//------------------------------// // No Horny! // Story: The Best of Friends // by SociallyAwkwardPegasus //------------------------------// Hey everyone. I'm back. Been very busy but had a few days off and just getting over a sickness. I hope you all enjoy and I hope you all have a wonderful holiday break! Chapter 12 It had been over three hours in the throne room before Eric was at his wits end.  For the most part, the questions were consistently centered around his future plans with the princesses as well as a heavy interest in any new royal additions to the family.  He responded as best he could, often having ponies repeat questions who were further back in line, thus forcing the human to relay the information once again.  It was ok for the first few times, but soon grew to frustrate the soon to be  prince.  Luckily, Princess Luna was the first to pick up on the change in demeanor as her sister continued to regale the onlookers with a spectacle of how Eric had captured the hearts of two of Equestria’s most lonely mares.  Using this as her opportunity, Luna stood from her throne before gracing her subjects with a warm smile.   “Thank thee subjects.  Twas a most gracious time to share and give insight into our relationship with our beloved.  However, Prince Eric and myself must depart because of prior obligations.  Be well, subjects.  We look forward to seeing thee another time,” Luna addressed with a bow of respect.  Most of the ponies in the throne room were quick to return the bow before Luna made her way over to Eric and ushered him towards the door with a wing.  “Come Eric, tis time to leave.  Our sister can handle the rest from here,” the Lunar Alicorn whispered as the two made their way through one of the side doors and into an adjacent hall.  Feeling as he could finally breathe, Eric let out a long sigh before pulling Luna into an embrace.   “Thanks Luna.  I don’t know how much longer I could have suffered through that.  I mean, come on.  I had at least ten ponies asking me when I'm going to be doing it with you two.  They are either really excited about some foals or your subjects are just horny as hell,” he vented with another sigh.  Princess Luna could not help but giggle from the accusations of her subjects.  Seeing as she was the Princess of Dreams, she knew all too well how ‘active’ her subjects could be.   “We do not disagree with your statement.  Being the Princess of Dreams, we can say with utmost confidence that our subjects are far more… promiscuous than they seem,” Luna added.  Eric had to do a double take, almost as if he was about to say something, though stopped himself to keep hold of what little sanity he had left.   “You know what, I don’t even want to know.  I just want to relax for the rest of the day and see how Copper is doing since I haven’t seen him in a few days.” “Sounds like a wonderful plan Eric.  Sadly we must retire for the rest of the day so we may perform our nightly duties.  Be well my beloved.  We will see you in the evening.”  After a loving nuzzle to his check, princess Luna departed on her way towards her chambers. “Well, I guess I need to go find Copper now,” Eric mumbled under his breath.  Turning around from his position, the human jumped back several feet as Withered Gaze and two additional guards stood no more than a foot behind him, stoic and unwavering in their posture and resolve.   “What the fuc…heck!” Eric yelled, not wanting to throw profanities towards the trio of ponies.   “Hello again prince.  I have been ordered to provide you with at least two guards from this point forward to help with your protection or anything else you might need.  Amethyst, step forward,” Withered ordered.  The pony to the mare’s left stepped forward with a salute.   “Sergeant Amethyst reporting as ordered.”  She was a unicorn, sporting a dark purple coat and short black mane.  Her voice was a gruff alto, and held no sense of playfulness.  All in all, the mare meant business.   “Prince Eric, this is Sergeant Amethyst.  She is a combat veteran of the guard with over ten years of experience.  I’ve personally served with her and know she is one of our best.  Next to her is Specialist Winter Chill, a younger guard but every bit as loyal and capable as Sergeant Amethyst.  These two will be your primary escort during the day.  Princess Luna has personally selected her own contingent of guards for the night shift.  If you have any questions at all, please let Sergeant Amethyst know.  She is able to communicate directly with the princesses as well as myself if anything should happen.  Do you have any questions before I take my leave?” Withered asked.  Her tone was direct and to the point.  Eric could tell she was used to this sort of thing and that this wasn’t her first rodeo.   “None at this time.  Thank you for everything Withered.  If anything comes up I will send a message through the Sergeant,” Eric replied.  With a nod of her head and a quick salute, the mare was gone, leaving Eric and his two new escorts with him.   “So… it’s nice to meet you two.  My name is Eric and yeah…” the human said, unsure of what else to really say.   “Hello Prince Eric, my name is Sergeant Amethyst.  I am a seasoned veteran of the guard.  I’ve served three tours in the Badlands and one tour in the frozen tundra of the Crystal Empire.  My skill set includes offensive and defensive magic, locator spells, communication spells, and hoof-to-hoof combat training.  The pony to my right is Specialist Winter Chill.  She is a Kirin who immigrated to Equestria several years ago.  A condition of immigrating here was that she needed to find stable employment, which she did with the guard.  Suffice to say, she took her new role like a fish to water.  She is one of the best junior enlisted soldiers the guard has seen in a good while.  However, she doesn’t really talk much unless she has too,” Amethyst stated.  It was then that Eric got a good look at the second pony.  He knew she looked different than Withered and Amethyst, but thought it rude to point out the fact in front of the two.  She had a horn like Amethyst, though it appeared much different than the unicorns’.  She was adorned in the same golden armor as the Sergeant, though a good portion of blue chest floof, accented with a brown coat, shown through the top of the armor.  Her tail was long and slender, reminding Eric of something similar to a lion.  If it wasn’t for the golden armor the two ponies sported, Eric could easily confuse them as part of the Night Guard.   “Ah, ok.  Again, it’s good to meet you both and I promise I will do my best to be as low maintenance as possible.  I bet it mustn't be fun following me around everywhere that I go.”   “It is not a problem at all Prince Eric.  We have sworn an oath to the protection of Equestria and to the princesses.  Being selected to guard their fiance is one of the greatest honors we could ask for in the guard.  So thank you for this opportunity,” Amethyst stated.  Both ponies then bowed their heads as a sign of respect before raising them once again.   “Well, glad I could help,” Eric responded with a slight chuckle.   “Anyways, I was going to meet up with one of my friends.  I guess that means you get to meet him too.  Let’s head on out.  He should be at his house or at our normal hang out spot.”  With a nod, Sergeant Amethyst and Specialist Winter Chill each took a predesignated side of the human, giving him a little space of separation but close enough to thwart any attempt made to bring harm to him.   “As you command Prince.  Please lead the way,” Sergeant Amethyst stated as the trio soon made their way out of the castle and down onto the bustling streets of Canterlot.   Despite all of the stares and attention, it didn’t take long before the trio of individuals arrived at a quaint little suburb nestled near the heart of Canterlot city.  Though large mansions for the obnoxiously wealthy and cozy apartments were the main staple of living in the city, hidden little gems like the one Copper lived did exist.  Taking a turn down Meadows Way, Eric soon saw his friend’s house in the distance.  By no means was the house eccentric to the point of drawing attention, though it did hold a certain appeal.  The only way Eric could describe it would be equivalent to the Equestrian Dream.  A multi-bedroom house with a midsized lawn within a good school district.  It was everything anypony would need to start a family, and Eric could only chuckle to himself as he thought back to the night he was teasing Copper and his little thestral date.  He knew it was only a matter of time before Copper would be run ragged with foals and a most likely cranky thestral wifey. Stifling his laughter and walking up the pathway, Eric gave the dark brown door a few knocks before covering up the peephole with a finger.  After being friends with the human for so long, Copper knew who the most likely culprit was.  However, Eric did not expect him to anticipate his two new guards.  Though that was another question on his mind, if perhaps Copper knew the two new ponies or had at least seen them around.  Pulling himself from his thoughts, Eric could hear the shuffling of hooves from the otherside of the door before a slight pause and the door opening.  “Hey buddy, how are you doing?” Eric asked as he walked into the house without giving Copper any time to respond.  Caught a bit off guard, Copper waited for the two other ponies in tow to follow their charge inside before closing the door.   “Well, I was just relaxing with my marefriend before you barged in, but other than that, i’m doing well,” he said as he quickly followed his new guests inside.  Eric was quick to catch onto his friend’s words as he made his way to the living room to find Copper's new marefriend relaxing on one of his sofas with a deer in the headlights look. “Hey there, good to see you again.  Didn’t expect to see you over here.  I’m glad the date went well,” Eric said with a small bit of mirth in his voice.  Copper could only shake his head as he made his way past his friend and up onto the couch next to the mare.   “Yes.  The date you tried to embarrass the two of us in front of the princesses.  Was a good time,” Copper retorted with his signature sass that Eric came to know and love.  He turned his attention to the two other ponies in the room who remained silent throughout the encounter.   “I’m assuming these two are part of your personal escort detail?”  Eric stepped aside with a nod of his head.   “Yep.  Two of the best Solar Soldiers the Royal Guard has to offer.  Which makes me wonder why you weren’t selected… slacker.”  Copper decided to flat out ignore his friend’s jest before introducing himself.   “Hey there.  I’m Sergeant Copper and this here is my marefriend, Starry Night, though you can call her Star,” he said as Starry Night gave a quick nod of acknowledgement.  Sergeant Amethyst proceeded to step forward and introduce herself and her subordinate before taking another protective stance next to their future prince.   “So, what brings you over here today?  I sort of wasn’t expecting to see you for a few days, with all the announcements and publicity and all,” Copper admitted.  Eric took this moment to flop to the adjacent sofa with a smirk.   “Well, I was bored and wanted to catch up with my best bud.  It seems you have been busy making it official with the marefriend.  When were you going to tell me?”  Copper could only shrug his shoulders before responding.   “I was going to tell you in a few days once everything died down a bit.  Though I guess you couldn’t wait, could you?” He asked, though he held the smallest of smiles on his muzzle.   “Of course not.  I love being in on all the juicy details of my best bud’s life.  Besides, now that Star is here, I can regale my two newest guards in the riveting story of how you two went from acquaintances to a lovely couple!” Eric boasted.  Star did her best to hide her reddening cheeks in her hooves as Copper just let out a long sigh.   For the love of Celestia, just take me now.