Bucky awoke to the horrible sensation of the infernal itching that had been plaguing him. Before his eye had even opened, he had already begun to scratch, and a whimper of pain escaped his mouth. He dug furiously at his own skin, determined to skin himself alive if need be to get rid of the horrible itch. His eye stayed closed, now clenched shut tightly as he tried to relieve himself.
“Bucky?”
That was Derpy’s voice. Full of concern and worry. Bucky’s senses told him that the sun had not yet set, but would soon, which meant it was almost time for the evening meal. He scraped at his flesh with his hooves, trying to make the itching stop.
“Help me,” Bucky begged. “I don’t want to sound like a pretty pony princess, but I think I need to be brushed and I can’t do it in this state,” he pleaded.
“I have this, I like brushing other ponies,” Lyra said enthusiastically. “Well, I like brushing Bon Bon and Sentinel… they’re other ponies. I uh, don’t actually like to be around “other” ponies all that much,” the unicorn admitted in nervous neurotic tones.
A few moments later, Bucky felt some minor relief. Lyra worked in slow long strokes and he melted completely under the sensation. As Lyra brushed, Bucky felt his head being lifted in two forelegs. He opened his eye to see who it was and suddenly there was a grey blur before him.
Derpy’s wings unfurled and the pegasus landed several feet away, wings spread out wide, her eyes wide and panicked.
The room fell quiet, everypony wondering what had spooked the pegasus.
“Bucky there is something wrong with your eye,” Derpy whimpered.
Bucky blinked a few times… his eye felt fine. His vision seemed to be normal. In the commotion, Lyra had stopped brushing and the terrible itching was threatening to overcome him. He squirmed and began to scratch at himself with a hoof.
Bucky watched as Derpy slowly approached the bed, Bon Bon on one side, and Berry Punch on the other side. All three of the mares looked spooked.
“Oh… well that’s new… sort of matches his teeth,” Berry said in curious tones. She lifted her head and gave herself a good shake. “I don’t know what I am afraid of, Bucky is still Bucky.”
Confusion was beginning to overtake Bucky now. He scratched and then he felt his hoof snatched in magic and pulled away. The brushing resumed and he squirmed against the brush. “I don’t understand what is going on,” Bucky grumbled.
Derpy was shaking her head and looked frightened. Berry Punch was peering curiously and drew closer. Bon Bon was pressed up against Derpy. Foals had begun to gather. Thistle was peering out from behind Derpy.
Sentinel lept up into the bed and peered at Bucky, looking intently, nearly nose to nose.
Bucky, still not sure what the big deal was, booped Sentinel on the nose, which caused the colt to go cross eyed for a moment. He uncrossed his eyes slowly and looked mildly annoyed. “This is a serious moment and you just tweaked my nose. Your eye… has changed father. It is like my eyes now,” Sentinel said in a vaguely irritated voice.
Just as Bucky was getting ready to reply, the brush traveled over his croup. “Is that so-ooo-aaaah that feeeeeeels good,” he moaned.
Derpy moved forward and gently shoved Sentinel out of the way. The colt squeaked and made room for the much larger pegasus, understanding pecking order all too well. She closed her bad eye, leaned down, and carefully looked Bucky in the eye.
Bucky, who was still in the throes of ecstasy from Lyra brushing his croup, could barely even see Derpy. The brush moved over the spot where his dock met his croup and Bucky melted completely, going limp on the bed.
“Well, he’s still Bucky,” Derpy reported. “His eye does look like Sentinel’s now. It spooked me. Looking into your husband’s face and seeing a different eye looking back at you is hard to deal with,” she added.
“He’s shedding horribly,” Lyra announced. “Sentinel has the same problem.”
“So is this Sentinel’s shadow essence changing him or is this Sombra’s fallen shadow changing him?” Berry Punch inquired.
“I have no idea,” Lyra replied. “Maybe both. I don’t know much about this sort of thing. Bucky has endured strange magic, has done radical body modification upon himself, infused himself with shadow, and has survived the attempted takeover of his mind by an undead fallen shadow. In spite of all of this, I have rendered him completely helpless with a brush. He is now mine to do with as I please, by right of conquest,” the unicorn announced.
“Okay,” Derpy agreed. “You can have him for a little while. He seems happy.” The pegasus mare, still looking somewhat concerned, turned and walked away. She went to the straw pile and laid down carefully, and then cradled the tiny foal in her forelegs before her. She looked down and made cooing noises that the foal made little burbling sounds in reply.
Berry, her curiousity not sated, moved forwards and got herself a good look at Bucky’s eye. Sitting down, she grabbed his head between her hooves, twisted it around, and peered into his eye. She scratched under his chin affectionately as she peered into his now slitted grey orb.
“Have you been having any trouble seeing during the day?” Sentinel asked.
Bucky did not reply right away. The brush was now moving over his ribs and the sensation was almost as good as a good shagging. Almost. “Yeah… I noticed it the other day. Rising Star could see things I couldn’t,” Bucky replied.
“I have trouble seeing during the day,” Sentinel said.
“Something about him right now makes my heart go pitter-pat,” Thistle confessed.
“It’s kinda awesome… I wonder how I would look with slitted eyes?” Rising Star inquired.
“Rising, no! No radical body modification,” Sparkler demanded. Sparkler felt embarrassed for a moment, and she felt odd that she had just channeled Bon Bon.
“Is it wrong that I am kinda disappointed that everypony stopped talking about my cutie mark and now I am forgotten?” Loch Skimmer quipped.
“Just a little, but I’d be miffed too,” Piña said in a quiet voice. “It is impossible to get any attention in this family,” the earth pony foal muttered as she settled into a pout.
“This whole family is weird. Next thing you know, one of us will sprout wings or something,” Dinky stated.
“I could be the alicorn of wine,” Berry Punch said proudly.
Bucky began to recover his senses. He reached out with his forelegs and pulled Berry Punch into a kiss, which caused all the foals present to squeal in disgust.
“Oh gross… tongue!” Piña protested. “There are foals watching!”
“I bet he’s trying to touch that dangly thing that hangs down in the back of everypony’s throat,” Dinky muttered.
“I dunno, seeing your parents kiss isn’t so bad,” Loch Skimmer said in a subdued voice. “There are worse things you could be watching.”
“Hush Loch, don’t spoil the moment,” Ripple said as she poked her sister.
“Oh wow, they’re really going at it, usually they pull apart by now,” Sparkler observed.
“I was supposed to have Bucky to my self,” Lyra groused.
Bucky pulled away from Berry Punch, looking berry breathless. “Sorry Lyra. I got distracted… give me a moment and I’ll kiss you next.”
“No, that’s okay,” Lyra replied in panic.
“No, no I think I need to thank you for brushing me,” Bucky insisted as he sat up. The unicorn turned his eye on Lyra and his ears perked forward.
“No, Bucky, it’s no bother, hey… uuuuuurgh oh pony farts now my cheek is all wet and slobbery,” Lyra said as Bucky smooched her. She allowed herself to be held in Bucky’s embrace, trying not to squirm. Blushing heavily, she kissed Bucky on the cheek and then resumed brushing him, trying to work a few tangles out of his mane.
Bon Bon watched the display carefully, looking for any signs of discomfort from Lyra. Her heart melted slightly when she saw Lyra relax and lean into Bucky’s gentle embrace. Her gaze settled on the tiny foal in Derpy’s forelegs, the earth pony sighed, and then felt a warm rush in gratitude in knowing that the filly was going to know that her parents loved one another.
“Oh yuck watching my sister kissing is even worse,” Dinky shouted. “The sound is horrible, I’ll never be able to listen to Berry Punch try and win the Sisterhooves Social pie eating contest ever again!” Dinky watched in horror as Sparkler and Rising Star exchanged a heated kiss.
“What have I been adopted into,” Sentinel muttered to himself as he shook his head.
“I wonder if we will be home in time to attend the Sisterhooves Social,” Piña wondered out loud. “If we do, I get dibs on Ripple. I want to win.”
“Oh you little snot!” Berry retorted.
“Sorry… but I do want to win,” Piña offered apologetically.
“What’s a Sisterhooves Social?” Ripple asked.
“Where I go to be disappointed every year,” Piña said glumly.
“We should have a Sisterhooves Social here,” Dinky said. The unicorn foal became aware that the whole room had gone silent. She licked her lips and swallowed a few times, now painfully aware that she had everypony’s attention. “It might be really good to help the fillies and mares here to know that they can turn to one another in time of need,” the foal said hesitantly. Hearing only dreadful silence, Dinky screwed her courage to the sticking place. “We could make some really simple pies maybe, they use berries to make wine here, so maybe just a few pies wouldn’t be too hard. I know there is no sugar, but most berries are kinda sweet, and there is honey. We could make an obstacle course and other things where sisters have to rely upon one another,” she continued in a nervous squeaky voice.
“It might brighten up the ponies spirits. That would hurt the wolves I think,” Sparkler said as she leaned on Rising Star. “Dinky has a solid idea.”
“Yes she does,” Derpy said, her motherly pride making her voice waver.
“I get dibs on Dinky,” Sparkler said.
“I am going to make this happen,” Bucky stated. “I’ll use whatever authority I have here to make sure this happens. Lord Wrecker and I are basically in charge with Keg Smasher down. This was a brilliant idea Dinky, and it will help to foster a sense of unity between the females here,” he continued.
“I can bake pies,” Bon Bon offered. “I’ve been to the kitchens… they don’t know how. Resources were far too precious to squander on things like pies.”
“I will make them relax some resources,” Bucky said as he stroked Lyra gently. The unicorn was relaxed now and he enjoyed rubbing his fetlock along her ribs.
“I can bake. Bonnie and I can bake pies and teach some of the kitchen ponies how to make some simple sweets with what they have available,” Berry said. “And there is milk available, which means whipped cream,” she added, licking her lips as she did so.
“Ugh, Bucky is drooling again,” Lyra grumbled.
“I am not,” Bucky retorted as he wiped his mouth.
“We could set up so it happens right after we get The Scorned Mare airborne and all of the ponies could come and see her. It would give them hope. They would see that somepony is here to fight for them,” Rising Star suggested.
Bucky pointed his hoof at Rising. “That right there is why I consider Rising Star one of my own colts now,” Bucky said.
“I guess I have to sit this out,” Loch Skimmer said sadly.
“I’ll serve in your honour,” Ripple said.
“Aw, Ripple, now I feel guilty for telling everyone how you got your name,” Loch Skimmer said as she wiped at her eyes with her good foreleg.
Ripple gently embraced her sister and squeezed.
“I think it’s already brought two sisters a little closer together,” Sparkler observed.
Bucky pulled free from the now tight embrace of Lyra. “I gotta go… and it will be dinner time soonish,” he said apologetically. He slipped from the bed and disappeared behind the privacy barrier.
Lyra watched as Bucky vanished from view, wanting to say something about how nice it was to be held by a male pony without expectations, but she could not find the courage to say the words. He had only been a gone for a moment, but she was already missing his warmth and the feeling of happiness she felt when he was near. The feeling of his fetlock stroking her ribs, being held close, and the feeling of his barrel expanding and contracting as he drew breath.
“We can use the day to educate mares about mare’s rights and teach them to band together. To treat each other better. To protect their interests. To behave like something other than livestock,” Berry suggested.
“OH! OH! I CAN HELP DO THAT!” Loch offered excitedly, shouting as she did so.
Berry, sitting too close to Loch, rubbed her ears, and she watched as Ripple did the same. “Somebody had a life changing orgasm,” Berry quipped.
“BERRY!” Derpy scolded. “Foals!”
“But I did!” Loch said.
Derpy shook her head, gave up, and returned her attention to the foal she was holding. She understood that Loch was now lost to her, lost forever to Berry Punch. She took consolation that she still had Ripple for now.
“We need to tell other mares that they have control over their own bodies,” Loch stated.
“And that sisters have an obligation to keep each other’s bodies safe,” Ripple added.
“I hate to cut everything short,” Bucky said as he emerged from behind the privacy barrier. “But I am starving and I do believe it is dinner time,” he announced.