. Or, I guess I should have said, who it was.

Mel and Winx were walking out of the dragon entrance, seeming to glow in the light as they talked to one another. Their scales had been polished to a perfect shine and every inch of their skin looked like it would put satin to shame. I could understand why Nilak was at a loss for words, both dragonelles looked absolutely stunning. I rolled my head back upright so I wouldn’t get a crick in my neck, and smirked to myself as I heard their claws click softly against the floor. Nilak still hadn’t moved from his gape-mouth position, and as I heard the clicking come to a stop I knew something funny was about to happen.

I could imagine the grin on Mel’s face as she spoke, keep your mouth open like that and you’ll start catching flies Nilak. One of my eyebrows rose as I heard her giggle softly, what, do I look that good to you?

Nilak was still frozen, so I stood up and tapped him on the end of his nose.

He blinked a few times and shook his head before looking at me with a confused expression, what happened? I froze there for a minute and I have no idea why.

I rolled my eyes, “Oh brother. You mean to tell me you froze at the sight of those two walking in and you have no idea why you did so?” I jerked my hoof over my shoulder at the girls for emphasis.

His expression looked like he was still in a daze, I remember seeing Mel and Winx walking into the room, but after that my mind just kind of shut down. He looked back towards the girls and sucked in a breath sharply, by the Goddess!

I turned around and saw that both dragonelles were blushing a very deep red, and given that Winx was red to begin with, that was saying something. I turned back to Nilak and grabbed onto one of his horns, giving him a shove towards the girls before he looked at me in confusion.

I jerked my head in their direction, say something. You staring at them is just making them feel embarrassed. I had narrowed the link to just us so the girls wouldn’t overhear.

He turned to look at me with a slightly fearful expression, but what do I say? I don’t know where to begin.

I sighed in exasperation, just start at the top of their bodies and work your way down. Don’t make comments about odd things like their paws or their teeth, but just say something. Anything would be better than this silence!

He swallowed nervously, alright. I’ll try. I felt the link broadening again as he locked gazes with the girls, who still hadn’t lifted their heads to look at us, wow. You guys look amazing.

Both girls lifted their heads with matching looks of uncertainty, do you think so? It was Winx who asked.

Nilak nodded dumbly, I don’t even know where to start. Mel, your scales look like they were cut from the most pure sandstone, and your skin looks like it would be softer than my mother’s feathers.

Good, good, I thought to myself, now one for Winx.

And you Winx, he continued, you look like somedragon took a rose and used the petals to paint you from nose to tail. I wasn’t sure if I was looking at the little runt I had come to know, or a ruby someone had cut in your image.

I rolled my eyes as he bounced from one dragonelle to the other, oh brother. You’re laying it on a bit thick buddy. However, I didn’t say it over the link, afraid the girls might hear me.

By the time Nilak was done, I swore I was looking at two dragons that had been dipped in red paint from the base of the neck up, because both girls were blushing so hard I was afraid they might pass out from the blood rush. Winx couldn’t even meet our gazes, and Mel was having so much difficulty speaking that her muzzle kept opening and closing without a sound.

I grunted as I lifted myself out of the water, “Alright you two, enough with the flustered act. I agree with Nilak that you look stunning, but don’t let it go to your heads.”

Mel’s muzzle closed with a click and she fixed me with an annoyed glare, butt out Silver. I was enjoying Nilak’s little romantic moment.

Yeah! Winx added as she lifted her own head, don’t spoil it for us!

I rolled my eyes, “If I hadn’t jumped in when I had, I’m almost certain one of you would have passed out from the blood rushing to your heads.” Both of them sent me a dangerous look, so I raised my hooves in surrender, “Alright, alright. I get it. Just don’t come crying to me when you two start getting light-headed.”

I heard chuckling coming from the girl’s changing area as I sank back into the water, and I looked over my shoulder to see Lucky and Ivy walking out. It was Lucky who was laughing, though Ivy seemed to barely be holding her own mirth in.

“Oh that’s a good one Silver,” Lucky said as she walked into the room, “I haven’t heard a joke that good in a while.”

Ivy nodded as she covered her mouth with one hoof to hold in a chuckle, “Me neither. I was sure Winx was going to bite your head off for that one.”

Both girls were wearing clothing that left very little to the imagination. Lucky was wearing a two-piece swim suit that was a light blue in color, highlighting her flanks and hind legs while drawing the eye back up to her mane and eyes. Her mane was down around her shoulders and her forelegs were covered in fishnet stockings. Ivy wore something similar, only her suit had a thin strip of cloth connecting the chest and hip pieces going up the middle of her stomach. It was just wide enough to cover her stomach, while still leaving her flanks and back visible. Her suit was a solid jet black and it hugged her slim frame like a second set of fur, rippling with reflections as she moved. To put it simply, both girls made it very hard to keep my eyes from wondering to forbidden territory.

Thankfully, Mel decided to speak up before I did something stupid, you look good Lucky. I knew that ponies could be beautiful when they tried, but you and Ivy look amazing.

Both mares blushed. “Oh stop it Mel,” Lucky said as she walked up to the water’s edge, “you and Winx look better than we could ever hope to be.” She tested the water with one hoof before slipping in on my right side, “Aaaahhhhhh. Now this is what I’ve been needing.” She sat down and rested her head on the stone behind her as she closed her eyes and smiled, “A nice hot soak to get rid of the aches and pains.”

Ivy laughed as she galloped towards us, “Look out below!”

I had just enough time to shield myself with a wing before she leaped into the deeper water and sent a massive splash towards the ceiling. Lucky didn’t have time to react and sputtered as the wave washed over her, making her narrow her eyes at Ivy as she surfaced.

“Would you kindly not do that?” she said with an annoyed tone as Ivy swam about in the deeper section, “Some of us want to relax while we’re here.”

“Ah come on Lucky,” Ivy whined, “it’s no fun if you spend the whole time sitting still.” She splashed Lucky with water as she laughed, “Come on! Have some fun for a change!”

Me next! Me next! I had just enough time to stand up as Winx leaped into the air and tucked herself into a ball, crashing into the water on Ivy’s right before a massive wave erupted from the impact point.

Ivy laughed in joy as the wave crashed over the rest of us, causing Lucky and I to sputter and cough while Nilak turned around to glare at the grinning Winx. Her frills were fully erect, and her entire body seemed about ready to pop from the happy energy she shed.

I heard Mel chuckling behind me, you and Ivy are hatched from the same egg, Winx. Her claws clicked as she walked up to the edge of the pool behind Lucky, both of you have too much energy and can never seem to get rid of it.

Come on Mel! Winx giggled as she swam around with Ivy clinging to her neck, it’s so much fun! Play with us and have some fun for once!

I saw Mel smile and slowly shake her head, I’m afraid I’d never be able to keep up with you two. Go ahead and play with each other. I’m going to follow Lucky’s lead and get some much needed relaxation.

She stepped to the side and walked into the water, purring in pleasure as the steaming liquid hit her sensitive skin. Her eyes partly closed as her entire body sank into the water, leaving just her upper neck and head above the surface.

I smirked as Mel moaned softly, and I heard Ivy and Winx laughing as she slowly moved around Lucky and I, this feels amazing. Her voice sounded like she was on cloud nine, and as she swam around to rest her head next to Nilak, I could feel the water vibrating with her resonating purr, I could lay in this forever.

Nilak rubbed his head against Mel’s, purring almost as strongly as she was, you know we can’t. Once we leave here we’ll have to get back to training and prepare for the next race. We can’t afford to get lazy.

Shut up and let me enjoy this you oaf. I laughed as she gave Nilak a sideways glare, I am going to take my sweet time letting my muscles relax and my joints realign. Nodragon, and I mean nodragon, or pony, she added with a glare our direction, is going to stop me.

I never said you had to stop, Nilak said as she lifted her head with one forepaw to look at him, I just said that after we get out of here we’ll have to get back to work.

N-Nilak, she asked as he began to lean closer, w-what are you doing?

Oh don’t act like we’ve never kissed before, he said as his muzzle came to within an inch of her own, I just wanted to give you some extra attention since we have the time.

Yeah but I never said you could – she cut off as his lips met hers, and I heard her moan into the kiss as she leaned into his larger frame.

I rolled my eyes as I turned to face Lucky, though my grin faltered as I caught her expression. She was watching Nilak and Mel with an inexplicable light in her eyes, but her gaze kept moving to me. She stood up slowly and walked up to me, her eyes still glazed over with the strange light, and I felt myself getting nervous as she sat down at my side.

“Umm, Lucky?” I asked, “What are you doing?”

“I’m-I’m not sure,” she said as her hooves moved up and around my neck. “There’s this sensation inside me, telling me to do this. I can’t explain it but, I like it.” Her legs came to rest on my shoulders as her hooves draped over my back, “It feels warm and so many other things I can’t explain. I just don’t want it to stop.”

I felt my face heating up as her chest pressed against my own, “N-Now hold on a minute Lucky. I-I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but I think we should –”

I never got to finish because she leaned forward and pressed her lips against mine, moving her legs so she was sitting in my lap as she kissed me.

My eyes widened in shock, and for a split second I thought about pushing her away. However, that quickly disappeared as she tilted her head slightly, deepening the kiss and pressing herself into me. I had no idea why she was doing this, but I didn’t care. My hooves moved up to her hips as she moaned into my mouth, and as her tongue danced across my lower lip, I allowed her entrance. My tongue intertwined with hers and she moaned much louder this time, pressing so hard against me that I felt like she wanted to become a part of me. I could hear Winx and Ivy speaking to one another in the back of my mind, but at the moment all I cared about was how amazing kissing Lucky felt.

Lucky pulled back to take a breath, her cheeks flushed and her breathing ragged as she looked into my eyes. Her lips were puffy and red from kissing me, but the same light still lingered in her eyes. I knew at some point she had to come out of this, but at the moment, I didn’t care.

However, that feeling of happiness quickly changed to shock as she began to fiddle with the straps of her suit, undoing the knot holding her chest piece in place. I quickly covered my eyes with one leg as she took it off, feeling my face turn beet red. I may have enjoyed kissing her, but this was too much!

“What’s the matter Silver?” Her voice had taken on a sultry tone, and she ran her hooves up my chest in a very teasing way, “Are you afraid of being with me?”

I refused to look as I removed her hooves from me gently, “Lucky, this isn’t you. Something is making you feel this way and do these things. I don’t know what it is, but you have to stop.”

By this time I could hear Winx and Ivy off to my right, seeming unsure about what to do. Mel and Nilak had also stopped their own make-out session, apparently hearing the uncertain tone in my voice. All of this I could tell by hearing, given I still had my eyes closed so I wouldn’t see Lucky topless. Nudity be damned, I wasn’t going to get an eyeful of Lucky’s mare bits when she was sitting in my lap!

“Come on Silver.” Her tone had changed into that of a child not getting what she wanted, “I know you want to do this with me. You’ve wanted to be with me since we were young.” She rubbed her crotch against my own and I hissed as my body betrayed me, my wings flaring behind me as my own parts began to react.

Her voice took on that of a mother scolding her child, “Oh dear, did I make you get excited? Well we’ll just have to fix that won’t we?”

She tried to move her hooves towards my stallionhood, but I forced them back out of the water as I heard Mel and Nilak moving over to us.

Lucky? It was Mel speaking in an uncertain tone, what’s gotten into you? Why are you trying to mate with Silver?

“Because he makes me feel good.” She said in a ‘duh’ tone, “I saw you two kissing and suddenly I got this amazing feeling. It was like I had been dipped in pure ecstasy. I don’t know what it is but I love it!”

I heard Mel whispering to Nilak, and I tried to hear what they were saying. However, they stopped before I could make anything out.

I know this feels amazing Lucky, it was Nilak speaking, but you need to stop. This isn’t just your own needs making you do this. Because you and Silver are our partners, our feelings for each other must have passed through our bond and into you. You must like Silver a lot for it to be going this far, but your inhibitions have been stripped away because of what Mel and I were doing.

Suddenly, Lucky seemed to get lighter, and I heard her cry out as she was lifted off of me, “Hey! Put me down right now! Let go of me!”

I hesitated as I opened one eye a slit, but let them both open fully when I saw that Lucky wasn’t bare for all to see. She wasn’t exactly dressed, but it was good enough.

Nilak had wrapped Lucky from her hips to her neck with his tail, making a sapphire cocoon around her as her face tightened in strain.

She must have been trying to force her way out of his grip, but Nilak was way too strong for her. Mel moved up to her and lifted a paw out of the water, moving a single claw towards Lucky as she thrashed around in Nilak’s grip.

“I said let go of me!” She yelled as she struggled more, “Put me down now or I’ll scream!”

You’re already screaming, Mel said calmly as she placed one claw on Lucky’s forehead. Lucky froze, knowing how sharp a dragon’s claws were, now hold still and let me help you. This will only take a moment.

Mel’s paw began to glow a light blue, and the glow slowly spread until it covered Lucky from head to tail. For a moment nothing happened, and then Lucky’s eyes flashed a bright white in color before turning back to their normal emerald. She fell limp in Nilak’s grip, and he slowly moved her over to the pool edge. I averted my gaze as he unwrapped his tail from her, letting Ivy tend to her state of dress before turning back around.

Lucky groaned as she opened her eyes, holding her head with one hoof as she pushed herself up with the other, “Oh, my head. What in the world happened?” She opened her eyes and looked around, “Why is everyone staring at me?”

“You don’t remember?” Ivy asked as she sat next to Lucky, “Are you sure you’re alright?”

Lucky nodded slowly, “I remember watching Mel and Nilak going at it, but then everything gets a bit hazy.” She curled her legs under herself and stared at the floor in front of her, “I remember this warm feeling passing through me, like I was drunk or something, only different. I also remember talking to Silver about something, and then I –” Her breath hitched as her eyes went very wide, and her face turned a stark shade of crimson as her hooves flew to cover her mouth.

“I take it you remember what happened next?” I asked, still not quite believing it myself.

Lucky looked up at me with pure shock in her eyes, “I….I kissed you……didn’t I?”

I nodded slowly, and her face became so red it was bordering on turning purple, “Oh my Celestia. Oh Luna let this be a sick joke.”

Ivy held Lucky gently as the poor girl began to tremble, “Shh, it’s alright. It wasn’t your fault. It was whatever crazy crap that passed through our bond that did this to you.”

“Yeah,” I said as I turned to Mel and Nilak. “Would you mind sharing about that? You seem to know exactly what happened to Lucky.”

Mel and Nilak shared a look before turning back to us.

The sensation that Lucky experienced was something we dragons call the ‘mating pull’, Nilak explained. It’s a feeling that tells a dragon when their mate is nearby and forces them to act. Do you remember what happened on that hill way back before we joined the circuit?

“How could we ever forget?” Ivy said as she rubbed along Winx’s neck, “You two were making out for about twenty minutes.”

Mel blushed as she spoke, well, that was when my mating pull hit me, causing me to come after Nilak like a fresh slab of meat. Lucky just experienced the same thing because of what Nilak and I were doing. I think it was triggered when she saw us kissing, and the feelings we had for one another passed through our bond and into her.

“But how can dragon stuff affect me?” Lucky asked in confusion, “Ponies don’t do that kind of stuff.”

My best guess? Nilak said calmly. When we all became bonded together, a part of our dragon magic became one with each of you. So, even though the mating pull is a purely dragon trait, it effected Lucky because she, in a way, is part dragon as well.

So when our own mating bond became strong, Mel added, she was effected and acted out on her own feelings. These things don’t randomly happen. Lucky must have thought about doing those things in the past, but simply never acted on those impulses. When the mating pull hit her, those mental blocks were shattered, and she acted out her deepest desires. She glanced at me, apparently she’s been keeping feelings hidden that are aimed solely at you Silver. She wouldn’t have acted that way if that weren’t the case.

I looked at Lucky, unable to voice the question that must have been evident in my gaze. Lucky averted her gaze and closed her eyes, telling me all I needed to know.

“Why didn’t you ever tell me, Lucky?” I asked as I took a step towards her.

Her shoulders began to shake as I saw tears run down her face, “Because I never had the courage to say anything.”

She covered her face as she sobbed, Ivy pulling Lucky into a hug as she looked up at me with an uncertain expression. Apparently she didn’t have a clue how to comfort the cobalt mare either.

This isn’t a bad thing, Nilak set his head down next to Lucky and Ivy, now you don’t have to hide your feelings anymore. Just let them out and be happy that you no longer have to bottle them up inside.

“But what if Silver doesn’t feel the same way?!” She wailed as she grabbed onto Ivy’s shoulders, burying her face in the crook of the other girl’s neck. Her shoulders shook as she continued crying, and all eyes turned to me with very hard expressions.

I gulped as everyone glared at me. What was I supposed to do? Confess my love for her when I had no idea how I felt? This was all so sudden! I wasn’t prepared for this!

“I-I umm,” I swallowed again, “I-I don’t know how I feel. I’ll admit that I loved kissing Lucky, and I felt warmth in my heart when she was acting like that, but I don’t know if that was the magic talking or if it was really me.”

I turned to look at Lucky as she locked gazes with me. Her eyes were bloodshot and her nose was running as she tried to put on a brave face. I knew she was waiting for me to break her heart, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I liked Lucky. That much I knew. But this whole mating pull thing was way too much at one time. I needed time to think it over before I could give a true answer.

I sat down next to Lucky and used my hoof to wipe away her tears, “I can’t say without a doubt that I love you, Lucky.” I stopped her reply by placing my hoof over her lips, “But, I do care for you very much, so I can’t say for sure that I don’t love you either.” Her eyes got a hopeful light in them again, and I couldn’t help but smile as I wrapped my legs around her shoulders, “Will you give me a chance Lucky? Will you let me figure out my own feelings for you?”

She sniffed and rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hooves, “I-I’ll try Silver.” She lowered her legs and gave me a small smile, “I’ll wait for you if it takes forever.”

My heart jerked at her words, and on a split second impulse, I leaned forward and pressed my lips to hers. I heard everyone else gasp as I gently cupped her cheek in my hoof, but she didn’t fight me off and I pulled back slowly, letting her be as she opened her eyes again.

“That was my apology,” I said with a matching small smile, “for making you feel like I didn’t care for you.”

She averted her gaze, “Thank you Silver. I know I can’t ask you to love me outright after all that just happened, but it’s nice to know you don’t hate me for what I did.”

“Hate you?” I asked in shock, “How could I ever hate you? Sure it was a shock, but I could never begrudge you for expressing your feelings. I promise you, I will never hate you for being who you are, and if that means you want to be with me, then I will just have to accept that.”

She looked up at me and leaned forward, wrapping her hooves around my neck before resting her head on my chest, “Thank you Silver. You don’t know how much this means to me.”

I wrapped my hooves around her shoulders and gently rubbed behind her ears, “You’re welcome Lucky.”

All of a sudden, somepony started clapping off to the side, and we all looked up in surprise as Thunder walked into the room. Shield Fang followed close behind him as he walked towards us, a huge grin splitting his lips as he looked between Lucky and me.

“About time you two got together.” He said as he placed his hooves back on the floor, “I was starting to wonder if I was going to have to lock you two in a room to get you to confess.”

We all shared a look, knowing that things had just gotten a lot more complicated.

Author's Notes:

Hot damn that was steamy, and not from the bath water. Looks like we have some new social dynamics in the team. Wonder how it's going to pan out later.

Anyways, this is the fourth and final update for my Birthday Marathon Submission, so you'll have to wait for the rest at a later date. Happy reading, and I'll see you next chapter.
Shadow Quill, Messenger of the Moon.