"Keep 'em covered," Mac said, nudging Shy playfully as he walked her through Ponyville with her eyes obscured by her own wings.
"I'm not looking," she replied with a giggle.
"Ya ain't peekin' between your feathers, are ya?"
With a faux-indignant scoff, she shoved back, nearly falling over with an eep as she couldn't see him and had misjudged her aim. MacIntosh chuckled and helped her stay on her hooves, eagerly guiding her to a particular store.
It had been almost two months since they had discussed getting married by the Apple family's hidden pond, during which time the stallion had saved up every bit he possibly could to place a special order. In the meantime, Fluttershy's pregnancy was becoming increasingly difficult to hide. Now a little over five months in, she had started wearing loose-fitting dresses to leave the size of her midriff to the imagination, but she was concerned that her eating habits, sensitivity to smells, or shortening temper would give her away before long.
Umbral Breeze, on the other hoof, only craved apples more than ever under the influence of her hormonal flux, and had been unusually chipper when MacIntosh visited during her latest appearance. She had even shed tears of joy when her foal's father told her they would be married soon. When he proceeded to offer Breeze her own staged wedding ceremony on the full moon after the real wedding, she tackled him, repeatedly kissing him with a fierce passion but respecting his choice to remain abstinent.
Now the farmer took a deep breath as they reached the store he'd been leading Fluttershy to. Grinning widely, he put a halting hoof out in front of her. "Alright, sugarcube," he said, his voice wavering as he tried to contain his excitement. "We're here. You stay put, now, and no peekin'!"
Fluttershy giggled and did as she was told, listening to the hastened hoofsteps of her lover until they disappeared into their destination. A moment later, two sets of hooves came back out, the larger pony audibly plopping onto his rump in front of her.
"Alright, baby," he said tenderly, "you can look now."
Tucking her wings down, the pegasus opened her eyes and immediately squealed with delight at the sight before her: MacIntosh was sitting on his haunches, forehooves held forward to present a red velvet pillow. Atop the pillow, gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight, was a golden bangle with ornate leaves and vines engraved around the band. Centered on the front of it was a formation of small gems forming a large green apple with pink butterfly wings on either side.
"Oh my goodness, it's so beautiful!" Fluttershy squeaked, immediately bursting into tears and hovering above the engagement ring and holding her lover's face between her forehooves to pepper him with kisses all over. Mac chuckled, glancing back at the jeweler, who grinned proudly and bowed before returning to tend his store.
Returning to the ground, Shy wiped her eyes with a wrist so she could look at her new accessory once more. Fixating on the gems in the middle only brought another wave of joyous tears. "Th-th-that's... our cutie marks! F-fused together!" she observed, looking into MacIntosh's eyes and trying very hard to remain coherent. "It's custom-made! Th-that had to cost you a fortune!"
The humble stallion shrugged with his trademark half-smile. "Ain't a price on your happiness, Shy."
The pegasus squealed again, holding out her left forehoof and rapidly trotting in place with the other three, causing her pigtails to bounce erratically. "Oh, put it on me! Put it on!"
Mac snickered at her excitement. "Now, hold on, I ain't even popped the question yet."
Fluttershy rolled her eyes, still trotting in place eagerly. "I asked you to marry me weeks ago!"
"Ah, fair enough," Mac replied with a false pout, setting the pillow down so he could work the clasp on the bangle with both hooves.
Silently cursing unicorns for their ease of manipulating small objects, he clumsily opened the bracelet and slid it over his fiancée's hoof before just as clumsily closing the clasp. Fluttershy made a sound not unlike a tea kettle reaching a boil as he worked, tackling him onto his back with her tongue down his throat as soon as it clicked into place. After a moment, he was able to tame her wild passion down into a more controlled kiss, drawing shivers from her as he stroked her neck with one hoof and massaged her wing bases with the other.
When they broke apart after what seemed like an eternity MacIntosh looked away and cleared his throat. "Ahem, uh, maybe ya oughta freshen up 'n' change into somethin' fancy before we break the news, eh?"
The mare nodded, leaning into MacIntosh as if she couldn't bear to spend even a moment away from him. Her lover chuckled as he picked her up, kissing her forehead and cradling her in his arms like a foal while he carried her home. Fluttershy sighed happily as she leaned into the comfort of her massive stallion's chest.
MOONLIGHT HARVEST
by [insert brony here]
Chapter Eight
Fluttershy emerged from her closet wearing a flowing green dress that both obscured her growing belly behind a long, loose skirt and hid her engagement ring behind its wrist-length sleeves. "How do I look?"
Angel Bunny tilted his head, leaning to either side to examine her from different angles before nodding his approval. Fluttershy nuzzled him affectionately before taking a deep breath to strengthen her resolve.
MacIntosh had gone home after dropping Shy off so he could tell Applejack to gather the girls at the castle. The newly affianced couple were both nervous and excited to tell everypony they were going to get married, but Fluttershy found her nerves waning with the comfort of knowing MacIntosh would be there with her. After one last look in the mirror, she said goodbye to her animal friends as she made her way to Twilight's castle.
Mac approached the castle with a feeling swelling in his chest that he hadn't felt since he earned his cutie mark: he was proud of himself. Setting aside the absolutely ludicrous circumstances that started it all, he was betrothed. He hadn't told Applejack what was going on when he asked her to gather up her friends, but her skeptical look at his request told him she had a solid hunch. He trusted that she would be discreet, however.
So it was with a light heart and his head held high that Big MacIntosh knocked on the front door to Twilight Sparkle's castle. The feeling immediately vanished when the peephole transformed into a familiar yellow-tinted eyeball.
"Oh, it's you," said the keyhole below, the eye rolling.
Mac scowled. "What're you doing here?"
Discord teleported in front of the wall, retrieving his eye and mouth from the door and popping them into their proper places before haughtily replying, "The Council of Friendship happen to be friends of mine. But you would know that if you ever left that oversized garden of yours." Cocking an eyebrow, he opened the door and gestured for MacIntosh to enter.
"Don't you try any funny business," Mac warned, narrowing his eyes at the draconequus as he walked through the threshold. "I've got mah eye on you."
The door then closed behind the stallion, but when he looked toward the sound of several giggling mares, he saw Discord sitting at the table with them, engaged in the conversation as though he had never left. Come to think of it, Mac considered, he probably didn't. With a sigh, he ambled into the throne room, where a large extra chair had been placed beside Fluttershy's throne, while Discord had apparently made one of his own between Twilight and Rainbow Dash. Spike didn't seem to be present.
Fluttershy glanced at MacIntosh with a demure smile as he settled into his seat beside her. He kissed her gently on the cheek and nodded pointedly toward the table everypony was sitting around, and she cleared her throat almost inaudibly. "Everypony?"
Discord and the other mares continued to talk and laugh amongst themselves, causing Shy to deflate a little. Feeling a warm nose at her neck, however, she straightened up and tapped her hoof against her wine glass, sounding a bright bell-like tone that successfully got everyone's attention. Fluttershy wilted a little and fidgeted with a pigtail as soon as all eyes were on her, but she smiled. "Um, so, MacIntosh and I wanted to see you all today because..." She paused both for dramatic effect and to share a loving smile with her stallion, then looked back at her gathered friends and pulled back her left sleeve, revealing MacIntosh's gift with a vibrant grin. "We're getting married!"
The echoey chamber of the crystalline palace rang with the indistinguishable voices of the other five mares, each congratulating the couple in their own ways. Twilight had summoned two books, cross-referencing earth pony and pegasus wedding customs with Rainbow Dash rolling her eyes across the table. Pinkie had somehow procured a bushel of white balloons and several bowls of butter mints from who-knows-where, while Rarity eagerly leaned across the table to examine the ring. "So that's why Carat has been so shady!" she mused aloud, referring to the jeweler with whom she occasionally collaborated. "He usually tells me what he's working on. Oh, it's lovely, darling!"
"Oh, I know," Fluttershy agreed, beaming at her lover. "MacIntosh designed it himself!"
The stallion's attention belonged to his sister at that moment, however, as she stared wide-eyed at him. "Damn, Big Mac," she said in an unusually high tone. "That's whatcha been savin' all yer money for?"
"Eeyup," he replied with a prideful grin. "I may be a simple stallion, but I'm no slouch."
Applejack continued to glance between her brother and the engagement ring for a moment, her eyes suddenly widening even further as another realization turned the corners of her mouth up. "Wait, this means we're gonna be sisters-in-law!" she cried excitedly, beaming at Fluttershy. "Ain't that the greatest? Oh, Applebloom is gonna be so excited!"
Fluttershy chuckled softly, waving a dismissive hoof. "Not like that really changes anything."
Before Applejack could reply, Discord brought attention to himself by way of loud, slow clapping. Once all eyes were on him, he gave a humorless smirk to the quiet couple from across the table.
"Yes, yes," he drawled unenthusuatically, "congratulations to two of the most cautious ponies in town for diving into commitment so soon after meeting. Why, it almost makes me wonder if something forced your hoof."
Shy gulped, hesitating briefly under the draconequus' pointed look, then glanced over at MacIntosh with what she hoped was a convincing smile. "Sometimes, you just know."
"Oh, sure," Discord continued, "I wasn't questioning your love for each other at all. It just seems odd to me, the timing of it all, not to mention your sudden interest in fashion," he added, his lion paw disappearing from his arm to tug at the mare's skirt, very briefly pulling it taut against her belly. "One could argue that you're dolling up for your lover, but MacIntosh just never seemed the type to worry about looks, from what I've gathered..." he trailed off, raising an eyebrow at Mac as his hand returned.
Before the couple could improvise a reply, Rarity spoke up. "Fluttershy's been working on her self-confidence," she explained. "She asked me to make her a few dresses to help her pop when she's out and about."
"Oh, she's going to pop, alright," he muttered under his breath, still looking at MacIntosh with dry venom before raising his voice for everypony to hear again. "But what could such a lovely mare want to cover up with such gaudy cloth?"
Finally, Fluttershy had had enough. "Okay, I-I..." She bit her lip, glancing nervously at Mac before addressing the rest, now fidgeting with one of her pigtails. "I was hoping to keep it a surprise," she frowned pointedly at Discord, "until we knew the race and sex, but MacIntosh and I are having a baby!" she finished, putting on what she hoped looked like a genuine smile.
She flinched immediately as the crystalline chamber rang out with a simultaneous "WHAT?!" from the other mares in the room.
Except Pinkie Pie. "Well, duh," came her exaggerated response, accompanied by an equally exaggerated roll of the eyes. "Did you really think she could have finished those pickle cupcakes I made last week if she wasn't pregnant? Even I couldn't eat those," she elaborated, her stomach audibly gurgling in protest at the mere thought of her latest experiment.
"I just can't believe Fluttershy of all ponies lost her virginity before me!" Rarity added.
"WHAT?!" This time, every voice in the room rang out, even Discord's.
The unicorn shrank back, her face a mixture of haughty and offended. "I may be a serial flirt, but that doesn't mean I haven't any scruples," she rebutted, crossing her arms and turning up her nose at her friends.
The other ponies averted their eyes, faking nonchalance in their own ways for a moment, until Pinkie's eyes popped open comically wide and she flung herself across the table, now pronking giddily in front of Fluttershy. "Ooh, ooh, ooh! I have to plan a baby shower!" she exclaimed. "How far along are you?"
Big Mac blanched, trying to maintain his stoic composure as he looked anywhere but at Applejack. This wasn't going to end well.
"Um, a-about five months," his lover replied softly.
Pinkie gasped so hard, it was a wonder she didn't inflate like a balloon. "You're already almost halfway there?! We've got no time to lose!" She darted across the table to Twilight's position. "Twilight! Baby shower books! Stat!" she shrieked rapidly, grabbing the alicorn by a wing and tugging her along to the library.
After pausing to roll their eyes at Pinkie's shenanigans, the remaining mares turned their attention back to the expectant couple wearing wide grins... except for Applejack. While Rarity and Rainbow Dash offered another round of overlapping congratulations, Applejack slowly walked toward her brother sporting an unreadable expression. Discord, on the other hoof, looked quite smug about this turn of events.
"Mac, can Ah have a word with you?" she asked too softly for anypony else to hear, walking right past him as she spoke.
MacIntosh took a deep breath through his nose, kissing Fluttershy softly behind the ear before quietly following his sister. This definitely wasn't going to end well.
After a walk that seemed to last an eternity while also ending far too soon, Applejack rounded to face her brother in the hallway outside the throne room, now allowing her face to twist into a fierce scowl. "Care to explain yerself, MacIntosh?" she growled quietly.
Mac met her glare with a firm look that told her he wasn't intimidated. "What's to explain? You got a niece 'r nephew comin' up. Thought you were all about family."
"I am," she replied with narrowing eyes, "and that's exactly why we have a problem." She squared her shoulders and closed the distance between herself and Mac, looking him directly in the eye close enough that he could feel her strained breath on his muzzle. "You made a promise to Pa that you'd save yerself, and you broke it."
"Sometimes things happen you didn't plan for--"
"Oh, right, ya just tripped an' fell inta pussy, didja?" she snapped.
MacIntosh's usually flat expression gave way to a dangerous glower. "Applejack--"
"And then," she interrupted, "you lied to me about it."
Mac snorted, his patience growing thin. "Ah never said one way or the other--"
"Don't you give me that shit, Mac," she spat, raising her voice. "Ah directly asked you if you an' her'd been up to any funny business, 'n you said no. You lied to me, an' ya lied to Pa."
"Well, we can't all be high-n-mighty world-savin' pariahs of honesty, Applejack!" he roared, leaning down and causing her to shrink back. "Here's some honesty fer that fancy fuckin' necklace o' years: PA AIN'T HERE."
The mare said nothing, her eyes losing focus in the general direction of where her brother had been standing before he stomped toward the entrance of the castle, while she simply trembled in place. When she found the strength to move again, she peeked her head around the doorway into the throne room to see three wide-eyed mares and one draconequus casually examining his claws. With a gulp, she tipped her head down, hiding her face behind her Stetson as she silently walked back to her seat.
As she sat down, Twilight and Pinkie returned from the library, several volumes aloft in the princess's magenta magic. "This is gonna be the greatest wedding-slash-baby-shower-party EVER!" Pinkie squealed excitedly.
Twilight, however, paused, picking up on the dampened mood of the room. "Where's Big Mac? What happened?"
"Nothin'," came an almost inaudible response from behind the hat. "Fluttershy was just headin' out to comfort her fiancée," Applejack added, looking up so the pegasus could see the apology written in her eyes.
Shy hesitated for a moment, glancing back and forth between the door and Applejack, then nodded and mumbled, "I-I'll see you all tomorrow. We can, um, figure out when to have the shower." Chewing her lip anxiously, she trotted after her lover, unsure of what she'd be faced with when she caught up to him.