Well? purred Kara as Thermal Draft stumbled down the hallway, her legs still shaky after the marathon she’d just been through. Was it everything you’d hoped it would be?
“Better,” moaned Thermal Draft in Sonata’s voice, leaning against the wall as she struggled to pull herself together. Although Lex had dismissed that pleasure-touch spell he’d used on her during their third and final round of lovemaking, she was still experiencing aftershocks, each step making the ache in her hips flare up in the most wonderful way. “I can’t believe he used that spell on me while we were in the shower.”
That was quite devious of him, wasn’t it? giggled the goddess approvingly. Casting that spell when he knew the hot water pouring over you would make it feel like the most sensuous massage you’ve ever had. And then moving the showerhead over your body like that, brushing it near your most sensitive spots without touching them directly. He’s must have really enjoyed the way that made you writhe.
Biting her lip, Thermal Draft sank to her knees, her tail – along with other parts of her – twitching madly. “Kara!” she groaned. “S-stop! I’m still…!”
The goddess, however, had no more mercy for her than Lex had. I thought he’d wait until you’d begged enough, and then finish you off. But the way he suddenly went on the attack like that, mounting you while directing the waterflow between your legs… It’s a good thing I made sure your transformations don’t come undone when you lose consciousness, don’t you think?
But Drafty couldn’t answer, biting her foreleg in order to stifle her cries as she collapsed to the ground, spasming. It was only after several long, blissful seconds that she finally went limp, lowering her hoof from her mouth as she panted. “Y-you did that on p-purpose,” she gasped.
I’m a love goddess, sweetheart, chided Kara, her voice rich with mirth. It goes with the territory. Still, I’m glad he’s using those spells I gave him. I was worried he’d refuse out of some sense of misplaced pride.
“That spell was…something else,” agreed Drafty, dragging herself further down the hallway until she came to the cushioned bench in front of the elevator, throwing herself onto it as she struggled to get her breath back. “But he did just fine on his own, too. More than fine.”
That was, she decided after a moment’s reflection, putting it mildly.
Even without the magic he’d used at the end, Lex had proven himself to be a highly skilled lover. For all his fearsomeness, he’d been surprisingly gentle with her during their first coupling, vindicating her certainty that there was a sensitive soul beneath his intimidating exterior. Their union had been a thing of beauty, a physical expression of love in the truest sense, and although Drafty was no virgin, she’d never felt as fulfilled as she had when Lex had brought her to her peak.
Had things ended there, that would have been enough to satisfy her, but to her surprise Lex hadn’t been finished. Quite the contrary, he’d actually grown playful. From nipping at her neck to tugging at her tail – smiling, really smiling, all the while – he’d shown a teasing side that she hadn’t ever suspected was there, and the experiencing had been sensuous in the extreme. Unlike the first time, when he’d laid her on her back so that they could share kisses and loving looks while he showed her his passion, this time he’d put her on all fours, her head down and back legs spread wide as he’d climbed on top of her, softly growling exactly what he was going to do to her. It had been wild and exciting and intensely erotic.
And of course, after that they’d gone to the shower to clean themselves up, at which point he’d really cut loose…
“He was incredible.”
Oh, I know, murmured Kara, still sounding smug. You’re welcome.
Drafty had been only half-paying attention to what the goddess had been saying before, her thoughts still muddled from the lingering sensations of pleasure. But now, with that last release having finally begun to recede, she found her awareness returning, and with it her curiosity. “Wait…wait a second,” she muttered, lifting her head up. “You’re saying that was all because of you? And what do you mean you gave him that spell he used at the end? You told me before that he’d never prayed to you even once.”
He hasn’t, agreed Kara. It was a matter of divine politics. I owed the Night Mare a favor, basically, and giving her champion a smattering of spells that my faithful have invented over the years helped me pay it off. That pleasure spell he used to push you over the edge was one of them. So was that contraceptive cantrip he used at the beginning.
Drafty blinked at that, barely recalling the quick word and arcane gesture he’d made right before he’d entered her for the first time. But she had no time to process how she felt about the fact that Lex had apparently used protection before the goddess kept going. But what I was talking about before was the other spell he used, the one that made him so proficient to begin with.
“I don’t understand,” admitted Drafty, managing to raise herself into a sitting position. “He didn’t use any other spells. That one at the beginning, to make sure there’d be no…consequences, and the one at the end to make me all…” Another shudder ran down her spine. “Sensitive. Those were it.”
Yes, replied the goddess coyly. And no.
Drafty couldn’t help but roll her eyes. Kara might be a goddess – one of the oldest in her pantheon, to hear her tell it – but sometimes she acted like a teenager. “What does that mean?”
Come on, urged the goddess. I told you that Sonata told me that Lex told her that she was his first time, and they’ve only been together a little more than three months. I don’t care how much of a quick study he is; do you really think that anyone learns to be that good at sex that fast?
The question made Drafty frown, never having considered that. “I dunno. I mean, he’s got Sonata and Aria. I figured they’d, you know…taught him stuff.”
Oh please, snorted Kara. Teaching is a skill, especially when it comes to screwing. You know those two. Do either of them seem capable of instructing anyone about anything? For that matter, does Lex strike you as someone who’d ever let others tutor him? No, he used one of the stronger spells from among the collection I gave him, one that grants inherent proficiency in the erotic arts.
Drafty raised a brow. “‘Inherent proficiency in the erotic arts’?”
To put it another way, the recipient becomes talented at pleasuring others sexually. It’s similar to how your brand of destiny, or ‘cutie mark,’ as you call it here, works, but subtler, since it heightens the carnal instincts that you already have rather than granting a new talent altogether. Even better, since all it does is augment an inclination that’s already present, the spell doesn’t need to maintain any sort of sustained magical effect; it’s one-and-done. So it can’t be detected, dispelled, or suppressed. It doesn’t replace your existing mark or the talent it provides. And it has no ugly side effects the way herbal or alchemical ‘enhancements’ do. The goddess sighed, her mental voice thick with pride. It really is a wonderful little enchantment, if I do say so myself.
For her part, Drafty shifted in place, biting her lip at the thought of the stallion she admired casting a spell to make himself better in bed. It was one thing to use a bit of magic to spice things up on the last go-round. But enchanting himself to be supernaturally skilled at sex in general…it just seemed like cheating, somehow. “I don’t think that Lex would do something like that,” she murmured, brushing a lock of Sonata’s hair out of her eyes. “I mean, he doesn’t seem like the type of use a shortcut like that.”
Oh sweetheart, chuckled Kara, her voice patronizing. All ponies are insecure when it comes to their conjugal prowess, especially stallions. You have no idea how important that is to them.
Drafty snorted. “I’m pretty sure I do.”
No, you really don’t, insisted the goddess. I’ve seen stallions – males of every race, really – laugh in the face of death, shrug off incredible pain without crying out, but cringe at being told that they’re bad in bed. Finding out that they can’t satisfy the ladies wounds them in a way that few other things can. It damages their ego to the point of hurting their entire sense of self. And the prouder they are, the worse it is for them.
This time, Kara’s chuckle had a dark undercurrent to it. Now compare a dateless virgin like Lex to a beautiful, experienced mare like Sonata, and you can only imagine how terrified he must have been at the prospect of pleasing her. The thought of her laughing at him must have shaken him right down to his core. Compared to that, casting one little spell to make sure she was happy with his performance would have seemed like a small compromise indeed.
Drafty didn’t say anything to that, not wanting to think that the stallion she loved could be that insecure. After how intimate he’d just been with her, not just sexually but in how he’d shown her the parts of his personality that he kept hidden from the rest of the world, it felt like a betrayal to even imagine him like that.
Of course, that’s not even the most impressive bit of magic I gave him, continued Kara. That distinction belongs to a powerful spell that can-
“I don’t want to talk about this anymore,” huffed Drafty, getting back to her hooves as she stalked over and pushed the elevator button.
Oh, I’m sorry sweetheart, did I ruin your afterglow? The pout in Kara’s telepathic voice was audible. I just wanted to make sure you knew how much I’ve done to make sure your first time with Lex was everything you deserved. After everything you went through, it would have broken my heart if you felt like it wasn’t worthwhile.
“I guess,” sighed Drafty, glancing at the elevator doors impatiently.
By the way, you might want to change into a different disguise, warned the goddess. You and Lex were going at it for quite a while, and it wouldn’t be a good idea for Sonata to come face to face with herself if she were to come back now.
The words had no sooner entered Drafty’s mind when the elevator doors dinged, the sound sending a sudden surge of alarm through her despite her having been the one to call it. Panicking, she changed into the first form she thought of just as the elevator doors opened-
“OOF!”
-and somepony rushed out, bowling her over and sending them both sprawling.
“Ouch!” yelped Sonata – the real Sonata – as she rubbed her head, picking herself up off the floor. “Geez, what-” She stopped as she saw the pony she’d collided with, blinking in surprise. “Hey, I know you!” Grinning, she stood up, extending a hoof helpfully. “What’re you doing here?”
Chuckling weakly, Thermal Draft – having changed back into herself, or rather, what her old self looked like before she became a doppelganger – gulped, trying to keep herself calm as she reached up to take Sonata’s hoof. “Oh, I um…I was just coming to tell L-, Prince Legis about, er…what I found out in Trottingham! Yeah, I finished early and didn’t want to wait until after the coronation!”
“No one cares!” snapped Aria, stepping off the elevator behind Sonata and scowling at her sister as she slipped by her, headed toward their suite. “Right now we’ve got an emergency, remember?”
“I didn’t forget!” protested Sonata as she followed after Aria.
Behind them, Thermal Draft blinked. “An emergency?”
“Is terrible!” howled Tranquila as she disembarked from the elevator. “We must be making informed the prince right now!”
Her heart gradually slowing as she realized that whatever was going on likely had nothing to do with her, Thermal Draft swallowed. “What’s happened?”
“It’s the prince’s personal assistant, Feather Duster,” replied Coat Tail somberly, stepping around Tranquila’s bulky frame.
“She’s been kidnapped.”