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// Picking Up the Birthday Girl 
// Story: Berry Punch's Birthday 
// by Zeck 
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	“Mommy, stop fussing with your hair.”
“Oops!” Berry Punch put her hoof back on the ground quickly, but a second later, it was up again, playing with her wavy mane in a futile attempt to straighten it. 
“Mommy!” Pinchy said. The little Unicorn spun around and planted herself firmly in Berry’s way, her pale green eyes gleaming with a stubbornness that rivaled Berry’s. “Mom is going to be very upset with you if you knock that leaf out before your date!”
Berry smiled down at her daughter and moved her hoof away. “Are you sure it looks good?” she asked. Even though she knew Pinchy would say yes, she still wanted to hear it. 
“Of course!” Pinchy said, a smile beaming from her young face. “You look beautiful, Mommy.” 
It was a rare moment in Berry’s life, because she genuinely agreed with Pinchy. There was no doubt eating at the back of her mind, no self-loathing chewing on her heart. The dress she was wearing helped her believe her daughter’s words. It was dark purple and cut low in the front, forming a deep V around her neck. The sleeves running down her forelegs stopped halfway, and they were made of silky, see-through fabric that flowed around her forelegs. The back of her dress was done in a crystal style, making it look like she was wearing actual gems instead of fabric. It changed tint, starting as the same dark purple as the rest of her dress around her flank, then slowly growing lighter as it went down, until it was just a few shades darker than her deep raspberry mane. 
She wore fishnet stockings underneath the dress that clung tightly to her shapely legs and simple black shoes on the bottom of her back hooves. A blue choker was around her neck, and in its center was a jewel carved in the shape of a strawberry. It was a gift from Minuette, before they had been married, and Berry only put it on for special occasions. 
Her whole outfit was completed with the simple ornament in her mane. It was comprised of two holly leaves with three read berries, and she had it tucked behind her left ear. 
In short, if Berry Punch saw herself walking down the street, she wouldn’t just stare; she would probably jump herself and find the nearest bed. She knew she was hot, but right now she felt beyond that. 
She felt beautiful.  
“Thanks, Pinchy,” Berry said, pride swelling in her chest. “Now let’s get you over to Dinky’s.”
“Yay!” The little filly jumped and then began to trot happily down the street. Berry followed behind her, fully aware that she was turning several heads in ways she normally didn’t do. It only made her feel more stunning. 
The mother and daughter reached a small cottage in Ponyville. It was nothing special, with a simple roof and two front windows and a single story. Still, it was well lived in, with small warmth of firelight coming through the windows and a welcome matt at the door, which Pinchy rubbed her hooves on before knocking. 
The door swung open almost instantly and a little light purple Unicorn stood there. Her yellow mane hung in her face, but she quickly brushed it aside and squealed when she saw Pinchy. 
“Dinky!” Pinchy said.
“Pinchy!” Dinky replied, and the two wrapped each other in a hug. “Hello, Mrs. Pinchy’s Mommy,” Dinky added when she saw Berry. “You look great!”
Berry’s face flushed. “Thank you, Dinky. Is your mom home?”
“Mommy!” Dinky called. “Pinchy and her Mommy are here!” 
There was a loud crash from somewhere in the house and Berry chuckled to herself. A moment later, Derpy appeared behind the two fillies. She opened her mouth to say something, but her eyes widened and she froze. 
“Hello, Derpy,” Berry said, and she found herself blushing again under the Pegasus’ gaze. She rubbed her foreleg and looked down at the ground for a moment. 
“Holy muffins, Berry!” Derpy said as her wings began to flutter and she rose into the air. “You look fantastic!” 
“Thanks,” Berry said. Her cheeks were starting to hurt from all the blushing and smiling she was doing. “Are you sure it’s okay if Pinchy spends the night here?”
“Of course it is,” Derpy replied. “It’s all Dinky’s talked about all week. We love it when she comes over.”
Most ponies thought Berry was a bit…touched in the head to trust her daughter to Derpy. Everypony knew that Pinchy was Berry’s greatest treasure, and that she would rip the throat out of anything that hurt her. Combining that with Derpy’s well-known…antics, and it seemed like a mad idea to leave Pinchy with the cross-eyed Pegasus.
But Berry saw a kindred spirit in the grey Pegasus. Sure, Derpy was klutzy, but she was just as devoted to Dinky as Berry was to Pinchy. She put her daughter above everything, even herself, despite the fact that she was a single mom. Berry understood her on a level that a lot of ponies didn’t, and there were few other ponies in town that Berry would feel completely safe leaving Pinchy with.
The list of those ponies was even shorter tonight, because two of them were meeting her in a bit. 
“Thanks, Derpy,” Berry said and she gave the mare a quick hug before she turned to Pinchy. “You’ll behave, right? Do everything Miss Hooves says, right?”
“Yep!” Pinch said with a big smile.
“Come on, Pinchy! I’ve got the fort all set up in the living room!” Dinky said, and the two Unicorns ran into the house.
“My Mommy made me my special juice for tonight!” she heard Pinchy say, followed by Dinky letting out a shout of glee. Berry smiled. Wine wasn’t the only thing she excelled at making. 
“Oh, before I forget!” Derpy said. She disappeared into her house, and then a second later she was back, a small basket in her mouth. “This is for you,” she mumbled. 
Berry took the basket with her hoof and her stomach growled as a delicious scent flooded her nose. Inside the basket, wrapped in a cloth napkin, were four freshly baked berry muffins. Berry’s mouth watered as she looked at them. 
“Thanks, Derpy,” Berry said as she covered them back up. 
“Happy birthday!” Derpy said with a huge smile. “There’s one for each of you tonight.” 
Berry suddenly felt guilty. “Um…sorry that you can’t join us…”
Derpy waved her hoof. “It’s no problem. You go have fun with your friends, and the three of us will have a great night right here.”
There wasn’t a hint of resentment in Derpy’s playful voice. Any other pony would have left Berry feeling unsure, but Derpy bled honesty, so Berry took her at her word. 
“Okay,” she said. “We’ll save you some cake.” 
“Looks like your date is here,” Derpy said, pointing behind Berry. Berry turned, expecting to see Minuette standing there with a smile, but as she saw her wife, her jaw fell open and her eyes turned to saucers. 
Minuette was standing in Derpy’s yard, and she took Berry’s breath away. The blue Unicorn wore a shirt with gold buttons running up the front. The top button was undone, revealing a small silver chain around her neck. Over the shirt she wore a black suit jacket, nicely pressed, with cufflinks on her forelegs’ sleeves and a single red rose in her front pocket. Her mane was folded up in a bun on the back of her head, making it look like she had cut her hair super short from the front. 
Berry wasn’t interested in stallions. She hadn’t been in years, since before Pinchy was born. But seeing Minuette cross dressing as one made Berry’s mouth water.  Her wife was strikingly attractive every day, but right now she was on a different level of hot, and Berry realized that just staring at the Unicorn was making her legs tremble.
“My lady,” Minuette said as she bowed deeply, her tone and face completely serious. “You look beyond lovely.”
Berry had to struggle to find words for a few moments. “Um…any chance we can just skip to the part where I tear all of that off of you in bed?” she asked as she licked her lips. 
Minuette raised her head and cocked it to the side with a smirk. “Somepony is awfully forward tonight,” she said as she walked forward, each step perfectly calculated to catch Berry’s eye. 
“I’m always forward,” Berry said as Minuette drew close. Usually her wife stopped just within kissing distance when they were in public, but this time she didn’t. Minuette kept moving forward, and Berry found herself reeling back slightly. She didn’t step backward, but as those two beautiful blue eyes drew close, she craned her neck back a little, but still Minuette kept coming. 
A moment later, Minuette’s forehead was touching Berry’s, and the Earth pony was lost in the two blue pools starring at her. She struggled to breathe as her wife’s breath slowly brushed her cheeks. The moment was terrifying for her, but in a wonderful way. She was always the attacker, the forward pony, the one making all the advances. Minuette only did it when they were alone, and even then she usually only did because Berry wanted her to. But right now, she was using Berry’s own tactic, and it was exhilarating. The uncertainty in her body as Minuette pressed in close; the small trembling in her lips as Minuette licked her own, slowly; the pounding of her heart in her throat as she tried to speak, although she couldn’t think of anything to say. It was all so alien to her that it frightened something deep in her core, but at the same time made her feel alive. 
As she stood there, relishing the feeling washing over her, she wondered why she wasn’t grabbing the blue beauty and throwing her to the ground right then and there. She wanted to rip the shirt from her lithe body and send its buttons scattering across Derpy’s yard. She wanted to push her hooves under the jacket and run them across Minuette’s supple back. She wanted to twist her hoof in the Unicorn’s bun until it was so tangled that there was no way to get it out until they were both spent, utterly and completely, on the ground.
She wanted to do all of that and more, but her quivering body wouldn’t let her make a move. She sucked in a half-dozen breaths before she remembered how to form words, and a dozen more before she was able to speak.
The entire time, Minuette kept her forehead firmly pressed against Berry’s, gazing into her eyes and wearing a smirk on her lips that only appeared under very specific conditions—usually ones that involved Berry being on top of her after making her scream. 
“Collie—mmph!”
Berry barely managed to get the first word out before Minuette lunged forward. Her hoof came up behind Berry’s head and held her in place as her lips locked against Berry’s. The kiss was so sudden that Berry stood there in shock, her mouth still open from surprise and not pleasure, and so Minuette pressed the attack. Berry felt the Unicorn’s tongue force its way into her mouth. She let out another muffle yelp of surprise, but it quickly turned into a sigh of pleasure as the tongue explored her inside, tracing her teeth, dancing with her own tongue, and finally pressing against the roof of her mouth so firmly that her hind legs became weak.
Minuette held her there for a blissful eternity, pressing her mouth to hers and holding the back of her head so she couldn’t escape pleasure’s grasp. 
When Minuette finally let her go, Berry gasped for air and nearly collapsed on the ground, but her wife held her up. 
It was several seconds before Berry was calm enough to speak. “Any…any more…of that…and I’m…going to ruin my dress…” she said as she struggled to remain standing. She was certain that all any pony had to do was just brush her now and she’d collapse. 
Minuette, her face still dangerously close to Berry’s, gently lifted the Earth pony’s chin so that they were looking at each other once more.
“Oh no,” she whispered in a voice that nearly pushed Berry over her threshold. “I’m ruining that dress tonight, birthday girl. And you.”
“Now?” Berry asked with the voice of a hopeful filly. 
“Anticipation makes it all the more enjoyable, my lady,” Minuette replied with a quick kiss on the cheek.
“You’re teasing me, Collie.”
Minuette smiled brightly, and for a moment she was back to her cheerful, slightly goofy self. She cocked her head to the side and closed her eyes. “Oh, I know. That’s part of the fun.”
“…I hate you.”
“You won’t after tonight,” Minuette countered, and then she slipped back into her dominating persona. “In fact, I’m pretty sure you’re going to be screaming my name by the end.”
Berry pressed her lips together and swallowed.
“Have fun tonight, you two!”
Berry suddenly went completely stiff as she remembered Derpy. The mailmare was standing right behind her, and had no doubt seen everything. 
For the first time in a long time, Berry was embarrassed. She let out a weak laugh and turned around to face Derpy. “Uh…thanks,” was all she could say. 
“Thank you for watching Pinchy for us, Derpy,” Minuette said, again changing back to her old self. “We’ll be by tomorrow at eleven a.m. to pick her up.” Minuette suddenly drew close to Berry’s ear and blew on it in a hushed voice. “That is, if a certain pony will be able to walk by then…”
Minuette had promised to ruin Berry’s dress, and her, tonight. As Berry forced herself to walk alongside her stunningly hot wife, her hindquarters told her that the Unicorn was already off to a promising start.