> A Rosing Cream
>  by Ink Script
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter One
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

During a frosty spring morning, Bon Bon flips the sign inside of her shop's glass front door from, “Sorry! We're Closed,” over to, “Come In! We're Open,” welcomingly hoof-painted on either side. She yawns a little into the back of her foreleg, looking with a peaceful tiredness out at the open street: not too far from town center, nestled comfortably between two other buildings, but with a little flowerbed out before its porch that shows them both up. She turns back in and finishes her last preparations. She's already swept the floors as of the night before—when you stand inside it's a bright birch floor, but to the right it turns to a clean white-and-blue linoleum tile that denotes the section devoted to shelves of candies, bowls and packages and baggies and wrappers, all kinds of bright colors and flavors advertised. To the left the hardwood continues, and a few clean, round tables topped in cloth offer cafe-style seating with a lovely view outside of the wide, bay window. Toward the back wall is a display counter, one normally containing many pastries ... but, well, she's just about to get to that. Beside the display is her register and her bookkeeping; there's a door frame that leads to her kitchen and pantry, and then a small door that leads to the way upstairs. There are no decorations on the walls, but that's because the walls are all painted with mural work, commissioned from a local artist. Everything exudes charm above all else: charm, bright and mellow. She clicks on her little box radio, letting some gentle Prench Jazz permeate the air. It's still too bloody cold, but it's a waste to keep the heating on in the Spring; the coffeemaker quietly gurgles from the other room, and she's going to drink it scalding.

Only a few minutes after the sign is flipped, an Earth Pony steps in with a back-mounted bag, she slowed by its weight. Roseluck is, as ever, wide-eyed and awake, with mane and tail only brushed but her coat ignored, making her a bit fluffed, and she goes over to the table right at the bay window, lowers, and scoots the bag off her shoulders onto the table, taking off the straps. Her shoulders pop and she takes a big breath that leaves with a sailing "whew." She hopes to turn to the counter, a certain pop to her step that makes her hooves especially tappy on the birch floor.

"Bonnyyy! I need your help waking Bluebell up so she can write another romance! Y'ere, Bonny Lass?"

Bon Bon stops at the sound, turns on her back hooves and wobbles, blinking at the first customer of the day. Ah ... about who she should have expected. She'd know that face from miles away, scope or no scope. A pleasant, half-sleepy smile creeps over her face.
"Rosie! Good morning, sugar. Go on and sit where ya like, I'll ..." She pauses to yawn again, keeping her lips tight. She is normally this tired, but, of course, she'd been working on her report. By their very nature it keeps her late. "I'll getcha your usual?"

"You know it!" The usual being a quad-shot giant latte. She doesn't go back to setup her typewriter, but wavers and wobbles a little, standing at the counter. "Get enough sleep?"

Bon Bon ducks for a moment, opening a cabinet under the counter that holds her coffees; she gets the good stuff out, the espresso blend that's roasted dark as a new moon's night, yet laced with sweet vanilla. This, she reserves. The machine gets a nice cupful and a bop on the side before it rattles to life.
"Yeah! I was just up late with a book. You know how it is, once you start ... " She snickers a bit, swishing her tail. "You need a hoof with ol' Blue there?"

"Heh, I know how it is. If I had a bit for every time I fell asleep with my face in a page ... but naw, all's good with Bluebell! Oh! I got something awesome added to it! Alright, so I guess Unicorns have been going up into the Crystal Empire ... turns out, enchanted crystals are a LOT cheaper now since the Crystal Ponies are great at cutting them ... got somepony to fuse this little crystal, and now, Blue takes freakin' dictation! Not that I'm going to look like a crazy pony talking to my typing machine, but eeeee!"

"Woah!" Her eyes actually do widen at that as she slips a shallow cup under the espresso nozzle. "That's really cool, Rosie! Heh, and you've got such a nice voice, too … Have you tried it out yet?"

Roseluck gives a conspiratorial grin.

"I tried it out last night ... I wanted to see just how flexible the enchantment is and I got some awesome results! It'll make a difference during the more exciting parts of the books coming up ... but it's so awesome! I can just walk or dance around and go all stream-of-consciousness and no more white-out, Bonny! No. More. White Out!" At this, she grins like she came down to the perfect gift under the Hearth's Warming tree.

"Hmm … " Bon Bon comes over to the counter and leans against it, smirking thoughtfully. "I think it's great for you, Rosie. You always start squirming in your seat after the quad hits, being able to really get those wiggles out'll help … but ... does it only listen to you, or is it gonna start picking up anypony?"

The rose-maned mare blushes a little at the mention of the wiggles, mussing her own mane with a forehoof.

"Heh ... N-No worries, it's tuned to me, so Blue isn't going to turn into a portable automatic court reporter on us … But yeah, working on something new today, get away from tropical intrigues to something a bit more ... I guess ... Maybe something to show off some of the regional qualities around here?"

“Oh?" A little gurgle behind Bon Bon notes that the espresso is done—she turns smoothly, swirls it, pops it on a saucer and brings it back around to the counter between them, then goes to pour herself something from the ordinary pot. "Well, I'm all ears, sugar. You know how much I love it here! What've you got in mind so far?"

"Alright ... here's my concept ... a designer-worshiping Manehattan mare comes to Ponyville for a quaint weekend ... you know, to come down to someplace quaint and safe, but not so rustic that what's she's got is lost on us. Only, this little ego-trip backfires on the fancy mare when she gets here during the Ponyville Carnival, and everypony is having so much fun being themselves, she starts to feel silly in her slim-fit blazer, especially when she's two mugs of cider in and gets sucked out to the dance floor and actually starts to have fun. Now ... I know that concept -- actually, that's a premise now that I think about it -- is standing on trope a little, but this is the first act. The mare goes home, comes back, and starts finding herself getting into things you don't just see during a Pinkie Party. She gets to know the smell of our mornings, gets to run under oaks and actually stops for a while at the river, that clear, cold water, so rare in her native concrete jungle, and starts to wake up to the shallow parts of her life that she's let slide."

Bon Bon listens quietly as Roseluck pitches the idea, taking a slow sip from her mug while she does, a little shiver going through her at the burn.

"Heh... if that's a trope, then it's a close one to life ~ Then what happens? Does she come back, or...?"

"She starts to kinda ... question her gig overall, and wonder if her special talent isn't better used in a place where she actually feels awake. Now, I'm not sure if I'm going to make this a long one or split it up, but since I really want all this to happen without all the sexy stuff going on, I want to keep a love interest out until this point of questioning, because the second half of this is getting into questioning intimate assumptions now that the worldview assumptions are kinda going along. Now ... I'm not too sure of the love interest yet, and how I could really make it feel right instead of shoehorned. I'm thinking they'd be a native to the town that assumes that the Manehattan Mare is enviable for being rich and urban and successful. Because you have this romantic conflict between the native that takes things for granted and the foreigner that's been-there-done-that with the skyscrapers, I'm hoping that shakes off trope and cliché and lets the characters take more focus while the Ponyville setting acts as a really nice lens."

Bon Bon considers this as well on her second drink of the mug—she looks up at the slowly turning ceiling fan for a moment, then down at her coffee, her eyebrows furrowing ... then she looks to Roseluck, and leans an elbow on the counter.

"I think it's a good idea to keep the romance back till this point, and I like this idea here ... especially that tension with the native and the city gal. It sounds like the story could use a little more tension for the first part, though... you don't usually go for such slow starts. Maybe this Manehattan Mare has a relationship back home that's totally dead in the water, but she can't see that yet, too settled, and she's gotta learn to see it for what it is by the time the second part—and the native—come around to help her re-examine, rebuild her assumptions? Might not even be romantic issue behind her, like a controlling best friend or a toxic boss."

"Huh ... y'know, I dig it! The rough relationship back home's definitely a strong element to keep in mind … But yeah, as you can see, I'm playing with this a bit. Sometimes, I really need a breath between serious manuscripts, but sometimes, something catches and I just get drawn in! Thank you, though, Bonny!"

"I know! And I'm no writer, so don't take me seriously." She flashes a toothy grin at her, getting a bit more perk going. "I've just gotta live vicariously through ya ~ right now, you should totally be playing. Benefit of takin' this one early is that you've got the room to."

"Living vicariously through me? You can't be that busy. What's been going on? Haven't been out on the town lately?"

"Oh, psh, not like that! Though it has been a while since I got out, I guess..." She shakes her head, snickering softly. "You know what I mean, though. You write for a very particular audience, sugar, to which I just so happen to belong … "

Roseluck’s ears give a wobble as she puts a foreleg behind her own head sheepishly. "Yeah … think that's why I go by a pseudonym ... don't want everypony to think that I'm trying to flirt at my audience or anything like that ... "

"Aww! I don't think you'd mind if ya flirted with your audience a bit." She gave the mare a sly little wink. "You want a hoof setting up, by the way? Doubt anypony'll come in for a little bit ... "

Roseluck’s tail gives a couple of nervous wags then settles, and a tint of strawberry meets the cream of her cheek.

"Yeah! I'd dig that ... if you don't mind … Please and thank ya, Bonny!" She bites down on the saucer to take the espresso, not making any note of her having ordered a latte originally as she walks over to the table at the bay window. The other mare leaves her mug at the counter and flips up the little board separating her from the shop, following Roseluck to her table of choice. She straightens up the cloth for her and pulls a chair over, it being a comfortable, cushioned wood, light in color to fit with the clean decor of the place.

"Want any snacks to start off today? Was just about to get on the fresh baking, but I've got some of the old standards around, if ya don't wanna wait."

"Hmm ... I think I'm feeling just a good ol' fashioned big blueberry muffin … OH CRAP, I forgot to pay you! Um, how much would I owe you for everything?"

"Oh, psh." She waved vaguely, stepping around to help her with the bag on her back. "On the house today, sugar. Consider it an investment in my future romantic fulfillment … !" Roseluck starts to unpack the typing machine from its bag, its frame cast in brass, the bearings all a little damp with oil, the ribbon hovering over the spool, a page yet to be loaded.

"Well ... thank ya! I'll make it a worthy investment. I'll convert muffins to makeouts for you … !"

"Sounds like fun! Though, don't you have some writing to get to, too?"

"Oh h-ha ha ha … Um ... but yeah … ! Writing, rocking, rolling, all that good stuff ... " She picks a blank page from the bottom of the flat-based bag and spools it into the machine. "By the way ... a thought just occurred to me. By any chance, is there something you'd like?"

"Something I'd like?" She raises an eyebrow, an amused little smile on her lips. "What do you mean by that, Rosie?"

"Yeah …! I mean ... you're the only pony in town that knows that I'm Bluebell Brush, so ... it's an opportunity to ask you if there's something in my work or the genre that you haven't seen yet that you'd like to …!”

"Ooh ..." Bon Bon thinks about that for a minute, biting the inside of her cheek in consideration. " ... Ha, it's a little early in the morning to offer me a dream come true, isn't it? Lemme think about it over coffee, I've gotta make sure I got this right …!"

"Sure thing, Bonny … Figured it'd be something awesome to try out … !"

"It sounds like fun … but I mean, I read your books 'cause I like them, not just cause you're a friend. So, long as you're writing what gets you excited, I'll be happy!" She flashed Roseluck a grin and made a quick trip to the counter to retrieve her coffee. "Mmm ... that said. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure thing!" As she tears open a couple of sugar packets and pours them into the espresso. "What's up?"

"What is it that gets you writing, anyway?" She comes by the table and leans on the other side of it, careful not to tip Roseluck's surface. "I mean, not like what you want to say in the stories. But what is it that gets your butt in the chair every day? I love reading, but I think writing all day would drive me bonkers."

Roseluck starts to think on it, relaxing her shoulders as she sits.

"I know this is going to sound totally cynical, but ... it's actually disappointment that gets me writing. I mean ... as fillies, we think that our little town is the launching point for adventure, but when we grow up, we tend to realize that ... we're kinda stuck. I mean ... we can't just go off into romantic adventures and stuff ... and even just getting into a nice romance might as well be fantasy for some ponies. Guess there's a filly inside that still wants things to be possible somewhere, and the page doesn't give lectures on maturity … "

Bon Bon rests her hoof on her chin, watching her and taking a slow, thoughtful drink of the coffee. 

"... Doesn't sound cynical. I get where it's coming from. It's cool if you aren't just sitting and mooning over that, though. You get down and make something out of it …! I feel like I can take nice, safe adventures with your stories, you know?" She smiles, setting the mug down. "Hey, think I know what I wanna see now. If you're up to it."

"Alright …! Shoot, Bonny!"

"I've read a lot of stuff in the genre. And, y'know, everything ol' Bluebell's put out … but ... I don't see a lot of mares themselves who've had the adventures in the past. It's always the love interest who's done it, but not the heroine." She smiles a bit. "How about somepony who's been there—you know, they did all those things we dream about as li'l fillies, and now she has to figure out ... well, the mellower life. Put a little reverse on it …! Not realistic, I know, but ... what if, right?"

"Huh ... the hardy adventurer settling down, changing mindsets, figuring out the veracity of trying to take on a new life while having the old one still around in a way ... I bet I can work something out for that …!"

Bon Bon makes a discreet glance out the window, just to make sure nobody's about to step in.

"Some light bondage in the sack wouldn't hurt either. There's something a little freeing about being tied down, you know?"

The tint swells in the writer’s cheeks; she doesn't fluster, but take on a thoughtfulness.

"It's makes a lot of sense, actually. The protagonist has been used to exercising control over events, even when unpleasant, so the bondage is thematically relevant because even in sex, there's a time to trust others, to relax, to put away the old proactive approach and learn to ... um ... anticipate rather than preempt …"

"Exactly …! Plus ..." She has a little hint of red on her own coat as well, but she's smiling in a way that suggests a thoroughly pleased imagination. "It's a really tactile thing, isn't it? Kinda makes you aware of eeevery bit of you. Maybe she's used to dulling her sense of body, and this ... well … helps her get reacquainted."

Roseluck blinks and smiles even past her growing blush.

"That makes a lot of sense! I mean, if you're the adventuring type, you're always trying to dull sensations since there's ... what ... soreness from the road? From getting hurt now and then? With this, the protagonist gets to reacquaint with the sensitivity of every square centimeter …!" She sways a little, green eyes lit up like rose petals in the sun.

"Ooh, yeah …! And what better way to do that than with the trust of a very close somepony, eh?" Bon Bon grins unabashedly, her tail making a couple swishes behind her. "Heh... I'm excited …! I love all your writing, Rosie, but there's something special about how you write the intimate stuff ..."

"Aww …! That's always the part where I get really into it and then get REALLY freakin' nervous. Like ... the whole country is reading my imagination ... Sometimes, I really want to play it safe and conventional, but ... eh, it's not fun to write safe, so ... y'know, so much for embarrassment, right?"

"Well, as a reader, I love it when you don't play safe. Safe I can read in nine out of ten books, but yours rev my engines like one in a thousand!" She tips back the last of her coffee and snickers under her breath. " ... Heh. I guess this makes us a little even for embarrassment, huh?"

Roseluck glances to the side, biting on her bottom lip a little, and then she shrugs happily, her tail giving a swish as it hangs off her seat.

"Maybe, but heck, this is really exciting! I mean, there's pretty much no higher encouragement than what you just put out there! Pretty much makes the caffeine redundant at this point …"

"Does it, now … ?" She glances at the window again, then leans forward on the table a bit, her grin taking on a softer edge. The blush remains, though; if anything, deepens. "Well, I'm always a fan of encouraging the arts! Yours especially. But if it's getting to ya that warmly ... maybe we could drum up a little extra inspiration, hm?"

At first, she makes to keep talking from the standpoint of the energetic writer, but is only oblivious in the reflex of a second, then pauses ... and then blushes deeply, eyes going wide and ears pointing out! She looks to Bon Bon with a little modest smile, as if trying to lie that her mind didn't immediately go someplace ... intimate.

"W-Wha-er-I-mean-um-hi. Like ... writing exercises?"

The flirty mare giggles a little, her tail swishing a little further out, like the pendulum of some saucy clock. Her smile, however, is anything but modest.

"If you'd prefer those … but I was thinking more ... take you over to that counter and snog you so hard even your little magic typewriter'll blush."

The other mare draws in two little seizures of air, her ears standing straight up and tail outright smacking the floor.

"T-Take me over ... like ... l-lift?"

"Hmm. I think I could haul your cute butt over there. But if we only make it to the floor, I wouldn't be too upset." She taps her chin.

"You ... use a r-really good wood oil ... " Her nervous voice sounds nasal and a bit geeky, and a fidget bounces from her hip to her chest, where she raises a foreleg in front of herself and just a little, paws towards Bon Bon.

"I do …!" Bon Bon leans a bit more over the table, her hoof just nearly touching with Roseluck's … nearly ... but letting her decide whether or not to close that distance. "But I think I'd enjoy yours better. Only if you want, though, Rosie … No pressure, and still pals, yeah?"

Roseluck gives a soft nod, and looking away a little, puts her foreleg out and caresses her foreleg under Bon Bon's.

The other mare strokes Roseluck's foreleg gently for a moment, just holding it there with her and letting it settle for a second ... then reaches the other over out to her cheek, trying to turn her face to look at her again. Her expression's softened from that sly, flirtatious look to one of simple, eager fondness.

Roseluck’s head turns to the guidance of the touch, and though her eyes shift a little, they look up and rest in line with Bon Bon's. She doesn't look away anymore as she pulls just a little with her foreleg and brings the other up, caressing along and over the candymare's neck to her shoulder, supporting them both as they near. Her tail continues to sway nervously, but her eyelids and ears softly lower together. She takes a soft nasal inhale, and … guides their lips together.

Bon Bon lifts the rest of the way to meet her, the hoof on Roseluck's face sliding around to cradle the back of her head just as their lips meet—her tail is steady, but her ear twitches, and Rose feels the curve of a smile on the lips that brush against hers. And after the space of a couple breaths, she draws closer around the table and kisses her more fully, her cheeks growing warmer by the second.

Just the greater closeness drives a breath from Roseluck that she immediately reclaims through her nose; her ears stay low and her tail stills. She pulls the other mare more, but doesn't necessarily hold her there, caressing down Bon Bon's back with her freed foreleg. She leans further in with the kiss, her eyebrows arching up, but her face perhaps the expression of some sad anticipation.

Bon Bon follows Roseluck's pull with an easy shift, coming closer to her from around the round edge of the table. One is still propping her up, but the foreleg on Roseluck's head drapes down over her shoulder, and Bon Bon presses gently into the kiss with the kind of eager calm that comes with a desire being fulfilled, still smiling, still tasting of sugary coffee. She strokes the back of Roseluck's neck, mussing her mane a little, and so-softly parts her lips ...

The calm caressing along Roseluck’s neck sends a wave down her, relaxing her shoulders by making her ears perk for just a moment before sinking back down. As Bon Bon parts her lips, she does too, but starting to tense again, at her lower back, the tension of one that has come onto stage, but realizes that they have so little certainly of how to act.

Bon Bon’s gentle stroking motion continues down, rubbing at that spot between her shoulders and back up, finally getting to touch that patch of fur she always admired bent over the typewriter ... and then she feels that tension creep over. For worry of overwhelming her, Bon Bon backs off a little, and the kiss parts, but she doesn't draw away ... Her eyes open half-lidded, and she gives a little reassuring nose-nuzzle to Roseluck, still smiling even as their breaths mingle between them.

Roseluck slowly ... halfway opens her eyes, her head lowering but angling up a little to look up into Bon Bon's blues as another ripple of touch rides gently down her nerves.

"... Bonny ..." The whisper comes from a trembling lip, a ray of the morning highlighting hairs standing on her ear. "... By ... the highnesses' thighnesses ... who'd ... you kill for ... eyes that ... blue ..."

"...Highness's—snrk." She can't help but snicker, tipping her head down for a second while she composes herself. When she looks back up, her blues eyes are squinted from so many smiles, nearly glittering. "Heh... classified information, Rosie …! I'd ask ya the same, but ..." She pecks her lips again, hardly able to keep herself from it. "I know that ..." Another kiss, by the corner of her mouth. " ... You stole those emeralds right outta the Crown Jewels ..." And she nuzzles her cheek, taking in a deep breath of that vanilla-cream fuzz.

With the sugar-scent mare’s touches, kisses, she warms enough to flash boil a blizzard, and with soft, but heightened breath, turns her head and nuzzles behind Bon Bon's cheek and lets out a hot breath into the top of her neck, not deliberately, but from an urge in her breath that seems to surprise even herself, her back arching, the fluff of her chest bared. She backs a little, the overwhelm quiet and clear on her face.

The sudden charge in Rose's breath sends a not-unpleasant tingle down Bon Bon's back, causing the fur on her neck to prick up and her tail to twitch, swishing back against her legs … But she feels the response to that, and Rose's little retreat, and she eases off a little more; the hoof at Rose's back goes to her forehead, and she gives their faces a bit more distance, her eyes open wider. The blush on her face has spread halfway down her neck, her lips are wet and her breath clearly coming in soft pants, but all in her look is concern. She brushes her hoof on Rose's cheek again, soothing.

"Hey... ok there, s-sugar?"

Roseluck looks up, but her eyelids lower and her lips start to smile at the stroke. Again, a long breath eases out of her.

"... 'm al ... alright ... just ... there's ... a f-first time for ev ... everything ... right?"

Bon Bon’s brow creases a little bit, but she doesn't take the hoof away.

"Wait ... that ... oh, Rosie, was that ...?"

Roseluck starts to say something, but stops without making a sound, slowly giving a sheepish smile and nodding, her eyes glanced to the side.

"Y-Yeah ..."

Bon Bon leans over and pecks the tip of Roseluck's nose, a smile half-apologetic on her lips.

"Sugar ... shoulda told me. You're a great kisser, for a first, but ... can't tell me this is how ya pictured it going down."

"I ... didn't expect it going down at all to ... be honest. This ... " She starts to smile again. "This is ... better than ... I ... ever dreamed ... I ... w-well ..." She glances to the typewriter. "You ... k-kinda know that I ... dream a lot. Like ... a LOT."

"Yeah ... yeah, I do know. But, hon." She dips her head down to peek into Roseluck's line of sight again. "If I'd known, I would've made it extra-special. But we still got time! Quick, tell me a dream about your kisses. Or a fantasy. Somethin'! I'll do my best to swing it, here and now."

And ... at all the times, Roseluck’s sideways little smirk comes back, and she takes a drink of the espresso, again, at all of possible times.

"... I ... don't remember the fantasies, Bonny. But ... I'd challenge Celestia herself to make motes of dust drift in morning rays like so many flecks of cotton candy around these curls ... I dare Luna to show me a morning with more cream and sugar than the taste of your cheek. Get Princess Cadance out from the wedding bed and have her make the sound of passionate perfection, and it's deafened by the sound of you simply being alive. Truth, they say, is stranger than fiction. Without betraying the logic of those words, I can say that truth kisses sweeter than fiction. I ... don't plan on something made-up snuffing out this ... lingering warmth on my lips, the memory ... Um ... me being a goofy pony aside ... this is already extra-special, Bonny ..."

The red crept back onto Bon Bon's face. ... And then went up to the tips of her ears. ...  And then it soared down her neck and made her feel like she'd half-swallowed something, and it took a couple of breaths before the grin spread across her face again.

"I ... I j-just meant if you, if you wanted me to ... put on music or go kiss under a tree or ... or something?" She shakes her head, the grin fading, but the blush only darkening. " ...Holy hay, Rosie. That's ... the sweetest thing a-anypony's said to me in my whole damn life. No exaggeration ..."

"I've ... kinda wanted to say sweet things to you for a while ... especially ... when you ... I guess I could say that I've noticed things since I started writing here. Towards the end of the day, somepony and their kid will come in, and you'll be your wonderful self as always, with this sweet smile as they leave that probably has Pinkie Pie off somewhere turned into Greenie Pie with envy. But ... as your smile eases up, you get this faraway look if you aren't too busy. A sunset beam reflected off your counter gives a contrast to your eyes, and ... I feel that for an instant, I'm seeing the play of something precious to you in your thoughts, and ... well ... I usually take a coffee break, 'cus after a sight like that, I've usually forgotten what in the name of Cadence's cleft I was even writing for a while ... heh ..."

That quiets Bon Bon for a long moment. It's anything but faraway, though, as she looks down at Roseluck's chest and gently strokes her foreleg. The words hit her someplace the kiss hadn't quite reached, and ... if she didn't know better, she'd think she was about to cry. She takes a breath and lifts Roseluck's hoof, placing a small, affectionate kiss on it, looking back up to her again.

"You're... not wrong about that, sugar. I thought nopony was lookin'. ... I feel like when you come in here, and you put your soul down with that ..." She nods her head to the typewriter. "... Maybe it's dumb to think this, but I feel like you choosing to do it here, asking questions and bouncin' ideas... being frustrated, excited, bored, blushy ... it's like I get to share in it a little." And she smiles again, but not sly, just warm. "Seeing you get excited makes me excited. Seeing you get serious... it makes me wanna get serious. And ... heh … do I even need to say what happens when I see you do that cute, sexy little wiggle in your seat ...?"

"That wiggle is why I ... try not to write the really intimate parts of something here, especially 'cus ... um ... Spring is a thing, and ... um ... yeah! So ... I mean ... just ... this ... this really matters to me ... it's okay if it was a spur-of-the-moment thing, but ... I feel danged lucky ..."

"Well, not gonna lie to you. It was a bit spur when I offered ... but I've wanted to do it for I don't even know how long." She reaches over and smooths down some of Roseluck's mane where it has gotten mussed up. "Worth the wait, though ... worth it and then some. ... Do you wanna go again?"

"Yes please." Roseluck nods rapidly and grins, but her expression softens, the humor of it having had its own little moment. "I ... um ... don't suppose there's a spot that's ... more comfortable, but still close enough to hear the door?"

"Hmm..." Bon Bon looks around the shop, making a quick analysis. Unfortunately, she had made a candy shop and a café environment; she never sprang for any loveseats or extra cushioning … the counter was hard plastic ... but there was a simpler solution right overhead. "You know what? I think I could stand to open late today. If you'd like to join me upstairs …"

Then it's Roseluck’s turn to turn red practically everywhere, but she makes her ears and tail stay calm and takes a breath.

"I'd l-like that, Bonny … ! I'll go take care of that sign and the lock for ya!” The owner shakes her head, tapping a hoof to Rosie's lips.

"No, no. You let me handle the shop. I want you to head up there, and pick wherever you think's cozy, and get comfortable … " She raises a brow, a little playful. "Unless ... you're into the danger of stickin' down here and being sneaky … anypony could walk in."

"M-Maybe ... maybe another time ... I'd love to do it ... but ... I ... just want ... someplace soft where ... it'll just be me and you, my Bonny lass …" She straightens up and hugs around Bon Bon's shoulders gently, nuzzling under her jaw and breathing warmly down her neck for a long exhale before resting a kiss on the nuzzled spot before returning a calm, but entranced smile before letting go, getting up, and stepping softly to the flap of the counter, her exceptionally fluffy tail swaying just enough that the more imaginative of minds can perhaps picture the softest contours of her body just barely hidden by the strawberry strands, as she starts up the stairs, and the whole way to the stairs she could enjoy the feeling of blue eyes drinking her in, a goofy smile on Bon Bon's features.

> Chapter Two
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Even after Roseluck is up, she takes a moment to just bask before picking up her brain and going to quickly close back up. Upstairs, Bon Bon's flat is exactly what somepony who knows her might expect. Big and comfy and well-lit. The floors are of the same hardwood as downstairs, but here, comfy rugs and mats are strewn all over the place in a variety of colors and designs; comfort obviously chosen over chic. The living room has a full L-shaped sofa with a coffee table in its nook; to the far wall, by the windows, is a recliner with a standing lamp beside it and an end table with a few dog-eared books stacked on it. There's a radio sitting on the cabinet by the back wall, and a few doors to the far right most likely lead to a bathroom, a cupboard, and ... well. The bedroom. But there's no indication which is which. The whole place smells just a little bit like perfume and sugar, but it's also a few hairs colder, like she left the windows open for a long time the night before. Bon Bon latches the door downstairs and starts towards the stairs, an unusual skip and a wiggle to her step.

Her bearings had, Roseluck walks a circle as her thoughts storm, her eyes wide open and blush unceasing.

"Okay ... okay ... okay ... okay, thinking ... less thinking, more breathing ... stop ... stand ... breathe ... action? ... Yeah, um ... that ..." After taking a deep, stilling breath, a question crystallizes in her head, and in seconds, it is answered. She walks past the recliner and walks past the past, hoof shaking a little as she opens a door, and sighs as it turns out to be the bathroom, giving a nervous chuckle, but then there's a dulled rhythm coming ... the stairs! Roseluck hurries to the other door, the dim of a cool bedroom, and with a veneer of panic sweat on her brow, trots over to the bed and hops on. But what then! "Um ... u-um ... um ..." Answering another series of fast questions in her thoughts, she seizes a pillow and slumps on her side on the middle of the bed and clings to the pillow with all her legs, facing the door with unblinking eyes, as though a monster comes.

Bon Bon steps up into her flat, taking a deep, centering breath. Okay; take it slow, take it steady, she tells herself. There's no rush. The important thing is that Rosie feels secure and safe. ... Okay, that's the second most important thing … the first is, where in blazes did she go? She was honestly expecting her to plop on the sofa or the fuzzy carpets. She sees not one open door, but two, and ... cautiously trots over to one of them.

"Rose? ...Are you, um, hiding in my bath—okay, didn't think so." She goes to the other door, and hitches for a second at the sight on her bed. The bed’s a double, and it's covered in a plush down comforter and some silky sheets beneath; but on top of it is probably the softest, snuggliest-looking pony she's ever seen, staring at her in a way that ... really suggests fear more than pleasant anticipation. Bon Bon lets out a calm exhale, and smiles, coming over and hopping up to sit on the edge of the bed. "Sugar, I can't tell you how adorable you are ... but you look scared to death. C'mon, sit up for a sec …"

Roseluck shoves against the bed with a still foreleg and rights herself while still clinging.

"Hi. I ... tripped and fell ... mentally. There ... was this banana in my brain and I was just truckin' along singin' the blues when whoops I slipped and hi. Hi."

Bon Bon snickers a little and scoots back, lightly bumping her shoulder against Rose's.

"Hi there … but, hey. Deep breath, ok? I bet this is a lot to take in, but I'm not in a hurry. Are you doing ok?"

Green eyes peek up above the end of the pillow, her chest pressing and retreating from the soft pillowcase.

"I-I ... guess so. Just ... d-don't mean to be s-suggesting stuff by b-being here and not over there or over there or a-anything ... just ... b-beds are cozy and ... you u-use really nice shampoo ..."

"Well, you can use some anytime you like! … Anyway, don't worry about that. I got no ulterior intentions or anything, sugar, I just want you to feel good. And it is a nice bed." She smiles, all warmth, and lies down on her back, her tail swishing a bit off the edge of the mattress. "I'm probably a little cozier, though."

Roseluck slowly puts aside the pillow towards the head of the bed, and just ... looks for a moment, her blush not going anywhere, but her body seeming to calm.

"I ... believe it ..." She scoots next to the other mare's abdomen and slowly slumps on her side next to her, her tail rising and falling on the covers like a slow wave. She scoots a little nearer and reaches, guiding Bon Bon to face her, noses an inch apart. "..."

Bon Bon giggles a little and turns her head to face Rose's, blue eyes watching her, glittering in relaxed anticipation. A slow wiggle brings her closer, and she reaches a foreleg out to lightly wrap around Roseluck's middle, pulling her just a bit closer ... her eyes are half-lidded and goodness, she can taste the sweetness of Rose's breath. She leans in and nuzzles their noses together again, just barely brushing lips to lips, a feather's pressure, but she doesn't go all-in; for that, she waits with bated breath.

Roseluck lets her foreleg caress out a bit of fluff from Bon Bon's cheek and lets the leg relax, just letting gravity guide her touch down her neck. Drawing in a breath, she brushes her lips to Bon Bon's, eyelids resting low as she leans forward more and begins to press, this time giving a small smile. The sugar-sweet mare’s eyes drift shut as the kiss comes full, and she returns it with a patient, but no less tender pressure, craning her neck up ever-so-slightly to meet the mare. She brushes her hoof up Rose's side, and then down again, not too far, a simple touch that desires only to feel her come a little closer. Their lips part just long enough for Bon Bon to get another breath in, but she meets them again renewed, her tail flicking up to come to rest on her belly...

The writer twitches a little, not tickled, but surprised by the soft weight at her most fine, soft fur. Her next breath is a little deeper, and she swings over her fluffy tail on top of Bon Bon's. At her nasal exhale, there's nearly a note, a sigh held back from being a tender little moan. She tremors a little once again as she begins to part her lips ... while Bon Bon’s ear flops down, tinted red from her nearly full-body blush at this point. Her hind legs are drawn up onto the bed, almost like she's trying to curl around herself, or around Roseluck ... but she's not moving from her back. She follows Rose's lead and lets her mouth part for her, taking a moment to let the deepening kiss sink in, to taste each other's breath, feel their warm tongues just barely begin to touch. Her other foreleg slips to Rose's other side, holding her between the ribs and the hips, and she gives a gentle pull...

And using her pinned leg to scoot, Roseluck lets herself be drawn closer, and with no more room, and she on her side, she rests her foreleg on the bed on the other side of Bon Bon and partially lays on her, a side of their chests together. She brings over her outside hind leg and rests it between Bon Bon's close enough now that in the urgency of their breathing, their some tummies touch at sides. Gravity pulling her a little more to the candymare, she deepens their kiss, tilting her head a little more, the tip of her tongue perhaps bashfully wandering. But Bon Bon is many things, but bashful is seldom one of them; she drags her forelegs further around and holds Roseluck in a cozy embrace, legs entangled, everything in her radiating warmth and a want for closeness. A happy murmur rises from her throat, drawn out by the kiss into a soft, feminine gasp of delight. She finds herself stroking Rose's back ... shoulders, down to the dip of her hips, back up again... and lets herself be a bit bold, to take a deep breath in and slip her tongue along the side of Rose's, tasting her more fully and deeply. Her whole body seems to want to pull Rose down into her and keep her there, safe and warm and deeply desired.

At the stroke of the dip of her hip, Roseluck cannot help but suddenly breathe a deep breath and press her hip a little into Bon Bon's, and then she too gives a gasp that makes her tail draw back to her and start to lift and sway. With some guidance at the touch of the other mare's tongue, she starts to caress her own alongside it, but her kiss still has a soft seal. For Bon Bon, patience is the watchword. She makes a gentle shift back against Roseluck, their bodies tenderly held to each other like the petals of an inward-folding flower, but she doesn't go further than that; she lets the warmth between them rest just where it is, draws back only when she needs to breathe, and takes a backseat in the kiss itself—reacting and receiving, letting their tongues lightly mingle and explore, but she's letting Roseluck set the tempo over minutes and minutes.

A strain tightens itself known in Roseluck’s lower neck, and finally, she softens the kiss and lets it calm until her lips leave Bon Bon's as softly as they came after just one last minute. A little pinch from her neck makes her give an annoyed wince, so she starts to shift back to her side.

"... F-Freakin typewriter ..."

Bon Bon blinks her eyes open, the flush on her face a bit calmer, but a little concern at her brow. She lets go and shifts up onto one elbow, the other foreleg lightly touching Rose's upper shoulder.

"Hey, you ok...? What's wrong?"

"It's nothing too bad ..." She says softly, giving her sideways smile. "Just ... sometimes my upper back really doesn't agree with having all that freakin’ brass on it ... The bag has padding, but it's ... kinda already worn out ... heh ... sorry about that ..."

"Oy ... it's okay. I know how that goes ..." Bon Bon smiles a bit, remembering her field packs: weeks in rough terrain, weighed down by a canvas sack that couldn't know comfort. "... I know how to stitch, so I can help ya out sometime, but... for now ..." She makes a slow little wiggle downward and nuzzles Rose's shoulder, taking a deep breath and planting a gentle kiss where it ached. "Mm... why don't you lie down for a bit? Lemme get those muscles relaxed..."

Roseluck blinked and smiled.

"Thank you for the offers both ways, but ... sure it's alright? Don't ... y'know ... want to be selfish, greedy and stuff about your kindness or anything ..."

"...Sugar." She kisses Rose's foreleg again, looking up at her. "I've thought for ages 'bout just getting to be like this with you ... help you relax, feel your coat on mine, taste your soft little lips ... I got no problem giving a little. Besides … I'm sure you can think of ways to repay the favor …!"

"I'd ... t-t-totally pretend that I can't think of something, but ... guess all the books would s-suggest otherwise ... just ... yeah ... I ... want to feel you too ... I ... think that when I first caught one of my books by your cash register, I ... I've had thoughts ... an' ... f-fantasies and s-stuff-but-hey-I'll-just-move-and-yup-yup-yup!" She nuzzles into the pink curl above Bon Bon's forehead and sits up. "I ... should lay flat, right?"

If possible, Bon Bon turns even pinker, but the shameless smirk belies anything but shyness.

"Well ... I might not be a genius writer like you, Rosy-cheeks, but that certainly gives me ideas …!" She pushes up to a sit along with her, tilting her head curiously. "Well, what sounds coziest? You could lay flat, or you could sit up and lean on me, or you could hug that pillow again and lay on it ... though, can't promise I wouldn't be a bad girl with that last one ..."

That last sentence ... that last silk-soft syllable ... for a moment Roseluck just sits wide-eyed, pausing with her cheeks puffed and speaking without preparation once her chest forces her to stop holding her breath.

"I-I ... e-estimate that pillow will keep my rosieback from funny angle, good for back yes. It's cozy. Cozy always good. Relax cozy yes." Bon Bon blinks, a little surprised that she actually took up on that. But ... it isn’t long before she snickers, pulling over the pillow Rose had been hugging before.

"Well, alright …! Get that cutie booty comfy then, hun. ... I won't really go too far though, ok? So don't be nervous ... one first at a time …"

"Y-Yup yup!" Roseluck takes the pillow to her chest and squeezes it to herself, nuzzling an end of it as she scoots and flops forward on it, parallel to the length of the bed. "Booty comfy cozy …" She makes her tail rest, protecting modesty even as the pillow props up her rear a little. Bon Bon scoots up to a full sit at Rose's side, brushing a tender hoof down the length of her back once she's all settled in.

"Gosh, your coat's so nice. You take great care of yourself, Rosie! ... But for the record ..." The hoof moves a bit ... lower, caressing her cutie mark, the shape of her thigh. "Not too far ... doesn't preclude me bein' a bad girl … so just tell me if I get a bit ..." She traces up the back of her leg again, over her rear... "... too close for you. And ..." ... and back up to the small of her back, where she starts making little ministrations and pressures, testing out her muscles. "I'll cut it out toot-sweet …"

Roseluck simply squeezes the pillow with Earth Pony strength, her response only a soft murmur, her sole successful will over her body to not raise her tail to the air and the other mare's gaze.

"Y-Yes ... I'll ... t-tell you ..."

"Good …" It helps Bon Bon relax a little, hearing that. She doesn’t want to start taking any advantage over Roseluck; it is a known weakness that she could get ... eager. But something about the little murmurs, the shivers and shaky breaths ... she cared for the mare quite a lot. But Rose was also someone Bon Bon found herself carnally drawn to a bit too easily. She presses and massages the muscles around Rose's lower back and her spine, traveling up, kneading out her middle back like firm dough made soft ... and once she moves a little higher, she shifts her position and takes a leg over Rose to straddle her lower back—Bon's tail, modestly, still quite between them—and starts massaging in earnest at the mare's upper back and shoulders. She certainly isn’t so bad with gentle touches, but when it comes time to really dig in, she knows exactly what she is doing.

After a few minutes, the sensitivity calms as Roseluck’s tensest muscles, the aching ones from the typewriter and perhaps her own lousy posture at the writing desk, are smoothed and soothed, and though soreness can’t magically go away, the tautness yields to Bon Bon's touch, little spikes of tension dropping way down, and more and more, the once quaking figure is almost as slack as a marionette, as soft as water. Roseluck breathes with a near-sleeping calm now, ears and tail all her coat low and tranquil, and it's satisfying to Bon Bon, in a different sort of way, to feel the mare under her hooves relax rather than pleasantly tense. Though she doesn’t necessarily need to, she rubs down the sore muscles a little extra-long, letting the weight of her touch and her body sink down deep. And when she's satisfied that Rose is as relaxed as can be, she leans down and lies on top of her, head over her shoulder, cheek-to-cheek.

"Heh... you good?"

Roseluck just slightly opens her eyes and slowly rubs her cheek to Bon Bon's, smiling softly.

"Mmm ... I'm ... I'm good ... mmm …"

Bon Bon snickers a little, nuzzling that fuzzy vanilla cheek. Her tail tugs out from under her and drapes over Rose's, the curls of pink and blue mingling in the strawberry strands.

"Glad to hear … Jeez, you're cute when you're all relaxed like this. Like a snuggly ragdoll."

Roseluck gives a happy little low hum that's like a soft growl, her tail starting to softly sway to a nearly still beat.

"You're ... gonna rephrase that to ... bed parasite before long ..."

"Naw …!" She grins and gives a sweet little smooch just behind Rose's jaw, forelegs wrapping snugly around her shoulders. "I mean ... unless you mean you wanna bite. I might be into that … !"

Without hesitance of any kind, Roseluck just gives her sideways smile and says, as soft and true as the clouds above ...

"... Maybe there's a lot of fun to try, but ... mmm ... Bonny ... this warmth ... if it gets better than this, I'm not going to try to put words to it, or I'll miss all these moments with you so ... close to me ..."

At that, the flirty mare’s cheesy little grin tones down, and she just looks into Rose's eyes for a moment, her own looking just ... the tiniest shade vulnerable, for once, under that usual confidence.

" ... I wanna find out if it does. I ... dunno for myself, honestly … ! This is about as close as I've been to somepony before ... Feels nice, too. It's ... been a really long time." She shuts her eyes again for a moment, taking a deep breath that expands against Rose's back, and gently brushes their cheeks together again.

" ... I guess ... when it comes to this sort of thing, I'm ... a professional guesser. Nah ... guess I just have some faith in my imagination ... I mean ... that's what a Unicorn has, and look at what they can do, right? A little faith, and ... a little imagination ... it's all it takes for this magic ... warmth and warmth ... Bonny? If ... you'd like ... I'd like to take you out ... nothing Capital-D Date ... just ... you and me doing something while being about this close ... I'd really like that ..."

Bon Bon relaxes there for a minute, organizing the myriad of thoughts going through her head; some of them she wants so badly to express, some of them she never can, and how she might reconcile the two.

"My imagination's always been kinda... heh, technical, sugar. You know that … " Her eyes come half-open again, and she slides down to plop at Rose's side, still keeping a foreleg over her shoulders, but laying so she can watch her face fully. "... If we do that, though ... I don't wanna risk this. This, right here. Like, if we go do something like that ... and maybe I'm not what you want, or what you imagined ... would we be able to come back to this?"

"Love at first sight can't go back, because that was the beginning ... but ... we've been friends for years, Bonny ... You're always the smile of the morning to me and a damned cool mare, no matter what … !"

And despite her guardedness, something waters in the other mare’s eyes a bit, then she blinks it back and chuckles under her breath, wiping her face on the comforter.

"Aah... you sweet dork!" She leans over and pecks her on the lips, tender as the spring dew. "A-alright, then ... for now, let's see where things go?"

"Yeah ..." Her back arches only a little, but any tautness simply fails, and after she slips the pillow out from under herself, she scoots over and gives a kiss only as rough as a passing dandelion seed ... then another ... then another ... grinning with her eyes still so relaxed. "We'll see, my Bonny lass ... for now, let's just have this strange little morning … !"

Bon Bon giggles a little, wriggling where she lies at those soft, tickly little kisses.

"Eee …! j-jeez, Bonny lass? Seriously? Rosie ... you're so cheesy, I could stick you in a Danish!" She leans in like she's about to retaliate, then hesitates, an inch from her lips. "...Hey. One question." Roseluck then paws just a little with her forehoof at Bon Bon's own, blushing a little.

"One answer! Heh ... what's up?"

Bon Bon takes the forehoof with her own and brings it up, pressing a slow, lingering kiss onto its ankle ... then looking up again at Roseluck and nosing up close, her eyes half-lidded and mischievous, voice almost becoming a purr …

"Do you want me to make you a shivery, blushing, gasping mess of a mare again ... before or after breakfast …?"

At that, Roseluck certainly starts to take on suitably rose hues again, her tail bapping the covers once.

"That ... certainly depends …! Can ... you focus on nibbling breakfast while I'm nibbling you?"

And THAT gets the other mare’s face tinting a deeper hue, but her smirk goes right into a grin. 

"Mm ... I dunno …" Her foreleg slides along the underside of Rose's, trailing down her body ... "I might get confused ... start to think YOU’RE breakfast ..." ... and it brushes her cutie mark again ... "Start getting ideas about eating you up …" And though Roseluck’s so relaxed, at a caress there of all places ... her front teeth chatter a few times behind her lips, and she's short of a prompt reply.

" ... Y-You ... wouldn't like me ... I'm ... thirty-percent fluff and ... I count as ... t-too many servings of sugar ..."

She's nearly nose-to-nose with her again, her breath warm and a bit shallow, despite her apparent composure. The timbre of her voice drops a little lower.

"Mm ... I think I can live with a bit of fluff in my teeth Rosie … and I have it on good authority that you're the sweetest taste there is …!" Her head tips a bit, almost a bit curious as she watches her, drawing lazy little circles on Rose's flank. "... In fact, I bet I could lick and nibble my way to a warm, gooey center ..."

In Roseluck’s eyes, there's only a little twitch of her eyelids, but through her hoof, Bon Bon can feel a clenching, the knee of that leg giving a tremor. Roseluck finds a breath to draw in, only a little, the calm Bon Bon rubbed into the other mare's body buffering warming, growing sensation.

"... Y-Yeah ... ?"

Bon Bon doesn't push, but just caresses Rose, tracing the curve of her hip to her rear, watching her face for a thoughtful, lingering moment.

"... What do you think?"

"S-Sometimes ... it's okay ... it's okay to delay breakfast ..."

"I can make you a wonderful brunch, Rosie … but do you have anything in mind for a ... morning constitutional?"

Roseluck starts to bear a small, private smile.

"I've ... I've got something fun in mind …” Bon Bon pokes Rose's nose with her own.

“Do tell?"

"The old writer's rule: 'Show, Don't Tell.' I think it's your turn to be comfortable ... and rest your eyes ..." She gives something of one of Bon Bon's silken, swooning smiles right back at her. Bon Bon’s tail swishes a bit on the covers behind her.

"Aaw ... but then I can't watch your cute face."

"I get to watch yours this time ..." Roseluck leans her head back a little, giving Bon Bon's nose a slightest little nudge.

"Heh ... well, fair is fair." She blinks slowly, her flirtatious smile softening down. "Just show me where you want me …!" Roseluck puts the pillow that she had been clinging to back where it was, and gives it a pat, her next blink also slow.

"Lay back comfortably and just relax like you've come out of a sunny day and are ready to nap in the cool dim ..."

Bon Bon takes her time as she shimmies up, obediently reaching for the pillow and rolling over on top of it, her weight sinking into it. She turns her head to smile at Roseluck and does another, slower wiggle of her hips, scooting the pillow under her belly to where her rump is just a bit elevated over the rest of her; her tail swishes just a bit to afford some soft privacy, sweeping her curls over the covers as she stretches each leg out, one at a time.

"Mm ... I don't think I could manage to sleep with such a pretty mare by me …"

Roseluck’s coat bristles at her neck and shoulders, seeing Bon Bon decide instead to take ... such a pose, her version blurring as the sudden stop to her breathing and thinking take her very eyes out of focus, but when her inevitable inhale comes, her tail swishes on the bed, side-to-side, and she softly crawls up beside Bon Bon.

"If we ever lay here together, there'd be the best insomnia ..." The last words slip from her lips in a whisper into Bon Bon's ear, whose ear twitches a bit at the warm little whisper, and she feels herself stretch out just a little more, a warmth inside her tightening pleasantly. She tilts her hips to give Rose a little bump with her rump, smiling lusciously and looking at her from the corners of her eyes.

"And yet, it'd be just like one of those warm, sexy dreams ... you ever have those, dream-girl?" she mumbles, her tone low.

"I'll tell you all about one, if you'd like ..." She whispers, then parting her lips, softly glides them on the fine fur on the back of Bon Bon's ear. A pleasant little tingle rolls down the back of the other pony’s neck, lifting the fur along her spine, all the way down to the base of her tail. She takes a deeper breath, shifting a bit on the pillow... hard to get comfortable all of a sudden. 

"I'm ... all ears ..."

"Unlike stories ... dreams aren't obligated to start off all sensible and all that ..." Roseluck nuzzles under the ear and lingers a little on the joint of Bon Bon's jaw before inching a little down to the slope of her neck, neither at the side or on that soft, sensitive plateau of curling mane. "I came into the dream on my back, but not on the ground, but floating. I ... wasn't soaked above the water, so as the water carried me and I wobbled ... I had the cold tickle of the waterline at my sides, rippling up and down my cheek ..."

Bon Bon’s eyelids lower and her vision fuzzes out, looking not quite anyplace in particular, every sense but her sight on alert ... the trace of those lips down her coat and the breath on her skin ... her ears were up, and her face was growing a deep flush. But she still couldn't sit totally still, as her legs shifted again, readjusted.

"... Heh. Not the wet dream I had in mind … but go on ..." she says, quietly.

"... Somehow ..." Roseluck lets her lips slip back like a sheet in slow motion, making skin warm before letting the cool air have purchase. Beside Bon Bon's collarbone, Roseluck keeps kissing, but for a moment, nuzzles deeply in, her breath flowing down until soaked by the pillow and the tuft of Bon Bon's chest. "... I understood what was going on, I guess ... so I simply squinted and kept floating, that waterline tickling me still ... my shoulders, my waist, my two roses that you've taken a liking to ... heh ... and I felt that tickle most where I was the warmest ..."

Bon Bon turns a little bit to let Roseluck have the room to kiss; she's a little tense, but something in her just wants Rose to have all the space she needs ... she shifts her own head a little to gently nose-nuzzle Roseluck's ear, her tail swishing again to re-cover her, the warmth of her face spreading all the way down to her belly. Maybe it's just an effect of reading the mare's writing so much, but she can practically feel the gentle lap of the water.

"...That must've felt... pretty nice, h-heh ..."

"... Th-The sensation ... had ... this effect on me ... I remember it pretty well ... " Roseluck gives a little tremor and pauses to breathe, sitting up. "Before I ... keep telling about this story ... going to scoot a bit ..." She sits at the head of the bed, almost next to Bon Bon's head, facing down the stretched length of the other mare. For a moment, she just looks down, stroking Bon Bon's mane. The other mare’s eyes refocus a little to see what Rose is doing, quietly tracking her movement up to the head of the bed. At the touch to her mane, something that was tense relaxes a bit, despite herself, and while it doesn't give her that little carnal twinge ... it feels pretty darn peaceful. She looks up at her, curling a foreleg under her chin and wiggling her hips again, like a puppy getting comfortable.

"...You're beautiful from every angle, y'know." Roseluck looks down and away with a little smile, coy and lightly tousled, but soon looks back to Bon Bon, rubbing her neck a little.

"... You ... say that now ..." The sideways perk of her lips comes up.

Bon Bon leans into the brushing, her smile still calm, but the hooded mischief in her eyes sparkling again.

"Oh? Gonna give me a better view, sugar? Could just bring that little leg over ..."

Roseluck leans down and kisses between the curls in Bon Bon's fringe, resting her kiss there for a few seconds before starting to sit up, scoot back a little, then start to lay forwards, supporting herself with one foreleg while the other glides down the channel of Bon Bon's spine, Bon Bon herself having a near view of the curve from Roseluck's tummy back to places her rose-laden thigh hides. Bon Bon then feels breath at the side of her own tummy pressed into the pillow.

"... Mmm ... where was I ... "

A breath pulls in almost involuntarily at the warmth on Bon Bon’s belly, her hind leg doing a little twitch and her tail staying ... quite where it is, despite an urge to the contrary. Her back arches down under Roseluck's hoof, and at the end of the stroke she finds Bon Bon's hips press a bit into the pillow ... but her eyes trace over that fine, soft fur before her, and follow her curve to... the logical conclusion. She wets her lips.

"... Mm. The water lapping at you ..."

" ... Mmm ... My ... reaction was not to get focused on that ... one spot. My senses spread like nets ... the chitter of larks and buzzing of bees danced in my ears, and I picked up all the ... lovely scents you'd ever hope from a creek running through a glade so ... ethereal ..." She slowly strokes her hoof on that channel again ... up ... then ... down at the same time she nuzzles just under, at the softest of Bon Bon's coat that isn't covered, her breath seeping down ... down ... and then, when her hoof is at the small of Bon Bon's back, the divot just before her tail, she presses Bon Bon's hip into the pillow, driving that warm breath all the way down from her tummy to an unseen, but certain logical conclusion of the laying mare’s own. A soft gasp turns into a low, drawn-out hum from Bon Bon as her hips rock into the pillow, her forelegs bunching up a bit of the covers to her chest. The warmth tickles her in a way she's not used to feeling—not ever, even with herself—and the pressure, not against that tender place but quite near it, makes her feel strangely alert to herself. Her tail stays down ... but if Roseluck leans too close, she might detect traces of a sweet, heady aroma, one unmistakable even to the uninitiated. It's a moment before she responds, her voice just starting to waver.

"... A-and then what?"

"... Wild roses, mountain flowers, meadow lavender, the scent that green makes growing on green growing on damp, untouched trees ... a breeze of it all slipped up that water-chilled place when it had the air, a-and ..." The softness in her voice takes on a weight, dazed and focused both and certainly unexpectedly entranced, and her forehoof reaches over and starts to rub over the trio of candies on Bon Bon's flank and she nuzzles lower, the breath of the telling travelling down now with ease, and when her muzzle is stopped by Bon Bon's thigh, she kisses with sudden firmness into the that crease, her own tail slowly going into motion, sweeping slowly against the headboard. " ... My gasp echoed to the entire glade ..."

Even from her short distance, Roseluck can feel the heat in Bon Bon's breaths picking up, a certain tension in her chest making even the softest sound from her quiver. And not every sound is soft; at that fervent little kiss, a vocal tone comes out of her that ends in a shiver, her hips gently squeezing inward at the pillow, at that warm breath and ... "... Mmh ..." She slowly unbunches the covers around her head and reaches out, brushing Rose's side with a hoof.

"... A-and ... then ...?"

A breath escapes from Roseluck’s control, the warm puff pillowing down, her tail giving a smack against the headboard. As she takes in a breath, she leans her head back and starts to kiss the candies near her softly and slowly as on the other side, she starts to run the soft of her hoof back a little, caressing up and down the slope of Bon Bon's rear next to the run of her tail.

"And ... and nothing ... nothing but the breath of the forest ... blowing that purest a-air ... blowing it over me, I ... I just ... starting to boil in cold w-water. I rose and fell in the waterline as I breathed harder and harder ..."

Bon Bon’s tail shifts—not too much, not enough to reveal anything, but a faint twitch along with the shift of her hips, the restless warmth in her belly dipping down lower, making her feel like a boat in the swell of a warm wave. She nuzzles against the outer flat of Rose's thigh as she tries to catch her breath ... but she can't quite manage it, and the nuzzle turns into a soft kiss and a near-wordless murmur of Roseluck's name. The touch at Rose's side falls, but then starts inching back up by the inside of her hind leg ... and Roseluck’s shoulders bristle again, the leg at Bon Bon's mercy stretching open just beyond relaxation, her tail settling low, but giving little shifts left and right. The breath in the fluff-maned mare tumbles into the candy cutie mark.

"D-Do ... Do you want to ... k-know what I ... what I did?"

Bon Bon doesn't respond at first, her hips still and tense as she places a trail of tender, sensuous kisses across Rose's ... more literal petals.

"... Was it something a little like ... ?" she says, softly, and her hoof runs a bit higher on the inside of Rose's leg ... and the writer’s tail pops up for just an instant and for the effort of trying to stop her largest gasp yet, she loses and the gasp pulls out her voice, a soft breathy yelp. Another heady scent sweeps into the air, tea-flowers in a rose bouquet. 

"It w-was ..." Trying to regain a calm breath, she drops her muzzle into the bedding, ear low and twitch on the back of Bon Bon's thigh, but the candymare stops just at the sound of the yelp; she doesn't follow through all the way, but lets her touch linger on Rose's upper leg, leaving one more tender kiss on her side.

"Hey... o-ok there?"

"Doin' ... g-good ... yeah ... think I ... l-lost my big words ..." Bon Bon leans her head back a little to nuzzle the soft fur on her side.

"Mm ... want me to back off a bit ...?" Roseluck’s chest presses and draws from the bed, her leg giving a little tremor.

"N-No ... no ... f-feel so dizzy ..."

"Sugar ..." She takes a deep, somewhat shaky breath, caressing back down that warm leg. "If you're not sure ... I know this morning's been pretty fast ..."

Still breathing into the covers, Roseluck’s mind tries to race, but stumbles like a victim in the prologue of a horror novel, and yet not even one of her panicked responses come out, every last thought tumbling around like marbles in a drying machine. She nuzzles the candies again, slowly, her whole body going still. Feeling out the mare's response—rather, lack of—Bon Bon slowly draws her hoof away from the tender underside and shifts herself around a little. She's still quivering a little down there, can still sense the warmth of her breath, but ... she tries not to think about it, reaching to stroke Roseluck's back, calm and kind. Letting and feeling Bon Bon's leg go from her grasp, Roseluck deflates as she lies there, burying her face in the comforter. Still, the other mare smiles nonetheless, giving Rose’s leg another, less heated nuzzle. She starts to shift—but stops her hip mid-move, her breath hitching. Even the tiniest movements still send little shocks ... but she tries to will that sensitive warmth to settle ... it is much harder than she normally ever finds it.

Roseluck’s tail gives a little jerk, her voice like the drunken lost.

"I ... w-want to ... but ... w-what if ... I'm wrong ... I'm ... a-always wrong ..." At that, Bon Bon frowns a little, stroking out some of the hairs on the end of her tail.

"Sugar ... you might be overthinking things, but if it doesn't feel right, it can't hurt to wait. You couldn't go wrong by me if you tried, though ..."

"It ... it all feels ... so damn right ... a-and ... does ... does anything really get to feel THIS right all at once ...? I ... want nothing but the verbs of the senses ... listen ... touch ... t-taste ... and ... I w-want to be taken now ... r-right now, Bonny ... Am I wrong ... ?" The other mare shrugs a little, resting her cheek against Rose's haunch.

"Not if you feel good about it ... not just that you're all warmed up, but that you feel good. But, hon ..." She nudges her with a shoulder a little bit. "You know somethin' I really, really like about you? ... You always go into things so lighthearted ... like there's joy in everything, if you just look for it. But you're not right now. Is it just cause of nerves, or is it all too much, or ...?"

Roseluck is quiet for a moment before she just ... rests her muzzle on the bed.
> Chapter Three
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Y'know that phrase? 'Those who can, do, and those who can't, teach?' It's ... felt like that's been my ... fate or something ... it's not the amount of rejections I've had, but ... how those rejections came at different times ... every last time. I know ... this is ... totally different, but ... yeah ... it's nerves ... it's the biggest swell of nerves I've ever had in my whole dang life. When you write yourself off, you start to feel freer to just do whatever, but ... when ... suddenly the sorts of things you've dreamed about actually come up, your head's been out of it, out of thinking that it's actually possible ... Bonny, I'm just ... r-really freakin' nervous ... like ... like ... like if ol’ Sizzling Sunbutt herself came over to ask me about the parallels in 'The Shivering Secrets of Queen Solara ~'”

Bon Bon quietly takes a deep breath in at that, and—knowing this is going to feel weird—scoots herself off the pillow, her movements a little wobbly as she turns around one-eighty, only to put the pillow aside and plop down next to Roseluck where they can look at each other. Even the Sizzling Sunbutt remark, normally a sure-fire way to get her to snort, doesn't poke through the serious look on her face this time.

"Then, Rosie, we're gonna take a deep breath and keep it simple. I don't want you to feel scared or nervous with me. Not now, not ever, especially not about sex." She blushes a touch deeper, glancing down to the sheets. "I ... want you so bad, Rose, I don't even have words for what ... what you do to me ... but it's important to me that your first time—heh, ours—isn't anxious."

"... Ours ..." The one word is said as if she is trying the word, sampling it, considering such a basic meaning. As the timing comes for her next breath, she takes control of it, letting it be slow and as deep as possible, and after holding it for just seconds -- her eyes closed -- she lets it go as unhurried and gentle as she took it. She scoots that her and the other blushing mare are nearly nose-to-nose. "... Ours ... I ... really understand ya, Bonny ..." She reaches out, she on her side, and just strokes Bon Bon's shoulder and side, that little sideways kink of a smile coming back. " ... Everything's okay ... really okay, even ... heh. ... Our first time both, huh ... that switches up the lenses for the better, honestly ..."

Bon Bon shifts on the blanket and settles again, having tried—and failed—to get to a comfortable lie. But ... that little poke of her nose, the touch on her shoulder, gentle as anything ... it made her neck relax a little, her head dipping to rest in front of Rose's. Her cheeks were already red, but ... for the first time, it looked a tiny bit sheepish on her.

"What do you mean? Does that ... change things for ya, sugar? Cause ..." She leans forward, poking Rose's nose with hers, a little playfully. "Doesn't for me. I want you like burning, but I want you to be relaxed even more. If it happens, oughta be a happy thing to happen."

"... Dang right it oughta ...!" She gives Bon Bon's nose a little kiss. "Things ... really are different. Feels like we're going to be trusting each other with an experience that'll be ... well ... pretty new for us. Means that we're looking out for each other and making sure it's fun and ... good for us. And y'know ... it will be. Sorry ... for ... kinda getting lost there ..." Bon Bon smiles again, the serious look finally breaking, melting off her face like wax before a candle. The kiss makes her wiggle her nose a bit.

"Hey, I can't blame you, Rosie. This morning's been like a roller coaster that's all rise, y'know? ... And, yeah, that's the ideal. But ..." She nuzzles their noses again, making a couple shakes that seem like held-in laughs. "... Got a confession here. I do have one advantage on ya ..."

"Only one? That means more than the sexiest voice in Ponyville, a cute little booty that turns me into a mute with a balance problem ..."

“Not that kind … cause, cute as my boot is, your buns're so warm they bake the oven. But, no ... see ... I've read your books quite close, sugar. So I may already have a guess or two about what gets you ... wigglin'." At that, Roseluck actually snickers and starts giggling on her back!

"Or three or five or fifty! I'm in some real trouble here ... you practically have a multi-volume instruction manual to me!"

"Ha! I knew it!" Bon Bon’s tail does a slow swish, and she turns up to her fours, grinning. "So, be honest. That novella with Lady Luck and her 'friend' ..." Roseluck continues to giggle, pawing at the air above her.

"Sugar Sweet? ... Okay! I admit it! That started from a cabernet-fantasy in the bathtub about you! I went for the names as a little nod to the fantasy, but I'm not sure if I could ever do what Lady Luck was all about ...!"

Bon Bon props her chin on her hooves, just grinning and watching her. Luna's beard, if she wasn't the most adorable pony to ever grace the earth.

"Knew it! heheh. Since I got one of your secrets, you want one of mine?" Roseluck stops her wiggling and rolls a full rotation so she's looking up at Bon Bon from her back, flipping her fluffy red tail up between her legs and hugging it with her forelegs.

"Only if you tell me in a ... creative way ...!"

"Creative, eh?" Bon Bon grins, wiggling over on her tummy and letting her back legs stretch out comfortably. "I'm no writer, though. I'll do my best, but think you can help me out on the details?"

"Heh ... okay, I'll come clean, I'm just hoping you'll whisper it in my ear ..." She says while smiling, wobbling side-to-side on her back.

"Oh, I will. But..." She leans down and pecks Roseluck's forehead, her tone lowering sultrily. "I want you to ... How should I put it? Fill in a few of the blanks? Feel out the nooks and crannies ...?"

Roseluck shivers and squeezes her tail with a squeak, but still smiling, albeit with warming cheeks.

"N-Not a problem! I'm at your service, Sweet ..."

"Ooh, getting into character, are we?" Bon Bon snickers a little, leaning down and lowering her voice further, to a half-whisper. "Alright. When I read that story the first time ... well, I had a little inkling in the first few pages. Like this might be one I save for the right ... atmosphere. So I decided I'd put it down until work was done. And I worked hard that day, you know, had a new couple appliances come in and an order of flour ... lots of carrying and lifting and fixing, made my back so sore and tight. So ... heh, it's funny you mentioned how you got the idea. I drew a bath after it got dark. At that, Roseluck’s tail tries to wiggle from her grasp a little, and a hind leg stretches out for a moment.

"Y-Yeah?" A hoof starts lazily stroking Rose's mane.

"I made it really nice for myself. I got out some bath oils I got for my birthday, I opened the window for some fresh, chilly air ... I drew it just a little too hot, so it shocked me at first, and then I relaxed so much once I got settled. Then ..." Her voice drops another level, eyelids a hair lower, her lips so close to Rose's ear she can nearly feel the shape of them. "I got out that story of yours. And, Rose ... the more pages I turned ... the more I read inside your little fantasies ... I started picturing you in there. And I could've set that water boiling." Rose’s back arches and eyes close as she gives a squirm ...

"I ... know what part of the ... the story you were on ..."

"Oh? Why don't you tell me ..." She kisses her cheek, brushing her mane up, then back down again. "I wanna hear your guess what words first made me really start feeling that water."

The squirmy mare turns her head and nuzzles the hoof.

“If … I remember … ‘The light went up in Sweet’s eyelids, and she opened them to see the shower curtain drawn, looking into Luck’s grassy greens gone gleaming emerald and entranced, the noble’s shoulders bearing heavy, her gown from the gala gone, yet those sheer sable silken stockings still remained. Pounds of anxiously brushed and braided mane unfurled as she stepped over the wall of the pale ceramic, the steam of the water slipping around her nethers, a negligee of naked heat …’ About there?”

"Mmhm. You've thought about that one a lot, eh?" She smirks a little, the hoof at her mane coming around to brush some of the fur down on Rose's neck, just where throat met collar. "So did I. And ... every word I read—heck, every word I felt ... I touched my belly, at first. Told myself it was just an itch... but then, 'sheer sable silk', and I touched a little lower ... and then lower ..." In the still air of that pause, Roseluck pushes a hind hoof into the covers, her thighs rubbing together, squeezing her tail.

"And ... a-and ... '... then Luck slid into the hot water like a slow motion of a swan entering her pond, craning her neck closer and closer to Sweet, who still couldn't come up with a single word or thought as the noble's body covered hers, water spilling from the top of the tub, splattering on the tile. In this livelong moment, the first thought of it all was the acknowledgement that as Luck breathed into her ear ... h-her breath chilled the steam ...'" Bon Bon’s tail swishes over the bedsheets again, she laughing softly through her nose.

"Jeez! You keep quoting this, I'm gonna have to take a bath tonight, sugar. 'Her breath chilled the steam' ... and then that next line ... " She leans in closer, whispering warm into Roseluck's ear. "That's when my breath got low, and ... I felt something soft ... warmer than the water ... and I felt just a little guilty, but I kept feeling, and kept reading ..."

At a gasp, Roseluck pulls her own tail tight, twisting her hips as no-doubt, her tail is tight against the very place it's seeming to protect, and something of an urgent sigh sails from the slightest parting in her lips.

"... ‘The noble Lady's lips tasted of the stain of ... of wine ... and her body pressed into it, the friction warmth of her coat and the all-encompassing heat of the water both becoming like one caress for the confectioner's surrender, though she'd hardly wanted to ... m-make it stop ... s-so much ... much that ... when the hot s-soft of a hoof reached her, gave the slightest squeeze on Sweet's swollen little strawberry, the ... trapped mare squeezed ... s-seized on it. They ... w-were both trapped ... the ... the sh-shower tile echoed v-voices with ... without the ... slightest note of denial ...'"

Bon Bon smiles wide and crosses her hind legs, wiggling a little, but keeping still quite close. The hoof at Rose's collar pets down, stroking her chest as she speaks, feeling the vibrations of every word ... and Bon shifts again.

"...A-and I only felt more. I thought of you... your lips on mine in that warm, steaming bath... your touch between my legs ... feeling me the way I felt myself ... I kept so quiet, the window was open ... but I let myself let out one little, passionate sound ..." She breathes out, slow, and her voice drops. "...'Roseluck'..."

" ... B-Bonny ..." She lets her tail go, the fluffy length of it yielding to Bon Bon's hoof, and again, Roseluck paws with a shaky foreleg, caressing Bon Bon's neck, looking up to her with eyes of dreamy wanderlust.

"...Mhm?" She leans her head back enough to get a good look at Rose, her face a full flush, but a calm and smiling one, tipping her head a little towards Rose's touch. "Got... somethin' on your mind, cutie?"

"... M-Mmm ... mmm ..." Her tail still over her, the tip resting on her belly button, she arches her back again, and her hind legs open a little. "Bonny ..." she whispers, with an oh-so-trembling, smiling lip ... "Can ... y-you ... show me ... wh-what that ... f-felt like?"

Bon Bon glances down the length of Roseluck's form, then back over it again, taking her time to drink in every detail ... lingering on her tail, and what the strawberry strands may cover ... and her hind legs squeeze together, slow, she biting the inside of her lip before her eyes settle back on Rose's. ... She leans down and kisses her, sweet and warm, the hoof on her chest petting down her fluff. And then she draws back with a sultry grin.

"I'll do my best, Rosie. Just remember, I felt only so relaxed ..." Her hoof traces lower on the mare, drawing slow circles down to her belly. "... Because a part of me knew. Sometime ... you, out there ... you thought of me and did the same. Didn't you?"

"I-I ..." She softly, slowly pants already, her tail yielding a little more, the tension of the bend overpowering the lessening weight of the tip of the tail, and it flops away onto the bed, and then … the only thing obstructing is the insubstantial, the return of that sweet, heady bouquet scent renewed. "I ... c-couldn't get ... comfy in the b-bath ... I rolled out, soaked on the b-bathroom floor. I ... I ... I was n-nervous to say your n-name even as I ... if I s-said it, w-would you know ... w-would it jinx a-any hope ..."

"Mm... the name doesn't matter. What matters is you ... writhin’ on the floor, thinking of me doing all the things I'm going to do to you ..." She made a slow wiggling motion down, kissing the dip of Roseluck's throat, her chest, her hoof petting down her lower abdomen, then tracing down to her leg again. She feels the other side of where Rose's cutie mark should be ... "... And all you ever had to do, was kiss me and ask for it."

Roseluck’s hind legs yield and tense wide enough that Bon Bon feels a bridging, deep muscle go taut beneath the warm, creamy coat, two little points hidden in the softest tufts of fur below her belly firming. As if Bon Bon's statement was a command, her head rises from the bed a little, but she can't lift it, her mane splayed and tousled as her back arches, forcing rose and softest pink highlights into the comforter. If there's a reply in her, seems to be lost, but her eyes still rest on Bon Bon's, her lips still faintly parted. Bon Bon eases off at the tense, and presses in again at the relax; wherever Roseluck firms her muscles, Bon Bon finds where she's released them and goes there, following the waves of her body... but not to their conclusion. Not yet. She presses down a little on the mare's lower abdomen, though, just above that place, and she scoots around to lie more parallel, her own legs held closely together. She meets Rose's eyes again and leans in, smiling warm, steadily increasing her pressure downward...

The mare at Bon Bon’s touch doesn't take her eyes away, as just at Bon Bon's closeness ... the glint of those soft hoops of blue ... her back starts to calm but her breathing is so slow and heavy ... but she smiles and closes the distance between their lips once more, her eyes not completely shutting. Her hip squirms softly, trying to get a caress from the soft of Bon Bon's hoof once more ... and to that, Bon Bon breathes in sharp through her nose at the kiss, for a second tensed as a little sensation in her belly turns over ... and then she relaxes again, leaning into it, into Roseluck. Her other foreleg tucks in around Rose's shoulders, and she shimmies a little closer, just as her hoof begins to dip down ... and caress the inside of her other thigh, but in so reaching, she occasionally brushes something far warmer.

Roseluck’s lips vibrate to the sudden volume of a short moan, and still with the zap of even that slightest brush still reverberating throughout her, she wraps her forelegs high around the other mare's neck and pulls her into the kiss deeply. A short shock of sound comes out of Bon Bon—but she follows wholeheartedly, the foreleg at Rose's back pulls her in tight, and she turns herself a little bit over the mare, propping up with her hip and leaning her weight down. Her lips part, readily slipping her tongue through to further bring them together as her own hind legs squirm against each other, tight and needful ... but it doesn't slow the ministrations on Roseluck as they finally come back again, drawing close ... and she takes in a breath to steady herself, relax her grip just as she brushes over that most tender of places, bringing slow, full contact …

The hold on Bon Bon immediately jerks into a squeeze, a squeak pushing from her throat as far down as her lower back that's immediately followed by voice sailing between them. Bon Bon simply follows the motion, breaking the kiss briefly to catch her breath and let Roseluck get a bit too—slowly, but steadily moving her pressure around, feeling out that tender shape. She watches Rose's face for response, her own beet-read and a little goofy with desire. The response from the blush-maned mare is powerful, an almost regular little twitch at her left leg, the continuing squirming of her hips, and the fluffing of her chest as takes in heavy breaths. At the soft exploration, every other breath ends in a soft note, the eyes belonging to them wandering, not from any lack of focus on Bon Bon, but her ability to focus at all under softest siege and every little vocal, every heated breath just spurs Bon Bon onward, sets her heart rate up another beat. Her own hind legs tremble, but nothing being there but the half-cover of her tail, she can only squeeze, and take what small outlet that provides; her hooves are occupied. She leans in again and kisses the hollow of Rose's throat, touch following the twists of her hips and rubbing down on her harder, sliding up to find where she might be able to brush that secret pearl ... With urgent force from Roseluck’s chest, she pants for a few breaths and lets out a louder, longer moan, her head tilting back and pressing into the covers.

"... Bonny ..." The end of the moan becomes the word, and the ones to follow are expressed in gliding notes. "Oh ... B-Bonny ... " The word means so little its recipient, but the way she says it—the way her moans sound so thick, how they quaver every time she pushes down, the vibrato against her lips ... it shoots straight to Bon Bon's core and spreads out through her like a series of electric jolts through a system of circuits. She lifts up again, a little more upright, and stops her strokes—she just holds the pressure on her, making only tiny circles, one way, then another.

"L-like this, Rosie ..." ... They quicken a little, slick sounds as Rose's arousal tastes occasional licks of the air. "Just like this ..." Roseluck turns her head aside, then slowly to the other, her left foreleg stretching down at nothing for a moment. There is certainly a world of difference in this, a world gently colliding with her own.

"J-Just like ... l-like that ..."

"Mm..." Her head sinks low, pressing a kiss into Rose's chest. ... Then she chuckles, her ministrations slowing again to a gentle, lazy rhythm. "... And ... heh ... then I dropped the book in the bath."

"W-Who ... who ... who blame you ..." She rests her eyes on Bon Bon, her slow pants only at a precipice of calm.

"Hmm ..." Her head reaches up again to kiss Rose's lips, a brief, tender reminder. "You're just saying that cause you know I bought another copy ..."

The panting, but calming mare cranes her head and softly takes another kiss, and nuzzles behind Bon Bon's cheek before relaxing her neck back down on the bed.

"What ... h-happened after ... after you dropped the b-book ... ?"

"Well... I was bummed that I ruined the book, for a minute." She nuzzled the exposed neck, scooting up to snuggle Roseluck fully by the side, her movement growing slower and more intimate. "But I didn't... need it anymore, with you in my head. ... So I just enjoyed myself for a while ... nice and slow, like this..."

Roseluck doesn't hug back on, not wanting to obstruct Bon Bon's reach, but she does nuzzle over the mare's neck and cheek, kissing firmly and giving a heavy breath with every little shudder.

"Mhnn ... nnnhh ... g-gentle ... a-always ... gentle ..."

"Mmn ..." She gives a little quake, but starts to calm more ... closing her eyes and letting herself lie as gravity and Bon Bon would have her … and Bon Bon finds, despite herself, that the urgency in her body calms as Rose does ... still present, still needful, but she starts to soak in the feeling rather than being galvanized by it, settling and expanding to fill a more patient depth of lust. She kisses Rose again and carefully moves closer, one hind leg settling over hers, to feel as much of the soft mare at her side as possible.

"Bonny ... ?"

"Yeah...?"

"Let's ... take a rest ... I ... th-think I want to just ... feel this ... this warmth with you ... close. I ... w-would really like you to ... just be close ..." Bon Bon slows to a stop, but doesn't take her hoof off.

"... Y-you sure? I thought ..."
"Don't ... want you to strain your foreleg ... and w-who ... said we were ... c-calling it a morning ... ?" She smiles at that.

"... Heh." She relents, softly taking the hoof away and wrapping it around Roseluck. "Fair enough …! ... I knead dough a lot harder than that for longer, though, sugar ... don't worry about me.” Roseluck pulls them into one, turning on her side.

"I know ... b-but ... you ... sh-shared ... think ... we can ... we can change things up ..." She opens her outside leg and gently slips it between Bon Bon's a little. "We can both share at once ..." Bon Bon takes in a slightly shaky breath, tense for a moment, then slowly breathes back out, trying mindfully to relax. Her eyes seek out Roseluck's, and she smiles a little, drawing her closer until they're nearly chest-to-chest in each other's warm hold.

"I ... think I can roll with that, Rosie ... but, could you, um ... d-do one thing?"

"Mmm hmmm … ?"

"Move your tail up ... a little ..."

"S-Sure ..." She raises her tail up and back on the covers a little. "Is this good, or ..."

"Mmhm ..." She swings her own tail forward and over Roseluck's, pulls it back, and after a few tugs, they're gently entwined. She smiles warm. "There ... much better …!" Roseluck looks down at their tails, fluff and curl intertwined, and starts to give little kisses on Bon Bon's cheek

"You're … freakin' adorable … you know that?" Bon Bon giggles, squirming in the embrace!

"P-pot calling kettle!" Roseluck nuzzles up Bon Bon's cheek ... and lifting her leg a little, just above the knees, starts to nuzzle the lower rim of Bon Bon's ear ...

"Mmm hmm … ?”

Bon Bon’s giggle turns into a little gasp, her ear twitching pleasantly.

"Mmhmm ... you sweet, fuzzy ..." Her muzzle nestles into Rose's mane, places a tender kiss on her temple. " ...Cutie little Rosebud ..."

“I ... kinda ... want to change my name now to that ... but ... right now ... feeling pretty lucky ..." She brings her leg back from behind Bon Bon's, drawing Bon Bon's leg between her own, then returning her own leg as it was, rises it up a little more, pushing just a little with her hip. "Bonny ..." She sighs, smiling. "I ... can't wait for everything that's coming ... I ... c-can't wait to hear the first rumors about us ... can't wait to see how well I get along with your bestie ... can't ... wait to share so many things ... this ... this is practically a little deal ... right now ... compared to how much I can't wait to give your sleeping face the softest little kiss I got ..."

Bon Bon rocks back a little at the hips, shivering a little in warm anticipation. But her eyes never leave Rose, and her hold on the mare shifts, hugging her chest-to-chest. " ... We got time for all that, sugar ... the rumors, the f-friends ... but ... heh." She chuckles a little, burying her face in Rose's neck. "S-speak for yourself …! I ... can't wait for all those things, either, sweetie, I know you'll m-make my whole life brighter, but ... this is no li'l deal to me, ya know ..."

"Heh ... sorry, didn't mean to ... make it sound small ... This ... this is just beyond words right ... right now ... still a little nervous ... j-just a little, though, I promise."

"S'okay, me too." She smiles, trailing a few more kisses up Rose's neck, tilting up to her jaw. "But ... nice nervous ... in-it-together nervous, right?"

“We’re in this together … I’ve never felt more safe and sure of that phrase … you … and me …”