Chris groaned softly as he eased himself into the heated water of the natural hot spring, letting the comforting warmth soothe him as he submerged himself up to his neck. His aching limbs began to relax as he found a comfortable spot, sitting on a ledge that was carved out of the smooth rock. Steam wafted lazily off the surface, clearing his sinuses and further helping him to reach a calmer state of mind.

The spring was conveniently located directly behind the large tree his family called home and saw much use by all his siblings. A large basin made of various natural stones rested amongst the roots of the tree itself. The large roots twisted about the pool, creating a nature-made barrier against prying eyes, and the only way to access the area was through a backdoor at the base of the tree. A thick canopy of leaves hung over the spring, protecting any bathers from rain or snow, which was convenient since it was still raining outside, though not as hard as before. Some of the lower branches were thick and strong enough for a batpony to hang from, should they wish. Various glowing mushrooms grew on these lower branches, providing a nice ambiance. The only thing made by hoof was the small wooden deck that was only added for convenience.

The pool itself was made up of three separate sections: a large body that made up most of the stone basin, with two smaller pools located slightly higher than the main one along the back wall. Warm water trickled down from the smaller pools, creating gentle waterfalls beneath which one could rest on benches carved into the stone, allowing the deluge to cascade over them without fear of drowning. The basin itself was rather deep, the water going up to Chris’s chin at the lowest point. There was an underwater plateau in the center of the pool, the water there shallow enough for even somepony as small as Blue to sit with her head comfortably above the water.

Leaning back against the heated stone, Chris closed his eyes as he attempted to relax. The gentle sound of rain falling on the leaves above filled the air, along with the soft trickle of water around him. The noise helped to calm his mind somewhat, but in the end, it was not enough. His mind was still too occupied with the events that had transpired over the past few days.

How did I let this get so out of control? What’s wrong with me? he wondered with a frown, a heavy sigh slowly escaping him. He had tried to ignore the deeper issues of what exactly his relationship with his sisters was, but now that events had escalated to an unthinkable level, it was time for him to really think about it. And this was the perfect place for that. He would often come here in times when he needed to just be alone with his troubles, and in the peace and quiet of the spring, his troubled thoughts came unbidden to his mind.

What are you doing, man... You slept with three of your sisters!

Three of them!

With full on SEX!

Chris grimaced at himself as his hand came up and splashed some of the warm water onto his face. Random images of what took place over the past three days flashed before his mind, but he did his best to repress those thoughts. He saw his sisters in ways that only their future coltfriends, husbands, or even herd-mates should have seen them. He even took his younger sisters’ virginities! He had deflowered them and took away a beautiful moment they should have shared with their first lovers, not... not their brother!

It had been his first time as well, but that thought bothered him a lot less. Strangely, he didn’t feel like it was a waste to have given his first time to Blue Moon, which only confused him further. Was there some twisted and sick part of him that felt good about this depraved situation?

Groaning, Chris splashed more water on his face before letting himself sink deeper into the pool, submerging himself up to his eyes.

He might not have been in Equestria his whole life, but he grew up with these fillies, even helping raise them. He could clearly remember assisting in Blue’s discovery of her passion for playing the cello, then only a short year later, watched as she played her heart out in front of him and got her cutie mark. He encouraged Moondrop to keep drawing even when she was going through one of her more depressed phases, staying with her so they could both draw and compare sketches. It helped her get out of her slump and even he found a love for drawing after that, though he wasn’t nearly as good as she was. There was even a time when he used to have study sessions with Dawn and helped her pass several of her classes that she was really struggling with. Sometime after she turned sixteen though, she stopped attending their sessions. She became a lot more distant and started wearing more clothing and makeup.

Chris frowned slightly when he thought about how he and Dawn seemed to grow apart over the years. He never really gave it a whole lot of thought before, but now...

Why was she so... sad when she first discovered I was helping Moondrop and Blue Moon? Chris pondered, sitting up again as he tried to make sense of her odd reaction. Even the words she said still confused him and rang fresh in his mind.

Keeping me out of the loop yet again!

Ooooh, how typical of you! You’re willing to help scratch their itches, but aren’t willing to come to me when I need help with mine!?

You just didn’t want to help me because I’m not as pretty as them!

It was a little baffling to him that she would just assume he wouldn’t want to help her like that, and what was with the “not as pretty as them” comment? Granted, in this kind of situation he might have held back if he was given a choice, but it wasn’t like he was intentionally keeping her out of what he was doing. She just... never seemed interested in hanging out with him anymore... She used to be one of his best friends when he was first trying to get used to this world.

Closing his eyes, a melancholy smile touched the edges of his lips as a particular memory from almost seven years ago slowly drifted to the forefront of his mind.

“Not knowing what to do, the colt huddled down into his bed as he heard the mysterious knocking sound a second time. This time he could tell it was coming from somewhere outside the house,” Dawn said in an eerie whisper, holding the flashlight up to her face. The light cast dark shadows about her gray freckled muzzle and bright purple mane, giving her a creepy appearance.

Blue Moon and Moondrop clung to Chris’s arms nervously as he tried to remain tough and act like he wasn’t just as scared as they were. They all huddled together in the cramped confines of their makeshift fort constructed from couch cushions, a table, three chairs, and a large blanket. They all listened with rapt attention to their elder sister’s story, hanging on every word. Outside, the storm continued to rage on, rain pounding on the window panes which only added to the spooky atmosphere.

Dawn’s gaze drifting over her assembled audience, her smile growing at their fear. “The little colt, being to scared to move, looked out his window from his bed, but it was too dark to see. A few minutes later, the sound came again, only this time it was much louder. Knock... knock... knock...”

Blue trembled as she clutched both her security blanket and Chris’s arm tightly, her eyes wide with fear. Her tiny wings fluttered weakly by her sides, not yet grown enough to be much use.

“M-maybe... maybe the sound was just a... a bird trying to get in?” Moondrop whispered hopefully as she squeezed Chris’s other arm.

Dawn only smirked and shook her head before continuing.

“The colt was confused and worried, but he waited and listened to see if it would come again. After only a few more seconds, the knocking came again, but this time it was even louder and it came from his window,” Dawn continued, slowly clopping her hoof on the floor to emphasize her words. “Knock… knock… knock…”

Chris tried to remain stoic for his new younger siblings. This was his first Nightmare Night, and while scared, he wanted to make a good impression on his new siblings. Normally, he was never one to get frightened from tall tales like this from his own world, but he wasn’t in that place anymore. For all he knew, what Dawn was telling him could have actually happened, plus this world was already pretty scary even without the stories. Still, he did his best to remain calm, especially since he was trying prove to his new elder sister that he wasn’t a baby, or a foal, as the case may be.

Moondrop clung to his side just like Blue, her pale eyes wide behind her pink-rimmed glasses—the only color they had at the moment, much to her dismay. Her teeth chattered loudly as she stared at Dawn. He wanted to wrap his arm around her, but they were both holding him way too tight.

“It didn’t take long for the knocking to come back, only this time...” Dawn paused as she looked over her audience, letting the dramatic moment pass over them before raising her voice and throwing her hooves into the air, “...the knocking grew even louder! It was now coming from within the house!”

Both Blue and Moondrop let out small yips, their grips on Chris tightening even more as they held their heads in his chest.

Chris for the most part was watching Dawn unblinkingly even though his heart was nearly pounding out of his chest.

“The colt scrambled as he reached for his teddy bear and tried to hide beneath his blankets again, but it was too late,” she whispered, her fangs flashing in the glow of the flashlight as she leaned forward. “The knocking came again, only this time... it came from his bedroom door!” Again, she clopped her hoof on the floor, harder this time, the sound echoing around the makeshift tent.

Both fillies squealed softly into Chris’s nightshirt. Even he was starting to lose his composure, but he did his best to keep his body from trembling in fear too much.

“Slowly, the door creeeeeeeaaked open,” Dawn continued. “The colt froze instantly, clinging onto his teddy bear for dear life as he listened carefully. For a while, he heard nothing... but then... the knocking sound came back, only this time, it sloooooowly approached the foot of his bed, growing louder and louder. Knock… knock… knock.” Her eyes narrowed as her gaze locked with Chris’s. For a split second, an unnatural silence fell about them, as even the storm outside grew still.

Dawn’s smile widened. “The colt was about to peer out to see what it was when a voice whispered in his ear from behind him, ‘Since there is no candy here for us to gobble, we will have to gobble… YOOOOOOOOOOU!’”

Screaming the last word, Dawn leapt up suddenly, her wings flaring open and sending a billow of wind racing around the tent. Her action was accented by a clap of thunder, the entire room illuminated by the burst of lightning outside.

Letting out terrified shrieks, both Blue and Moondrop let go of Chris’s arms and raced out of the tent, making a beeline up the stairs and away from their fort.

“MOMMEEEEEEEEEE!!!” They both screamed in unison.

Dawn couldn’t help but burst into a fit of manic laughter, holding her gut as she fell back onto a pillow.

Chris remained frozen in fear, his eyes widened as his heart practically leapt out of his chest.

After Dawn collected herself, she sighed and sat up, giving Chris a big, wide grin. “I’m impressed. I thought for sure that story would have got you too!”

“Y-yeah...” Chris said, a weak, shaky chuckle escaping his lips. “I-It wasn’t so... s-scary.”

With a gentle giggle, Dawn got up and made her way to her new brother before turning around and falling back, plopping the back of her head down in his lap.

“I kind of figured you’d be tough enough to handle that one,” she said with a smile, flashing her fangs up at him. “You’re pretty alright for a... a...” She paused in thought before speaking again. “What was it that you said you were? How do you say it again?”

“H-human...” Chris said softly as he looked down to his sister, trying to hide his fear.

“Yeah! Hoo-moon!” she repeated happily with another giggle. “I like you, Chris. You’re a pretty cool little brother!”

“T-thanks,” Chris said awkwardly, but with a smile of his own. It really did make him happy that he could impress Dawn and make a good impression on her, at least. It made him feel more comfortable, like he actually belonged in this strange family...

A small but comforting moment of silence passed between them, the only sound heard was the rain and harsh winds outside until Chris spoke up again. “Hey, Dawn...”

“Yeah?” she said as she closed her eyes, getting a little more comfortable in his lap.

“There’s really no such thing as a... C-candy Goblin in this world... right?”

Dawn snorted, holding in a laugh before shaking her head. “No, they aren’t real. They’re just made up.”

“O-okay...” Chris said with relief, but was still somewhat scared. “That’s, um... good.”

Chris chuckled softly as he recalled the events of that night. After Dawn had scared them, Blue and Moondrop woke their mother up, which she was less than pleased about. She came downstairs shortly after to scold all of them, but Dawn was able to calm her down and tell her they were only having fun for Nightmare Night. Once their mother was alert and understood what had happened, she sighed and nodded her head in understanding, but she was too tired to deal with it and ordered everypony to bed.

He remembered trying to sleep that night, but couldn’t after a story like Dawn’s. Eventually, he got up and walked into his new mother’s bedroom where Blue, Moondrop, and even Dawn had snuggled up against their mother. Upon seeing him, she had smiled and scooted over, patting a spot next to her and Blue, welcoming him to join their snuggle pile. For the rest of the night, they all slept in bed together, wrapped safely in their mother's wings, much to her amusement.

As the memory slowly faded, so too did Chris’s smile. Life had seemed so much simpler back then. So much had changed since those days and even Dawn was almost completely different now. She had grown up. So did his sisters…

So did he...

Back then, he was still new to the world and had so much to learn, so much to discover. His new family had been with him every step of the way—guiding him, protecting him, and watching him grow, and in turn he had watched them grow as well.

They had been so pure back then, so innocent, but now… now whenever he looked at them, all he could see was…

Chris winced as the more recent memories of his sisters entered his mind. He couldn’t shake the image of Blue Moon in the shower, his seed and her own cum dripping down her thigh as they washed up, or Moondrop with his dick crammed fully down her throat, creating a visible bulge in her neck. Even the image of Dawn sprawled out on her bed, her marehood leaking both their combined fluids as her sweaty clothing clung to her body wouldn’t leave him. No matter what happened, those images were forever burned into his mind, looming over the innocent and pure image he once had of his siblings.

Bringing his hand out of the spring, he ran it absently through his hair, soaking his forehead with the soothing warmth of the water. It helped him to stay calm, but just barely.

Why did you let it get this far? he wondered. Normally, he considered himself a very careful and detailed thinker, always considering the cost and benefits in any situation before acting. He always considered he could avoid a lot of trouble with a clear mind like that—or at least he suspected he did—but when it came to helping his little sister... he just wasn’t thinking properly. He should have been more critical and never agreed to help Blue out with her heat. That was his first mistake… or was it?

Why didn’t it feel like a mistake?

Chris grunted in frustration through gritted teeth. He knew what he did was wrong and not the right way to have handled that situation, it just had to be! It was the cause of it all, and it was the start to everything that had happened so far, so by definition it was a mistake... right? If he had just kept walking, left the room without looking back, then she would have had nothing to tell Moondrop about. Sure, it might have been a little rude to just walk off like that and leave her to suffer in pain and misery, but that’s what should have happened...

Sighing, Chris laid his head back and looked up at the foliage above, watching as some of the blue glowing mushrooms started to fade out, only to glow again with a new color. He never understood how or why they did that, but it was a pretty effect...

Catching himself becoming distracted, Chris closed his eyes and refreshed his thoughts. He knew he couldn’t hide from this anymore and had to figure the dilemma out before it got worse. It was unclear to him if he had made a mistake or not, but it was foolish nonetheless; he could admit that. Because he made the decision to help Blue Moon, he’d forever changed his relationship with not only her, but Moondrop, and Dawn as well. It all stemmed from that one event, and now he could never look at them the same way again, not after what he had seen and done with them. His sweet, innocent sisters. Well, Blue had been somewhat innocent, as far as he knew. Moondrop though… he had always kind of known she was a big perv, but he would have never imagined she was into some of the things they did together. Dawn was also less of a shock, if he was being honest with himself. He could definitely see why she liked the dominance scene, and that whole panty thing...

Sweet Luna, that had been amazing.

“No!” Chris shouted, sitting up again before looking down at his member in the water, which was starting to get hard again. “Stop it, penis! That's bad!”

Letting out an exasperated sigh, he leaned back again and returned his gaze to the leaves above. It was obvious that there was no going back now. Any relationship he had with them in the past was now completely gone, replaced instead by... whatever depraved one had formed in its wake.

How could I be so irresponsible? he thought with a grimace. He had to tell himself it was a mistake, a mistake he now had to live with. What was going to come of it, though? Was this just a one time thing, or were they going to want to do it more? Should he let them sleep with him again… or should he stop everything now, possibly upsetting and hurting his sisters in the process? Would it even matter if he stopped it now, or was there no chance to save what little was left of their old relationship? Would they even allow him to back out?

Chris scratched his forehead as he thought, letting the water drip down his face, wondering if there was even a way to keep going like he has been. If for some reason he did decide to continue sleeping with his sisters, would they be able to keep it hidden from the rest of their family? If so, could he trust his siblings to keep the whole thing a secret? Realistically, there was no way they could hide something like this in a family as large as theirs. It had already cascaded out of control in only three days, with Blue Moon telling Moondrop what had happened. That was a big shock. Then Dawn just happened to find out simply by asking the right questions, so it was almost inevitable that the rest would find out in some way. He got lucky with Dawn wanting to go along with it, but what if the Twins found out, or Penumbra, or...

...His mother.

His chest suddenly tightened at the thought of his loving mother. His heart began to beat faster knowing he betrayed the mare that cared for him the most. He wasn’t her foal by birth, but he never doubted for a second how much she cared for him like one of her own, and now he had possibly destroyed his relationship with her as well. He could still remember the day when he first met his mother. She practically had to sign her life away just so she could take him under her wings and give him a loving home. She didn’t have to do that, but she did it out of the goodness of her caring heart.

He could still recall the first words she ever spoke to him when they got home.

“I know you’re frightened, little one, and we’ve only just met, but trust me when I say that you’re safe now,” Chris’s new mother said as she held him to her body with her large wings and forelegs.

Chris clung onto the strange horse-bat like creature, tears welling in his eyes as he rubbed his cheek into her soft and somewhat fluffy chest. He was indeed frightened about being thrown into this strange world with talking animals, but there was something about this mare that did help to calm him. Her words rang with kindness and trust that he desperately held onto, but he still wasn’t sure about her decision.

“B-but... but why?” he asked, keeping his face buried in the safety of her bosom.

“Why what, my dear?” she asked softly, blinking down at him.

“W-why... why would you adopt someone like me?” Chris asked, clutching her fur in his tiny fingers a little tighter. “I-I don’t look like you.”

“I think you mean somepony, dear,” The bat mare corrected softly with a giggle, pressing him tighter to her chest. “But it hardly matters what you look like, hon. I know what a caring and gentle soul you have, and I know you will be a perfect fit for our little family.”

“How do you know?” he asked sadly, fearing her answer.

The mare giggled again. “Call it... mother's intuition.”

Chris cringed at the memory, knowing he might have already failed his mother's vision for him being perfect for the family. He doubted she would be saying he was a perfect fit now. She had taken him under her wing without a second thought, provided him with a wonderful home, good food, and plenty of love when he needed it the most. And now... he betrayed that trust and kindness; he betrayed his mother. She would regret it if—when—she found out what he did to his sisters, but what would she do to him? Would she kick him out? Send him packing? Throw him out into the world with no support?

W-would she call the Guard?

Chris’s frown deepened, the image of his mother's look of horror on her face twisting his stomach into a sickening knot.

“This can’t go on. I… I have to tell them we can’t do this anymore,” he muttered under his breath. It felt bad to say, but he knew it needed to stop before their mother found out. For all their sakes. No more ‘helping’ during their estrus, no more sleeping together. They couldn’t even talk about it anymore. The faster they put all of it behind them and moved on, the better off they’d be.

Even though he came to a conclusion of what needed to be done, he still felt guilty and stressed. He had to break the news to his sisters, and a part of him knew that they might not like what he had to say. Still... that could wait for later. For now, he figured he would actually use this alone time and get some relaxation in to help him deal with what was to come.

Closing his eyes, Chris leaned his head back against the heated stone behind him, allowing the gentle touch of the water to calm his nerves and relax his muscles fully. Or at least he did his best to relax.

Several minutes passed, and he was just starting to feel his mind become clear of all thoughts. With his body now more mellow, he was about to let go and slip off into the siren-like embrace of slumber when the soft sound of hooves clopping on wood reached his ears.

“Umm... Chris? Are you out here?” came a soft voice, just barely audible over the trickling of the waterfalls.

Blinking in his tranquil daze, Chris glanced around blearily, only to become wide awake upon seeing Dawn step out from behind one of the big roots. Her clothes were wrinkled and sweat-stained, and her face was streaked with lines of her now-dried makeup, giving her the appearance of having cried black tears.

Glancing around the pool, a small frown touched her pierced lip only for her eyes to widen as she spied him. “Oh… there you are.”

“D-dawn!?” Chris yelped, reflexively diving his hands into the water to cup his exposed man bits. “W-what… How did you—” He sputtered for a moment before finding his voice. “What are you doing here? I locked the back door!”

Dawn paused with a hoof raised to take a step forward and gave him a confused look. “You… Chris, the lock to the back door has been broken for months now, remember? It doesn’t do anything save for keeping the door from swinging open on its own.”

A faint blush touched Chris’s face as he did indeed recall that the lock had broken a few months earlier, back when Moondrop and Blue Moon had raced the Twins to the hot springs after a cold walk home from town in a blizzard. The resulting scuffle had busted the lock, and ended with Penumbra throwing all four of them into a snowdrift. He couldn’t believe he had forgotten the incident; he has spent a good hour or so laughing at the shivering fillies as they huddled about the fire in the lounge.

“Oh, well… I—” he stammered, puffing up his cheeks. “Well, I’m kind of naked here, you know... trying to bathe, so if you’d kindly leave.”

“You still care about your nudity, even after... what we did?” Dawn asked, sounded baffled. “You humans really are weird about that.”

Chris’s blush intensified, but she did have a point and he slowly released his grip on his man bits. “Okay, fine... but I’m still trying to bathe here.”

“I know but, I… I have something I want to discuss with you,” Dawn said, her ears splaying back as she approached the edge of the pool. “It’s something kind of important that I don’t think can wait...”

“Oh?” Chris asked with curiosity, raising an eyebrow at her. Perhaps she was having the same thoughts he was about their... situation.

“I was actually going to talk to you about this earlier, but I… after we d-did that… well, you know... I felt so, umm, relaxed and exhausted that I kind of fell asleep before I could ask you to stay so we could talk.”

“So I noticed,” Chris said, wincing internally at the image of his cum leaking out of her used sex. “Honestly, Dawn... I do think we need to talk, but can’t it wait until I get out of the spring and into some clothes? That way we can go somewhere a little more, ehh... private to talk.”

Turning her head, Dawn rubbed at one foreleg with the other as her frown furrowed worriedly. She didn’t say anything for a while, just staring off into the spring as she lost herself in thought. “I, umm... well... Uh, n-no… I don’t think this can wait.”

Sighing heavily, Chris shifted a bit to get a little more comfortable, hiding a certain bit of his anatomy even though she had already seen it before. He took a moment to prepare himself mentally for what he thought was going to come before saying, “Alright, we can talk here as long as we keep it down. So what did you want to talk about?”

“I, uh… I just wanted to… I-I...” Opening and closing her mouth, Dawn stared at him wordlessly, a light blush touching her face. “I… I just… needed to…”

Chris could understand why she was struggling and stayed motionless, waiting patiently for her to get out what she had to say.

“I just... Oh, why is this so hard...” Dawn muttered weakly. Swallowing, she gave her head a quick shake before blurting out, “I just wanted to apologize for my behavior earlier!”

Chris blinked at her dumbly, not expecting the conversation to go in that direction. “I-I, ehh…what?”

“I’m sorry!” Dawn repeated, shouting a little louder, a little sadness and frustration creeping into her voice. Once she realized how loud she was, she sighed, scuffing at the wet rock around the edge of the pool. “I just… I shouldn’t have been so aggressive with you. I let my estrus get the better of me and I just lost all control. I knew what I was doing, but... I just held you down and... I’m sorry.”

“O-oh... that...” Chris said, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. He almost forgot that she did kind of force herself on him. He did already forgive her for that, but he really didn’t want to have this conversation at the moment, seeing as he just got through making up his mind on the whole situation beforehand. “It’s... look, it’s okay, Dawn. Really. I mean, you weren't thinking clearly and were in a lot of pain. I get that, so I guess I can under—”

“No!” Dawn said firmly, stomping her hoof on one of the wet rocks. “That’s no excuse for what I did! I knew what I was doing was wrong but I got so j-jeal—” She cut herself off in the middle before she could finish that word, her eyes clenching shut before she shook her head and continued. “I let myself go when I knew it was wrong. Heat or no heat, I could have controlled myself, but I chose not to. I let my emotions rule me and I shouldn’t have.”

“But you stopped once you realized what you did and untied me,” Chris pointed out, trying to sound reassuring. “Don’t get me wrong, I completely forgive you for what happened, but you shouldn’t beat yourself up like that. I mean, I did agree to help you afterwards.”

“Only because I forced your hoof, er… hand,” Dawn mumbled, turning her head away from him so she could avoid eye contact. “If I hadn’t pulled you into my room, and tied you to my bed, we wouldn’t have...” She trailed off, biting her lip as her tail thrashed back and forth. Silence fell over the spring, broken only by the soft trickle of water.

After a minute or so, Chris spoke up thinking this really was going to lead where he thought it would.

“Do you regret it?” he asked softly.

Dawn said nothing for several long moments before shaking her head. “N-no... but... I mean... yes...”

Chris gave her an odd look, finding himself even more confused. “What do you mean?”

“I… I regret my actions... I regret forcing myself on you, but... but...” Dawn’s voice trailed off as a blush graced her cheeks. She still wasn’t making eye contact with him as she mildly scuffed the rock under her hoof. “It’s hard to explain right now, but I just... I don’t know... I don’t how to feel about what we did. Part of me thinks it crossed a line that shouldn’t ever be crossed. Yet, another part of me is… is glad I got to experience that moment with you.”

Her words surprisingly made a lot of sense to Chris, even as confusing as they were.

“Yeah...” Chris said softly, looking down into the water, watching his reflection as it rippled in the wavy water. “I... I think I know what you’re getting at, but if it makes you feel better... I don’t blame you for anything that happened. And I’m honest when I say that I forgive you.” Chris looked up to her, meeting her eyes with a small smile, which she returned.

“It does,” Dawn admitted softly, finding comfort in his genuine voice. “Thank you, Chris.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, keeping his smile. “So was that all you wanted to tell me?”

Dawn’s smile faded, and she shifted about uncomfortably. “A-actually, no. I… I think there is something else I need to get off my chest, and I need to get it out now...”

“Oh?” Chris said cautiously. He really didn’t want to keep talking about this stuff out in the open, but the coast seemed clear and it might lead into what he wanted to discuss with her going forward. “Okay then. What is it, Dawn? What else did you need to say?”

Dawn didn’t say anything for a moment before walking closer to him. She stopped once she came up beside him, then laid down on the lip of the pool, letting her forelegs dangle off the edge and fall into the warm water. She didn’t look at him, only watched as her hooves gently moved the water around, creating a small ripple.

“Chris...” she said softly in a kinder tone, something that threw him off a little. “Do you still remember when we were younger... like, when you first joined our family?

“Oh, well yeah!” Chris said almost too excitedly with a smile, having the same memory of his first Nightmare Night with her coming back to his mind. “Of course I do, but... what about it?”

“We used to be really good friends back then... didn’t we?” Dawn said as she continued to play in the water, a small smile touching her lips.

Chris furrowed his brow a little at that statement, not liking how she said ‘used to be’. “We're still friends now, Dawn. I’ll always be your friend.”

She only shook her head at that, her somber demeanor returning. “That’s not what I meant. We used to be closer... not as distant...”

Chris frowned sadly, letting his sights fall down to where her hoof was slowly swishing the water back and forth in the spring. He knew exactly what she meant. “Yeah... but we both grew up and matured differently. Sometimes... sometimes siblings just drift apart. It’s just a natural part of growing up.”

“No...” Dawn said, some tears welling up in her eyes before she blinked them away. “It wasn’t because we grew up... I...”

Chris looked up at his sister as her voice trailed off, wondering why she stopped. He saw her biting down on her lip nervously as she tried to find the right words, still not looking at him, but he waited for her to continue.

“I still remember when you first came into our home,” Dawn started to reminisce, her smile returning but only briefly. “Mother told us about your situation, and we were all so curious about what you were… who you were. I remember her saying that you were vastly different than us, something from a completely different world and that… that both fascinated and scared me. It wasn’t until she came home with you wrapped in her wings, frightened and confused, that I knew you were nothing to be scared of.”

Chris let out a soft chuckle at her story. “You saying you weren't scared of me because you knew I was weak and pathetic back then?”

“Yeah... something like that,” Dawn teased lightly. “I knew you weren't some soul-sucking alien for another dimension coming to take over all our minds and steal all our toys, so that was a plus. Although, that probably would have been pretty cool.”

Chris laughed at her reasonable fear as a filly. “Nope, just a boring and harmless alien from another dimension.”

“But you weren't boring, and still aren’t,” Dawn replied quickly and passionately, turning to meet Chris's eye with a serious look in her own. “You were anything but boring.”

He blinked up at her, not expecting such a compliment. “Umm, thanks, but... you really think I wasn’t?”

“Not at all, and that's what I lov... that's what I liked about you...” she continued, breaking eye contact and looking back into the water. “You were something special, and you always had a cool story from your past world that just made me wish I could see it one day. We used to talk about that stuff for hours, then go out into the yard and play pretend like we somehow made it back to your world.”

She sighed and shook her head as her lips pulled up into a gentle smile, more nostalgic memories flooding her mind. “I still remember we would pretend that some of our old playground equipment were those car things you talked about and you would drive me around. You remember that?”

Chris couldn’t help but laugh, clearly recalling them doing that many times. “Yeah I do... I really enjoyed sharing those things with you. In fact, doing that helped me feel more comfortable the first year I lived here. It helped me come to terms with what had happened.”

“But even when that got old and you told me all you could of your world... we still hung out together and played almost every day...” she continued. “I don’t know what it was, but we just kind of... clicked. At least, I thought so…” She stared into the water, watching the ripples travel across the surface. “I always looked forward to coming home so I could talk to you about my day and we could play again.”

“I did too...” Chris admitted honestly, “but if we were such good friends, then... why did it stop?”

“Because I...” Dawn started to say, but stopped herself, biting her lip again before continuing. “I... I caught you... looking at a swimsuit magazine...”

Chris blinked at her in confusion, a small blush touching his cheeks. He had no idea how to react to something like that. “W-what do you mean? Was it... upsetting to you that I was looking at that stuff when I was younger? I mean... I couldn’t really help it, Dawn... I was a growing man, err, stallion and I ju―”

“No!” Dawn shouted, clenching her eyes shut as she shook her head. “It wasn’t that you were looking at that stuff that upset me. I know it's normal for stallions to do that, but I just... It’s hard to explain...”

“Well... we have time...” Chris pointed out. He was actually curious as to why this was the point when they became so distant. How could a simple peek at a magazine cause their relationship to wane?

There was a long pause, silence filling the hot spring with only the soft sound of rain hitting leaves until Dawn finally spoke up again.

“D-do... do you remember your fifteenth birthday?” she asked softly, some hints of nervousness creeping into her words.

“Yeah, I think I do...” Chris murmured as he thought back, but couldn’t remember anything unusual concerning their relationship around that time.

“Well... it was on that day that I... I started to see you in a new light... something about the way you smiled when we all tried to sing you the happy birthday song... I don’t know, something in me just... grew...”

Chris was even more confused, but waited for her to continue.

“After that day... I knew the rest of our family would be out and... we would be alone,” she continued, going back to mindlessly playing in the water with her hoof. “I wanted... I-I wanted to give you another gift... a special gift that I thought... I thought you would really like...”

“W-what... what kind of gift?” Chris asked softly, feeling his heart start to beat a little faster, even if he wasn’t sure why.

“I know I was just a dumb filly back then, but I thought you would... understand and... feel the same...” She paused as tears welled in her eyes. She shook her head and giggled at how idiotic she was back then, but took a deep breath so she could continue. “C-Chris... I wanted... I wanted to give you... my first kiss.”

“What!?” Chris half-shouted, jumping back in shock. “Kiss? Like a... a real kiss!?”

Dawn nodded. “I know this might sound strange, but... after what we did today... I think I can come clean about this now... Or... I should, anyways...” Taking another deep breath to help calm her nerves, she let it out slowly before turning to meet his eye. “I was... well I... let’s just say my feelings for you were more than what a sister should feel for her brother...”

“Are… are you saying that... you had a crush on me?” Chris asked. Though the news was shocking, it kind of made sense if he thought about it.

“It was more than a crush...” Dawn admitted, taking her hooves out of the water so she could tuck them under her chest before turning her sights away from him. “B-but that’s beside the point... On that day, I... I brushed my mane and teeth and went to find you to give you your ‘gift’. I went to your room first, but when you weren't there I looked around the house. Eventually I found you when I reached the second floor. I could see you from the stairs.” A melancholy smile touched her lips. “You were down in the living room, sitting on one of the chairs, and you were... you were looking at one of those swimsuit magazines with all those... pretty mares in them... I didn’t say anything, but just... watched you as you flipped through it.”

“So you spied on me when I was looking at that stuff?” Chris asked, a bright blush appearing on his cheeks.

“I know I shouldn’t have, but I was curious...” Dawn said sadly. “I wanted to see what kind of mares you liked, and I... kind of got my answer.”

Chris was a little baffled by this. He wasn’t sure how she could come to that conclusion with him just looking through a magazine. “What do you mean? What kind of mares did you think I was into?”

“The beautiful and skinny kind...” she admitted sadly. “I watched as you flipped through the pages. You would always stop on the really thin looking ones... the ones with flashy clothes and shiny manes. They always wore thick eyeliner around their bright, gleaming eyes... and most of all... none of them had any stupid, ugly freckles...” As she said that, her hoof came up to touch her spotted cheek, smearing some of her runny eyeliner in the process.

“The more I watched you looking through all those beautiful mares... all those mares that I would never be… I just,” she continued, before pausing to blink back tears. “I… I don’t know, I just got upset. It was then that I started to see how foolish I was to think you would see me in the same the way that I saw you, and I just... I went back to my room and... and...”

“Wait so... is that why…?” Chris started to ask with wide eyes. The sudden realization that something so small that he unknowingly did could have caused such a drastic change in her life made his chest hurt. It might have been out of his control, but he still felt terrible about what happened. “Is that why you started wearing all that makeup and stuff? Because you thought―”

“I-I don’t know... maybe...” Dawn interrupted, looking away from him as her hoof fell back into the water. “But it doesn’t matter anymore... I just wanted to tell you that... back then I-I... I lo... l-lov...”

“Dawn...” Chris called to her gently, causing her to look over at him with tears in her eyes. He was still beyond confused about his feelings for his sisters, but hearing her come forth and admit her feelings for him stirred something deep inside him—something that even he was unaware of, and it drove him to place his wet hand on her foreleg.

“C-Chris I...” She started to say again, not noticing that her foreleg was now dripping wet as her head moved a little closer to his. “I-I know it’s stupid and I... I shouldn’t have.. But I... I...”

“Dawn...” he said even softer as some unknown force started to push his head forward.

“I...” she started to say, her eyes closing slightly as her head tilted to the side. “I... I lo―”

“Gangway! Coming through!” a high pitched, yet familiar voice shouted from out of nowhere.

Before Chris or Dawn could react, two blue blurs came flying out and dive-bombed into the spring, sending a torrent of water cascading into the air.

“Gahhh!” Dawn cried in shock, nearly falling over as she was assaulted with the warm water of the spring, drenching her clothes in seconds.

“What in the unholy sun!?” Chris shouted as he practically jumped up in surprise. He raised a hand to protect his face from the deluge of water, but it was no use. Water assaulted him from all sides, the same as with Dawn. Sputtering, he wiped his eyes clear in time to see two giggling heads break the surface of the spring water.

The fillies started to laugh and high-hoofed before splashing each other. Moondrop had taken off her pink sweater and glasses, her mane now soaked and clinging to the sides of her head. Blue Moon pretty much looked the same.

“What in Tartarus is wrong with you two!?” Chris shouted as he stood up in anger, still coming down from the shock.

“Calm down, Chris,” Blue said nonchalantly, waving a dismissive hoof at him. “We were just having some fun!”

“Yeah!” Moondrop said happily. “We heard you two talking in here and thought we could come in to join you guys!”

“We weren’t having fun, you idiots!” Dawn said, growling in anger as she stood up on her hooves, her outfit now dripping wet. “W-we.. we were talking about something really important! And now you... you interrupted us and got my clothes all wet!”

Blue giggled and rolled her eyes at her sister. “Come on, Dawn. It’s not like those things weren't already dirty. They could have used a wash anyways.” She ended with a knowing smirk.

Dawn’s cheeks reddened and puffed up in both anger and embarrassment. “It’s not about that, it's just... you two... we were talking and...” She gritted her teeth and grunted in frustration at her siblings, stomping her hoof down on a rock. “You two can be so... so insufferable sometimes! You know that!?”

Moondrop only giggled as she dove under the water and came back up with a mouthful of water. She aimed and spit it out in Dawn's direction, trying to hit her in the process.

Dawn yelped and was able the dodge it, but just barely. “Oh, you little shit! Come out here so I can smack you!”

“No!” Moondrop said, sounding like a cocky spoiled brat as she tilted her nose up in the air. “Why don’t you come in here and make me!?”

Dawn was about to do just that, but suddenly stopped. “I... I can’t. It would just ruin my clothes more, you idiot.”

“So take them off!” Blue said happily. “Come join us in the water! It actually feels really, really good.”

“Yeah, come in and get us if you're so mad!” Moondrop taunted with a giggle.

Dawn eyed the water nervously before glancing down at herself. She bit her lip, her gaze darting to Chris for a moment before she shied away from the pool.

“Y-you know what? Nevermind,” she stammered, trying to keep up her angry attitude as she started to trot back to the house. “I’ll just... go and take a shower inside, and I’ll come back to beat you two brats up later!”

Chris was about to call out to Dawn to stop her when Blue spoke up first.

“You’re just going to give up that easy?” she said, cocking her head to the side. “Just take your clothes off and bathe with us already! We’re just having a little fun! Plus, I’m sure you’ll feel better afterwards.” A small smirk appeared on her lips before she continued, her voice sounding a lot more heated. “I know from experience that you’re probably still all sweaty and sticky after your session with Chris... and you know... the warm spring is just the right temperature, so it will feel amazing on all those aching joints of yours.”

Blue’s sultry words caused Dawn to stop in her tracks by the edge of the spring, shivering slightly, but she kept her sights pointed at the house.

Chris couldn’t do much except wince uncomfortably, his sister's words reminding him of their current situation. Although, to his dismay, a certain part of his anatomy found the whole event much more enjoyable.

After a moment of silence, Blue tried a second time to entice her sister. “Come on, Dawn. You still need to wash off that runny makeup, and you need to get out of those clothes. There's still some, umm... Chris spots dripping off your skirt. Besides, with how messy and matted you are, you’re going to need help getting clean.”

Locking up and blinking with a bright blush on her cheeks, Dawn quickly leaned over some of the rocks surrounding the spring so she could see her reflection in the water. Sure enough, her makeup was a total disaster, her eyeliner running down from her eyes all the way to her neck. After that, she whipped her head about and glanced back at her skirt-covered flank. There was indeed a still somewhat fresh stain of a certain bodily fluid clinging onto the edge of her skirt that somehow escaped the splash of water from earlier, and was still dripping. Just a little past the stain, she caught a glimpse of her matted tail, clumped together by the same white and slightly dried substance that was covering her clothing.

Blue was right, she was never going to get herself cleaned in the shower... alone. At least, not without a considerable struggle. Even with her sisters helping, it would take a while.

“I, uh… I…” she stammered, her sights darting to her matted tail, then to the spring, then to her sisters before slowly drifting towards Chris. Her nervousness became increasingly more obvious as time went on. “I-I... I just... can’t...”

Chris frowned in concern for Dawn, finding her behavior odd to say the least. He wasn’t sure what was holding her back from just taking off her clothes and jumping in. It almost seemed like she was acting like he would have when he first arrived in Equestria. It was as if she was embarrassed about undressing in front of everypony. Even though nudity wasn’t a taboo in this world, he still felt the need to wear clothes every day and he still felt shy about undressing in front of others. But having experienced this before, it was easy to see the same uncomfortable feeling coming from his older sister now, but that couldn’t be the case, could it?

Even with the awkwardness of this whole situation, he still felt compelled to reach out to Dawn and try and comfort her. Not only that, but he kind of liked the idea of getting to relax with all his sisters, so he would be lying if he said he didn’t want to see her join them as well.

“Hey, Dawn,” Chris said softly, trying to sound reassuring. This caused her to freeze, her eyes widening in surprise as her sights jerked towards him. He thought her reaction was even more odd, but knowing he had her attention, he continued. “Is everything okay?”

Dawn said nothing as she bit her lip, her eyes falling to the floor.

Blue and Moondrop simply looked at each other and shrugged, having not picked up on their sister’s discomfort that as Chris had.

“I... umm...” Dawn stammered softly, but said nothing more as she started to draw small circles into the wood of the deck.

“We're all family here,” Chris continued, trying to sound encouraging with his words. “There’s nothing to be nervous about. I mean... we're all here already, right? Might as well just come in and join us. We won't judge you or anything.”

“Hey, Onii-chan...” Moondrop called, grabbing Chris’s attention. “Why is your penis getting smaller?”

Chris’s eyes widened once he realized that he was still standing up out of the spring and there was a considerably cold draft blowing by him. His sights jerked down to his crotch, where his little friend was starting to retract into his body like a scared turtle.

With a yelp, he quickly covered his shy member and sat back down in the warm water again. Both Moondrop and Blue burst into a fit of laughter at his expense, and even Dawn was smiling slightly at that.

“Oh my gosh...” Blue said as she came down from her giggles. “I didn’t even know a stallion’s thing could get smaller!”

“I didn't know that either!” Moondrop added excitedly. “Stallions are so fascinating! Onii-chan, stand up so we can see it again! I want a good mental image of it so I can draw it later!”

Chris gritted his teeth in annoyance, a bright blush appearing on his cheeks. He ignored his sister’s demand and turned back to Dawn, who was now frowning again. “Listen, Dawn. I can tell you feel uncomfortable about something, but what I’m trying to say is...” He paused to glare angrily at his two younger sisters, who were still tittering loudly. Both of them got the message and placed a hoof over each other's muzzles, silencing their laughter. With that, he continued. “What I’m trying to say is that you don’t need to be shy around us.”

Dawn didn’t say anything, letting her head hang down as she looked into the water of the spring.

“I’ll help you wash your mane and tail...” Chris added, which caused her ears to quickly perk up, but nothing more. “I mean... it’s the least I could do, since it’s kinda my fault that you’re a, uh... kind of a mess...”

Dawn slowly looked up and stared at him, her ears splaying back as she opened and closed her mouth for a few moments before she could finally speak. “That offer does sound... enticing, b-but.. I… I just… it’s…”

Rolling her eyes, Moondrop slapped the surface of the pool with her wings. “Oh, come on, Dawn! What do you have to be shy about? You’ve sat on Onii-chan’s face and he’s had his warm, hard, throbbing cock inside you! We all pretty much just had an orgy like... only an hour ago. What’s left to be embarrassed about!?”

“It’s not like that, it’s just...” Dawn started to shout angrily before stomping her hoof and clenching her eyes shut.

“Yeah, Dawn...” Blue added. “I agree with Moondrop. What else is there to be afraid of?”

Dawn grunted in anger, her eyes clenching tighter as she turned away from the hot spring.

Chris was starting to get even more worried about his older sister's actions and wanted to try and reassure her. “Dawn... you don’t ha―,”

“I just don’t want to undress in front of you guys, okay!?” Dawn snapped, spinning back around with an angry scowl. Her wings flared wide, the dark purple skin glinting wetly in the light of the mushrooms. It took her a moment to realize what she had said, and she quickly clapped a hoof over her mouth, but the damage was already done.

Glancing around, she saw both her sisters and even Chris were staring at her like she had grown a second head.

“Wait... you’re really... you’re uncomfortable being naked with us?” he asked, bewildered. He had his suspicions, but he didn’t think it would be true.

“Oh, great...” Moondrop said with a sigh. “Now we have two weirdos in the house that don't like being naked...”

“You’re one to talk,” Blue said with a small giggle. “I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen you without one of your sweaters on.”

“I just wear those for the style, because they are super kawaii,” Moondrop retaliated, sticking her tongue out at Blue.

“N-no, that’s not... that's not it... I just...” Dawn tried to explain, her words barely audible, but she managed to attract all their attention onto her again, which didn’t help her nerves. She kept her gaze down and away, not daring to make eye contact with Chris. “I don’t mind Blue or Moondrop seeing, but I… I don’t want to… in front of... you.”

“Me!?” Chris shouted in surprise. “Why me?”

“Because I...” Dawn started to say, but stopped herself. “I... I don’t know...”

“Is it because he’s a stallion?” Blue asked, finding this whole situation confusing. “You used to walk around without clothes on all the time, even with Chris around, so... why don’t you want to do that now?”

“I just...” Dawn started to say, opening her eyes so she could look over and Chris. “I don’t want you to see... how ugly I am...”

“U-ugly?” Chris repeated the foul word, unsure where she got the notion from. “Where is this coming from? Who told you you were ugly?”

“Yeah, Dawn...” Moondrop added sadly. “Why would you think that? You’re really pretty!”

Their words seemed to have little effect on her as she awkwardly rubbed her foreleg with a hoof, looking away from Chris again with a blush. “No one told me, I-I just...”

Feeling his chest twist into a painful knot at the sight of his self-conscious sister, Chris stood up and started to walk around the edge, not caring about his nudity anymore as he made his way closer to his sister.

Dawn didn’t say anything as he walked up to her and kneeled down so he could look her in the eyes.

“Is this about what we talked about earlier?” Chris asked softly, almost in a whisper, as if he was trying to keep it a secret from Blue and Moondrop.

Dawn whimpered as she bit her lip, but gave her answer with a nod.

Sighing, Chris got a little more comfortable as he faced her, letting his hand lightly pet her forelegs reassuringly, which she didn’t protest to. “Dawn... I don’t know what you saw in those magazines I was looking at, but there isn’t just one type of mare that I find attractive, and you shouldn’t even be comparing yourself like that. Lots of mares can be attractive in many different ways, plus all those models in those things are always doctored up to look a lot better than they really are.”

Dawn let her gaze drift up to his, but only briefly. “B-but... I heard you say they were pretty when you were looking at them... I know you prefer mares like that.”

Chris sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose before looking back his sister, who was still not making eye contact with him. “Dawn, look at me.”

She didn’t hesitate to act, letting her eyes lock with his.

“I don’t even remember any of the mares I saw in those kinds of magazines, but I’m sure I did find a few of them pretty.” His words only seemed to cause her to frown more, but he continued. “But since we’re apparently being honest with each other... I have to confess something to you as well.”

This caused Dawn to lift her head up even more, her ears perking as her eyes widened with worry.

“I’ve... well honestly, Dawn... Ever since I was young, I’ve always kind of...” He tried to explain, finding it hard to look her straight in the eye, but he took a deep breath to help calm himself. “Honestly, ever since we were young, I’ve always found you... very attractive.”

Dawn’s eyes lit up for a moment, but the life in them was quickly flushed out and replaced with uncertainty. “That can’t be true... I’ve never seen you look at me like did you did with all those mares... and you’ve never said anything like that to me before. I know what you’re doing and I appreciate it, but I know the reality of the situation...”

“That’s not true, I—” Chris grunted in frustration before he could finish. Without even thinking he placed his hand on her cheek to help guide her head to look at him straight in the eye. “Dawn, I’ve always found you attractive. I would go so far to say that I used to have a crush on you too, but I couldn’t ever act on those thoughts or feelings because we’re siblings!” He paused as the words left his mouth, his eyes widening once he admitted the truth, surprising himself with his own feelings. He had locked away that reality for years, but it was all true and he knew it. It was out in the open now and he had to face what he truly felt, but he pushed that back so he could continue. “I-I... I don’t know how to prove it to you, but I’m being honest when I say that I think you’re a beautiful mare I would really like it if you joined us...”

Dawn started to smile slightly, his words finally seeming to reach her as his hand left her cheek. There was a short pause before she looked away again, her hoof scraping against the wood shyly. “I believe you, Chris, but... you haven’t seen what’s under these clothes yet. You haven’t seen me since... well since I started wearing this stuff. You won't like me now.”

Chris just rolled his eyes. “I think you should let me be the judge of that.”

She stood there for a while, mindlessly scratching at the wood, chipping some of it away under her hoof before she spoke again. “I... I don’t know if I should... I don’t want to scare you...”

“Dawn,” Chris said with a serious tone, causing her to look up at him. “If it’s true what you said earlier, —that you really do care for me like you said—then you’ll let me see your body so I can judge for myself.”

“Ooooooh!” Moondrop said with a bright smile, watching intently as the two talked, obviously enjoying every second of the drama. “He’s got you there!”

“I don’t think you have a choice now, Dawn,” Blue said as both her and Moondrop swam closer to the ledge. “Don’t worry though, we are all family here.”

Dawn bit her lip hard and sat back on her haunches, her hoovers mindlessly fidgeting with the edge of her dirty pink and black plaid skirt. She looked over at Chris one last time as she thought over what she was going to do.

“If... If I do this...” Dawn started to say shyly, keeping her eyes locked with Chris’s. “If I do this, then... will you promise me that you won't run away in disgust... a-and we’ll keep talking to each other... and we’ll hang out more... and―”

“Yes, Dawn,” Chris said, placing his finger on her lips. “I promise that nothing will change and I would love to spend more time with you.”

She smiled at that and looked down as she started to mess with the button on the waistband on her skirt, letting her hooves dance around it as she got herself ready.

“You have to take me to a movie later too,” she said suddenly, her commanding side coming out more.

“Wat?” Chris asked, confused at the random order.

“That’s right, you heard me,” Dawn said as she looked up to him again, sounding slightly more confident. “If I do this, then you have to take me to a movie. It has to be just the two of us and I get to pick which one we see.”

Chris rolled his eyes, but smiled all the same. “Yes, fine. It’s a deal.”

“It’s a date!” Dawn corrected with a smile, then took a deep breath as she started to unbutton her skirt. She only hesitated for a moment, then stood up, letting the fabric slip off her hips and down her hind legs as she got to her hooves. A moment later, she used her wings to grip the hem of her panties, then slowly slid them off her rump, letting them fall and join her skirt. She started to work on the rest of her attire, but froze when Chris spoke up suddenly.

“Sweet Luna!”

“W-what!?” Dawn shouted in horror, thinking he already didn’t like what he saw. “W-what’s wrong? What is it!?”

“You have cute little freckles all around your cutie mark!” Chris said excitedly with a bright smile as he pointed to her bare butt. “They’re all over! When did you get those!?”

Dawns whole face grew red with anger and embarrassment, having almost lived out one of her deepest fears.

“Y-you... you idiot!” she cried as she picked up her dirty panties with her wing and threw them into Chris’s face, hitting him square on the forehead. “You nearly scared me half to death!”

“Sorry, I couldn’t resist,” Chris said with a chuckle, peeling his sister’s panties off his face before letting them fall to the ground with a wet plop. He might have found it disgusting that she just threw her dirty panties at him, but he did help her soil them. Plus, he was already in the spring and was in the middle of washing anyways.

He took a moment to admire her flanks, looking at the dark patch of fur that surrounded her cutie mark. Her mark itself was that of a bright multicolored aurora, shining brightly in a dark, starry night sky. The dark sky seemed to blend into her darker gray fur, which then dissipated into many smaller freckles that spotted her flanks on both sides. He found himself admiring her cutie mark, as it was one of the cooler ones he had seen, the spots only making it even more so. “Your freckles do look really cute. I like them, but... I don’t remember you having so many down there before. Did you grow more or something?”

“I-I don’t know, maybe!” she said, still somewhat embarrassed and self-conscious about her little spots. Letting out an unhappy-sounding nicker, Dawn wrapped her tail around her flank, trying to hide what everypony was currently looking at. “W-well... I’m glad you think they're cute, but... I-I don’t like them.”

Before Chris could reply, Dawn started to work on the rest of her outfit. Ears still pressed firmly against her head, she continued to undress, taking her collar and bracelets off next. Once they were freed, she placed them gingerly upon a stone platform off to the side. She then used her wings to help lift up her shirt, guiding it up over her head until she was as naked as the rest of her siblings.

Still feeling embarrassed, she held onto her shirt with the thumbs of her wings and played with it in front of herself, half using it to hide from her siblings’ gaze.

“W-well...” she started to say, still fidgeting with her shirt and not daring to make eye contact with Chris. “This is... uhh... me...” When she heard no response, she started to get more nervous. “I… I know I’m not exactly good looking, but I, umm...”

“Dawn...” Chris said, interrupting her as he took in her naked form. She was still trying to hide herself behind her shirt, but he could see enough. He knew she was always on the thinner side, but she was far skinnier than he remembered. While not to the point of being overly alarming, he could still see a small indent in her coat where her ribs were, showing some signs of malnourishment. It wasn’t off-putting by his standards, but he had to wonder if she was intentionally trying to starve herself, or something more dangerous.

“Ehh... how much do you weigh?” he asked.

Dawn whimpered at his words, her worst fears starting to become a reality. Tears began to well up in her eyes as she figured her form disgusted him, just like it did her ex.

“I know, I know...” she whimpered. “I-I’m trying to watch my weight, but it's really hard. I… I always eat really well and I make sure to get plenty of exercise! My… my exes kept telling me I was a little chunky, a-and I look nothing like those mares in the magazines you really like, but I’m really trying hard, okay? It’s not my fault I’m a little overweight—”

“‘A little overweight’!?” Moondrop suddenly shouted, interrupting Dawn. She stared at her sister with wide eyes, a concerned look on her face. “I’m a little overweight! I’m the pudgy one that snacks in her room all the time! Sis, I think you look even thinner than the mares in those model magazines now! Have you even looked at yourself lately?”

Confused by her sister's words, Dawn looked down at herself, finding the same horrible body she always had. “What do you mean? I can still lose a few pounds... even my old coltfriend told me that...”

“What!?” Chris half shouted, causing her to jump and look up at him as she dropped her shirt. “He said that to you!?”

“W-well... yeah,” Dawn replied sadly, wiping away some of her tears. “I-I... I understand if you think I’m ugly because of it.”

“You’re not ugly at all!” Chris shouted. There was some anger behind his voice, which shocked Dawn a little. “I don’t know what your coltfriend’s deal was, but you are not fat! In fact, you’re really skinny! I don’t think you should be worrying about losing weight at all!”

She blinked at him, surprised that even he couldn’t see how fat she was. “B-but... but I―”

“Come on,” Chris said as he quickly stood up and scooped her into his arms before she could argue. She squeaked in surprise, but grabbed onto his neck as he lifted her up and carried her back to his original sitting spot. “I don’t want to hear any excuses. Your body is fine and I think you’re beautiful, and we’re all going out and eating some cake after this tonight.”

“Yes! Cake with Onii-chan and my sisters!” Moondrop said excitedly as she dove back into the water.

Blue simply laughed and shook her head.

Dawn was a little confused, but the warmth of Chris’s body helped calm her down, and as she rested her head on his shoulder, she couldn’t help but smile. Once they had reached his old post, Chris slowly sat down, easing her into the spring with him. Immediately, the water around them became cloudy and gray as the makeup she wore was washed away, revealing even more freckles upon her hindquarters. Once they were both properly submerged, she let out a content sigh, clinging onto her brother as she enjoyed their embrace, her wings fluttering at her sides.

“There...” Chris said as he leaned back. “Isn’t that better?”

“It does feel nice...” she admitted with a sigh.

“Told ya!” Blue taunted as she and Moondrop both swam closer to them.

Chris didn’t wait too long before he started to rub his fingers into Dawn’s fur, causing even more of the makeup she had on to come off. It was kind of a weird experience for him to help one of his sisters like this, but he quickly started to enjoy it once he could hear a couple soft moans coming from her. Not only had he never been this close to any of his sisters before—in a non-sexual way—but this was also the first time he had hugged Dawn in a long, long time. Now that he was though, and his fingers started to run through her coat, it alarmed him just how skinny she truly was. He could feel each bump of her ribs that stuck out, and even some of the bones in her back. He guessed there was something deep at work here that made her want to lose this much weight, and he made a mental note to try help her with that later. For now, there was one question on his mind that angered him greatly.

A frown crossed his lips as he ran his fingers along one of her ribs. “Dawn, you said your coltfriend told you that you were fat. Which… which one was that?”

Dawn was quiet for a moment before replying, her voice little more than a mumble. “They all kind of did, but... more so my most recent one... the prick that dumped me...”

By now Moondrop and Blue had gathered around as well, worried looks on their faces at the mention of their sister's ex.

“Yeah, what happened with that?” Blue asked softly. “I thought you two were really doing well... or at least it seemed like it.”

“He… he left me for a fucking skinny, prissy little cheerleader,” Dawn whimpered, nuzzling herself into the side of Chris’s head. The tears that had been welling up in her eyes before began to trickle down her cheeks as she continued. “We… we’d been together for nearly four months... We’d even slept together a few times to make it official. I thought we were pretty close, but apparently not. One day we were snuggling in the park and he was telling me that I meant the world to him, and then the next he was fucking tonsil-spelunking with that stupid, little… fucking whorse of a cheerleader!”

A low growl emanated from her clenched teeth as she dug her hooves into her brother’s shoulders.

Chris tightened his hold his sister, holding her firmly against his chest as he continued to pet her, trying to help her relax as all her muscles flexed with anger.

After a while, she sighed and fell limp again, enjoying the attention Chris was giving her.

“It just… it just sucks! He broke my heart and it fucked me up,” Dawn continued to rant. “It was so out of the blue! We didn’t talk about it or anything, he just did it... We even had a conversation about possibly forming a herd together the day before!” She paused to let the feeling of Chris’s fingers through her wet fur and warm water soothe her before she continued. “I just thought he could have been the one, you know? The one to help me forget about... about...”

“Forget about what?” Chris asked as he paused his ministrations, although he had a feeling he knew the answer.

Dawn didn’t say anything for a few seconds as she nuzzled her cheek against his. “To forget about... you...”

Chris sighed and nodded his head in understanding, getting the full scope of how deep her love for him went. Without saying anything, he continued to pet Dawn, not just to clean her, but to try and comfort her as well. She clung to him, sniffling softly as she enjoyed his presence.

“Hey,” Blue said as she poked Dawn, getting her attention. “Which cheerleader was it?”

“The head cheerleader, of course,” Dawn answered with a snarky huff, before grinding her teeth together. “Who else could it be, but the sluttiest one of them all!”

Moondrop laughed at that before something suddenly came to her. “Oh! I bet you mean Golden Glow!”

“Who?” Blue asked, looking towards her weeaboo sister.

“Golden Glow!” Moondrop repeated happily. “Her little brother is in my class! He’s a bit of a twit as well.”

“Yeah, that’s the one,” Dawn confirmed almost dejectedly. “Stupid slut even has a pretty name. Fucking bitch...”

Blue hummed to herself in thought at this new information. “Do you know where they live?”

“Umm...” Moondrop thought for a moment, tapping a wet hoof to her chin. “I think so, why?”

A wicked grin slowly spread across Blue’s muzzle. “I think we might have to stop by and pay her and her new coltfriend a visit.”

Moondrops gasped as her eyes widened with glee. “You mean—!?”

Blue nodded with a smirk before holding her hoof up above the water. “Prank sisters...”

“...are a-go!” Moondrop finished for her, slapping her hoof against Blue’s. Both siblings started to giggle before whispering to themselves about how to enact their revenge on their older sister’s behalf.

Chris couldn’t see it, but he could feel a gentle smile spread across Dawn's muzzle as she nuzzled him. He smiled himself before stopping his ministrations on her. Figuring he had scrubbed her body enough, he decided to move on to brushing out her matted mane and tail.

“Hey,” Chris said as he lifted her off of him slightly, much to her disappointment. “Turn around for me so I can start working on your hair.”

Smiling again, still with tears in her eyes, she did just that, turning in his lap so her back was now facing him.

He cupped some water in his hands and brought it up to her head, letting the water run down her haggard hair. Once it was soaked enough, he ran a hand through her mane, using his fingers as a makeshift comb, splitting apart some of the smaller knots. As he did so, he noticed that the roots of her mane were beginning to show some of its natural purple color again.

He could remember when she had first gotten it dyed. She had come strutting home, head held high with her mane still damp from where the salon had washed out the excess dye. The first thing she had done was ask him what he had thought about it. Looking back, it was a little strange that she had only asked him his opinion, but at the time he hadn’t noticed the oddity of the action. Knowing what he did now, he wished he would have acted differently back then. He might have told her he loved her purple hair more, but he, like the rest of his sisters were too busy staring at her in shock. They were sure that their mother was going to flip when she saw what Dawn had done, but that hadn’t been the case. She had taken one look at Dawn’s new mane color and shook her head, sighing dramatically. “I’m guessing this isn’t a phase, right?”

Lost in the memory, he continued absently stroking Dawn’s mane, using his fingers to break apart all the larger tangles.

“Why can’t they be more like you?” Dawn suddenly asked in a whisper, perhaps not even fully aware that she had said it out loud.

Her words snapped Chris out of his daze, and he shook his head. “Ehh… what?”

“Sorry,” Dawn mumbled sadly. “I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

“You were trying to find a coltfriend like me?” Chris asked, not surprised in the slightest thanks to their previous conversations. He knew why she had developed feelings for him, but he needed to hear her say it. He needed to know, in her own words, what she felt about him. “But why, Dawn? Why me?”

“I-I already told you the reasons before...” she stammered, a dark blush spreading across her face. Opening and closing her mouth for a moment, she then sighed and hung her head. “Every stallion I tried to date, whether I knew what I was doing or not... they all somehow... felt like you, and I held onto that. I held on to that feeling and hoped that they would help me so I could forget that I... I fell in love with my brother...”

Silence filled the spring as even Blue and Moondrop stopped their scheming to look back at Dawn and Chris.

After a while, Dawn spoke up again with a soft sob. “I… I love you, Chris.”

Chris paused in his grooming, not sure how to react to that. He knew her feelings, but to hear her say it just validated it all the more and he wasn’t as ready to hear it as he thought he was. “Y-you… do?”

“I love you, Chris! I love my fucking little brother!” Dawn half-shouted towards the heavens as she clenched her eyes shut and leaned off him slightly. Once it was finally out of her system, a large smile spread across her muzzle before she flopped back down into his chest. “Fuck! It feels so good to be able to say that now. Yes, Chris. I love you! I’ve always had feelings for you, but I never understood it until I got older and I started to get jealous when you would look at other mares. I know it’s weird and I tried to fight it as best as I could, but it just seemed to make things worse over time.”

“But, I… I just don’t understand, Dawn,” Chris muttered, still at a loss as of what he should be saying in this situation. “Why me?”

“Because you’re caring and kind,” Blue Moon spoke up before Dawn could even say anything.

“You’re also funny and always around when we need a helping hoof!” Moondrop added, before rethinking what she said. “Err... I mean hand...”

“You’re not just that...” Dawn said as she slowly turned herself so she could better look into Chris’s eyes. “It’s truly hard to put into words, but when you fall for somepony... you just feel it in your heart. I know it’s sappy, but it's the best way I can explain it. When I think about you I just start to smile, and it seems like the future isn’t going to be so bad. You’re sompony that makes me feel... less empty. We just click on so many levels...” She stopped at that and looked down sadly. “Well, we used to...”

Chris was about to respond, but she continued.

“I know it's not just a fluke either, because I felt it with you when we were... well... when we were connected...”

Chris raised his eyebrow at her, but waited for her to go on.

“I know this might sounds silly, but... when we were one... I felt... complete. It wasn’t like the feeling I had when I was in heat before and I let my coltfriend take me. W-we had herbs then, so it was safe,” she added, upon seeing the alarmed look on her siblings’ faces. “Still, it was so much more than that. When I was with you, it felt like... like a part of me that had been empty for so many years was finally... filled...”

“I’ll say,” Moondrop teased with a giggle before Blue punched her in the ribs. “Ouch!”

Blue shushed her sister before looking back to Dawn.

“I know this all sounds stupid, but it's true...” Dawn added.

“I can second that,” Blue said, raising her hoof out of the water. “It’s kind of hard to put into words, but I can say I have similar feelings with you, Chris. You’re... different than most stallions. At least the ones I’ve met, and not just in a physical way.”

“Me three!” Moondrop said excitedly, jumping up with her hoof in the air. “I can agree with both of them, Onii-chan! We all love you!”

“B-but you guys...” Chris started to argue, overcome with a mixture of emotions from his sisters’ joined admissions of love. His mind was starting to turn into a confusing and frustrating maze that he couldn’t find the way out of. “I’m not… I’m not even a pony! I’m just some alien freak! And your brother!”

“We know,” Dawn hummed, “and honestly, that’s what threw me off at first. I… I felt weird having such feelings for you when we were young, but then something happened that helped me to see more clearly...”

“What was that?” Chris asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Well... It was so long ago, but my old history class went on a field trip to Ponyville to meet with Princess Twilight and learn more about the Mare in the Moon. While there I happened to come across an odd couple. It was a mare and a diamond dog, and they were, um… having some fun in the park. I was shocked at what I saw, but not because I was disgusted or anything. I was actually really happy that they could find love. It was then that I realized that there was nothing wrong with interspecies relationships. You love who you love, and there’s nothing wrong with that... even if it’s with your brother...”

Chris stared down at her with wide eyes, her words bouncing about in his head. ‘You love who you love’. He mused on it for a moment before smiling, but thoughts of what his mother would say brought back his frown. It was all in the open now. His worst fear and possibly his most inner desire had come to light, but he knew it had to stop. Even if he didn’t want it to. “Honestly, you guys... I love you all too, and yes... even though it's hard for me to admit it, it’s more than just between siblings—” all three sisters gasped softly, their eyes lighting up, “—but you guys know we can’t keep doing this...”

“B-but, why?” Dawn asked first, tears beginning to gather at the corners of her eyes again. “We shouldn't let silly things like us being in the same family stop us if you feel the same!”

Chris bit his lip, not sure how to respond to that.

“Is... Is it because I’m—”

Chris cut her off before she could continue.

“It has nothing to do with you, Dawn,” he assured her. “It just… we can’t can’t keep this up. We’re going to get found out and that could lead to a lot of trouble, and that’s the last thing I want for any of you. This… this needs to stop.”

Dawn stared up at him with a hurt look on her face, but, to his surprise, both Blue Moon and Moondrop wore amused grins.

“Chris,” Blue said, shaking her head. “You’re an idiot.” Leaning forward, she gently booped him on the nose with a hoof. “You know, it's really adorable how thoughtful you can be, but you worry waaaaaay too much.”

“Yeah, Onii-chan,” Moondrop added with a smirk. “You always overthink things.”

Dawn blinked a few times, tapping a hoof to her chin in thought before looking back at Chris. “You know... I’ve never really noticed that, but that does seem true...”

“W-what…?” Chris said in bewilderment, not expecting the observation of his character. “B-but... I’m... I...”

“You know, Moondrop and I were actually talking about this yesterday,” Blue continued.

“Yes, that’s right!” Moondrop added with an eager nod. “That's actually one of the reasons why we came in here with you guys. It was the perfect time to talk about this!”

“You mean... you guys were thinking about this stuff too?” Chris asked, looking at his younger sisters as they smirked at him. He didn’t know why, but he kind of figured that he was the only one thinking about this stuff seriously and he found it shocking that his sisters were having similar thoughts.

“That’s right,” Blue said with a nod. “We both talked it over and came to the same conclusion...”

“W-what’s that?” Chris asked, almost too afraid to hear the answer.

“You’re stuck with us, Onii-chan!” Moondrop shouted excitedly as she jumped into the air slightly, her wet wings flapping to help her gain some air. “I want to wake you up with a surprise blow job one of these days, so we decided to keep loving you!”

“We both have feelings for you that we don’t want to just hide away,” Blue added, sounding slightly more serious than Moondrop. “Not only would it be unhealthy for us to just try and go about our lives like nothing happened, but it wouldn’t be right. And from the sounds of it, Dawn wants in too.”

At this Dawn nodded her head frantically, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “I do! I don’t want to hide my feelings anymore!”

“You’re stuck with us, Onii-chan!” Moondrop said again, only this time she sang it in a soft and surprisingly beautiful voice.

“What about our other siblings?” Chris asked quickly. “What about Mom? What if she finds out about this? She would kill me for sure!”

“I think Mom would kill all of us, but if we are careful, then they will never know, so long as we watch our steps,” Blue said with a shrug. “I was actually working out a few ideas of how we can keep this between us. We might have to spend less time at home, but if we all play our cards right, we can keep this going until we are out of the house and on our own.”

“You made plans!?” Chris shouted. He was in complete shock now at how far his youngest sister was trying to go with this. He knew she was smart, but he never would have guessed that her genius would be working to help him keep ‘loving’ her.

“Chris, I know you’re nervous about everything, and that’s fine,” Blue continued. “Honestly, I kind of expected that out of you, since you’re already kind of shy around mares and you get scared when things get too serious.”

He didn’t know how to respond to that, but he blushed all the same. “W-what…? I don't―”

“Yeah you do,” Blue continued with a know-it-all smirk before he could finish. “It was exactly like that with your older crush. What was her name again...?”

“Rain Dew…” Dawn said with a scowl and a hint of venom in her voice.

“Yeah, her!” Blue shouted.

“She wasn’t right for you, Chris...” Dawn said as she nuzzled him again, jealousy obvious in her words. “You deserved better...”

Chris was speechless. He wasn’t expecting this deep look into his psyche today.

“Anyways,” Blue continued. “I could tell that your relationship with Rain Dew wasn’t blossoming because you had these kinds of things holding you back, but you really shouldn’t worry about that stuff as much as you do. Sometimes you just got to go with the flow!”

“Yeah, and we’re not going to be going around parading the fact that we’re all together. We’ll keep it on the down-loooooooow,” Moondrop said, ending with a giggle.

“That’s right!” Dawn added quickly, leaning back so she could give him a pleading look. “We won’t tell anypony, we promise!”

Chris stared at the three of them, a mental war raging in his head. On one hand, he believed it was for the best to stop what they were doing and cease all sexual activity with his sisters immediately. They might not like it, but it would hopefully keep them out of trouble for the most part. It was the safer option.

But Blue did have a point...

A lot of his concerns could just be his mind trying to protect him from what he really feared the most, but he was too confused and shocked to mull over any of that properly. He had to just take her word for it for now. Not only that, but it sounded like all of them really wanted to keep going. If he broke off with them now, not only would they be disappointed, they might even grow to hate him or each other. The damage might already have been done and there was nowhere else to go but forward.

Rubbing the back of his head awkwardly, Chris’s brow furrowed in thought. He couldn’t believe he was seriously considering keeping this going, but the looks on all of his sisters’ faces were starting to sway his opinion. If they were going to do this, then he had just one question left that floated back and forth in his mind.

“Let’s just say... hypothetically, if we keep doing this, then... what would that make us?” he asked softly. When all three gave him confused looks, he elaborated further. “I mean... what do we call what we have? What kind of relationship will we be in? We’re obviously going beyond just siblings now... so what do you girls want this to be?”

A silence fell over the hot spring as the three glanced back and forth between themselves.

“I’m… not entirely sure about that myself,” Blue answered eventually. She spoke slowly, as if carefully choosing her words. “I think I can speak for Moondrop as well, but I definitely wouldn’t mind this become more than just a ‘you-scratch-my-itch-during-estrus’ relationship.”

Moondrop quickly nodded in agreement.

“I know. I feel the same,” Dawn said quickly. “I… know for a fact that I want this to be more than just about the sex. I hope you don’t feel uncomfortable with that, but... I truly do love you and I’m not sure I can hide it anymore after today, so I... I want us to be one...”

“You want us to be... one?” Chris repeated her words quietly to himself. He kind of liked the sound of that, but he still didn’t know what to call it.

Moondrop—who had flipped over and was now floating slowly about on her back—hummed to herself in thought. Her wings spread out wide to help her drift across the water's surface as she stared up at the leafy canopy above. Rain was still falling, the soft pitter-patter of drops upon the leaves sent a soothing melody echoing around the hot spring.

“What about a herd?” she asked after a moment of staring upwards. “I kind of have a crush on Moonie too, so we can try that.”

“I was thinking that too,” Blue said with a happy smile.

“A... herd?” Chris asked.

“Yeah, you know,” Moondrop said, splashing a hoof about in the water. “A herd. Like, all of us together. We all love each other, right? So, why don’t we stick together and take care of one another?”

Dawn grimaced at that as she looked back at her two younger siblings. “Well... I’m not sure if I feel the same way about you brats like I do Chris, but... I do love you... and I am willing to give it a try.”

“Oh come on, Dawny!” Blue said with a giggle. “I’ve seen you staring at my flanks a few times.”

Dawn huffed and stuck her nose in the air before nuzzling back into Chris’s neck. “No comment...”

Both of the younger siblings giggled at that.

Chris blinked dumbly, his mouth hanging agape as he bared witness to his sisters flirting with each other, but with everything that had happened so far, he told himself that he shouldn’t really be that surprised.

Chewing on his lip, he started to mull over his sister's proposal. He knew what being in a herd meant, and it could work, even though it did frighten him a little. Still, it made sense and it was actually very common to see sisters herding together with the same stallion. The only issue would be if their mother found out. She was the end-all of this whole situation; regardless of what they wanted, she would have the final say if she found out.

Thinking on it for a moment longer, he then glanced down at Dawn, who was still snuggled up against his chest. She was looking up at him with big, hopeful eyes, although he also saw a hint of caution in them, like she was preparing herself for the worst.

Upon seeing him look at her, she gave him a timid smile. “Whatever you decide, Chris... I will respect it. I understand your fears, and even if we just go back to being siblings, today’s been a day that I will never forget, and I’m glad I got to finally share it with you.”

He blinked, thrown off by the look of love and happiness she gave him. It was such a contrast to how she usually was: cold, withdrawn, and uncaring. For a moment, beneath the remnants of half-washed makeup, piercings, and dyed mane, he could almost—just barely—begin to see the old Dawn returning. The Dawn that stuck by his side, who helped him with his bullies, and who taught him how to live in Equestria.

The sight of that old Dawn made his heart flutter, and for the first time since this whole thing began, he found himself oddly okay with what had happened. Maybe Blue really was right all along, and this wasn’t something he needed to worry about. At least not to the extent he was before. For all he knew, this whole thing could actually be good for all of them. He might be able to convince Dawn that her weight was actually fine and stop her from trying to starve herself. Maybe in some twisted, weird way… this would be beneficial for all of them.

He stared down at Dawn for a few more seconds before making his decision.

“Alright,” he sighed. “We… we can see where this goes, okay?”

A collection of loud gasps filled the spring as all three of their faces lit up, but before they could begin to cheer, he raised a hand.

“Slowly, okay? We… we aren’t a herd yet, alright? Let’s just let things happen and see where it takes us. If something happens and this can’t work... I don’t want any of us to be left with broken hearts, and I want us to stay friends.”

All his sisters kind of looked at each other in confusion, but he continued.

“I’m willing to keep this going, but I just want all of you to take time and make sure this is what you really want. We won't call ourselves a herd yet until we’re all sure we love each other and we can become one.”

“That sounds acceptable,” Blue said, humming softly. “What do you fillies think?”

“Umm...” Moondrop started to say, splish-splashing about with her wings. “Well, Onii-chan is a sexy beast, and I know I wouldn’t be able to live without all of you by my side, so I’m pretty sure I want us to be a herd, but... I guess I can live with that.”

“I actually think that’s really smart,” Dawn admitted with a smile, “but I highly doubt I’ll change my mind, even when my heat is over.” Turning her head, she nosed at Chris’s neck, snuffling at his skin. The sensation tickled, and he had to fight to keep himself from laughing.

“Yeah, I don’t see that happening either,” Blue giggled. “I do agree we should take it slow, but I really think we are just delaying the inevitable.”

Shaking his head, yet smiling all the same, Chris settled back against the heated rock bench once more, pulling Dawn with him. Once he was comfortable, he began tending to her, washing the remaining makeup off her face.

“So, Moonie...” Chris said as he worked his thumb into a particularly stubborn stain of eyeliner on Dawn's cheek, being careful not to hurt her. “You said you had a plan for how we can keep this a secret.”

“Oh yes!” Blue shouted excitedly. “I planned out multiple dates and scenarios where we can express our love without risking prying eyes! I shall gather my notes and show them to you all once we get dry.”

Chris chuckled and shook his head as the reality of their situation was still settling in his mind.

“Sounds good,” he said as he continued to wipe away all of Dawn’s dirty makeup.

The other two soon joined them, the four siblings huddling together in the heated water, grooming one another lovingly, as high above them, the rain clouds began to disperse, revealing a crimson sky as the sun slowly set below the horizon.