Luna bashes open the door to the Celestial Suite, splintering the gold-inlaid wood. She scowls at the modest decorations scattered around the spacious room, the subdued light streaming through silk curtains, even the complimentary chocolate sitting on the Princess-sized bed. She takes wing just to slam down on the downy mattress, scattering solar-adorned pillows and sending the chocolate into the ceiling.

“Jeez,” Rainbow Dash remarks as she and the rest of the Elements of Harmony enter the fully furnished room. “Tell us what you really think.”

The mares scatter like pillows upon seeing the reserved opulence; Applejack checks the well-stocked fridge, already grumbling about needing a bite to eat. Rarity strides to the curtains, oohing and aahing about the choice of fabrics and taking a peek at the bustling streets outside. Rainbow Dash waits at the entrance for her stallion, peeking out the door to make sure he and the plodding Celestia are still on their way. Fluttershy selects the corner opposite the bed next to an alicorn-sized bathtub, and for good reason: Pinkie Pie decides that Luna can’t have all the fun and leaps after her, her newest goal to lick the chocolate off the ceiling, and she’ll need the alicorn to serve as a counterweight on her trampoline.

“Actually, please do,” Twilight Sparkle pleads, echoing Rainbow Dash’s rhetorical command from inside a vortex of swirling pages. She sets them on the closest table to the bed, neatly sorted and equally spaced from every edge, then stands rather than join her herdmate on the quaking bed. Spike hops onto the table, scattering a few of the notes to her annoyance. “You were almost silent before; what are you thinking about?”

One growl suffices to still the chocolate-muzzled earth pony. Twilight takes the opportunity to climb onto the bed and sit withers-to-withers with the cobalt alicorn. Luna waits with unsubsiding fury as Cadance, Shining Armor, and Chrysalis enter, the spacious room now starting to feel a mite crowded. The two ponies join Applejack in munching on greens and avoiding the cakes so heavy they might properly be called bricks. Chrysalis picks the most open area to claim as her own, as well as any pillows that may or may not be in range.

Doug sticks to Celestia’s ponderous pace, forcing himself to keep from dragging the still-sullen mare. Not that he stands a chance of moving her if she doesn’t want to; he can stagger around with Applejack on his back and the alicorn outmasses the earth pony by three times. Twilight is rapidly reaching the point where only her flight magic will allow him to lift her. Not that he’s complaining, precisely due to the reason for their… well, fattening just sounds insulting, even if it is what’s occurring to two of the three mares, if only in one area. Enlarging, that’s much better.

As the white alicorn breaches the room, so too does Luna’s fury.

“Sister,” the cobalt alicorn demands, Twilight edging away lest she be caught in the icy chill. “How can thou possibly consider giving up your magic? Our magic! For naught but empty promises!”

“But, Sister,” Celestia pleads, her whole body shaking as she finally lowers her barriers. She sinks to the floor, horn and muzzle touching the carpet as she stares down. “What if they are right?” She looks up, tears welling in the corners of her eyes. “What if all our work is for nothing?”

Doug slowly draws his breath, itching to intercede on Celestia’s behalf. But if there’s one thing he’s managed to pick up in his years of herding? Much as he might want to, getting in between the mares would draw both of their ire and abate none of their anger. They would work it out with each other. Hopefully. Still, he has to do what he can.

“Look,” Doug states, bending a smile from one mare to the other. Luna bites back her retort, turning to glare at him just like he suspected. Celestia returns to resting her head against the floor, and he has the sinking suspicion that she might stay that way the entire time. He remains upbeat, almost cajoling. “It’s been a trying time. I’m sure we’ll all feel better after we rinse this sand out of our coats. Yes?”

Luna stares at him for a long while, long enough to make him nervous. She sits back just a trifle with a grumble and huff, unwilling to relax any more until their situation is resolved.

So, with a parting stroke to the white ear, Doug steps toward Fluttershy and the giant tub. It’s not quite as large as the Ponyville Day Spa’s public bath, but still big enough for two alicorns to fully submerge if they don’t mind squeezing together. Hot water soon flows from four taps, steam and floral scents wafting into the air. Fluttershy helps him strip out of his armor with only a few reserved, soothing touches and none of her ‘innocent’ comments. None so much as bat an eye except when she squirrels away the damp undergarments with a cheeky grin. Doug tests the temperature, pulling away from the scalding water with a grimace and curtailed exclamation, immediately adjusting the taps to something less attuned to the solar alicorn and more suited for the average, especially pregnant, mare.

“Finally,” Doug moans as he steps into the still-hot water, swirling it around in the vain hope it might cool off quicker. “You know, it was nice wearing something when we were walking around the city, but after two days in that armor?” He shakes his head at the absurdity. “I missed going around like this. Way comfier. Or maybe the weather in Ponyville is that much better.” He winks at Rainbow Dash, the pegasus preening over the compliment.

“Oh, dear.” Fluttershy presses her hooves to her muzzle in mock horror. “I’m afraid I got sand all over my nice coat.” She flies into the tub after Doug, splashing around in the hock-deep water. “And with the wind, it got everywhere.” She grins as she presents her backside to him, her tail flagging. She moans in a manner most alluring. “Whatever shall I do?”

“Don’t worry,” Doug says, matching her grin as he drops to his knees in the rapidly rising water. “I’m here to help!” His hands cup minute portions, splashing onto her rump and working their way down her legs. He frowns. “You weren’t kidding.” She really does have a lot of grit caked into her coat.

Fluttershy’s grin widens a little as she sinks lower, luxuriating in the steamy, but not too hot, water. She loves the feeling of her stallion’s hands as they swarm over her body, digging into her coat, massaging the tense muscles underneath. It might not be as efficient at picking out the minute grains as a brush, but she cherishes the contact even more.

She can feel another part of her body heating up; her stallion must be feeling the same way, judging by the unmistakable pokes and prods against her belly as he stretches across her body to rub at her neck and forelegs. She wishes he went further, her gentle gyrations dipping the tip of her tail into the water and then flinging droplets onto his chest. Yet she can’t bring herself to sheath him inside her; even if he got her off quickly, and she knows he can, she much prefers long sessions and cuddling afterward, and they don’t have time for that. Especially if he has to attend to the rest of the mares. She hunkers down as one of those other mares takes wing.

“Do me next!” Rainbow Dash shouts as she dives into the tub, splashing water everywhere. She holds her wings out, grimacing at the coarse grit between her feathers. “Sand got everywhere on me, too!”

“That’s ‘cause y’er flyin’ everywhere,” Applejack retorts with a heavy snort. “Nocreature else was, an’ that’s why! Ya blew sand on all’a us! Serves ya right gettin’ some on yerself!”

“Come on, I bet you barely even noticed it!” Rainbow Dash sticks her head in the air, as aloof as any noblepony. She barely even flinches as Doug dumps water onto her neck and mane, shuddering in pleasure as he works his way down the tired muscles. She was not used to carrying weight around, especially something about her own size, and she knows she’ll feel it tomorrow. “You get covered in dirt and mud all the time!”

Doug chuckles at the banter between the mares. That’s one of the sure-fire ways to tell everything is good between them, especially Applejack and Rainbow Dash, that they can trade playful barbs. Even Fluttershy doesn’t mind, most days gamely trying a few of her own, but they are always gentle and good-natured and the others reply in kind. Yet he grimaces, even as he absolutely loves rubbing down the athlete’s coat and avoids the mare’s questing efforts to turn this into a different sort of ablution.

“Luna,” Doug states, even as Applejack and Rarity look ready to make their way into the tub next. He motions to the opening Fluttershy leaves behind as she drags herself out of the tub into a towel held in Rarity’s light blue aura. “Care to join?”

Luna holds her gaze without moving. It clearly rankles her, to be coaxed into such an undignified position. That her stallion would caress and comfort her while he cleans her coat. She is perfectly capable of performing such an action herself! She neither needs nor desires his help, and she loathes being put into a position where denying his help makes her look petty and unappreciative while accepting it makes her weak and pampered.

Yet it is expected of her to accede to her stallion’s desires. At least the only others present are herdmates and fellow royalty who can be trusted to keep their confidences. She takes her time rising from the bed, her baleful look displaying her disinterest. She sheds her cobalt peytral and ornate hoofguards as she walks, allowing the heavy metal to clatter to the floor with satisfying thuds. Rarity winces but Luna ignores her, reaching the edge of the tub and frowning at the pegasus frolicking inside.

Rainbow Dash only gets the hint that she should depart when Doug roughly prods her in the flank. She doesn’t want to leave her stallion, especially because she isn’t done with him, and resolves to be the first to claim him once this is all said and done. Well, unless Celestia calls dibs, and the white alicorn looks like she’ll need a lot of reassurance that everything will work out.

“Satisfied?” the cobalt alicorn demands after she steps in. She grunts as he answers not with words but an affirming squeeze to her taut flanks. She hates to admit that he does an adequate job with his massages and this time is no different; her displeasure with her Sister rapidly depletes, replaced by carnal distractions and a fleeting desire to raise her tail like a common harlot.

“...Only if you are,” Doug replies after a long moment. He continues rubbing his hands along her body; much like Rainbow’s, she is quite tense, and he is assisting with that. But there is none of the surrendering of her body to him, none of the trust that she can allow herself to be vulnerable.

Luna takes one deep breath after another. She has to will it, forcibly convince herself, but her muscles eventually relax as she slips her body under the water. Her tail stills, as does her mane, the waves in the tub gradually subsiding. Her horn lights, shutting off the taps, her head turning the barest amount so she can better regard the human.

“We do not see the wisdom in yielding our power,” Luna starts, attempting to be as amicable as possible to an idea she finds abhorrent. “And we are doubtful thou can convince us otherwise.”

“Alright then,” Doug says with an agreeable nod of his head. He works his way along the powerful back and flight muscles, kneading into the tense tissue. “How do you see this playing out here, how will they react, and what do we do about that?”

Next Chapter: Ch. 43 - Pugilist, Part Two Estimated time remaining: 25 Hours, 12 Minutes