With the abrupt return of Luna and company, the social hour had really kicked off.

Benny and Cerb reintroduced themselves to the other delegates, leading to a discussion of how they'd taken to pony culture and were learning more about Yak and Griffon culture. That left the mares lucky enough to bag themselves a human stud to assemble at the bar, though Fluttershy and Rarity seemed hesitant to share the more specific activities taken.

Halfway into her first drink, Rarity added her support for Octavia and Vinyl but couldn’t help stress the precautions to take.

"Well, yes, when Benny is ready to open up more and allow himself to engage in such acts, it is beyond a lovely experience. Although, you need to be careful not to push things with him. We had similar issues with Justin.”

Fluttershy agreed but, true to her nature, didn’t want to sound discouraging.

“Ponies are very different from humans, even their social behaviors for romance are complicated. We thought they held the same standards of monogamy, but it seems like they are very flexible with having more than one romantic partner. Even still, being with a pony is not socially acceptable where they come from, but they’ve all come to see us as acceptable, if not favorable partners for them. Just give Benny time, and I’m sure he’ll be happy to…”

Even after experiencing the many wonders of sex and being in a group with others with similar experiences, Fluttershy was still a little shy about admitting what all could be done to others.

Lyra, however, didn’t see the need.

“It’s like Pinkie told you, their hands feel so amazing when they touch you intimately. The first time Peter showed me what he could do, I didn’t know what was happening, but I can’t wait for more time with him tonight. And don’t worry about all the juicy stuff either. Peter told me that it was safe and how much he enjoyed it.”

Knowing she wasn’t the only one, Lyra shot a glance over to Ovens, who had been nursing her drink during the conversation.

“He also told me he wasn’t the only one who didn’t seem to mind tasting it.”

Ovens cheeks flushed a little, but it was Mayor Mare who offered her own opinion, and all with the same charisma/practiced skilled one would expect from a politician.

“It seems so uncivilized, but much like Lyra, I was so taken by what he had done and how glorious he made me feel, I just had to give that stallion a kiss to show him how I felt about it. It’s not exactly a cake topper, but more like an overflow of how wonderful those feelings are to share.”

Happy to chime in, Pinkie wanted to help normalize this new practice...which naturally meant she put her own little spin on things.

"Mine tastes like cotton candy. Although I was eating cotton candy before I got it on my hooves. But it also tasted better than my cotton candy."

This… colorful response, earned looks of shock, surprise, and stunned silence from the many assembled mares, none expecting such a clear mental image or taste.

Of course, a benefit of Pinkie being so forward was that it helped Ovens finally get over her embarrassment.

“I did the same thing as Mayor last night. Whatever Peter is willing to do, I’m more than willing to join in. As for the kiss, after he was with Mayor Mare, there wasn’t much of it left. But while I could barely taste it, it wasn’t much different than my own.”

Twilight, who had only moments ago, joined the small group, instantly knew what they were talking about. And naturally, like the researcher she was, the Princess of Friendship was all too happy to share her findings with others.

“I was probably the most worried about it. But my first kiss with Peter was after he did that with Ovens. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think it does make kissing him more exciting with everything it adds.”

To that, Ovens made some flirty eyes at the princess.

“You know, Twilight. It does add a little something extra to a kiss, much like a helping hoof does for something else.”

Twilight nearly dropped her drink from her magic hold and reached back to hold her ear still, making the others fall into a fit of laughter. However, Rarity decided to open up a little more about her own experiences.

“Well, if you’re implying that having a mare join you to share your stallion with makes a good rutting even better, I wholeheartedly agree.”

The group of gossipers all gave excited stares to Rarity, knowing that rutting meant only one thing. And judging by their reactions, Fluttershy figured that might have been more information worth sharing and spoke up to stop any questions that might be too invasive.

“I think what she means to say is that while just being alone with your stallion is wonderful for how they make us feel, having a mare you love and trust with you only makes being together all the more fulfilling.”

Aside from the rutting Rarity had mentioned, being with a mare certainly caught the interest of Octavia.

“Pardon me for asking, but… you’re not even the slightest bit concerned with what somepony might say about you two being together? Even if you are with Cerberus?”

For that question, Rarity answered with a vehemently firm response.

“Of course not. Fluttershy and I have mingled with stallions of all types. We have known nobles, industry giants, other royals, brave warriors, and so many others that would have made fine suiters. That being said, for as disinterested as they have been, or blind to what fine mares we all are, they can go fuck themselves for not noticing what Fluttershy and I have seen in each other. The fact that we were able to win over Justin is only more proof that we shouldn’t care what the onlookers and loveless passer-byes may think.”

Perhaps overselling it, but also not caring, Rarity turned in her barstool to lay her fetlock over Fluttershy’s. They smiled at each other and flashed a glimpse of how happy they were with each other.

“I can think of nothing that would give me any reason to hesitate about expressing who my heart belongs to. And I simply refuse to hide it."

She held Fluttershy’s hoof, proud to be with her mare, yet angry at the outside world she was supposed to appease.

"We’ve both given too much to Equestria for any pony to push their social norms on us. I don't care what they think we should comply with when no pony cares to even speak of it the first place.”

Top Shelf, who had been listening the whole time, was still trying to catch up like Octavia and Vinyl.

"So, Twilight, Ovens. When we were with Peter last night up in Benny’s guest room, and you let me kiss him, this was what you wanted me and the other girls to share with you?"

Ovens, Sitting closer and more familiar with the barmare, turned back to give up the truth.

"You've been a good friend to me, Topsy. You also had a thing for Peter, but I knew if I just told you upfront what I was doing with him, you wouldn't believe me. Or even worse, you would freak out. My mother had the right idea of letting you see how good even a kiss could be-"

"His hands already had me sold," Mayor butted into the conversation. "But the demonstration with both up in the guest room certainly made everything else that he had to offer easy to welcome."

To that confession, Oven’s picked up again with her explanation.

“Uh, yeah. We figured that if you could feel what we did, even just a little bit, you would want to learn more on your own. But if not, then Peter could still help you with whatever else you might want. Although Twilight and I can still only do so much.”

Speaking of only being able to do so much, Twilight had to stress the point further.

“Peter has been taking it slow with us… mostly. However, it’s clear he hasn’t been able to enjoy it as much as we have. Not that I’m ungrateful for how he’s slowly introducing us so we can better appreciate these new experiences, but he’s limited on what he can do for himself. Today alone, he was with me twice, Mayor Mare and Lyra, and yet at no point did he look remotely satisfied.”

Swifty, still waiting for her first romp with Sniff, piped up to remind Twilight of a potential solution.

“Peter said that he needed to hear from you before doing anything with me, and I was going to ask that if Lyra was going to have more time with him tonight, why don’t we all help him together after dinner?”

If that was the plan, Fluttershy thought Twilight’s group should have a little more info on what to expect.

“Um, depending on what you all do together, try not to wear yourself out too fast. If Sniff is anything like Justin, helping him cum once might not be enough.”

Adding to the warning, Rarity took the wind out of Fluttershy’s sails with nothing more than a titter.

“Oh, dear me. Yes, that was quite the discovery today. Sadly, Justin’s injury has kept his movement rather limited. Even still, my lucky mare had him all to herself this afternoon. It was all she could do to bring about a glorious… first time experiences, which unfortunately I missed. Nevertheless, he was still ready for more.”

Ovens nodded, remembering Sniff telling her of his prior limits, though she was surprised to hear that Rarity wasn’t done. Apparently, the fashionista was willing to speak more freely than she had earlier.

“Fortunately, I arrived not long after.” She gave a bashful yet gleeful smile. “I admittedly fared no better in my efforts, which, sadly, dear Fluttershy slept through. After that, Justin carried us both downstairs, without issue, mind you. Then, not much later, went back out to that dreadful castle in the Everfree Forest, and he is still looking forward to another night of intimacy with us.”

The response from the other mares was a mix of titillation as well as concern. That sounded like a lot for only two mares to take on alone. Although, knowing those two, none of them dared suggested adding another to their duo. Not even Pinkie, having more than her fair share of threats cast her way, was willing to offer her assistance.

Fluttershy, noticing their reactions, thought of at least one suggestion to help ease their concerns.

“Well, tonight is also going to be our first time with just each other as a real couple. It does seem like when Rarity and I work together, we don’t get exhausted nearly as fast, and I think we can help Justin cum a lot faster than if we were doing only one on one with him. Although that was only last night and this morning, so things could change.”

After listening to Fluttershy and Rarity’s advice, along with recalling the expectations provided by Sniff, Ovens realized something.

Last night, this morning, twice again this afternoon, and Cerb was ready to go again?

"Wait a minute… Can all humans rut five times a day? How can any creature fuck that much?"

It was then that Twilight realized just how loud they were talking in this conversation. At the same time, no other ponies seemed to notice. In fact, she didn't even know what they were talking about until she reached the bar.

"Can no pony hear us right now? Did somepony cast a spell?"

All too proud to boast, Ovens gave Lyra a nudge with her elbow. This new mare was likely going to come in handy when dealing with Sniff, and she was even happier than ever to have her with them.

"That'd be our new friend here with a noise-dampening spell."

Lyra, in turn, batting her eyes, trying to look adorable, and not doing a half-bad job of it.

“I like to practice my harp without being interrupted or bothering others when I’m traveling. So, after some experimentation, I came up with a spell that would have an area effect that limits noise. It works a lot better than the harder privacy spells that require an enclosed space. I would've used one that made everything inside a space completely silent and was mobile, but that requires a shield that would only draw more attention. All I need is something that’s good at conducting noise. Usually, I enchant my harp, but anything made of glass works rather well, too.”

Unexpectedly, Fluttershy had a terrible giggle fit and turned to Rarity. The joke was there, but she didn’t have to say it. Rarity knew how useless a spell like that would be with her. Her vociferous cries of passion while climaxing was somewhat of a problem, and she tried to make a frown over the unspoken joke, but Fluttershy was just too cute, and she had to turn away after rolling her eyes.

However, being on the topic of not letting others tune into the discussion, that brought up another topic for Twilight to bring to their attention.

“Well, since we still have some privacy, I think we need to consider some extra precautions regarding what we say outside of our groups here.”

While not looking to sound like she was on full alert, she could tell they had come to understand when she spoke like this, it only meant bad news.

“It’s nothing bad… potentially.”

And it was instantly understood to be bad news, and Twilight still had to try not to make it palatable.

“I made a mistake today by telling a friend about what Peter and I have been up to. I even told her why, and what it’s like. What I didn’t tell her was not to try and come between a mare and her human.”

Rarity, not wanting to admit the problem fell on her and Fluttershy’s shoulders, jumped in to leave a vague enough short version of the events.

“To make a long story short, the individual in question should have seen what happened to Tealove to know what to expect… All things considered, Tealove got off easy.”

Having gotten the rundown from Ember herself, Twilight had good reason to believe precautions should be taken.

“What I’m saying is that if we are going to have our relations with our humans, personal and professional, kept on a need to know basis for the time being. Otherwise, Tealove is a good example of somepony potentially being a danger to any of us. Possibly even our stallions getting hurt in the crossfire if things get really dicey.”

After explaining it like that, the cause for alarm didn’t seem all that great. It was more like an extra layer of precaution for avoiding a nuisance. Regardless, since they were following along, Twilight continued.

“For the time being, until there’s a better understanding of sex, herding-”

“Stop calling it that,” Rarity butted in, still not on board with that term.

Twilight grumbled at being called out but persisted.

“I’m still calling it herding. It just makes sense if staying together like this is making us function like one. If you look at all of us, we’re actually taking care of and helping each other. I guess saying we’re in harems works too, but mares don’t even need to get along in a harem. They’re all just attached to the same stallion.”

This was taking them off-topic, but even Fluttershy started to see the close association.

“That does make sense, but I think the issue is that it makes us sound more like animals than ponies. That’s been the biggest barrier between our humans and us, so maybe that’s why not everypony is comfortable with it.”

Fluttershy made a valid point, but that wasn’t what was important to Twilight at the moment.

“Fine, I’ll put a pin in it for now. Anyway, like I was saying, until we have a better understanding of this, having relationships with more than one mare to a stallion, how to balance them as well as keep our stallions safe, we should treat what we do with them in private as just that… private.”

Everypony nodded in agreement, giving Twilight back some of her confidence.

“We’ve all been granted the precious gift of having a special stallion in our lives. So unless there’s another mare that you have feelings for, or think would make for a healthy addition to join you and the other mares you’re with agree, no pony else needs to know what we’re doing. I’m not going to make it a royal decree, but maybe the reason none of us knew how sex works until now was because of this very reason.”

This was still all so new to them, and Twilight was still a little greener than most of who she was lecturing to. Even if others had more experience, there were a few things she could see as potential future problems.

“Finding that special pony you want to start a family with is one thing, but that’s not the kind of sex we get to have with our stallions, and I for one will do as the others have done if somepony tries to come between me and my stallion.”

The threat didn’t need to be made explicitly clear. They all knew. Twilight wasn’t messing around when it came to Peter.

“Obviously, we all have plans for tonight.” She made eyes at Octavia and Vinyl, still not sure how their luck was going to pan out. “Or least, making plans for tonight. Either way, tomorrow I’d like to get every pony in our position together to discuss this on a larger scale and make sure they’re all on the same page as us. I’m sure they’ll all agree and likely take the same mentality as Rainbow Dash.”

She paused for a moment, thinking of how she already reacted when Pinkie overstepped her bounds. She wanted everypony there to know that every relationship they had was worth saving.

“If somepony is trying to make a move on our stallions, or even Kelly and Becky, we step in to stop that shit dead in its tracks.”

Cerb was still finding it surreal that he was chatting with a giant talking yak. Talking ponies, griffons, dragons, no problem. This Prince Rutherford, though?

Maybe it was how he had his eyes hidden behind his hair? Perhaps it didn’t matter, because despite his broken English, or Ponish if you were to nitpick about it, he made for good company. Regardless, Cerb admired his friendly yet still overly masculine personality.

“So, when you go to war, it’s every able body that fights? Is that more of a nationalized military of the population, or do you require every province to maintain a militia at their own discretion?”

The Prince, on his fifth drink, with only the first two having alcohol because of how fast he was chugging them, looked resolute, statuesque, like he was standing tall with pride, even while sitting at their table.

“When yaks go to war, all yaks go to war. Even if yak stay home to tend to farm, yak farm for war. Every yak fight in own way. How yak fight not matter. Only that yak fight.”

That didn’t narrow it down to either option for Cerb, but maybe that meant that neither of his two options were the right ones to choose from. In the end, it didn’t matter, given the response he was given.

“I respect that. That shows a lot of unity among your tribes. It’s a lot different where I come from.”

Benny, sipping slowly on his cocktail, nodded in agreement.

“Where we come from, not everyone can fight, and a lot wouldn’t even if they had to. However, those that do, generally get a lot of respect and admiration for being willing to stand up and raise their right hand to make that pledge to service.”

Sitting next to Gilda, Grandpa Gruff sneered at the lack of civic pride Benny mentioned.

“Back in my day, it was more than being respected for serving in the King’s army. Griffons fought for the right to be allowed in. They had to fight to stay in. Not like today’s youth. Just as greedy as the Griffons of old, but with no pride in their community or heritage.”

This was just another blistering rant for Gilda, to which she faked a yawn over.

“Yeah, yeah, grumpy. You don’t even like your own community, so no creature cares.” She looked up to Cerb and Benny, still curious about their prior whereabouts. “So why can’t you tell us where you two flew off to? And can I pleeeeeeeease try out your ax or metal club thing?”

Still upset over virtually everything Gilda was saying, Gruff huffed at the young griffon’s lack of knowledge.

“I have more pride for Griffonstone than any griffon you’re gonna find. It’s the overgrown hatchlings like you I can’t stand. And that’s not a club ya numbskull. It’s a bolter.”

Eager to prove his point, Gruff took a closer look at it, only now seeing there were no portions for attaching strings, a lath, crannequin, or even a catch. The trigger was very much like the advanced bolters he was familiar with, though the stock and foregrip were far more advanced than the ones he could remember.

Still, he was smarter than he liked to let others believe.

“Must be rather advanced to keep all the tension components inside the metal frame. How many pulls on the charging slide does it take to arm the bolts, or is the reason it makes so much noise because they’re propelled by some magic charm? No.” He looked again, squinting a bit harder. “No gems or runes. Can’t be charmed. Maybe a propelling potion?”

For all the times’ Benny’s shotgun had been seen, that was the closest anyone had gotten to figuring out what it was. Albeit completely off as far as what type of weapons it was or how it even worked, but at least in the same ballpark.

All the more reason he regretted not taking it home or securing it in the castle.

“It’s a complicated tool, you’re right about that, but it takes only one pump to load and arm it. And it’s actually propelled by a powder, not a potion. But given how we’re in a nice restaurant, I’d rather not risk others around us getting concerned over what it is. Perhaps we can discuss it more in detail later?”

As for Cerb, he wasn’t ready to give up his ax to anyone but its owner.

“Good idea, and Gilda, I told the owner of this restaurant that we would keep full control over our weapons while we’re here. And this isn’t the place or setting for messing around with it.”

Rainbow, rejoining the group with Becky, took a seat next to Gilda and was all to quick to back up his assessment.

“Believe me. You’re going to want that ax to stay right where it is.”

Gilda glanced over to Rainbow’s voice, surprised it took her this long to make time for her.

“Nah, I’m pretty sure I want to see what it’s like to wield an ax that can take out three Timberwolves at a time, but yeah, probably not right here. So, how ya been, Dash? Pinkie told me you finally made the Wonderbolts. That’s gotta be making ya feel good. Maybe you’ll even stop fangirling about it.”

Sitting across from Cerb, there was one kind of feeling good Rainbow was really wanting.

“Ah, you should have been there. Not me getting my wings, but in the Everfree Forest. Not just because you could have seen all the action, we could have used a tough bird like you out there. Otherwise, I’ve been staying busy with work, kicking ass, and helping out someone I’d like you to meet. Gilda, this is Becky. Becky, you already know who she is.”

Becky reached out and shook Gilda’s claws, being cordial as could be.

“I know you and Dashie have been friends for a long time. It’s nice to meet you finally.”

Gilda shook firmly but tilted her head slightly, with an expression that read like she just realized the punchline to a joke.

“Nice to meet you, too. And do all human hands feel like that?”

With a question like that, Becky didn’t let the shake last more than another two seconds before pulling her hand back, trying her best not to look unsettled by the question.

“Apparently.”

There should have been a follow up to that, but when Gilda didn’t get one, she assumed she must have done something wrong and side-barred the conversation back to Rainbow.

“So, Dash. You should meet the new guy I brought along with us. Likes to act like he’s cooler than he really is. Figured you two must have a lot in common.”

“Ha!” Rainbow laughed, easily getting back into the groove for some shit-talking. “Wow, lemme guess. You brought him along because you needed help carrying all your ego on the flight over?”

Yeah, that was a good one. Gilda could ease up if Rainbow was on her game.

“Pft. Not even. I left plenty of my excess here for just such an occasion. But really, his name is Gallus. We brought him along for… Uh… Huh… Hey, Grumpy. Why did we pick Gallus for this again? I know he’s younger, but we had a lot more options.”

Gruff cocked an eyebrow, even grumpier over the seemingly stupid question.

“He was supposed to come here. He was chosen by… Uh… Dang nab it, he was just supposed to be here for this.”

Despite the focus on the issue, if the old vulture couldn’t remember, Gilda wasn’t going to care about it.

“Whatever, ya old coot.”

For some reason, Rainbow thought that exchange sounded a little too familiar, but she couldn’t put her hoof on it. Regardless, perhaps it was best to meet the new guy.

“Well, he’s here now, so the reason probably doesn’t even matter... Or, is he somewhere else?”

Gilda gave a quick wave of her claws, playing off his absence.

“You’ll meet him at dinner. He’s back with Yona and Smolder at Twilight’s place with Spike. Apparently, there was an incident out in town, and Luna asked that they hang back where they can be supervised until everything gets straightened out. He could of came, but yer little dragon buddy said them and the little yak should hangback, too. Something about minors not being allowed to drink. Which, I gotta say. This stuff is pretty good.”

Making a trio of royal entrances, Luna stepped up to the table with Cadance and Ember.

“The incident has been resolved by the way. Nothing more than a simple misunderstanding with no harm done.”

Having experienced that “no harm done,” Ember rubbed the back of her head.

“Nothing lasting, at least.”

After those short exchanges, Rutherford had finished his drink but was glad to hear everything was in the clear.

“Yona say she like young griffon Gallus. This good sign that yaks and griffon have strong bond for trade.”

Seeing how the leaders and representatives of the four strongest nations were in the same space together, technically five with the Crystal Empire, maybe six if the humans were counted. With forces like this, Luan decided to take Prince Rutherford’s idea a step further.

“I see this as a chance for us to all become much stronger allies. As a matter of fact, I’d like to have a nice private discussion later this evening.”

Sniff had been busy trying to keep as many of the others occupied until Twilight and the others were done. By this point, she finished getting the rundown from Luna, but since she was chatting with the other girls, he figured she could use the opportunity to socialize like a normal chick. In the meantime, he would continue to chat it up with the Wonderbolts, the other representatives of Yakyakistan, and whoever else decided to stick around.

Although, that had fallen into a comical back and forth with a fellow delegate he was also trying to entertain.

“Oh, shut up, Kelly. I was ten years old, and The Wild Thornberrys wasn’t a girl’s show.”

Even if it wasn’t, Kelly wasn’t going to let up and stop giving him a hard time.

“Bull shit it wasn’t a show for girls. The main character was a girl, and her superpower was talking to animals and never solved a problem with violence. She was a girlier version of Fluttershy as a child.”

Lumberman and Applejack had stayed quiet for most of the storytelling/jabs Kelly and Sniff exchanged. Their private drive out to where they thought wouldn’t be bothered, didn’t last as long as they wanted to. Particularly, Applejack, yet she was taking it mostly in stride.

“Have these two always been like this?”

Lumberman shook his head, grinning and trying not to laugh at the tomfoolery.

“At least for as long as I’ve known ‘em.”

Just behind them, a small commotion started up at the front door. It sounded like half a dozen or so mares were pushing their way inside.

Sure enough, as Lumberman turned to look behind him, Starlight was forcing her way through with the rest of her harem, even though Italian Stallion was trying to guide them in.

It was looking like something terrible was about to go down. The least Lumberman could do was try to mediate, but realized that would likely be a bad idea once he saw Luna rushing in from the other side.

“Oh, shit… I’m thinking Starlight and her girls didn’t get the word in time.”

From where Lumberman was looking, a burst of light flashed out from the bar room, followed by Italian Stallion walking out as if he had just seen a ghost. Still guessing, he assumed whatever fallout was about to happen was happening somewhere that he’d be safe. On the bright side, this could end up partially working in his favor.

“Hey, Apples. If dinner gets canceled, I’m gonna check up on Chris and Sniff. Then we’re heading home early.”

A burst of light erupted in the center of the room, delivering all the mares who were there earlier, plus the new arrivals, as well as one additional tag along. All of them were about to get a rude wake-up call from Luna.

“That’s enough!” Luna shouted in her loudest Non- Royal Canterlot voice.

After the necessary calm took over the room, Luna relaxed.

“Now… ladies. I’m sure I know why you-” Luna finally noticed the tag along. “Ember… the fuck are you doing here?”

Standing behind Luna, Ember was clinging to her staff like a child would their blankie, and not even sure why she was there.

“I saw a double of Twilight and assumed the worst. I thought maybe Fluttershy or Rarity could be in danger.”

Luna looked back over at the mares, seeing where the mistake must have been made.

“That’s not a double of Twilight. That would be Starlight, her pupil. However, introductions can wait. For now, ladies. I must apologize for you finding out so late that your foals have been relocated to the castle.”

Despite the attempt at placating by one of their primary princesses, Prim wasn’t about to let proper etiquette stop her from speaking her mind.

“I returned home with Starlight to find guards posted outside my front door, and they told me that due to security concerns, our foals had been escorted back with Chris, but we weren’t notified because you knew we were preoccupied? Princess, forgive me for saying this, but-”

Even with the limited amount of time available before departing, Luna had one plan in mind.

“I had no reason to believe anypony was in any real danger. There were other considerations I had taken into account. The excess security being one of them. Namely, the guards I sent to escort your foals here.”

Now even Ember was confused, in spite of having been there herself.

“Wait… If you didn’t need to send their foals back, then why did you?”

Luna gave a long sigh and produced a short letter delivered to her prior to visiting Granny Smith.

“Is there any pony here who has not been informed of the dangers involving The Pony of Shadows and our human friend’s involvement?”

No pony gave any indication that they were not informed, which would thankfully save a lot of time for Luna to explain that extra info.

“Very good. Now, as a precaution, I dispatched my guards around Ponyville in the event the situation worsened. There was a reason I took along so much support to verify The Pony of Shadows was indeed defeated. Not that I had any reason to doubt Pinkie or Benny, but the fact that I had not gone back to immediately verify was irresponsible of me. Regardless, the extra security was also deployed so that when this matter is discussed with the leaders of the other Kingdoms, they will know that this is to be taken seriously.”

As a precautionary move, Luna directly delivered the small letter from her wing to Prim.

“As for having your foals removed, my intentions were to aid Chris. Onyx Armor and Thunder Glide were both present with Chris at the embassy, but I also had additional guards patrolling the area. Again, just additional precautions. However, as you can see by the letter, Onyx was growing concerned for Chris. For one reason or another, Berry Punch’s foal, Pina Colada, was making things difficult for him being able to spend any quality time with any of you foals other than Dinky. But even that was becoming an issue.”

The other mares gathered around to view the letter, verifying that indeed Onyx had written down an explanation of what was happening.

“Chris has been vital to the mutual understanding between the other humans and us. Beyond that, he has seen fit to take in not only six of my precious subjects to love and care for, but three fatherless foals as his own. I assure you, I have not witnessed an act of love so generous as his with all of you. I sent my guards to meet with him so he could escort them back so that your foals could all see that they could trust him and that Chris was indeed special.”

The truth might have made her kind words earlier seem disingenuous, but they were largely all true.

“Regardless, had any threat existed, I still would have made the same call to have Chris protect my guard. And I assure you that there were more than a few ponies in my battalion who were insulted. To openly admit that my subjects were being escorted for their protection by my elite guard, needed protection by someone other than Cutter or another Princess would have been degrading to any who did not know better. Those who were not insulted were relieved because they knew it to be true. Otherwise, Nurse Redheart, Derpy, as well as you two Cream Heart, Cheerilee… had I been wrong, my guard was standing by to alert you and have you escorted to the castle as well."

Luna then looked directly at Prim, knowing she needed a better explanation.

"We, unfortunately, did not know exactly where you had ventured off to, but we knew you would be safe with Starlight. Also, I… have not been on a date before, though I imagine it would not be something I would want to be ruined over a threat another did not believe existed.”

The room was silent for a while. They were all surprised that Luna had put so much thought into looking after Chris. At the same time, Luna knew no matter which side she chose to lean towards the existence of a threat, it would be a losing battle.

"There you have it. I do not claim my decision was the best one to serve all parties. But it was the best one that I saw at the time. If you are not satisfied with my explanation or reasoning, I assure you that you will not be the only ones. For any redress, I will make myself available for you. In the meantime, if you wish to see your foals, they are still with Chris and a few others on the roof, last I heard."

Luna paused again. She wasn't lying. Kelly was also angry at her over this, and that confrontation would have to be dealt with when she got back.

"If you wish to check on them, you may stay. If not, I will be returning to the bar. And Top Shelf, I apologize for pulling you away from your duties. However, I am aware of your involvement with Peter. You would likely find out sooner or later regardless. Either way, I wish you the best of luck."

The initial anger Chris's mares came in with was so strong. However, now after the fact, they didn't know how to feel about this. They couldn't overlook the panic that was created, but the justification was noble.

In the end, Starlight was the one who chose to speak for the group.

"We’ll go check up on Chris and the others. You can head back with Ember and everypony else. It's almost time for dinner anyway."

If there had been a moment for outrage, none of them chose to act on it. This would leave some discomfort for a while, but Luna did not wear it on her sleeve. Instead, she waited for the six to depart before addressing Twilight, not caring about who else was in attendance.

"My apologies to all of you. But for you, Twilight, as well as you, Ember. Let this be a lesson you learn from me being tested.”

She stood tall and spoke clearly, though she clearly was not feeling proud of herself.

“When I chose to stay here, it was so that I could reclaim my former castle and take responsibility for what I appear to be responsible for. That is on top of my responsibilities to my guard, my friends, and aiding our humans while mentoring Twilight, where my sister has not."

She took a deep breath, hoping Twilight would learn something Celestia had not properly taught her in all the previous lessons.

"The Pony of Shadows was a part of me, thus my responsibility. To ensure he was defeated, I knew I would need the support of Benny and Justin. However, that meant putting them at risk again. The morale of my guard is arguably just as important as their safety, yet I put Chris's ahead of theirs. Just the same, I have put my friends in harm's way while in some ways betraying their trust by not informing them of even the faintest possibility of their children being in danger because I knew their growing relationships were important as well. And lastly, I threw the responsibilities of what I might not be able to accomplish while throwing everything with the delegates without warning on your shoulders, Twilight."

She looked down at Twilight who was trying to understand why Luna was taking all these risks. The answer, however, was not so clear cut and dry.

"Sometimes, you have to make choices where doing the right thing isn't easy or conflicts with other right choices., yet, choose you must. It might not be easy, and you may face hardships for them. However, failure to choose might not help any you wished to. Even worse, the choice may eventually be made for you, and no matter the outcome, you are still responsible for the results."

Nearly finished, she then turned to Ember, who was standing in silent reverence.

“You are bound to your Dragon Code and understand its burden, where doing the right thing is not easy. Yet, doing the right thing has not stopped you, despite the hardships. I hope that you continue to do the right thing, even in areas where the code does not bind you, but a strong moral character is what guides you."

For all the adventures that Twilight shared and lessons learned along the way, this one felt oddly out of place. The danger was never really there, but the consequences were, even if not severe. Despite this, it felt like every proper decision made, in spite of good intentions, the bad had outweighed the good. Yet, everyone was better off for it?

It didn't seem to make sense that it all ended on such a flat note.

However, one thing did seem clear. Regardless of the convoluted reasons that only started to make sense after the fact, Luna had accepted the burden to remove anyone else from blame.

She had carried this under her crown to protect Twilight while teaching her something incredibly valuable.

"Thank you," Twilight softly said, trying to convey what she felt at the moment. "You're right. There was no one good choice in all of this. Any action would likely have caused one problem to be worse or created a new one that couldn't be avoided. And I'm sure once they all see that, there won't be any hard feelings about it."

Probably the only ones actually shaken over this was Octavia and Vinyl, though Vinyl was just as quick as ever to speak her mind.

"Princess, you don't have to worry about me and Tavi holding a grudge. Sure we were worried about Benny, but he and Cerb are tough. And you all went in rolling deep with a bunch of other kick-ass ponies. Oh, and Ember, too. We knew he’d make it back alright."

Luna looked over at Vinyl, not expecting her acceptance so soon. Then Octavia followed up as well.

"Benny made sure we knew before committing to getting involved with him that there were potentially more dangers to be wary of. We know he's quite capable of defending himself, but we're grateful to know you're willing to face these dangers head-on alongside him, instead of waiting for the dangers finding him first."

If they were doing this, Rarity couldn't help but be just as generous with showing her forgiveness.

"To be honest with you, Princess, Justin has some perverse attraction to danger. And love him as much as we do, we have to accept the fact that he does better with a target in front of him than he does when he’s looking over his shoulder for the next."

Fluttershy sighed, knowing now just how strong this side of Justin was and how it was pointless to fight against it.

"He doesn't want to admit it to us, but he was happy to go. His mood improved and his mind became more focused when we arrived. Not to mention, I think we're all going to rest a little easier knowing that The Pony of Shadows really is gone."

Standing in the back, Top Shelf was still a bit in shock over everything she just heard.

"If everything is good, I'd just like to get back to the bar. So long as you're all taking care of everything, I'm really hoping for some more private time with Peter tonight."

Ovens inappropriately laughed for a moment, remembering how long she lasted the night before.

"Both you and Swifty are welcome by me, and I'm sure Twilight would love to have you with us."

Both girls were fine picks for Twilight, and she owed Sniff extra for using him twice that day with no release of his own.

"Oof, yeah. I think we kinda owe Peter that much for all he's been doing for us."

Behind the rest of them, Pinkie held her tongue, as well as holding back some tears, knowing she wasn't going to be getting any dick tonight.

Lyra, also standing on the sidelines next to Swifty, felt a need to step in and add her own two cents.

"Princess, I'm a little new to this, but it sounds like there's a lot of danger involved. Not that it's going to keep me away from Peter and his friends. I'm just a little out of the loop on what to look out for."

Swifty, having grown an appreciation for the mint-colored unicorn, decided to keep the breakdown brief.

"There's a lot we don't know, but I've already gone to battle with them once. There's a lot of hostile threats we're trying to narrow down to keep them all safe. That's why I accompany Peter everywhere he goes."

It's hard to say how long they all could have stayed there going back and forth, but Mayor Mare had the good sense to keep track of the time.

"I'm sure no pony here is walking away from our stallions anytime soon, but we should probably get back so we can escort the other delegates for dinner."

They had gotten sidetracked, and Twilight realized that there was no pony there to monitor Sniff.

"Awe, son of a bitch. Luna, we’ll get this all straightened out later. Right now, we really need to get back."

Starlight and her five other mares reached the roof, anticipating crying frightened foals. Instead, it was a lively scene of Chris entertaining them with Spike and a few creatures they had not seen in Ponyville before.

Many of their concerns seemed to vanish, and Starlight finally lowered Redheart's chair down. Chris and the small party he was hosting were all in the hot tub, splashing about and swimming away from an orange dragon wearing a blindfold.

Smolder, in the pool, blindly hunting with her claws reaching out, was having a lot more fun than expected.

"Marco?"

"Pono," all the swimmers called out.

Smolder lunged towards where she sure she heard Cotton Cloudy, but the filly was pulled to safety by Chris.

Missing her target and hitting the wall, Smolder removed her blindfold, thinking she had forced out a cheater.

"Fish out of water!"

In actuality, it was a different set of hooves she heard walking on the hot tub’s edge. These must be the mares Chris had told her about.

"Oh… Hello. We were just playing Marko Pono."

Apparently, Chris had seen his mares approach, but didn't say anything and encouraged the others to stay quiet so they could keep the game going. However, now that Smolder's blindfold had been lifted, and dinner was getting close, it was time for him to call the game.

"Okay, games over, guys. Everyone out."

Yona, who had been clinging to the sides most of the time, was the first one to pull herself out, immediately imitating a wet dog and shaking all the water out of her fur.

"Yona had great time. Humans are bestest at swimming games."

As the giggles and compliments exchanged between the swimmers exiting the hot tub, Chris knew there was some explaining that needed to happen.

"Hey, Spike. You mind taking them in to get dried off? I need a minute."

Pina Colada did a quick shake to dry herself some, then ran over to Chris's side. She looked to have something important to ask.

"Um, Mr. Chris. Can me and my mom stay for dinner?"

Chris smiled like he was about to tell a dad joke, but he couldn't think of one.

"I'll ask Twilight if we can let you stay, but you can't sit at the table until you get dried off."

This was looking good, but Chris still didn't want them all wandering off without an adult. Having one, in particular, he trusted close by, he turned to his protégé, still lost in a private conversation.

"Hey, Onyx! You mind escorting Berry down with the kids? And Berry, would you like to join us for dinner?"

The two managed to pull themselves away from their conversation and darted off to catch up with the youngsters filing out, with Berry, of course, more than happy to accept.

"I'd love to stay, and thank you again for being so understanding."

As soon as Onyx left with Berry, and the remaining Lunar Guard excused themselves, Chris answered the question written on all his harems faces.

"They were safe with me the whole time. Midnight flew back a while ago and informed me that it was a false alarm. Though judging by Luna’s explanation of things she gave him, she went overboard with her precautions."

Everything checked out, but there was something else needing to be addressed, and all three mothers rushed to Chris, hugging him tightly. Each one showering him with thank-yous and soft sobs.

While Chris was carefully trying to calm the worried mothers, his other three slowly approached with Cheerilee to speak on behalf of the group.

“We were so worried. Luna told her guards not to interfere with our time together until we were ready to leave to pick up you and the foals. We all were running late and didn’t get the word that everything was safe until just a few minutes ago, but they wouldn’t tell us what happened other than you escorted Luna’s guards with everypony else.”

Starlight, looking to be worked up just as much if not more than the rest, stopped short on her approach, unsure of what to think.

"I have never been so scared in my life. My first thought was that you were in danger. But then, I remembered the kids were with you, and what if something had happened to them? I didn't know what I could do if something did happen and what would happen to Cream, or Derpy, or Prim."

It was clear to everyone that Starlight was in some form of shock. She had been so shaken by the experience that she was having a hard time putting her thoughts to words.

"We've all become so close, and I haven't even had the chance to properly meet any of the foals or spend any alone time with all the girls… I'm so scared that anything could happen now."

This was serious enough that Chris had to help the mothers let go so he could kneel down and take Starlight in his arms.

"It's okay. I know it was scary, but we had everything under control, and now the kids really trust me."

Despite the words of comfort, Starlight started to sniffle, her strong front finally breaking down as Chris rocked gently held her.

She had been so protective of him, given so much of herself, bent her own comforts to match his and found herself loving everything that he had opened her up to. The true value of what he, and now the other girls all meant to her, was realized when she thought she could have lost any of them. She couldn’t keep it all in and wrapped her forelegs around him.

"I'm supposed to take care of you, and I didn't even know what was happening."

Chris held her a little tighter and started to gently rock her slowly in his arms.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. You were with Prim, and we can’t be everywhere all at once. And I had Onyx and Thunder Glide with me. You knew I was safe with them. I was taking care of the kids, and everything was fine. You had a good time with Prim anyway, didn’t you?”

Before she could answer, Prim joined Starlight’s side, nuzzling in close and covering her sobbing mare under her wing.

“We had a wonderful time together. So, since it seems nothing bad happened, we should focus on the good things going on right now, not the bad that didn’t.”

The others stood back, wanting to join in the comfort, but saw that Chris and Prim had it under control. They all shared the same concerns but were a little surprised to see just how deeply invested Starlight was with them. It was both sad to see, but also came with the reinforcement of how strong their bonds were growing.

Thankfully, the support Starlight received was enough to settle her down. It was likely going to be a while before she would be able to move past this completely, but she would be fine for the rest of the night, Chris thought.

Besides, they still had a dinner to attend. However, they had a little time to spare.

“Hey, Starlight? I still have to get ready for tonight. Spike will make sure the kids get ready, so how about we just relax together for a bit? Then maybe you can help me change?”

What Chris was implying was a clear and obvious offer to fool around before they had to join the others. That wasn’t at all she had in mind, but it certainly sounded like something she wanted to do. At the very least, it got her to smile a little.

“You’re a terrible enabler, Chris,” Starlight joked through a mix of laughs and sobs.

Luna’s return with the others was received with little acknowledgement. Apparently, random acts of teleportation weren’t reasons for concern when Twilight was around. The only item of notice was Sniff and Benny hanging around Luna and Cerb, excusing himself from his two to join them in the far corner of the restaurant to be updated on even more updates as he took his seat.

“Okay, so Kelly is pissed at me too,” Cerb informed Luna. “She’s only going to be talking to Lumberman and Becky for a while since Chris decided to stay at the castle.”

Since those who knew the recent revelations of Kelly and Luna needed more support, Benny concluded it was time to inform Cerb.

“Figured as much, but we all decided we should clue you in on what else is going on so you don’t try pushing the last minute trip to the Shadow’s murder scene on Kelly.”

Cerb looked around the table. There was something much bigger than Kelly being worried about his safety again to be concerned about, he figured. However, there were too many variables to narrow down to just one thing.

Sniff had hoped the distraught state Luna was still in would have been a big enough hint, but clearly he had to drop a few more verbal bread crumbs.

“Kelly has every right to be pissed. However, if you haven’t noticed, there’s only one pony Kelly seems to be giving the cold shoulder to since you got back.”

Cerb looked over his shoulder back at the table where Kelly was sitting. It wasn’t Big Mac, obviously, given how he hadn’t left her side the whole night. Shining and Cadance had joined Becky with Rainbow, and she didn’t mind them being there. None of the guards who had gone with them seemed to cause any problems. Ember was hanging out with Twilight and wasn’t even a pony.

That left the only mare who wasn’t enjoying the evening at his table, and he was now staring at, after realizing the only pony not enjoying the party was sitting with him.

“Ooooh, my fucking god.”

Cerb’s response, along with the long look of sympathy to Luna, let Sniff know his clues had not led his friend astray.

“Yeah… Lumberman, as far as we know, is the only one sticking to a duo, now. We just didn’t want you pressing a lecture on Kelly and making matters worse for Luna. There’s a lot of shit going on in the background we’re not gonna talk about here, but I’m guessing by how relaxed Kelly was after waking up today, compared to yesterday, Kelly’s not gonna do well without Luna in the mix.”

Luna looked down at her drink, not even able to enjoy it.

“When I returned to her last night, I informed her that the trial against Spearhead and the other guards is drawing near… She was not cold or distant to me in the slightest, despite how troubling the news was to hear. She even asked me to keep her close… Now…"

While this was a solemn event Luna was working through, Cerb couldn't help but roll his eyes at Kelly’s behavior.

"Jesus Christ. Luna… look. If you've spent more than a day with her, you've seen her act like a spoiled twelve-year-old. Just give her some space and she'll calm down... And you'll love her apology."

Benny, sitting next to Luna, snickered, knowing the stories of Kelly’s standard dating practices and the constant falling outs and make-ups with her regulars.

"Luna, Cerb’s right. She'll come around just like she did after donkey punching Cerb when he beat Onyx and Helix."

That was true. It hadn't taken long for Kelly to come around and make peace with Cerb after the scare he gave her about going into the Everfree Forest. Add in all the jokes she made, striking Big Mac in front of her, and how quickly she went to meet Tealove's challenge, her spats of emotional reactions were undeniable. Kelly even admitted to needing to work on her self control.

"If she needs time to collect herself, I will give her that. And, thank you, Justin, for accepting that which we would like to keep private for now. At least until we can guarantee Kelly will be safe from these unknown threats."

Cerb, now with another secret to keep, but one he was glad to be aware of, started to relax a little more.

"Not a problem, LuLu. You know I'm here for whatever you need."

Grateful for their support, Luna was about to say something but noticed Twilight walking over with Big Mac.

Once Twilight reached the table, she didn't waste any time playing the mediator.

"Luna, I apologize for the intrusion. Kelly requested that you personally speak with Big Mac about what all of you discovered. She said he should know about what happened so they can keep each other safe. Especially if there's going to be another mission where Cerb or Benny are going to be pulled away and Big Mac won’t be joining them.”

Twilight traded glances and the three humans for a moment. Examining them briefly like they wrongly accused of something she couldn’t say.

“She also wants you to speak to him alone, preferably."

Big Mac gave Sniff and Benny a nod, knowing they were taking care of Luna while Kelly was dealing with it. They gave him the same nod but were surprised when Cerb stood up and gave him a sympathetic look.

"Hey, brother. Sorry we didn't have you tag along with us this time. I know you’ve got my back." He did a quick turn to Luna, then back to him, and gave a wink. "No matter what you get yourself into, you know I got your back."

The covert message that Cerb knew of he affair with Luna was understood, and Big Mac wasn't even surprised or bothered by it. In fact, he was a little relieved to know Cerb was already looking out for them.

"I do, brother. I'll see you at the dinner, I guess."

A discussion with Big Mac for Lyna was a simple request to fill If this is what Kelly wanted. Though, it would probably be best not to do so in public. She would have to excuse herself.

"Thank you, Twilight. I believe it best if we step away for this. Please take care of things while I am gone. I'm sure we'll return in time for dinner."

Twilight bowed, and in a flash, Luna and Big Mac vanished. With them now gone, Twilight had the strange feeling she was being left out of the loop about why Luna had stuck so close to Cerb and Benny after returning. At least the request that the other mares give them some space seemed out of place.

Unfortunately, before she could gather the courage to ask any questions, Rarity was fast approaching her side.

"Twilight, dear. The time has come, and I am so excited for you."

It was getting close to dinner time, and Twilight was a mare of her word. Besides, whatever was happening with Luna, she was sure she'd find out when Luna was ready to talk about it.

"Goddamnit. Peter, could you help Cadance and Shining keep the guests entertained? And Cerb, Benny, if you could help as well, I would really appreciate it. The yaks and Ember really seem to like you."

As Sniff got up, Cerb reached over and grabbed Benny’s arm, signaling him to stay, then turned to Twilight.

“We can in a minute. I just want to catch up with Benny for a moment… Guy talk.”

Given the developments from the night prior, Rarity could easily guess what the private conversation would cover.

“Twilight, dear. I believe they deserve the same privacy we were afforded earlier. Could you send for some assistance from Lyra?”

Picking up on the undertones, Twilight nodded and trotted back to the bar. She wasn’t gone for more than a minute before returning with an empty bottle, which she happily set down on the far edge of the table.

“Lyra knows a spell that makes it harder for ponies to hear whatever is more than a couple feet or more from any item she enchants. So, as long as you don’t touch this bottle, you should have at least an hour of not having to worry about controlling how loud your voice is. Just be sure to return the bottle to her when you’re done so she can remove the enchantment.”

Having unicorns for friends and lovers was turning out to have a lot of benefits.

Now with their privacy secured and a farewell kiss for Rarity from Cerb, he was able to chat with confidence. That confidence was going to be needed to address the concerns Benny was looking to have about this talk.

“Don’t worry, Benny Boy. I just wanted to see how things were going with you and your girls. They looked really worked up over you going out with us tonight... I’m guessing you told them about what we were going back for?”

Benny nodded and took another sip of his drink before setting it down, wondering how much he should open up about.

“I’ve been following your lead. I started to talk to them last night about what’s been going on since we got here… Actually, kinda touched on breaking off the engagement with Tiffany, how sad my life has been these last few years, and my run-in with the Shadow prick. I also found out today that just like you’re two, my girls got a thing for each other, but… I guess same-sex couples is some major taboo over here. Like, no one talks about it or admits it, so it’s all done in secret… I dunno.. We’re still trying to figure everything out.”

It was good to know that Cerb cared, but now even Benny had to wonder about how things were with his friend.

“What about you? You get laid yet?” He jokingly asked with a smirk.

Of course, Cerb wasn’t expecting that question. Not even as a joke, but his expression was about as clear as his choice of words.

“Ooooh, yeah. And fuck Chris and Sniffy for holding out on us, but I can see why those two are taking on so many.”

Benny was a bit shocked. Sure, it wasn’t the biggest surprise, but he thought Cerb would have waited at least a little longer.

“Soooo, how was-”

“Duuuuuude… They can do things that put your ‘not gay when it’s underway’ wet dream to shame. Literally, the best sex I’ve ever had. Each time, every time.”

Nearly laughing as he thought about it, Cerb shook his head, unable to fully appreciate how crazy what he was about to say was.

At the same time, what good friend wouldn’t be honest and give their best advice?

“I’m tell’n ya. If you really dig your girls, and they want to share you at the same time… Dear, God, for your sake, I hope they are into each other.”

That was a lot of praise Cerb was sharing, and Benny didn’t question the honesty in Cerb’s confession. Conversely, Cerb could see the doubt and hesitation Benny had.

“Ben… As a friend, I’m telling ya. If you like these girls, and they say they want it… Whatever bull shit of what you might have thought when we first got here that might still be lingering, get over it. They really fucking dig you, man. And take a good look around… We all get along. We got a real good thing going for us here, and if they trust you to admit how they feel in spite of some bigoted shit, you’ve got two girls that are in it for the long haul. Even without the amazing sex, I wouldn’t give this up, and neither should you.”

After the flash of Luna’s light dissipated and Big Mac’s eyes adjusted, he was shocked to see where Luna had decided to take him. Thankfully for him, at least he would be comfortable in these surroundings.

“Uh… I guess this will work for what Kelly wanted us to do.”

This was likely to be a difficult conversation, and Luna didn’t have any time to prepare, leaving her embarrassingly nervous.

“I hope you don’t mind. I took the liberty of requesting that Granny attend dinner with us tonight, and with Lumberman and Applejack already busy, I believed this would be the best place for us to maintain any privacy. So, where should we start?”

The awkward side of Big Mac’s normal silence finally presented the challenges he faced with making conversation, and he scratched the back of his head.

How was he supposed to even approach this?

“Well, according to Kelly, I’m supposed to start with an apology.”

Luna stared blankly for a moment, wondering where or how the conversation got flipped so fast, but Big Mac knew this was bound to happen, given Kelly’s temper.

"Don't worry about Kelly. She's plenty angry, alright, but I only had tuh give her one stern look tuh remind her not tuh make the same mistake twice."

He turned to the sunset, taking in its beauty through the break in the trees. A welcomed sight, but also a poorly timed distraction.

"It's looking like it’s about time for you to do your thing there, Princess. Then we can get to really talking."

This was certainly not at all the conversation Luna was expecting, but her duties did come first.

Using her divine powers, the moon took to the sky with a somber hue to its color. It was the best she could muster, given her emotional state. However, at a second glance, the stars shimmering held the faintest twinkle of hope.

With that out of the way, Big Mac started up again, beginning with what Kelly had requested.

“Luna… you once saw something in me that I wasn’t ready tuh accept. I don’t know what it was, and apparently, the gossip around town is that you weren’t the only one. Tealove is proof of that.”

He turned back to Luna, clearly gripped by shame for more than just what he was talking about. His past slights, even if not intentional, he now knew had not been well received.

“You took the time to help me enjoy the Summer Wrap-Up Festival and Hoedown. You even liked me enough to kiss me on the Ferris Wheel, but I just… I’m… I’m sorry.”

Now it was clear why Kelly sent Twilight over with Big Mac. Even if she was mad, she was trying to make things work between them. This must have been the best opportunity for Kelly to have a reason to give Luna any kind of private time with Big Mac. At least not without looking suspicious. All the better to keep their secret protected.

Luna had underestimated, or simply did not understand, how Kelly operated. It was kind of funny when she thought about it.

“Hmph… Kelly certainly is a clever one, but your apology, while not necessary, is appreciated. Though, if we are to make this secret affair work, this is certainly something we need to address. Though I would like to know…. That is to say... You have shown great interest in Kelly living out her intimate desires with me. You even suggested the two of you part ways so she could be with me instead… But…”

For many the seasons that had passed, she had so often wondered, wishing against her doubts, the question she was finally given the opportunity to ask. Albeit with another love interest they both shared being involved.

“Have you ever been interested in me, or was your intentions merely another desire that you wished for Kelly to pursue, given her prior lovers?”

Big Mac had expected/dreaded this question. Simply put, there was no easy way to answer this. It all came with such baggage that he never thought he’d have to unpack.

“Princess… that night at the festival, up until that kiss, I thought you were just let’n yer mane down tuh have fun. Then when the kiss came, all I could think about was what happened between Cheerilee and me.”

More baggage for him to unpack. Then again, given how Kelly explained how Luna felt about that night, maybe this was something she needed to hear as well.

“I certainly thought she was a nice mare, but I was pushed so hard towards ’er. Then the love poison we drank took away our ability to think, and anything I thought I felt was nothing but the poison talking. Then, when it wore off, none of it felt real.”

Despite some tiny voice in his head telling him the moral thing to do was to let bygones be bygones, that near disaster had left a bitter taste in his mouth. Even after all these years, it still hadn’t been fully rinsed free.

“Shit… Even parts that might have been real were thangs I never even had a say in.”

He looked away, still ashamed, and sat in a thick patch of grass. After everything that had happened as of late, and working through it all with Kelly, it was easier to talk about, but also seemed to hurt a little deeper. It all still felt like one great big blight on his past, and he gave a heavy sigh as the memories came back.

“I wasn’t expecting ya tuh kiss me like ya did. And, I certainly didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I did.”

The shame in his eyes faded to regret. Like he only now knew the terrible mistake he made that night.

“But I was also scared that maybe what I felt wasn’t real. For most of my life, I’ve kept my emotions closed off to pretty much every pony, even my family. I’ve never been in love before and I thought that if it took a potion to get even a sweet ‘ole mare like Cheerilee, who did like me back then, to love me? That good feeling that came from a mare coming after me?”

He sighed with the weight of a coffin on his soul, remembering how it felt as if he thought a part of him had died that day.

“I thought none of it could ‘uh been real. So, I guess I walked away happy with what it was, but too scared of seeing where ya might’uh wanted to take things and find out that later on that…”

Luna felt a heavy weight on her heart. She had no idea that the incident with the love poison had left such a terrible scar on his love life and damaged his confidence so deeply. Her simple attempt to reach out for his affection had aggravated an old wound and rekindled his insecurities. Yet, in some ways, she could sympathize and took a seat in the grass next to him.

“Your pain is real and very understandable, Macintosh. But even though we had not spent much time together that day, and what little we did was mostly spent playing games, my attraction to you was genuine. You made for a fine partner. Something Kelly and I seem to have both saw in you.”

Her joke wasn’t all that clever, but it still got a chuckle out of Big Mac. Enough to let the smile stay after the humor had passed.

“Eyup… Kelly sure does have a way of finding those who feel like love is out of reach and making’em rethink the whole situation.”

While not a joke, Luna had to laugh at how true that was. It was tame and well-intended, but still inappropriate in this setting.

“Not to make light of her situation, I think she had spent so much time finding fulfillment through her body that she had lost that which we had as well… The hope that we could find one who would see who we are beyond what is physical, see beyond our past, and love who it is we really are.”

A true love of who they were on the inside was something they both shared with Kelly, but the opposite was true as well. Something that certainly made the emotional connection so much more rewarding when it could be explored with each other. Something Luna was hoping to share again.

“Kelly did a fine job of keeping your romance together secret. Had I known, I would not have chanced wanting to tell her how I felt. However, when she came to me begging for help, even though part of her knew I desired her as well, all she wanted was help to save what you were trying to end. There was even a moment I thought I could have stolen her away.”

She turned to Big Mac with an embarrassed smirk, knowing how terrible that sounded.

“But much like you, I couldn’t try to keep her to myself when I knew there was part of her that desired another.” She suddenly laughed, remembering what else had run through her mind. “I suppose I cannot overlook the fact that part of me still fancied you. Had Twilight not shown me that a stallion could share himself with more than one mare, I would not have even considered trying to show Kelly that I could share your burdens and love her as well.”

Big Mac smiled, finding plenty of comforts in that statement, in spite of how terrible that event had been for the woman he won over.

“Kelly was so excited to finally rut with me. Well, she wanted me to fuck her hard… but I could only give her the love she wanted. All I could do was lay there and… everything she gave me was… just so…”

Sharing the same sentiment, Luna extended her wing, wrapping it around Big Mac and pulling him against her side.

“I know… She is utterly amazing with everything she does. And if she hasn’t told you yet, she wishes for you to join us tonight. If you are willing, of course.”

Finally making a move on his own, Big Mac laid his hoof on Luna’s thigh, stroking it from her knee to inner thigh.

“She mentioned as much. Wouldn’t give me a single detail about ‘bout ya two done together or what ya had in store for me. She did say we needed to get properly acquainted before any ‘uh that.”

That sounded promising to Luna. At least it did if she fully understood what this setup was.

“Am I to take it that Kelly wanted you and I to make sure we were comfortable with each other before she would let us all lay together?”

“Eyup,” Big Mac happily answered. “She also said me not last’n so long was just how my body works, so we’d need lots ‘uh practice... which sounds nice.” He snickered at how obvious that understatement was. “Though, uh… She also said even if the practice doesn’t work the way she hopes it will for me, she’s not gonna let me run off because of it. Said she’d be fine keeping me bedridden if it stopped me from trying ta leave her.”

“Oh, my,” Luna said with a bit of a shock, though she had to imagine the kind of effort that would entail.

Big Mac laughed, wondering the same thing, and leaned in against Luna, happy, yet sad.

“Kelly loved every moment I could give her… I love how she makes me feel too… but it does hurt let’en her down like I did.”

Having lived that fear, Luna felt his pain, but could only imagine how much worse it was for him as she leaned into him, holding him a little tighter in her wing.

“She does not wish to have her wants of lustful acts as strong as she does, but she loves you too much to let that take you away from us… That, and she seems to think that you will be able to enjoy what she will teach me with fewer problems given my less than magical touch.”

Staring up into the starlit sky, Big Mac had to wonder how crazy he was to allow himself to be so fortunate. Being with both the woman he loved and the mare he let get away? An amazing human, and a princess, both wanting and sharing him? He was the luckiest stallion in the world.

Not that he couldn’t afford to think about it at the moment without ruining the night.

At the same time, Luna was grateful for what she had. Both with Kelly and now Big Mac.

Lost in her thoughts, she was surprised with a sudden kiss on her cheek.

There was warmth and affection to it. Not overpowering like with Kelly, but still authentic, fulfilling, mutual, and loving.

She slowly turned to Big Mac, already turned away, a bashful boyish grin on his lips.

“Sorry,” he apologized, not sounding the least bit regretful. “I owed ya that since the Ferris Wheel. And while I’d love tuh try and give ya more than that, I’d rather not be thinking about Granny any time soon.”

That was precious, and Luna knew what he meant. Anything more and she likely wouldn’t make out of the orchard unsoiled, let along past dinner.

“Don’t worry, Mackie. Dinner is not far away, nor will it last long. I have only one small task to attend to after that. Then we will tend to Kelly’s needs together until sleep takes us. I have seen fit to invest in an alarm clock. We should be fine for tonight.

Cadance led the large party in, much to the surprise of seeing that Luna had beat them all back. Not just her, but Big Mac, Granny, and the CMC's.

"Oh, Princess, your back."

Excusing herself from a conversation, Luna approached the guests looking much happier than when she had left.

"Welcome, every creature. I apologize for stepping away. There were some personal matters that I had to attend to. However, we are all here now together, and the young delegates shall be joining us soon for this special meal. I hope you all are hungry. Dinner will be served as soon as Twilight joins us."

Rainbow, practically dancing in place, had been waiting for this moment.

"Becky! Save me a spot at the table! I'll be back shortly."

In a mad dash and blur of colors, Rainbow flew up the stairs and out of sight. Only to immediately be followed by what sounded like several loud gasps.

“Whoops! Sorry!”

Right after that apology, Spike, the foals, the young delegates, along with Chris and his harem, made their way down the steps.

At the same time, one farm filly had a new brother figure to welcome and ran out to greet him. Unfortunately, she wasn't ready for the sight of seeing what Granny had failed to mention.

"Applejack? Wha… What happened."

Still in her wheelchair, all her hooves wrapped in bandages, Applejack put on a brave smile.

"Oh, don't you worry none about me, Apple Bloom. This ain't nothing. I'll be back on my hooves in no time, but I'll fill ya in."

She looked up behind her at Lumberman. A brighter smile was starting to shine through, before Applejack corrected herself.

"We both will."

As the large group, humans, their significant others, foals, Wonderbolts, delegates, and all got seated, Rainbow returned at the top of the stairs with an announcement.

"Hear ye! Hear ye! Now arriving! Her excellency! Pretty Pretty Princess Twiggels Twinkles!"

Walking into view. Twilight appeared in a large frilly dress. Elegant in appearance, but still larger than should be necessary, like an oversized Lolita style dress.

"Good evening, friends, delegates, and honored guests. I am pleased to have you here tonight."

Instead of walking down the steps, Twilight teleported down to the head of the table. As cute as the dress was, Lyra couldn't help but ask a question on Sniff’s behalf.

"So how fast can you get out that thing, or are you going to keep it on for Peter?"

After that embarrassing question wasn't answered, the meal was promptly catered in. It was by far the largest gathering the hall had held and felt like it was finally being properly utilized.

The whole event went off rather uneventfully, save for a few funny looks Cerb got. Adding half a dozen hard-boiled eggs to his salad was a particular point of interest from a few mares the other delegates.

That, and there were a few even funnier looks from some of the mares.

Try as they might, they couldn't tell which of Chris's harem must have snuck a quickie in before eating. Otherwise, Sniff was just happy he didn't have to wait through another toast.

When the meal was over, another happy hour was shared with some idle chat, but nothing significant. A majority of their time was spent with the brave few retelling their perspectives of the events in the battle against the Timberwolves. Something the foals and even the CMCs hadn't been aware of, but all too thrilled to hear.

The stories all ended with the long walk back to Ponyville, never addressing Applejack’s wounds other than she bucked a little too hard. However, that would be addressed after Luna pulled them aside.

"If I may have your attention. The events for the evening have come to an end. But Prince Rutherford, if you would join us, we have some business to discuss. Justin, Benny, Becky, Chris, if you would be so kind as to join us as well."

Carefully walking up next to Luna, Twilight wanted to take this chance to show her gratitude for her guests before they disbanded.

“I wanted to thank you all for accepting my invitation and sharing in improving relationships with our expanding multi-kingdom community. In doing so, I welcome the rest of you to continue getting to know one another. My dining hall will be open to you for the remainder of the night, as well as the roof if you’d like to relax. Also, the second floor of the castle has more than enough rooms to host all of you if you wish to stay the night.”

Judging by all their expressions, and lack of heading for the exit, Twilight took that as a yes.

“Spike, if you would be so kind as to work with lieutenant Evening Aster assisting with the room preparations, you’ll be free to help our guests enjoy the rest of their stay.”

The line of creatures filing in stopped one delegate short at the door by Midnight and Ralph.

“Hey! What’s the big idea?” Gruff blustered.

Coming back to the source of the commotion, Luna poked her head out of the study to address the matter.

"My apologies, but this order of business will be only for those in leadership positions for their kingdom, official delegates appointed for dealing with security, or establishing status of forces agreements."

This explanation did little to quell the griffin’s annoyance, practically puffing out his chest as an intimidation tactic.

"Princess Luna, as the Griffonstone historian, I advise parliament on any key issues dealing with our allied Kingdoms. Namely, which ones are worth or time and money if it's going to threaten our imports and exports. As it stands, I’m the closest thing you got here for the griffons and would be involved later anyway.."

Luna gave that a thought. He was involved in the last summit, helping to pick Leadwing to join the Grand Equestria Pony Summit. She’d even seen him at other functions leading up to meeting with the Griffonstone parliament. However, there was no official designation granted to him for this.

“Grandpa Gruff, I must apologize, but without the proper authority-”

“I’m my own authority!” Gruff snapped, immediately shutting any point of negotiation.

In a hasty, if not bold move, Grump pulled Luna down to him by her chest piece, drawing the spears of Midnight and Ralph. Before they could advance, Luna extended her wings to hold them off as Grump angrily whispered something in her ear.

The mumblings went on for only a few moments, but as soon as he released Luna, she turned back to the study with a different opinion.

“Midnight, Ralph, forgive Grandpa Gruff’s hasty actions. He will be joining us after all.”

Stepping into the study, Gruff was surprised to hear a full-blown conversation was already in place. Somehow he hadn’t been able to hear anything until he was standing in the room.

“My apologies, Princess. I’m sure you understand why I would not have my lineage become common knowledge.”

Luna took a seat near the center of the room, not looking at all bothered by the rough interaction.

“We all hold secrets to protect ourselves. However, I would not advise a repeat of your aggressive nature. It is not only my guards you would have to be concerned about.” She turned to address the rest of the room. “Now, for the reason I have gathered us here. Princess Ember has been informed of some of the growing concerns Equestria has been facing. Thankfully, the biggest threat we’ve discovered has been dealt with, yet there is still much left unanswered, and it is believed if the threat is to return, no Kingdom would survive.”

Upon hearing the claim, Prince Rutherford slammed his hoof onto the floor.

“Yak not take threat lightly! Yaks fight for generations and not surrender or defeated! What pony know that she not share till now?”

This was going to be a gamble. Luna was about to reveal some information she’d been hiding from even her most trusted allies as of late. Yet, she was at the table, only thing left was to roll the dice and hope for the best.

“Every creature, I beg of you all to listen first. Once we begin to explain the series of events that have unfolded, as well as the series and the information we’ve discovered along the way, you will understand why we have not sent warnings to you.”

She turned her attention to the humans sitting side by side with each other, cautious of how they might react.

“It all began with the arrival of our human friends, something we still have yet to discover the method or even all actors involved with, summoning them to Equestria. We thought it to be some fluke. Perhaps some accident or a random act of magic. In truth, the reason seemed too absurd, and the source unreliable. However, it was not until this evening and seeing the remains with my own eyes that was the vision given the legitimacy it needed.”

If Luna was about to admit what Twilight thought she was going to, this Princess was already fearing the fallout if the humans she was entrusted with protecting. She wouldn’t have much of an excuse if they wanted to make an issue of it.

Their reactions would depend on what Luna was about to say next.

“There was a large release of powerful magic when the humans arrived. This explosion of magic injured one of our subjects, rendering her unconscious, and causing the first documented blood-related injury for any creature in Equestria that we know of. Not only that, the same night after being injured, she was tormented by a ghostly nightmare, a vision that warned her that the humans were the key to our survival.”

Those few words gave Benny just enough information to know exactly who Luna was talking about, but he held his tongue.

“Justin and Benny have proven to be powerful allies in defeating the forces that seek our collective destruction. We have also been fortunate with the gifted knowledge Chris and Becky have gained about our world. In many ways, Chris, in particular, is responsible for the close relations we have formed with them. Just as valuable, Becky has shared her knowledge in treating the increasing accounts of blood-related injuries. Each human has provided something incredibly valued by us that we are grateful for. However, I have requested these four to join us so that we may focus on the mutual concerns currently affecting all of our safety.”

Twilight had been carefully observing the humans' reactions, mostly noticing the spike of anger from Benny. Something she wanted to do her best to appease first.

“Benny, Justin, Chris, Becky. I apologize for not sharing this information sooner. There was so much we didn’t know. It wasn’t even until after returning from the Everfree Forest we knew that The Pony of Shadows even existed, nor was he mentioned or seen in the vision. Otherwise, we would have taken more precautions.”

Very quietly, Benny leaned over and whispered something to Chris, making his eyes pop in surprise, but was replaced with a look of disappointment.

Chris shook his head and gave Twilight a look of sympathy while Benny repeated the whisper to Becky and Cerb behind him.

“Twilight, if it’s who Benny thinks it is, we don’t blame you,” Chris replied, sounding very understanding. “Cerb might not know this, but calling that source credible would have been laughable, given her history.”

Behind Chris, Benny pulled Cerb back for one last comment to whisper, which seemed to calm Cerb down enough to speak his mind.

“Twilight, don’t worry about it. I understand. Given her personality and history, on top of everything else that’s happened, I wouldn’t have believed it either. Besides, it’s not like we didn’t stay quiet about things you had a hard time believing either. So, let’s move on.”

Benny undid the bindings on his arm and held up the scabbing laceration down his arm.

“Even resistant to magic, that’s what his shadow blade did to me. And if even Timberwolves can puncture through Applejack’s hooves, it’s possible that the same types of injuries will start spreading even further.”

Gruff sat back in his chair, doing his best to look angry as opposed to frightened, though his visibly shivering wings easily gave him away.

“Well, if The Pony of Shadows is dead like you all say he is, why should I bother suggesting the Council of Lords getting involved?”

To this question, Chris offered a suggestion, though it was reminiscent of a layer offering a defendant a plea offer.

“We’re already offering our support in every way we can for Equestria. If the dangers are going to start escalating with villain activity, who’s to say Arimaspi won’t make a return?"

While not everyone was aware of what Chris was talking about, that got all of Gruff's attention, letting Chris know he was on the right track.

"Unless things have changed from the last time Rainbow Dash and Pinkie visited your Kingdom, the nation of griffons is still struggling to recover financially and isn’t anything close to being unified. Your last king couldn’t stop Arimaspi even when they had the full strength and pride of the griffon nation. You don’t even know if he died falling down that cavern.”

That sounded like something Benny should know more about, but he could see where Chris was going with this.

“In all honesty, you don’t have to support us. However, if Chris is right and villains start coming back in your area, hell… Even if they ignore you and come after us, that’s going to hurt your economy when other nations see how unreliable the safety of your kingdom is. And at least for us, we’re not mercenaries that are going to charge you for lending our assistance. This isn’t some con job where we require protection money either.”

With Gruff being so apprehensive about giving his support, Ember jumped in to set the stage.

“Look, Gruff. If you haven’t noticed, the Equestrian nation is the biggest and most prosperous out of all of ours. Even the Abyssinian’s have been stagnant for centuries and now only offer trade. And while I may be new to ruling over my dragons, I know the ponies can be trusted. They’ve got my support, and my kingdom has been getting better for it even before the humans showed up.”

Not to be outshined, Prince Rutherford stepped up to show the superior spirit of Yakyakistan.

“Yaks first to friend Ponies. Yaks know best to make good trade and strong ally with Ponies. Pinkie also vouch for BenBen and other humans. Strong warriors. Yak proud to fight with Devil Dog and Squid friend.”

A little embarrassed for letting that slip in the conversation back at the bar, Cerb couldn’t help but snicker over the Prince using that title. However, with all the talk of military support and new trade agreements, Gruff couldn’t ignore the benefits.

“Caw! Alright, I’ll be sure to give Lord Gestal my strongest recommendation to offer the griffon’s support.”

If that was settled, Cerb figured it was best to call it a night.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I apologize for any misunderstandings or potential concerns we might have caused. However, I look forward to continued productive relations with all of you. For now though, it’s been a long day, and I think this is a good stopping point until we have more information to work off of.”

To show his sincerity, Cerb walked over and extended his hand to Rutherford.

“This was all rather impromptu, but I appreciate you-errr”

Instead of taking the handshake, Rutherford lurched out and picked Cerb up in a bearhug...or yakhug as it were.

“Ha-ha! Yak not shake with great friend. Pinkie know best friends give best hugs. Get rest now. Tomorrow we give ponies show of strength! Then you show us your strength!”

Cerb pulled an arm free, taking a moment to make sure all his joints still functioned properly, and gave Rutherford a few pats on the back.

“Sure thing, bud. But keep these hugs to just me and you right now. Not all my friends can handle that Yak strength you got.”

After the aggressive hug, Rutherford sat Cerb down and rushed over to share a tamer salutation to the others, leaving Cerb to extend his same support to Gruff.

“Ahem. I know this was a hard sell, but I’m still grateful to hear you come around, and I look forward to seeing what a griffon can bring to the table.”

Begrudgingly, Gruff extended his claws and shook Cerb’s hand.

“I still don’t think we should get involved, but knowing how things have been going in Equestria over these last few years, I imagine we’d be dragged into conflict sooner or later. But if we’re going to convince the Council of Lords to give their support, they’re going to want to get something in return.”

He gripped Cerb’s hand tighter, trying to intimidate him as he gave a lowkey sneer. Instead, the tactic only seemed to piss Cerb off, and he squeezed back even harder.

A standoff started between the two of who was going to put on the best squeeze or back off first. Of course, within the first few seconds, a joint popped and the old bird had to pull his claws back before Cerb did any damage.

Since that seemed to fail, Gruff decided to be blunt.

“I heard over dinner about your plans for going to the Crystal Empire and I know what you're capable of. So, you’re going to have to do something to help restore the pride of Griffonstone. Something not even a mountain of bits could do.”

The door opened, bringing Midnight and Ralph back to attention as the humans and leaders began to pile out. Some of which already had company waiting for them.

Up in front was Thunder who gave a nod to Ember on her exit, but had been waiting for Cerb.

“Justin. Fluttershy and Rarity had decided to retire for the night. They asked me to inform you that they will be waiting for you in your room to tend to your leg. Also, Princess Cadance requested to speak to you if you were not too busy. She’s in her chambers with Prince Shining Armor, Rainbow Dash, the lady Octavia, Vinyl, and Helix. And Princess Twilight, Chris, both of your parties have moved the party to the roof, with the exception of Sniff. He stepped out for a walk with Big Mac. The rest of the guests have retired for the night.”

Thunder was about to stand by for orders but was taken by guilt to give one last confession.

“Also, there was an altercation with Gilda and I."

She tried to stand tall and fearless, but something was clearly bothering her about it.

"She hugged me rather aggressively in the dining hall, then challenged me to a duel in the kitchen with a broom… Then she proceeded to vomit in the sink and is currently sleeping in the pantry… I believe she is drunk.”

Starting things off at the G & O's Top Shelf Bar, the ladies really are getting comfortable with their topics of gossiping. And... oddly enough, I've been pulled into a conversation at a bar like this more than once. I've lived an interesting life. Believe me.

Conversations of what they've done, want to do, can do, etc. Some of them even opening up about how they don't care to openly break the social norms anymore. At least Top Shelf knows what she's actually getting into. And, just like Mayor Mare, lips and fingers are more than enough to keep her interested in joining the club/herd.

It's also looking like they're picking up on the fact that mare on mare action doesn't exhaust them the same as it does while with their human lovers. At least as far as Fluttershy and Rarity know.

Also, it can be kinda hard to keep track of the days going by, but in less than a 24 hour period, Cerb banged it out 4 times, and this night will make a 5th. So, Ovens is going to likely be more invested in taking care of Sniff if this is a norm for humans.

Back on with the actual plot, Lyra continues to showcase her abilities of sound-based magic and spells. Too bad a noise dampening spell likely wouldn't be enough to hold back Rarity's screaming climaxes. Although realizing the potential conflicts and dangers that could exist from jealous or over-anxious mares encroaching on their men could be a threat, that spell might come in handy for the others.

Then... I kinda feel bad doing this to Twilight, but it's also kind of funny how she's trying so hard to have "herd" catch on.

Elsewhere in the bar, Cerb and Benny are really hitting it off with Prince Rutherford. Even Grandpa Gruff seems to be showing them some respect. Of course, given the more aggressive nature of the non-pony races, it's not hard to see why.

Then, I'm sure you were all waiting for it, but Rainbow Dash and Gilda finally get to interact. Shit talkers, the both of them. However... Grandpa Gruff not knowing why he chose Gallus is looking rather suspect.

Even Yona getting along with Gallus so quickly seems like... nah... that's years down the road before that happens.

Going to back to shit talkers, who remembers The Wild Thornberrys? That show was great, though I see why some people say it was a show for girls, though I reject that theory to protect my masculinity.

Oh, and Lumberman, you were right. Starlight and her girls didn't get the emergency memo.

Okay... so this was the real meat and potatoes of this chapter in my opinion. Going back to the previous chapters with Luna putting together her team to verify the death of The Pony of Shadows, she had every reason to believe he was dead.

That being said, there was no good reason to go back and check that shit out. Had Benny and Pinkie been wrong, that would be a huge security concern, so extra precautions were reasonable.

As for the letter, that will be touched upon later when there's some more one on one time with Chris and Onyx, or perhaps some of the mares who might want to think him for looking out him like that.

But, really, this was a conundrum I ran into a while back when I was brainstorming this part of the story. If Luna went in all thinking the threat could be there but left no protection for the others, that would leave them in danger if The Pony of Shadows wanted to attack whoever he could while they were separated. At the same time, she knows if there are other threats out there, the humans still are the key, and she needs every viable relationship to prosper to keep the humans happy, healthy, and safe from being exploited.

She didn't want to risk ruining the potential stronger relationships from developing by freaking them all out before they could get close. Keeping them close is what Chris needs, so why risk it by making them think they wouldn't be safe because of him.

However, when they would eventually found out this mission went down, how pissed off would they be that security was provided for the delegates, but not them or their foals? Then they still wouldn't trust Luna, or think they had the protection they needed while with Chris.

I couldn't write out Luna and them going back without addressing either of these issues. So, I stopped and looked at this from her perspective and thought about what option she would have gone with... In the end, given what she learned from Cerb about having a backup plan and alternate paths to success, that's what she tried to recreate.

In the end, she did the best she could and did so with a valuable lesson to pass on. Not so surprising, her explanation and apology were all accepted rather easily since she was open and honest about it.

Up on the roof... Dude... I miss playing Marko Pono-I mean Marko Polo. Never played it in a hot tub, though. Probably would still be fun like it was for all the youngsters.

On the bright side, it even helped get Chris to actually have some quality time with the foals and got Smolder to enjoy herself.

Of course, all that fun had to end and the adulting came back into play.

Funny how even when the crisis has been averted, parents still cry over it. I don't mean funny ha-ha, but funny as in... Shut up. You know what I mean. The point is that everyone there is seeing just how invested Starlight has gotten into this thing with Chris and them. Not only was she worried about Chris, but all the foals and what kind of impact it would have on their mothers.

Now that's caring.

Just the same, there was a lot of caring between Luna, Becky, and Big Mac. Luna knew taking Cerb with her would be best for taking care of any danger, but would feel like a betrayal to Becky. Thankfully, Big Mac reminded Becky not to act up like she did last time with Cerb (who now knows about that royal trio), and is doing her best to go forward with her plans for the night.

Of which, said plans involved Mac and Luna actually talking things out and patching up that blot and misunderstanding from their past of the unreturned kiss.

Let's hope Luna loves Becky's apology for giving her the silent treatment. Though I'm sure Luna finding out why her affection went unreturned and Mac moving past his insecurities is favor enough.

Then... "Hear ye! Hear ye! Now arriving! Her excellency! Pretty Pretty Princess Twiggels Twinkles!"

Ha! Poor Twigs...

Finally, finishing things off, the most powerful kingdoms are coming together to form a new alliance with each other to prepare for saving the world if the worst is yet to come, and Grandpa Gruff is hiding something.

More importantly, one of the closely held secrets Luna and Twilight had been holding from their human friends has finally been revealed. If not for the fact that it was Trixie who had the vision, the humans who actually know what her track record of competence likely wouldn't have been so understanding.

Oh yeah... Drunk Guilda. Yay!

Anyway, the night isn't over, so come back next week for: