//------------------------------//
// 24) Month 1 - New Blood 
// Story: Climbing the Mountain 2 
// by Talon and Thorn 
//------------------------------//

Max yawned again, and immediately felt bad for it. This was the start of Buttercup’s career at court, he shouldn’t look like he was bored by the proceedings. Still, he’d never managed to get the nap that he’d planned to. First there had been the tedious process of getting his security clearance set up again, then he’d helped with the moving of his papers from one office to another and finally settling into his new quarters. By the time all that had been done it was already past midnight. He’d returned to his house, quickly unpacked and helped Mrs G move her bags across town to her own lodgings. With that done he could finally prepare for the ceremony.
 
A look at himself in the mirror showed that he really could do with a good grooming and trim, he’d not been paying much attention to his appearance on his tour of Nulpar. He’d considered just doing the best job he could to tidy himself up, but then he thought about the nobles that would be invested that morning, Buttercup included. They deserved that he put in the effort to look his best.
 
There probably weren’t many cities where you could get your hair done in the wee small hours of the morning, but luckily Canterlot was one of them. There was a place quite nearby that Baron Dramatic had recommended, it turned out to be a little expensive but despite seeming quite crowded they took him on without an appointment. A pair of beauticians quickly gave his coat a trim and brush making it almost glow, before trimming his mane into what they told him was the latest style. Finally, he asked them to cut his tail to its normal style. they’d seemed a little shocked at the prospect but had eventually followed his instructions. Newly beautified Max had returned home, quickly bathed and gotten dressed. Quite an easy process given he only had two sets of clothes, his red suit and the black one he’d gotten for Baron Fields’ retirement and funeral. He dithered for a bit before choosing the latter and trotted back to the castle just in time for the first of the four ceremonies due to take place this morning.
 
His seating surprised him, as the most junior member of the court he’d been used to sitting at the very back of a gathering, having to crane his neck and strain his ears to find out what was going on, but all of a sudden he was much further forwards. Still in the back third certainly, but not the very back. He was surrounded by a mob of ponies he didn’t really recognise, he assumed most of them were new and was a bit embarrassed about not attending their own ennoblements. He never entirely understood how the seating plans worked, he grasped that it was mostly in order of rank, but occasionally you’d see a Count amongst the Barons or even a Baron up there with the Dukes. He shrugged, it probably wasn’t that important.
 
He glanced around at the banners of Houyhnhnm now decorating the throne room. It was amazing how quickly the staff managed to transform the chamber between ceremonies. It seemed like they’d only just finished filling out offering congratulations to the last new noble, a Baroness called Dawn Chorus, before it was time to return for the next and in that time not only were the banners changed but even the seating plans altered slightly. He hoped they were getting well rewarded for their work.
 
Leaning into the aisle a little he glanced up towards the front of the chamber where Fragrant was sitting just behind Vicereine Wallflower. The pegasus mare looked composed, Max hadn’t had a chance to say more than the briefest hello so far this morning. Hopefully he’d get a chance to catch up soon. This was the last ceremony of the day, there would be a party celebrating all the new courtiers afterwards, but hopefully they’d only have to stay long enough to be polite.
 
At the front of the chamber the princess took her place on her throne and nodded indicating she was ready to proceed. The quiet conversations taking place around the hall faded away and Max drew himself up to his full height glancing towards the back. The great double doors swung open nearly silently and Lady Buttercup Fields strode forwards. She looked very small against the grandeur around her. She seemed to have aged over the months since Max had last seen her at her father's funeral. No longer a young mare, now a mature courtier. She wore a harsh black dress with a tall collar, her once long orange mane had been cut short, straightened, and done up in a practical bun. Not looking about she marched stiffly down the aisle towards the alicorn. Trying not to move his head too much Max’s eyes flickered towards her as she passed. Her face was hard and impassive and her eyes were lined, it looked like she was under a lot of stress, it couldn’t have been easy to have taken over rulership of her father's province. Plus she had apparently chosen to sit the vigil, as had the other new court members he’d seen today. since his own ceremony he’d learned that it had largely fallen out of favour over the last few decades, but apparently it was back in style now.  
 
In another few moments Buttercup reached the front of the room and halted in front of the Princess. “Kneel,” commanded Luna gently and Buttercup gracefully dropped to the ground. “Buttercup Fields,” she continued, “You have been chosen for one of the highest honours, and responsibilities, it is in my power to grant,” she glanced up at the crowd of nobles around her, “Membership of the Night Court, and with it part rulership of the land of Equestria. Answer me before the throne and before your peers to be: are you worthy of this honour?”

“I am, your majesty,” intoned Buttercup her voice surprisingly loud.

“Do you swear to uphold and enforce the laws of Equestria, in both the light of day and the dark of night?”

“I do,” said Buttercup looking up at her ruler, “Neither light nor dark will blind me to my duties.”

“Do you swear to protect the ponies of Equestria with your blood, even to the last drop?” said Luna, continuing the ancient oaths of office.

“I do. I... I will die before I allow harm to befall my little ponies,” she stuttered slightly.

“Do you swear to care for and nurture your people, to provide for them like your own family?”

“I do. All that I have will be theirs, I will not eat if they do not.”

Nodding, Luna looked up at the court again. “Who among our company is willing to stand by Buttercup Fields in the night court?”
 
Max shuffled slightly, he wasn’t sure how the sponsors were selected, it seemed to be organised in advance. If he hadn’t just returned today he might have offered to help Buttercup himself in the same way her father had helped him, although given their previous relationship that might not have been proper. “I, Duchess Fragrant Posey, will stand with her,” announced Fragrant, Max’s ears twitched, she hadn’t told him she was acting as Buttercup’s sponsor.

“And a second?”

“I, Baron Gracious Host, will stand with her,” a white coated unicorn with a greying red mane stepped forwards. Max had seen him around court before but didn’t really know much about him.

“Will the two of you stand in harmony with Buttercup Fields? Will you raise her spirits even when all hope seems lost?”

“We will, your majesty,” chorused Fragrant and Gracious. Max sighed, this reminded him of his own investiture. He’d felt so nervous in the Princess’s presence then. he’d not interacted with her much since but had seen her around court. It was odd to think that over time, even an alicorn could seem normal.

“Will you show her compassion when she is at his lowest?”

“We will, your majesty.”

“Will you stand with her and her duties, even to death?”

“We will, your majesty.” It was a shame that Rolling Fields hadn’t lived long enough to see his daughter take on his position. He was sure he’d be so very proud of her. He’d been worried that her duties might stop her from having a normal life, but Max was sure she’d take to the challenge wonderfully.
 
“Will you speak truly to her when lies would be easier?”

“We will, your majesty.” That one made Max wince a bit, after all it had been Buttercup who had talked him into covering up her illegal treatment of her father's condition, but he was sure she had learnt from her mistakes.

“Will you share all you have with her?”

“We will, your majesty,” concluded the sponsors.

“Are there any among this august assemblage who know of any reason why Buttercup Fields should not be granted this boon? Why she is unfit to rule?” Silence echoed around the chamber. “Then by the magic of Equestria, I accept her petition for entrance to the court.” Luna nodded to Fragrant first, then Gracious, and finally to Buttercup before touching her horn to the mare’s shoulder. “Then in the name of Equestria and all of her people, I dub you Baroness Buttercup Fields of Houyhnhnm, member of the Night Court of Equestria. May you rule wisely for as long as you live.” She raised her head and lowered her horn onto her other shoulder, then stood back. “Arise, Baroness Fields.”
 
Buttercup stood before curtsying towards her monarch and turning towards the crowd behind her. She stood there for a moment, her face emotionless. “Thank you all,” she intoned, “I vow to lead my people to the best of my abilities even to my end, as my... my father did before me.” For a moment her composure cracked and a look of sorrow flashed across her face before her mask returned. The other courtiers left their seats and started to line up in front of her, one by one offering their support and best wishes in her new role.
 
It was a while before it was Max’s turn, he took the mare’s hoof and shook it. “Well done Buttercup,” he said, up close she looked even more tired than he’d thought. “If you ever need any help just ask.”
 
“Thank you, Baron Max,” she said emphasizing his title, “I will be sure to contact you if Houyhnhnm needs the support of Nulpar,” she continued formally.
 
Max frowned, he liked to think Buttercup was his friend. well, she had been his lover for a short period and things hadn’t ended perfectly, but he liked to think they were still close. “Oh, of course,” he muttered as the noble behind him pushed forwards to offer his own greeting.
 



 
After the ceremony had finished most of the courtiers had moved to a large but rather less impressive chamber to properly celebrate. Fragrant had managed to corner Max for a few moments in the rush. She explained that she had a meeting with the Princess for a few minutes once the alicorn had had her meeting with the newly minted Baroness Fields. She didn’t explain what it was about but Max could sense she was rather worried about it. Fragrant had told him that to keep their relationship secret they should remain separate for the party, something that Max disagreed with. they’d been to a few social events together before they were a couple, but he didn’t want to argue right now and make her more anxious. Once her meeting was over Fragrant said she’d have to join the party and work the room for about an hour before she could reasonably make her excuses and leave. Then the two of them could meet up at her mansion to talk. Although it seemed like a very long time to Max, but he was still a little surprised that she could leave so quickly given she was sponsoring Buttercup; but Fragrant knew so much more about the rules of these social engagements than he did so she probably knew what she was doing. He agreed and she headed off towards the princess's chambers, drawing a single feather playfully across Max’s barrel as she left, making him shudder.
 
Glancing around the hall, Max looked for anypony he recognised that he could talk to for a while. There did seem to be quite a few new faces around, he should probably say hello to them. He’d never been much involved with the social side of the court but there were at least a few of his peers he was friendly with like Baron Dramatic or Baron Fields, then it occurred to him that the latter was dead. He noticed Viscount Blueblood chatting with a group of courtiers at the opposite side of the hall, standing next to a familiar pink mare who appeared to be juggling several glasses while sipping from them to the amusement of the crowd around her. Which was a bit odd: even beyond her behaviour, he didn’t think he’d seen Blueblood take the same companion to different events before.
 
Taking a glass of wine from a passing servant, more to have something to do rather than because he was thirsty, Max slowly turned to take into the whole scene around him. Something seemed a little off about the gathering: almost the entire court was present but most of them were gathered in small groups here and there, talking quietly, eyes occasionally flicking out to look at each other. The atmosphere was, well, tense, almost frightened. What could... then Max remembered the situation before he had left the capital, the princesses’ ultimatum to the court to clean up its act, the effort that Fragrant had put into trying to bind the court back together, the bill she had written to show their ruler than the court could change, that it would police itself better. The bill due to be voted on tomorrow with the opening of the court. It was amazing that he could have forgotten it, but the court and its activities seemed so far away when he was back in Nulpar.
 
“Jangle for your thoughts Baron Max,” came a voice from behind Max. He spun on the spot to see his friend Baron Mellow Dramatic standing there with a drink in one hoof and his opposite wing resting casually on the back of a rather plump younger light pink unicorn mare with a carefully styled purple mane.
 
“Mellow!” cried Max, “good to see you.”
 
“The same, baron. how are you? When did you get back to Canterlot?” he asked politely.
 
“I’m well, I just got back last evening, how about you?”
 
“I’ve been back for about a week, although my province is rather closer than yours. Ah, where are my manners, Baron, this is Lady Confidant of House Schere,” he turned to the mare and kissed her gently on lips, “my marefriend,” he announced, practically glowing with pride.
 
“It’s good to see you again Baron Max,” said the unicorn, giving a little bob.
 
Max looked confused. “I’m sorry, where did we meet?”
 
The mare’s eyes seemed to unfocus for a moment. “Oh, sorry, we haven’t yet. I apologize for the confusion.”
 
“My Conny is teaching divination at the princess’s school, one of the best of her generation!”
 
“I’m hardly teaching yet, I’m only assisting while I do postgraduate work,” said the mare, gently bumping against her partner.
 
“I’m sure you do more than most of the mouldy old fossils there,” said Mellow, squeezing a little harder with his wing.
 
“As you can tell, I still get mixed up a bit. deja vu and the like,” she said, turning her attention back to Max.
 
Max was intrigued. “I’ve never met somepony who could see the future.”
 
“You still haven't. Magic doesn’t work that way, well not perfectly. It’s all about probability you see,” her voice grew more stringent as she warmed to her topic, “Divination allows you to predict what will happen based on how things are right now, the very short term is easy for example,” her horn lit up with a light blue aura as she lifted an ice cube from Mellow’s drink, “If I drop this then the most likely outcome is that it will fall to the ground, anypony can see that.” She let the cube fall a few feet before catching it again. “Although I also see the slight possibility that somepony else might catch it. Divination only becomes more useful on larger scales, either in time or space. What if a whole bucket of ice cubes were to be dropped? They could end up in almost any pattern, but some are more likely than others, and I can use my magic to see which is most likely.” Max could certainly see the advantage of, say, being able to avoid a rockslide of something similar. “If you’re powerful enough you can cover a longer time period or a larger area but almost always with less detail. You could predict that a country is going to undergo a revolution, but you couldn’t name any of the rebels or where exactly they were going to attack. Alternatively you could follow the life of a single pony with some accuracy but lose details about how they’re affect the bigger picture. These limitations have stopped Divination being as widely used as other branches of magic.”
 
“But what about destiny and the like?” said Max with a frown, “Surely not everything’s just luck, some things simply have to be!”
 
“Well, destiny is considered one of the outer mysteries, beyond mortal ken,” said Confidant with a glitter in her eye, “Even the arch mages don’t understand everything, sometimes things happen even though they’re really unlikely, divinations can’t show everything. The chance that my roommate would go on to be one of the element bearers must have been millions to one, but it still happened. Maybe destiny is the reason behind those million to one chances, maybe I’ll find out one day!” She turned to her coltfriend. “And of course that banquet we met at, I knew something important was going to happen, but what were the odds of meeting my soul mate?”
 
“Isn’t she marvellous,” exclaimed Mellow, “And it’s all thanks to you that we got together Max, it was you who persuaded her father to let me court her! I’ll be forever in your debt for uniting me with my true love!” Confidant smiled at Mellow’s proclamation and tucked her head under his chin as he pulled her close again.
 
Max looked on with a little jealousy. The couple seemed so happy together in public, he didn’t understand why Fragrant wanted to keep the two of them so secret when they could have a life like this. “Anyway,” he said loudly, jolting the pair from gazing into each other’s eyes, “the court seems a little tense.”
 
“Ah, well the princess’s ultimatum still hangs over our heads like a sword of Damarecles,” said Mellow with a shudder.  
 
“Surely that was mostly sorted out months ago with Fields’ bill?”
 
“Maybe, there has been some ongoing discussion about exactly how to implement its goals and there are a few courtiers remaining who might drag the rest of us down you know,” he gestured with his head towards a short brown earth pony stallion standing rather defiantly by himself near the centre of the hall.
 
“Greengrass?” asked Max. He supposed it made sense, the stallion had tricked him to vote the wrong way in a ballot, and he certainly had a reputation as a trouble maker, just the sort that the princess had warned the court to get rid of. But still, she had given all of them another chance, hadn’t removed even a single member, surely that meant that even Greengrass could be redeemed? He’d come across the stallion shortly after the princess’ ultimatum and he’d seemed genuinely shocked by what had happened, he’d even helped organise Baron Field’s funeral. Didn’t he deserve a second chance for that? “Has he done anything wrong recently?”
 
“Well not, not recently, not that anypony can prove anyway,” Mellow leaned forwards and whispered, “but nopony wants to take the chance.”
 
Max glanced back over at the solitary pony, standing all by himself he looked even smaller than normal. “We should go and talk to him,” he suggested.
 
“Max, are you sure...” began Mellow.
 
“We’re going to talk to him,” said Confidant with certainty, her horn glowing, “For a short while anyway,” she grimaced.
 
Mellow opened his mouth for a moment, then smiled. “It appears that both my mare, and the future have spoken, I guess we will be talking to Greengrass.” Max smiled and set out across the floor with the others following behind him.
 
“Ah, Baron Max,” said Greengrass as they approached him, “Baron Dramatic, Lady Confidant,” he bowed slightly, his easy smile not quite reaching his eyes. “What brings you over here? I’m not sure if you’ve heard but I am persona non grata at the moment. Most of the court don’t seem to even want to return my letters.”
 
“Duke Greengrass,” said Max with a nod, “I saw you were by yourself so I thought I’d come over to say hi, so... hi,” he continued lamely. now that he was actually with the duke he wasn’t sure what to say.
 
“I’m pleased you’re worrying about my social situation,” said Greengrass a little tersely, “But I’m fine. I may not have made many new friends recently, had to get rid of a few actually, but those most loyal to me are still around. It’s just a shame that this lack of trust is getting in the way of my work. Like the trade agreement I asked you to look over baron Dramatic, it would benefit both of our provinces.”
 
“Well, your previous activities are well known, duke, it would be foolish to rush into anything too hastily,” said Mellow, fidgeting, Confidant brushed up against him in a symbol of support. “Given the Princess’s ultimatum is it any surprise that most of the court wants nothing to do with you?” said Mellow, “After what you said to her face at the gala, you should be asking her forgiveness.”
 
Annoyance flickered across Greengrass’s face. “I think we all said things we might regret while under the influence as it were. The princess seems to have decided that it is better that those words are forgotten. From what I’ve heard, you, baron Dramatic, were rather complementary of your young companion here, even if they’re not the sort of compliments you’d normally use in public.” Both Mellow and his marefriend flushed at the insinuation. “And you my lady, didn’t you raise certain complaints against your father and the restrictions he sought to place on you?”
 
“How dare you!” cried Mellow.
 
Confidant took her stallion's hoof and began to pull him away from Greengrass. “I think we should talk to somepony else now!”
 
“You wanted to talk to him!” said Mellow. “Wasn’t that what your magic said?”
 
“I saw we’d talk for a short while, and this was a short while,” replied Confidant as the two of them trotted away with Greengrass grinning at their backs.
 
“That wasn’t very nice,” said Max.
 
“I’m sure they’ll survive, they can be so sickeningly lovey dovey sometimes. Interestingly, nopony seems to remember what you said during the ‘event’ at the gala.” Max fidgeted. “But you are not alone on that front, things got very... chaotic, that night. So baron, now that I’ve gotten rid of your escorts, what is the real reason you wanted to talk to me?”
 
“Real reason? I saw you standing alone and thought you might like some company,” Max shrugged, “Nothing else.”
 
Greengrass looked Max up and down for a moment seeming increasingly annoyed. “That’s it? You thought I looked lonely? I don’t think I’ll ever understand you baron,” he snarled, before muttering something about not wanting pity under his breath.
 
Max held up a hoof. “I’m sorry, I just thought you could do with someone to talk to. I’ll go if you want.”
 
The shorter stallion composed himself after a moment. “No, my apologies, my current situation is a bit of a sore point with me. How was your summer?” he said, suddenly all smiles.
 
“Well, I went back to my province, talked to my people, I’ve got a lot to do for them.” Max yawned. “Sorry, it’s been a long day, and you?”
 
“The same sort of thing, Caneighda is doing well, my parents run the province well while I’m here. We may not always see face to face, but they do a good job.”
 
“I met your father at Baron Field’s retirement party, he seemed nice, a little strict,” Max rubbed his head at the phantom pain of being prodded by the old stallion’s stick.
 
“Father was friends with the old baron, they held some similar views. Still, I don’t really want to talk about my family right now. Do you have any plans for this session? Any great projects to put Equestria to rights?”
 
“Er, well nothing quite that grand, I’m hoping to put forwards a bill to promote road building in rural provinces, and I suppose played a small part in the Field’s anti-corruption bill.”
 
“Oh, you’re too modest,” Greengrass leaned forwards, “It’s not gone unnoticed what you did for that one, you certainly stuck close to Duchess Posey and Vicereine Wallflower, your star is on the rise at the moment.” He paused for a moment as if thinking. “If you’re really serious about that bill you might be able to cash in some of that good will.”
 
“Fragrant told me most courtiers don’t get any bills put through in their first year.”
 
“True, true, but then you’re not most courtiers are you? and I’m sure your province could use the help. I’m not telling you to try and propose your bill tomorrow or anything, but keep an eye out for any opportunity, seize the day as they say! I’ll give you the wink if I see any opportunities.”
 
Max considered for a moment; it seemed reasonable advice, he wouldn’t get anywhere if he just sat around waiting for the right moment until it was gone. “Thank you. see, I told you you were a better pony than you thought you were.”
 
“Maybe,” admitted the duke looking over Max’s shoulder. “Ah, it appears that our lovely new baroness has returned from her audience with the princess. Now might be a good time to share a few words, she’ll probably be busy for most of the night now.”
 
“Oh, you might be right, but are you ok being left by yourself?” asked Max.
 
“I’m sure I’ll manage to survive, I’m not entirely without friends you know baron, although they are a little thin on the ground at the moment.” He turned to a white mare in a simple dress of the same colour. Max recognised the duke’s assistant, she must have just returned from getting food or something. Still, as he understood it was considered rather bad form to bring your staff to events like this. he shrugged, he wasn’t entirely sure on the etiquette.  
 
Putting the thoughts from his mind Max turned to see Buttercup standing by one of the tables laden with food. He’d considered filling up himself, for something to do if nothing else, but Fragrant had mentioned a meal with her, and he didn’t want to spoil his appetite. He trotted over just as a small group of well-wishers were wandering away from the new baroness.
 
“Baroness Buttercup,” said Max with a bow.
 
“Baron Max,” she replied.
 
“Congratulations on your position.”
 
“Thank you, I only hope I can fill my father's shoes well enough to make him proud,” she said a little woodenly, like she was reading from a script.
 
“I’m sure you will. you know, if you want to talk about anything my door will always be open; I know how hard things can be when you’re just starting out,” he said hopefully, the poor girl looked half worn out.
 
“Thank you baron, but I have been at court for many years, I know how things work.”
 
“Well yes of course, but I’m sure you could still do with a hoof now and again, I know all the charity work you do on top of running a province.”
 
“Thank you for your offer baron, but I am sure I can handle my duties. My sponsors can give me any help I need.”
 
“I guess so, but if you need someone to talk to, maybe something outside of the court, well if not me maybe Mellow or someone else, all work and no play makes for a dull mare and all that.” He paused for a moment, hoping he wasn’t sounding too much like he wanted to restart their relationship.
 
“Yes, I understand although I think I will be very busy for the moment, I have so much to do to make sure my father's legacy continues.” The mare blinked slowly a few times. “Now if you will excuse me, I hope I’ll be able to catch archduchess Nobility, I would like to discuss something with her.”
 
“Oh, right, well it’s been nice talking to you,” mumbled Max lamely as the younger mare strode off through the crowd. That had been strange, Buttercup had been very cold, not like herself at all. Maybe she was still mourning her father, maybe she just didn’t want anything to do with him. He could see that, their break up hadn’t been perfect and he might remind her of what she’d been doing to help her father. Still it didn’t seem right to see her so emotionless, she’s always seemed a sweet and caring mare. It might just be the stress, she might get over it, but he decided to try and keep an eye on her just in case.
 
For the moment he glanced around the room looking for Fragrant, she was over in the corner talking with a few other nobles. Hopefully she’d be leaving soon so he could follow and they’d get a chance to catch up. A meal together would be a nice chance to catch up, and he could certainly do with sinking his teeth into something luscious.
 



 
Fragrant was unable to contain her moans as Max nibbled gently on her neck sending urgent tingles up and down her back, causing it to arch and threatening to cause her to roll off of Max. It was suddenly obvious to her that she could not survive another minute without her tongue in his mouth again. Craning her neck she forced her lips against his. They quickly parted and she dived forwards, the tip of her tongue tickling under his own, making him whinny into her maw. She sought to rally her thoughts as she felt one of his hooves travel along her outstretched wing with aching slowness. She should slow down, stop this while she still had the will to, she hadn’t planned for the night to come to this but the unexpectedness, the freedom, made the sensations even sharper. Apparently out of her conscious control, her foreleg wrapped around Max’s barrel stabilizing herself while pulling him closer to her. The feeling of her body moulding against his muscles made her shudder. She should stop this... she shuddered again, maybe in a year or two.
 
Vague recollections of the events that had led to this filtered through the sea of instincts and pleasure that was making up her world at the moment. She had returned from the party after giving her excuses and had ordered her chef to prepare a light meal for two as she got ready to receive her visitor. Despite being buoyed by the princess’s response to her announcement in their meeting she had dithered for a while deciding what to wear and wondering how long it would be until Max arrived. She didn’t know what she would have done if Luna had rejected her proposal.
 
In the end Max had arrived soon enough that she hadn’t had time to change. They had shared a glass or two of wine, and had chatted about their time apart. She had told him about Cloudsdale and the issues she had had with some of the smaller cloud settlements in her realm seeking greater independence, while he had produced the letters he had meant to send to her. She had sat while he had carried out dramatic readings of the events that had happened in his tour of his province. She couldn't help but applaud as he acted out the journey, although she was suspicious that he might not be telling her everything, possibly avoiding the more dangerous situations he had been foolish enough to have gotten himself into.
 
Then the food had arrived, interrupting his description of trying to deal with a pass blocked by a landslide. The two of them had shared a meal of curried vegetables, she could taste the spices in his mouth now mixing with his own natural flavour causing her to try and press her face even closer to his. Then had come the dessert, a mixture of iced cream and fruit. They had decided to move away from the dining table and had taken their meal to her sitting room. Max had been a little dubious of the treat, it was not common in his province and he was not keen to try something new. She had pointed out that if he was going to act like a foal then she would have to hoof feed him, which he had taken to quite well. From that it seemed to be natural that they forgo the cutlery and just feed each other directly from their mouths, and soon after that the food had been forgotten. She couldn’t help but think that there might have been some logical flaw in that progression, but Max gently nibbling on her ear while she buried her muzzle in his mane, taking in deep huffs of his earthy scent, scattered her thoughts.
 
She could feel a panic trying to rise from her belly, memories trying to fill her with fear as they had when the couple had become intimate before, but she forced them down, pushing them beneath the sea of sensation she was floating in. She became aware of Max’s hoof sliding the silk of her dress aside to rub against the ticklish flesh of her cutie mark, clutching it possessively as his mouth returned to hers again. The feeling seemed to suck all the strength from her hind legs causing them to splay. Something warm was prodding against her belly, she began to slide a leg down their bodies, she had to feel that warmth in her hoof.  
 
Her heart was pounding, or was it Max’s? Was there even a difference anymore? Her ears twitched. no, the sound was coming from outside of herself, from the door. A servant wishing to enter the room! She leaned back and turned her head trying to remember how to use her tongue to speak again. Max took the movement as a signal to start to nibble at her neck again, turning her diction into a series of moans. They must have sounded something like ‘come in’ as, almost in slow motion, the door to the chamber began to open.
 
A small primitive part of her mind demanded that she continue, that she demonstrate to this intruder that Max was her stallion, but a much larger civilised part screamed in horror that she be caught in flagrante delicto. After a moment's paralysis she rolled herself aside, almost falling to the floor. Emotions rolled over Max’s face as he suddenly found himself alone. surprise, hurt and lust all battled for dominance, and for a moment she thought he might dive onto her again, but he reigned in his instincts and came to his senses, awkwardly curling his body onto the couch to hide its response to their make out session.
 
“Pardon me ma’am,” said the maid, giving a little curtsey as she entered the room, “I’m here to collect the...” she paused taking the in the sight in front of her, “Um... er... dishes,” she squeaked.
 
“Thank you, um, Silver,” replied Fragrant, her face glowing red and painfully aware that her clothes were extremely rumpled, one leg desperately trying to straighten her skirt as Max’s efforts had resulted in it being bunched up around her barrel.
 
“Did you, um, enjoy your meal?” asked the servant, her eyes flickering around every point in the room apart from her employer and her paramour.
 
“Yes, it was wonderful,” said Max, grinning, “Particularly the dessert.”
 
Fragrant glared at him as the younger pony quickly scampered around the room collecting the empty plates and the now melted bowl of ice cream. “Will there be anything else ma’am?” she asked, still not meeting Fragrant’s eyes.
 
“No, thank you Silver,” said Fragrant, her nerve mostly recovered and her heart rate starting to slow to normal. Once the servant had left she swung a hoof at Max catching him gently on the shoulder. “Could you have made that any more embarrassing?” she hissed.
 
“I think she knew what was going on regardless of what I said,” said Max rubbing the area she had struck.
 
Fragrant felt her anger drain away in the face of her stallion’s good humour. “I guess you are right.” Max leaned forwards again parting his lips. She, with some regret, gently covered his mouth with her hoof. “I think we should call an end to these proceedings now Max.” The stallion looked over at her with puppy dog eyes which almost melted her heart. Almost. “I think we both know that if we carry on then we are likely to go farther than we intend, well, I intend anyway.” Max frowned for a moment then nodded.
 
“I think you’re probably right, we can wait until the right time.”
 
Fragrant smiled and leaned forwards to give her stallion a peck on the cheek. “Thank you for being so understanding, I’ll try not to make you,” or me, she thought, trying to force down her reaction to their closeness, “wait too long.”
 
Max nodded again. “I’ve been up all day now, and tomorrow, well today now, is a big day. I should probably go.”
 
Fragrant glanced towards the window, the pre-dawn light was starting to filter through the curtains. It was later than she’d expected, how long had they spent entwined? It had seemed like both a moment and an eternity. “Maybe you could stay to see the sun rise with me?” she suggested.
 
“I’d love to,” Max responded. He held out a hoof towards Fragrant and she took it, the two of them trotted to the window, pushing aside the curtains before opening it and stepping out to the small balcony jutting out from the manor. Below them, glowing in the increasing light, was the city and the mountain it sat upon. Fragrant sighed and rested her head on Max’s neck.
 
“I really do love this time of day,” she said, “I know some think it shows the power of Corona, particularly now that she’s returned. But I think dawn is a wonderfully hopeful time of day, a fresh start.”
 
“Yes,” mumbled Max, “Even with Corona’s return it’s a demonstration of the Princess’ power, that she, rather than her sister, still controls it. A sign that she protects us all.”
 
Fragrant nodded. “We owe her so much, we need to show that we’re worthy of her protection, that the court recognises its debt. I hope today’s vote works out alright.”
 
Max smiled as the first slither of the sun became visible over the horizon, golden light slowly spilling over the land below. “I’m sure things will be just fine, I can’t wait to see what today might bring.”