“So, Flash...how much do you masturbate?” Pinkie asked innocently.

“Wow, just...throw me in the friggin’ deep end why don’t you?” Flash responded with shock.

But Pinkie merely snorted.

“Pffft! Don’t be like that! Do you have any idea how tame things have been so far? Come on, let’s earn that M-rating!”

Flash looked to his girlfriend for clarification, but Sunset only shrugged her shoulders.

“It’s Pinkie, remember? Don’t question it.”

The boy sighed to that, turning once more to the other girls, at which point Rarity spoke up.

“You know...you could always veto that one, Flash. Nobody here would blame you.”

But, to the surprise of all of them, Flash merely smirked a little.

“Actually, Rarity, I don’t need to, because...”

Then, his look became one of slight smugness.

“...I don’t masturbate these days, and haven’t done for a very, very long time.”

Now, as one would expect after such a declaration by a boy his age, the girls all looked to one another in silence for a time, before turning to him in unison and all bearing look of incredulity.

“Yeah...no,” Pinkie declared.

“Um...I don’t think that sounds right,” Fluttershy added.

“Indeed,” Rarity concurred.

“Yup, ah ain’t buyin’ it,” Applejack chimed in.

“That seems very unlikely,” Twilight announced.

“Yeah, as much as I don’t want to think about how much my brother touches his junk, I’m gonna have to say no on that one, Flash,” Rainbow finished.

Flash, for his part, seemed just a touch annoyed at this reaction, and so responded to it all by gesturing to Twilight.

“Did you girls just forget the numbers Twilight just came up with? Why on Earth would I even need to masturbate if I’m having that much regular sex with an actual flesh-and-blood girlfriend like Sunset?”

The girls, after hearing that, sat there in silence, with some looking to Sunset to see if she had anything to say on that. As for the latter, she once more shrugged her shoulders, never saying a word. Then, they yet again looked to each other, before promptly glancing back to the lone male in their group.

“Huh, that’s...actually a pretty good point, bro,” Rainbow conceded.

Flash sighed.

“Thank you.”

Then, still bearing that somewhat victorious look, he looked to each of the girls in turn, before finally speaking up again.

“But...since you were willing to ask me that question...”

He didn’t need to finish, and all of the girls suddenly looked just a touch embarrassed. That is, except for Pinkie, who merely giggled.

“Sure thing, Flashy! Fair’s fair. And yeah, I’ve touched myself like that.”

All eyes were upon her, causing her to elaborate.

“What? A bunch of healthy, red-blooded girls our age and you seriously expect anyone to think we never do that?”

Again, awkwardness permeated the room, and again, there was a general feeling of “yeah, okay” about all of that.

“I mean, sure, everyone probably knows that, Pinkie, but...it's just kinda weird to say,” Rainbow admitted.

Fluttershy, after considering her girlfriend’s words for a bit, looked to her in earnest.

“Do...do you think about anything in particular?”

Pinkie thought on that for a bit.

“Sometimes. A lot of the time I just, you know, feel the need for it. Other times, I just close my eyes and think of guys or girls I think are cute.”

Fluttershy nodded, and then, after just a few seconds, started to look and sound just the tiniest bit apprehensive, while retaining that tint of curiosity.

“And...um...now that we’re dating?”

Looking to her, Pinkie smiled affectionately, scooting closer to her on the sofa and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Don’t worry, Fluttershy...I’ll definitely be thinking about you when I next do it.”

Fluttershy, as one would undoubtedly predict after words like that, was somewhere between being flattered and being just generally disturbed. As for the other girls, it was clear from the looks on their faces that many of them were firmly in the latter category, with Rarity especially doing her best to try and sound polite as she voiced her thoughts on this.

“Well...erm...that’s certainly...romantic?”

Pinkie giggled.

“I know, right?!”

Applejack shook her head to this, instead looking over to Rainbow.

“An’ you? After all that bluster earlier, ah imagine y’all touch yerself, right?”

Rainbow, contrary to the more reserved nature of some of her friends, smirked to that and folded her arms.

“You’d better believe it, Apples! Sometimes, I like to see just how fast I can do it, maybe even beat my last personal best. Heck, just the other week, I managed to finish myself after only ten seconds!”

Twilight, adjusting her glasses, and taking a moment to comprehend a self-pleasuring session as fast as the one Rainbow has just suggested, raised an eyebrow.

“Really? You turn that into a personal competition too?”

Applejack, sighing, looked over to her spectacled friend.

“It’s Rainbow, Twi. How could she not?”

Thinking on that for a moment, the former Crystal Prep girl gave a sigh of her own, slumping her shoulders a little.

“Yeah...fair point.”

Flash watched all of this play out, taking just the tiniest bit of amusement in it all, before looking over to his Equestrian lover.

“And you, sweetie?”

Sunset chuckled.

“Yep. I’ve done it a few times.”

Flash nodded, hesitating only a moment before speaking up again.

“And...any interesting stories there?”

Leaning back into her side of the sofa, Sunset dwelt on that question before answering.

“Nothing out of the ordinary, really. Just during the days when I felt pent up. Although...”

She stroked her chin a little as new memories resurfaced for her.

“...touching myself was way easier here than it was during my life back in Equestria.”

Hearing that, all the girls suddenly stopped whatever conversations they were having among themselves, instead turning to look at Sunset. She’d clearly caught their interest, and so began to explain.

“It was usually just during my heat periods. I didn't want to go out and get myself a stallion or anything, so I tried, you know...satisfying myself. And I tell you...”

Raising a hand, she started wiggling her fingers.

“...after years of doing it with hooves, having these things was damn-near a blessing for me!”

Understanding came for the rest of the group, and they all nodded to one another, Rainbow in particular grimacing at the thought.

“Jeez! Having to do it without fingers?! Ugh! No thanks!”

Sunset chuckled.

“Trust me...you humans have no idea how much better it is for you on that count.”

Flash, looking from Sunset, to the other girls and then back again, suddenly seemed to be struck with a rather despondent look.

“Huh...you know...when we started talking about this, I kinda felt like I had the high ground. You know, not doing it anymore? But now...now I kinda feel left out.”

Looking to him, Sunset’s expression softened, and she reached forward and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

“Look at it this way, Flash...at least there’s always our actual sex, remember?”

Flash blinked, then smiled.

“Okay...don’t feel left out anymore.”

Next Chapter: How about THEM apples? Estimated time remaining: 28 Minutes