//------------------------------//
// Crime: Twenty Years of Service 
// Story: Luna's Cuddle Dungeon 
// by CategoricalGrant 
//------------------------------//

The first thing Papaya Sunrise felt was a throbbing in his head. It was so alien, so out of place, that he didn’t want to move or even breathe.
After ten seconds, the pulsating pain subsided and Papaya Sunrise’s eyes apprehensively fluttered open. The room he was in was very dark, but not so much so that his sharp batpony eyes couldn’t make out some details, like blankets covering the floor. 
The light streaming in from some bars in front of him was just enough to let him positively identify the room he was in as a cuddle cell. Defeating the urge to stay immobile, he lifted up his hooves, only to find he had been restrained, which confirmed his suspicions.
The only source of light was extinguished as a solid clunking noise signaled that the metal cover had slid into place over the cell door’s bars. Now in complete darkness, Papaya Sunrise could see nothing, and icy cold fear swelled up in his chest.
“Hello, Papaya.”
“Princess Luna?” he asked, feeling a little relieved. “Why am I tied to one of the cuddle tables?”
“Why do you think?” Luna’s voice replied coolly. In the pitch blackness, it felt as if it was coming at Papaya Sunrise from all directions. “You’ve committed a heinous crime.”
Papaya’s heart began to race as he thought through everything he could have possibly done to offend the princess. “B-but I haven’t done anything wrong!”
“Lies and manipulation!” the Princess of the Night screamed in retort, slamming a hoof down hard somewhere on the (comfortable) metal table. The loud bang sent Papaya leaping in fear. “You know what you have done!”
“B-but I...I would never do anything to hurt you, Princess,” Papaya protested, struggling a little bit in his bonds. “I have served under you for a long time!”
“Ah, yes, this old story.” Something soft ran over Papaya’s side, tracing a line from under his front leg down to his cutie mark. “I’m truly disappointed, Papaya, because until last night, I thought the same about you.” More softness ran up his other side as the peeved princess circled the table slowly. “Papaya Sunrise, the loyal guard and my dear friend, even.”
Papaya felt the room grow visibly colder. Somehow, he knew Princess Luna had leaned in towards him.
His ear flicked immediately as her hot breath washed over it. “Imagine how hurt I was by your betrayal.”
“I-I don’t know what I did, Your Highness,” Papaya replied, trying his best to remain stationary on the table, as if he was standing at attention. “But, I await my punishment; I’ll prove to you I’m loyal!”
“Such a good stallion,” Luna mused. “Too bad your word means nothing!”
Papaya felt the undulation of a magical aura around his hooves. A gentle clinking noise released him from his bonds, and he fell gently to the soft ground of the cell.
“...Your Highness?” he asked in confusion. Even after years in Luna’s employ, she still found ways to confuse him.
He felt a warm, soft body slowly enter into contact with his own. A hoof wrapped over his back, and pressed his face gently into the side of Luna’s neck, his fangs scraping softly against her coat. Papaya inhaled deeply and found that in addition to her natural scent, Luna was wearing a perfume of lavender and lemongrass.
“Oh, Papaya,” she whispered. “This is for old time’s sake. I’m sorry that I have to do this.”
The grizzled guard felt Luna’s magic wrap around his whole body and jerk him forcefully away from the sweet hug. He dangled in the air for a few moments, before the same aura tossed him haphazardly across the cell into the wall.
Papaya fell onto a soft pile of throw pillows, and he groaned as a sharp ringing filled his ears. He didn’t even bother trying to get up; it was clear Luna wanted him disoriented on the floor, and he didn’t want to risk being thrown again.
His suspicions were confirmed not even seconds later, as Luna slid up to him and wrapped her hooves tightly around his midsection. She pressed him tightly into the cell wall, with a pillow being the only thing keeping Papaya’s muzzle from being crushed against the wall in the darkness.
Princess Luna snuck her back hoof between Papaya’s legs in comfort and pressed him even harder against the wall.
Papaya winced in discomfort as a few of his joints popped. Luna may have been soft, but she was strong, too. He had no doubt that if she wanted him dead, she could kill him with hugs alone.
After letting out a tight groan of pain, Papaya felt a wave of relief wash over him as Princess Luna flipped over on her other side, carrying the guard’s body with her.
Papaya took a deep breath in and stretched his jaw. “Luna, I-”
Princess Luna growled and flared out her wings, wrapping them tightly around Papaya’s face. “Silence, traitor! Your crimes are to be punished most severely, not with idle chit-chat!”
The silken feathers completely blocked out Papaya’s access to the air in the room, and he felt himself almost suffocating. The air he was able to inhale was sickeningly warm and so saturated with Princess Luna’s scent that he began to feel lightheaded.
It finally hit Papaya: whatever was going on, it was real. He had no idea what he had done wrong, yet he found himself in a font of absolute pleasure so tainted with the taste of fear that he could barely enjoy its softness and warmth.
He squirmed uncomfortably as Luna’s hoof began tracing small circles on his tummy. She began to nuzzle the side of his face from behind as a response to his escape attempts, and he stopped his movements out of fear of what she’d do next. 
Luna wiggled her hips and front leg joints, aligning herself more perfectly with Papaya’s body. Every part of him, from the base of his tail to the back of his neck, was tightly pressed against Luna’s soft coat. She squeezed him tightly to herself, causing his back to crack and his leathery wings to flare out in pleasure. He began skreeing into her wings in both ecstasy and fear, the sounds escaping the feathery cocoon around his face as pitifully quiet and high-pitched whines.
Princess Luna chuckled darkly. “Why are you doing that, Papaya? Are you calling for help? Nopony can hear you.” She wrapped her wings more tightly around his face, depriving him of oxygen. “It’s just you and me, alone in complete darkness.” Her hoof ran over the whole length of his tummy, her tail beginning to tease his legs. “There’s absolutely no escape for you. You’re at my mercy.”
She leaned her muzzle into the side of his face, pressing her lips against his ear. “You like cuddling this way, don’t you?” Luna whispered.
Papaya shivered in fear at the way she asked him the question.
“Don’t you?” she asked again with more force, squeezing him tightly again.
Papaya let out a guilty skree of pleasure.
“Do you or do you not like cuddling with me like this!?” Luna demanded, unwrapping her wings from around her guard’s face.
“Yes!” he practically screamed. “This feels so good, that I don’t even care that I’m being punished! I don’t care that it’s spooky! It’s the best cuddling I’ve ever gotten!”
“And a fitting punishment… for two decades of work in the royal guard!”
The magic crystal lights in the room buzzed to life, revealing half a dozen other on-duty guards standing at the back of the room. Immediately upon being revealed, they began cheering and stomping on the ground noisily.
“Wh...what?” Papaya Sunrise asked in a daze as Luna removed herself from him and offered a hoof to help him stand up.
“It was a half-prank, half-reward!” Luna told him with a beaming smile. “In celebration of your long service in the guard!”
Papaya stared back at Luna with blank golden irises, blinking once.
“I knew I was intimidating, but what, you didn’t really believe that you were in trouble, did you? You haven’t gotten a single citation for bad behavior the entire time I’ve known you! Heck, you’ve been working in the castle since long before I returned from the moon.”
Papaya shook his head, a smile beginning to form on his muzzle. “Wait a minute, h-how did you get this idea?”
“It was Chamomile Dreams’ idea,” Princess Luna explained. “She’s the one that suggested a party for you, drugged you, dragged you down here, and stole your cuddling journal for me to read.”
Papaya glanced over at the younger, lilac female guard. She held up a hoof, stuck out her tongue, and closed one eye in a friendly, mocking expression.
“I helped too,” the youngest member of the guard added.
“Shut up, newbie!” cut Chamomile Dreams.
“Yes, indeed. Shut your face, newbie!” Princess Luna agreed. “Do not presume to take credit for the work of your betters.”
“Wait, you ponies knew about my secret cuddling journal?” Papaya asked the other guards.
They all nodded vigorously, some chuckling at the question.
“I didn’t, though,” added Luna. “It must be really difficult for you to work under such a beautiful, smart, and cuddly boss.” Using her magic to pop the journal in front of her, she began slowly browsing its pages. “I’m not going to lie, Papaya, you are into some weird cuddling stuff.”
The guards at the back of the room snickered.
“Oh, what, are you all going to tell me you wouldn’t like Princess Luna to forcefully cuddle you alone in a dark room?” he asked defensively.
The other guards were largely silent, some pawing at the ground or averting their gazes.
Princess Luna noticed their behavior and raised a questioning eyebrow.
“Y-you are really, really cuddly, Your Highness,” Chamomile Dreams reluctantly admitted.
Luna rolled her eyes. “Oh, great, I’m going to have to do this all the time now, won’t I? Is this a 'thing', now?”
“Maybe you can just cuddle us on every other birthday, or something,” the new guard suggested. “That way, we can-”
“SILENCE, NOVITIATE!” Luna shouted in response, before turning her attention to the pony of the hour once more. “My goodness, Papaya, you must get better control of your underlings.”
Papaya Sunrise ignored her outburst and cut his response to her clearly. “I don’t think it will be too much of an issue, Your Highness. I think you enjoyed that a little more than you’re admitting.”
Princess Luna turned up her muzzle in mock insult. “Hmmph! There may be some small gratification in seeing my dear guards happy, yes. That does not mean that I have the time to cuddle everypony that wants it. There are prisoners to interrogate and punish, you know!”
“Something tells me you’ll find the time,” Papaya finished. “Well, Princess Luna, thank you so much for the present. I know it was strange, but it really means a lot that you’d go to all that trouble just to make my cuddle dreams come true.”
“Well, it’s not over yet! What, did you think five minutes of prank cuddling in front of your colleagues was all you were going to get?” Luna looked over to the other guards. “Leave us.”
The guards filed out solemnly, except for Chamomile Dreams, who left only after giving a number of silent, mocking, ‘go snuggle her, tiger’ gestures to Papaya.
“What would you like to do now?” Princess Luna asked. “I thought that, if you wanted, we could snuggle and I could read you this list of nice things I wrote about you.” With a flash of blue magic, a small note materialized in front of her.
Papaya Sunrise smiled broadly. “You’re too sweet, Your Highness. Absolutely, I’d like to do that.”
Princess Luna led him into a little dip in the elevation of the cell at the far end of the room, where some pillows and blankets had been set up. She laid on her back in a reclining position allowed by the slope of the soft floor, and patted the space next to her.
Papaya gingerly stepped down and laid next to her, leaving a little gap of space between them.
Luna looked over to him and pouted softly.
Papaya just smiled in response and scooted over so that his side was touching hers. Princess Luna wrapped a soft wing around him and floated over a fluffy blanket, extending it around them both. Papaya sighed softly at the cozy warmth and the touch of Luna's velvety coat.
Luna cleared her throat and lifted up the note with her magic. “Number one: you are very loyal and hard-working. More so than any of the other guards.”
“Thank you,” Papaya responded, leaning his head on Luna’s shoulder.
“Two: you like to cuddle. And, as I found out in your journal, you like to cuddle *almost* as much as I do.”
“Mmmmmm...That’s true. Sorry you had to figure it out that way.”
Princess Luna just giggled. “We all have our special cuddling tastes. It just so happens that mine tend to align well with yours. I didn’t want to say it in front of the others, but you were right that I enjoyed teasing you.” She cleared her throat. 		"Three: your fangs are so adorable!” she gushed. “C-can you nibble a pony with those?”
“Is that a question, or a request?” Papaya asked knowingly, looking up at Luna with a smirk.
“A request,” she admitted bashfully.
Papaya scooted himself into a better position and leaned into Luna’s neck, nibbling it softly and letting out a cute skree.
Princess Luna sighed happily and leaned her neck into the gentle treatment, occasionally giggling. “My my, that is very nice. Mmmmm…”
Eventually, Papaya pulled away and placed his head on Luna’s soft barrel. The warmth from Luna and the blanket was beginning to lull him to sleep.
Princess Luna simply placed her chin on top of his head and nuzzled him side to side with it. “Sleepy, are we?”
Papaya yawned and nodded in agreement. “You’re softer and warmer than any bed...if we don’t do something soon I won’t be awake to hear the rest of your list. C-could we cuddle again...like, like before?”
Luna grinned mischievously. “Chapter two in your journal, maybe?”
As soon as Papaya nodded, he was lifted into the air with Luna’s magic and forced down on his stomach on the soft floor.
Luna rushed to stand over him, then lowered her body to pin him down tightly against the floor, causing Papaya to sKree happily in pleasure. Before they began, Princess Luna leaned down to briefly whisper a message in her loyal guard’s ear. 
“Thank you for your service.”