Chapter I
Lily wakes up feeling a mare's body snuggled against her back and a hoof draped over her ribs. Opening her eyes and checking her alarm clock, she sees she isn't running late for once. She even has time to spare. Sighing, she holds the hoof tighter against her chest and closes her eyes. She's about to ease into sleep's embrace when a snout nestles into her mane and nuzzles her neck.
"Hey, you're awake," the mare says. Her voice is familiar, soothing.
Lily rolls over, giggling as the mare's creamy fur tickles her belly. She stretches out her hind leg and rubs her inner thigh over the mare's cutie mark. Tilting her head to meet the mare's lips and opening her eyes, she freezes. Her heart skips a beat. She'd know those olive-green eyes anywhere. "Rose?"
"Who were you expecting?" Roseluck brushes her hoof down Lily's spine to the base of Lily's tail.
Blushing, Lily scrambles away. "What are you doing in my bed?"
Roseluck props herself up on her foreleg, puzzled. "Well, we were cuddling a second ago. I was hoping we could go back to that, actually." Smiling, she traces a circle on the mattress. "No offense to your bed, but it doesn't compare to feeling your warm, soft fur against mine."
Lily closes her eyes lest she lose herself in Roseluck's beautiful smile and shakes her head. "No, I mean how did you get here."
Roseluck pouts her lower lip. "Don't you want me here?"
Lily's eyelids pop open. "No! I mean yes, I do, but—"
"Come here, then." Roseluck lifts the white sheet, her smile returning.
Her eyes tracing Roseluck's curves, the primal part of her mind urges Lily to dive into Roseluck's legs, smother her with kisses, and never let go. The rational part is too busy crying in confusion to protest. "I had no idea you thought about me like that. All those times I dismissed as harmless flirting..."
Roseluck lets the sheet fall, her smile fading. "You don't remember anything, do you?"
"I guess not." Lily is about to apologize, but the words die in her throat when she catches Roseluck's predatory grin.
"I'll just have to remind you, then." Roseluck stalks over, rolls Lily onto her back, and massages her chest, feeling her pounding heart.
Lily couldn't resist if she wanted to.
Roseluck caresses Lily's belly and thighs. "Doesn't that feel good?"
"Mmm," Lily moans, her eyelids getting heavy.
Roseluck leans in and nips Lily's ear, eliciting a squeal and whispering, "It's about to feel even better."
Before Lily can process Roseluck's words, she feels a hoof part her slick labia and slide between. "Ah!" she gasps, clenching her thighs around the offending hoof and staring at her.
Roseluck kisses Lily's chest.
Lily relaxes. Her mind empties.
Roseluck spreads Lily's hind legs and rubs Lily's vagina. Hot fluid lubricates her hoof. She slips the edge back inside and massages Lily's labia. "See what I mean?"
Arching her back and wrapping her forelegs over Roseluck's neck, Lily pants, "Yes!" Her eyes are still locked on Roseluck's, but her look is accepting, trusting, loving.
Roseluck kisses Lily's neck and draws back Lily's clitoral hood.
A warm draft teases Lily's exposed clitoris. When Roseluck's hoof makes contact, Lily can feel each minute scratch and chip in its surface. "Ooh, Rose!" Lily's moans rise in pitch as she crests the breaking point. "Aah! Rose, I'm—"
Roseluck presses her lips against Lily's in an open-mouthed kiss. Her mane falls around their faces like a rose-striped-maroon curtain.
Lily closes her eyes, her mind melting into a puddle of ecstasy. Her thighs grip Roseluck's hoof, scraping it along her clitoris and wedging it deeper into her vagina. She shudders. Jolts of pleasure shock her nerves, leaving her muscles limp. She wilts to the bed. Catching her breath and eager to return the favor, she opens her eyes, props herself up, and looks around. "Rose?"
As usual, Roseluck is nowhere to be found.
Lily sighs. Rolling over, she feels dampness between her thighs. Hot, sticky sheets cling to her pink coat. Her scent chokes the air, but she's too busy staring at the clock and willing her eyes to focus to care. Registering the time, she panics. If she doesn't leave now, she won't get to work on time, but if she doesn't clean herself up, everypony in town will get a nose full of her scent.
Cringing, she fights her way out of the messy bedding, races to the shower, and throws the faucet, not bothering to shut the door. Icy water soaks her to the bone and spills out of the stall. She spreads her hind legs, letting the water pound her sore vagina until she can barely stand. She clambers out of the shower, almost slips on the wet floor, shuts the faucet, and shakes off. Her blond mane clings to her neck. She brushes her bangs from her eyes and takes one last look at the clock before bolting out the door. The white lily she normally tucks behind her ear sits alone and forgotten in its porcelain vase.
***
Daisy stands by her stall in the Ponyville Market, whistling a wordless tune in cadence with the birds fluttering overhead, who are the only company she has at the moment. She sees a mare running up the road and prepares to delve into her sales pitch when she recognizes the mare.
"Hey Daisy," Lily rasps, her chest heaving. The wind has pulled the water from her coat, but her mane is damp and disheveled. She begins unpacking her stall.
Daisy realizes Lily isn't wearing her flower. "Hey Lily, where's your—"
"Can't talk. Gotta setup shop." Lily glances up and stops, noticing her surroundings for the first time. "Where are all the shopkeepers?"
"They're probably spending time with—"
"Where's Rose?"
Daisy takes a deep breath. "I'm not sure. Unlike you, she hasn't asked for the day off."
Lily stares at her, her stall forgotten. "Wait, what?"
"You came to me earlier this week and asked if you could take Hearts and Hooves Day off. I assumed you were going to ask out a certain somepony, so I agreed, but seeing how—"
"I know," Lily whines. "I'm sorry. I wanted to, but whenever I tried, my legs went weak and I couldn't get the words out." She sighs. "Just this once, I'd like to be the courageous one."
Daisy leaves her stall to hug Lily with her neck and foreleg. "I know you're scared, but we've been friends for a long time. The worst she'll say is she wants to keep it that way." Daisy pulls away. "That said, I have a feeling she'll be more receptive than you think."
Lily smiles. "Thanks, Daisy."
"Are you two having a heart-to-heart conversation without me?" Roseluck asks, walking into the market. She hugs Lily. "Hey, Lily."
"Hey, Rose."
Roseluck turns to hug Daisy. "Hey, Daisy. Sorry I'm late."
Lily frantically brushes her mane to make it presentable.
Daisy smiles. "Hey, I forgave Lily every day this week, so I can forgive you this once." She pulls away and gestures to the nonexistent customers, most of whom won't be arriving for at least another hour. "You aren't exactly missing anything."
Roseluck scuffs the ground with her hoof and flashes a coy smile. "Actually, I was wondering if I might take the day off. I know it's the busiest day of the year and all, but—"
"That's fine. I'd appreciate advance notice next time, but I'm sure you have a good reason."
Roseluck grins. "Thanks, Daisy."
"I guess you have plans, huh?" Lily asks, trying to sound nonchalant.
Roseluck turns to her. "Do I ever!"
Daisy can see Lily's heart sink.
Roseluck continues obliviously, "I'm going on an adventure to find an ambrosia flower that only blooms on Hearts and Hooves Day."
Lily perks up. "Oh, that sounds fun."
"Hey, you have the day off too, right? Wanna come with me?"
Lily suppresses a squeal. "You want to spend Hearts and Hooves Day with me?"
Roseluck rolls her eyes and smiles. "I understand if you have plans."
"What about Daisy?" Lily turns to Daisy. "I can't leave you doing all the—"
"Nonsense," Daisy cuts her off. "With you two off adventuring, I'll have a monopoly on today's flower sales."
Lily mouths her thanks and turns to Roseluck, smiling like a filly on Hearth's Warming Day. "In that case, I'd love to come with you."
"Great! First things first, though." Roseluck walks to her stand, opens the sliding door, bends over, and buries her head in the storage compartment. Her tail swishes over her hindquarters.
Lily watches, mesmerized. Feeling eyes on the back of her head, she turns to see Daisy smirking at her and blushes.
Roseluck turns to her with a fresh-cut white lily and tucks it behind Lily's ear. Her mane tickles Lily's cheek.
Lily giggles.
"Now you're ready for an adventure."
"Sorry about my mane. I didn't have time to style it."
"Don't worry about it. I think it's kind of sexy." Roseluck winks.
Lily blushes deeper and looks aside. "Where are we going, anyway?"
Roseluck starts walking. "Oh yeah, I hope your night vision is good. I hear the canopy over the Everfree Forest is so thick it blocks the sun. The flower grows in a cave guarded by an Ursa Major. He should still be hibernating, so we can probably sneak by, but we're bound to run into a few cockatrices, manticores, and sea serpents along the way."
Lily was following a short distance behind, but she stopped in her tracks and almost lost her balance at the mention of the Ursa Major. The memory of two impressionable colts luring an Ursa Minor into town is still fresh. "Um, on second thought, maybe I'll just stay with Daisy where it's safe. I wouldn't want to slow you down."
Roseluck turns and walks back to her. "Aw, I was only kidding, Lily. Besides, you know I'd protect you—until I got eaten, anyway." She hooks her foreleg over Lily's withers. "We're just going for a hike. The flower grows in a hidden alcove somewhere in White Tail Wood."
Remembering the time she'd been in the path of a stampede of bunnies on this very street, Lily leans into her for comfort. "That sounds nice."
Watching Lily and Roseluck walk off together, Daisy shakes her head and chuckles. "I couldn't have planned it better myself."
***
"What's so special about this flower, anyway?" Lily asks, returning her gaze to Roseluck.
Roseluck turns. A cold gust blows a few strands of her mane into her face. She stops walking to brush them aside. Clear, shallow water gurgles past her hooves from beneath a wall of bushes and tree trunks.
Having lagged behind to admire the pastel oranges, purples, and pinks the setting sun paints across the cloudy sky, Lily catches up.
"Well, I only know what Daisy told me, which isn't much. Ambrosia doesn't usually grow around here, nor does it bloom this early in the year, but this one is rare and magical, which is why it only grows in one alcove and only blooms one day a year. Zecora would probably know more."
Lily shivers. Zecora is as normal a pony as a zebra can be, but for her to live in the Everfree Forest without the monsters having her for lunch, even they must be scared of her. As far as Lily is concerned, that's reason enough for her to be. Vaguely aware that Roseluck just said something, Lily shakes her head, looks at her, and asks, "Sorry, what?"
"I was just saying how I'm more interested in the journey than the destination."
Lily barely has the presence of mind to blush. "Not knowing where the destination is, we don't have much choice, do we?"
Roseluck smiles, but the expression fades before reaching her eyes. "Is everything all right?"
Lily smiles for Roseluck's benefit. "It's nothing. I was just thinking about Zecora."
Roseluck smirks. "Should I be jealous?"
"What? Oh, no! I didn't mean that. I mean, not that there's—"
Roseluck nudges Lily's shoulder. "I'm only kidding, Lily."
Lily rubs her shoulder. "If anything, I'd think you'd be interested in her."
Roseluck smiles coyly. "Why's that?"
"Well, you're both strong and adventurous and beautiful—" Catching Roseluck's arched eyebrows, Lily cuts herself off, "That is, I mean—"
"No, I understand. She has a certain exotic appeal, and the way she speaks in couplets is adorable. She's just not my type, though."
Before Lily can stop herself, she asks, "What is your type?"
"I like to think love can come from anywhere, but while I've dated my share of unicorns and pegasus ponies, I feel more affinity for my fellow earth ponies."
"What about Big Mac? Everypony in town fawns over him. Even the stallions."
Roseluck laughs. "Not me. Gentle giant or not, he'd probably break any average pony in half. Personally, I prefer the kind of tender love and care you can only get from another mare."
"You like mares too, huh?" Lily looks away the moment the words leave her mouth, suddenly expressing great interest in a passing monarch.
Roseluck brushes her hoof through Lily's mane, catching Lily's attention. "Why wouldn't I? They're so cute and cuddly and fun to play with."
Lily blushes. "Has anypony in particular caught your eye?"
"I haven't really been looking, but I can think of at least one mare who's been checking me out behind my back." Roseluck wiggles her hips. "What about you?"
Lily can barely hear herself think over her fluttering heart. She need only say a few short words to know if Roseluck feels the same. They sit on the tip of her tongue, awaiting release like caged doves aching to spread their wings, but the voice in her head is screaming at her not to let them loose. Before she can muster the courage to tell that voice to shut up, a flowery aroma reaches her nostrils and clouds her thoughts. "Hey, do you smell that?"
She closes her eyes and turns up her nose, sniffing the air in search of the source. Cold water washes over her chin. She opens her eyes to find herself staring down a dark tunnel through the wall of bushes. She can't see the other side. Curiosity overpowering rationality, she dips her belly into the stream and squeezes under the bushes. She hears Roseluck following close behind.
Emerging on the other side, where the aroma is all but suffocating, they shake off and absorb the scenery. The stream snakes across the alcove to the far side before cascading over a mossy ledge into a pool deep enough to dive into. A mist of glittering pink pollen permeates the air, giving form to the beams of sunlight that shine through the patchwork of branches and budding foliage overhead.
Lily's eyes are fixed on the center of the grassy clearing, where a single trumpet-shaped flower sprouts. Six white petals with frilled scarlet edges form overlapping groups of three around a cluster of long, slender stamens. The pollen is thickest around the flower, lending it a shimmering appearance.
Roseluck pats Lily's back. "Looks like you found it."
"It's beautiful." Lily takes a long, deep breath, loses her balance, and falls into Roseluck.
"Ah!" Not having expected to be used as a brace, Roseluck tumbles to the ground with Lily on top of her.
"Sorry!" Lily rolls off onto the grass. Concerned, she reaches her hoof over Roseluck's chest and props herself up to meet Roseluck's beautiful olive-green eyes. "Are you okay?"
Roseluck giggles, reaches up, and pulls her into a hug. "Aw, don't worry about me. I'm just a little tipsy."
Lily giggles and nuzzles Roseluck's neck. "Maybe we should stay like this. We can't fall over if we don't get up."
Roseluck gazes at the sky, where the moon is becoming visible. Her eyes are dilated and unfocused. "That makes sense. Considering how late it's getting, maybe we should sleep together and head back in the morning."
Lily pulls herself up and gives her the sultriest look she can manage while half-seas-over.
Roseluck blushes. "To keep warm, I mean. The temperature will drop during the night, and we'll get lost if we try to find our way back in the dark. I wasn't suggesting we have sex. I mean, unless—"
"No, I understand." Lily swings her hind leg over Roseluck's hips and rubs her smooth nipples against Roseluck's. "You just want to feel my warm, soft fur against yours."
Roseluck smirks, rolls on top of her, and whispers into her ear, "I can think of no better way to keep the cold night air at bay."
Feeling a rising heat between her hind legs as Roseluck's crotch contacts hers, Lily runs her forelegs up Roseluck's back, holds her tight enough to feel her racing heart, and moans, "Oh, Rose!"
***
Roseluck wakes from a dreamless sleep to feel grass tickling her side and a mare's body intertwined with hers. She nestles her face into the mare's mane and sniffs the mare's neck. Recognizing the mare's scent, she opens her eyes.
Lily is still asleep. Her forelegs are folded over Roseluck's neck. She snuggles closer and shifts her hips, pressing her warm vagina against Roseluck's.
Their vulvae stick together as Roseluck pulls away, sending a shiver down her spine. The air is thick with their scents. Staring at Lily's glistening, engorged labia, Roseluck feels fluid drip down her inner thigh and blushes furiously. She looks away, sees the pool, and dives in.
The splash wakes Lily. While unaware of the intimate position they were in a moment ago, she's fully aware of a familiar dampness between her thighs. She looks around. Once again, Roseluck is nowhere to be found. The flower has closed and its pollen has blown away. Her eyes fall on the pool.
Roseluck breaks the surface. The early morning sunlight filtering into the alcove gleams off her wet mane and coat. Opening her eyes, she catches Lily staring at her. "Morning, Lily! Come on in. The water's fine."
"Morning, Rose!" Lily calls, setting the lily Roseluck gave her by the flower before stepping into the pool downwind of her. Lily closes her eyes and sighs as the cool water rushes up her legs and quenches her arousal. Feeling water splash her face, she opens her eyes.
Roseluck is smirking at her, but her eyes betray an inkling of insecurity, doubt, fear.
Lily feels a pang in her heart. She doesn't know what's wrong, but she never wants to see Roseluck feeling that way again. Grinning deviously as an idea occurs to her, Lily leaps in after her.
The splash disorients Roseluck.
Lily tackles her from underwater.
"Ah!" Roseluck yelps. They surface a moment later, laughing and splashing. After playing in the water for awhile longer, they return to shore and shake off.
Lily bends over, picks up her lily, and tucks it back behind her ear.
Roseluck watches, blushing. The feeling of her body intimately intertwined with Lily's is still fresh. "Hey, Lily."
Lily turns to her, smiling. "Hm?"
"What happened last night?"
Lily stops to think, her nose scrunching. "I'm not sure. The last thing I remember is emerging from the tunnel." She gestures to the alcove's unassuming entrance. An earlier memory surfaces. Her heartbeat quickens as the words leave her lips, "You know, I never answered your question."
"Yeah, I remember you taking a lungful of pollen, but everything is fuzzy after that." Roseluck plucks the flower in her teeth, tucks it behind her ear, and heads toward the entrance. "When we get back to Ponyville, I'm going to have a word with Daisy."
***
Daisy is sitting on a couch in the living room and sipping tea when she hears a knock on the door. She sets the cup on the coffee table, walks to the door, and opens it. The setting sun silhouettes the voluptuous figure of an earth pony mare with a tousled shoulder-length mane and side-swept bangs. "Oh! Hello, Rose. Would you like to come in?"
"Thank you, Daisy," Roseluck answers. She closes the door behind her, follows her back to the living room, and lies on a couch.
Daisy lies on the couch opposite her but doesn't settle in immediately. "Would you like some chamomile tea? I just brewed a fresh pot."
"No, thank you." Chamomile might calm her nerves, but Roseluck doubted her writhing stomach would cooperate. "Daisy, we—"
"You found it." Daisy grins, seeing the flower bud tucked behind Roseluck's ear, its red-and-white petals barely peeking through.
"Lily found it, actually."
"I was wondering if something happened to you two when you didn't return last night. Good thing none of us had work today." Daisy leans forward. "How was—"
"Daisy."
"Sorry, were you trying to say something?"
Roseluck heaves a quavering sigh and forces her voice to remain level. "We need to talk, but you need to promise not a word will leave this room."
Daisy's face falters. "Roseluck, you're making me worried. Did something happen between—"
"Promise me."
Daisy studies Roseluck's tired, determined expression. "Okay, I promise. Now tell me what's wrong."
Roseluck breaks eye contact. Her words pour out like a river over jagged rocks. "To answer your question, yes, something happened between Lily and me. When we crawled into the alcove, the air was so thick with pollen the flower looked like a heat mirage. Lily took a lungful, lost her balance, and fell into me. Everything is fuzzy after that, but when I woke up the next morning, we were lying in the grass together, intertwined in each others' legs."
Blushing, Daisy smiles. "Oh, my! You two must have had quite the evening. I knew the pollen was an aphrodisiac and depressant, but I had no idea you two would be so affected." She adds under her breath, "Come to think of it, an aphrodisiac is the last thing you two need."
Roseluck's eyes narrow. "You planned this."
Her smile fading, Daisy quirks an eyebrow. "You speak as if I've done you two a disservice. Lily is clearly smitten with you, and don't try to tell me you don't reciprocate."
"That's not the point!" Roseluck bangs her hoof on the table, rattling Daisy's cup. "If she wants her first time to be with me, I'll be happy to give it to her, but an intoxicated mare can't give consent, and neither of us can remember if we went that far."
"Her first time," Daisy repeats before shaking her head. "You may not know what happened, but you know something happened, and judging from the way you're acting, you haven't told her anything."
"I'm going to, okay?" Roseluck clenches her eyes. "I just need to get my facts straight." She looks at her pleadingly. "I know she likes me and wants to be my fillyfriend, and I want to be hers, but I want her to make the first move so she can see she has more courage than she gives herself credit for."
"What's wrong with having something loosening her tongue, then? Will you reject her if you smell alcohol on her breath when she asks you out?"
"That's not—"
"Look, I'm sorry I went behind your back, but the important thing to remember is that while depressants lower inhibitions, they can't make a pony do anything she doesn't want to. Ambrosia symbolizes requited love. Even on Hearts and Hooves Day, the flower only blooms in the presence of lovers. Lily is always late for work because she can't even get her mind off you in her dreams, but she's so scared you'll reject her that—"
Roseluck stands. "You're wrong." She begins pacing. "Before we entered the alcove, I asked her how she felt. I could tell the words were on the tip of her tongue, but the pollen distracted her before she could say them. When we started home this morning, she tried to tell me, but I was so distracted I pretended I hadn't heard her." She stops to stare at Daisy. "We didn't need some magical flower. We just needed some time alone. I suppose I should thank you for that much. Now I hope you'll see fit to leave us alone long enough for me to talk to her."
"None of us have work until the day after tomorrow. I trust that's enough time for you to get your feelings in order."
Roseluck walks to the door and lets herself out.
***
Roseluck rifles through the only kitchen cupboard she hasn't checked yet, but there's not a teabag to be found. Defeated, she takes the teapot off the stove to silence the deafening whistle. She's about to pour the boiling water down the drain when she remembers the flower tucked behind her ear.
Shrugging, she pulls it out and grinds it in the mortar and pestle. The mulch bleeds pink plumes as she stirs it into the water, barely perceptible in the dim candlelight. She pours a cup, takes a sip, and waits, hoping the pollen's properties extend to the flower itself. While the taste matches the aroma, none of the telltale signs of intoxication present themselves. She frowns.
She's about to reach for the anise-flavored spirit she keeps in the cupboard above the sink when she hears a knock. Her ears perk up. Curiosity overpowering her desire to crawl into a bottle of absinthe, she enters the living room and opens the front door.
The firelight illuminates the slender figure of a pink earth pony mare with an elegant blonde mane, dilated amber eyes, and a perky white lily tucked behind her left ear. A frigid draft makes the candles flicker and her voice tremble. "Hey, Rose. I'm sorry to bother you so late in the evening, but—"
"Lily, you're shaking like a leaf." Roseluck steps aside to make a path for her. "Come in, quickly!"
Lily flashes a grateful smile, steps inside, and watches her close the door. The warmth radiating from the crackling fireplace wraps around her like a blanket. She closes her eyes and sighs, almost forgetting why she came here in the first place. She opens them to see Roseluck's knowing smile.
"Let's talk in the kitchen. I just brewed a fresh pot of tea."
Lily follows close behind and lays on a cushion by the table.
Roseluck pours another cup. Turning abruptly, she catches her stealing a glimpse of her hindquarters.
Lily blushes and looks away.
Roseluck smirks. "Would you like sugar in your tea?"
"Yes, please."
A moment later, Roseluck walks over with the cup.
Lily is still shaking. "Thank you."
"On second thought, maybe we should sit by the fire. Why don't you head on in? I'll be with you in a minute."
Lily nods, walks back into the living room, curls up on the fluffy rug laid before the fireplace, and nurses her tea while mustering the courage to say what she came here to. When she hears hoofsteps behind her, her confidence evaporates and she's back to shaking.
"Oh, Lily. I hope you're not sick." Roseluck snuggles up next to her. "Does this help?"
Lost in the warmth, the contact, and the atmosphere, Lily barely processes that she's been asked a question, but when she does, she snaps back to reality to find that she's stopped shaking. "Yes. Thank you, Rose."
Roseluck nuzzles Lily's neck. "I'm glad. Now would you mind telling me why I found you freezing on my doorstep in the middle of the night?"
Lily takes a deep breath to steady her nerves and finds that she doesn't need to. Roseluck's efforts to comfort her have done a far better job than she ever could. "I have a confession to make." She looks into Roseluck's eyes to check Roseluck's reaction. Seeing Roseluck's expectant, attentive look, she continues, "I've always admired you. When we were fillies and those bullies were picking on us, you had the courage to stand up to them. When Daisy transferred to our school and I was too shy to talk to her, you introduced us, and we've been best friends ever since."
Roseluck smiles nostalgically, her argument with Daisy forgotten.
"When I was having nightmares at our first sleepover, you let me share your sleeping bag. The list goes on. What I'm trying to say is you've always been there for me. Of the three of us, you're always the one who goes new places, tries new things, and makes new friends, and I..." Tears form in Lily's eyes and trickle down her cheeks. "I love that about you. If I had even a tenth your courage, I'd have told you this long ago... I love you. I really, really do, and I think I always will, but I understand if—"
Roseluck cuts her off with a long, passionate kiss—something she's been waiting to do for as long as she can remember.
Lily closes her eyes, wraps her forelegs around Roseluck's neck, and melts into the kiss. Her wildest dreams pale in comparison to the wonder of the moment. Time and space fall away. All that remains is the warm, beautiful mare whose lips press against hers, whose breath caresses her face, and whose heartbeat is the only sound in the void, locked in a moment of eternal bliss.
When Roseluck breaks the kiss and opens her eyes, time and space come back from their lunch break. Olive-green eyes meet amber ones as she speaks, "I know, and I love you too. I wanted to tell you, but more than that, I wanted you to see that you had the courage to tell me yourself." She smirks. "I've never been happier to be right."
Lily grins and lifts her cup. "How about a toast?"
Roseluck lifts hers. "To courage."
Lily clinks her cup against Roseluck's. "To love."
Roseluck drinks deeply.
Lily takes a smaller, more thoughtful sip, savoring the flavor. "You were going to see what else Daisy knew about the flower, right? Did you learn anything?"
Roseluck hesitates. She hoped to have more time before confronting Lily to organize her thoughts and piece together what actually happened, but there probably wouldn't be a better time than the present. Candor never failed her before. "Well, she said it's an aphrodisiac and depressant that only blooms in the presence of lovers, but I couldn't get any more out of her than that."
Lily stares into her cup. "I guess that wasn't a dream, then."
"What do you mean?"
Lily blushes, but the words come easier than she expects, "Well, I remember us being in a rather, ah, intimate position that night, but the memory was so foggy come morning I couldn't tell if it actually happened. Now I know."
"What actually happened?"
"We didn't do what you're thinking. We came close, but I think we were too intoxicated to go all the way." Lily takes another, deeper sip. Like Roseluck and Daisy, Lily is a connoisseur of exotic teas, but while this one is strikingly familiar, she's sure she's never tasted it before. "What kind of tea is this?"
Roseluck giggles nervously and rubs her neck with her hoof. "I guess I should have mentioned this before you finished half your cup, but since I couldn't find any teabags, I used the flower. Don't worry, though, it's—" Whatever she's about to say dies in her throat when she catches Lily's ravenous grin. "Hey, what—"
Lily tackles her onto her back and plants a hungry kiss on her lips.
When Lily pulls away, Roseluck pants for air, her heart pounding. By the time she catches her breath, Lily is out of sight. When a pair of hooves start massaging her cutie marks, Roseluck puts two and two together. "Lily, wait," she says despite her eager grin. "Why don't we—" Before she can finish her sentence, Lily's snout nestles into her vagina just below her clitoris while Lily's tongue wedges between her moist labia. "Oh, my!"
Lily flicks her tongue around Roseluck's warm, damp opening with the technique of a zealous amateur before pulling out to slide up Roseluck's vulva to Roseluck's clitoris, giving it a teasing lick before diving back in.
Roseluck feels a rising heat spread from her vagina to her thighs and belly, making her legs quiver and a moan escape her lips, "Oh, Lily!"
Lily slows down. The wave of carnal desire has washed over her, leaving her much wetter but more cognizant of her actions. She runs one more lick up from the base of Roseluck's vagina, pulling away just below Roseluck's clitoris.
Roseluck whines adorably as Lily climbs back on top of her. Their faces are inches apart.
The look in her eyes implies that Lily is trying to say something, but she's still catching her breath.
Roseluck kisses her. Tasting herself on Lily's lips fills Roseluck with another wave of desire. She reaches up with her hind legs and pulls Lily's hindquarters into hers until their labiae interlock, sharing the blistering heat of their arousal. "That was wonderful, Lily, but why did you stop?"
Lily neither pulls away nor resumes her ministrations. "Before we continue, I need to know something."
"Anything," Roseluck pleads.
Lily can't help smiling. She's often dreamed of this moment, but she never imagined she'd have her at her mercy like this. Lily presses her vulva into Roseluck's, eliciting a whimper. "I need to know that we don't need some magical flower to be together."
Roseluck kisses her and smiles. "Is that all?"
"Let me hear you say it."
"Oh, fine." Roseluck rolls her eyes. "I, Roseluck, will love you, Lily, as I always have, until the stars fall from the sky."
"How do I know that's not the flower talking?"
Roseluck grins. "Because what I've neglected to mention is that the flower itself is inert."
Lily pokes Roseluck's chest. "I'm going to make you pay for that."
"Not if I make you pay for keeping me waiting first." Roseluck rolls on top of her. Seeing the surprise in Lily's eyes, Roseluck gets an idea.
When nothing happens for far too long, Lily gets impatient. "Well, aren't you—ah!"
Without warning, Roseluck gyrates her hips, sliding the base of her vagina up around Lily's clitoris and back down so her clitoris brushes against the base of Lily's vagina. Fluid drips down Lily's crotch and into the rug.
Quivering and squirming as her body and coils like a spring, Lily arches her back. Her nipples brush against Roseluck's. She wraps her forelegs around her and clings to her chest. "Oh, Rose! Rose!"
"You certainly are a sensitive thing, aren't you?"
"Ah, Rose! I think—ah! Aah!" Lily's moans become squeals. Her grip tightens. She moves her hips in time with Roseluck's.
Roseluck is teetering on the edge, and she can tell Lily is almost at the breaking point. Panting, she pins Lily against the rug, dives in for an open-mouthed kiss, feels Lily's tongue writhe against hers, savors the lingering taste of her fluid on Lily's lips, and pours all her energy into the motion of her hips. Their clitorises rub together amidst the hot, sticky mess of their labiae. All the while, their eyes are locked together. The pressure peaks, becoming almost painful. They moan into each others' lips before pulling apart to gasp for air as the pressure erupts. Fluid dribbles from their vaginae into the rug. Lacking the will to keep herself upright, Roseluck collapses onto Lily's chest, feeling it rise and fall in short bursts. Roseluck can't tell, but judging from the fire in her lungs, hers is probably doing the same. She rolls off, her side resting against the rug. Her legs remain stretched across her.
Lily is the first to catch her breath. She rolls onto her side to face her and snuggles against her, caressing her back. "You were wonderful, Rose."
"Thanks," is all Roseluck can manage. Firelight reflects off the sheen of sweat coating her fur.
"I just hope I remember it this time."
Roseluck catches her breath and manages a weak grin. "If you don't, I'll just have to remind you."
Lily nuzzles Roseluck's neck. Their tails intertwine. "I love you, Rose."
Roseluck kisses Lily's forehead. "I love you too, Lily. I always will."