> Feathers & Lace
>  by Osper
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Feathers & Lace
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------


Feathers & Lace



By



Osper


“Thank you all for coming to the Wonderbolt's 73rd Canterlot Air Show and please, don't forget to stop by the souvenir stands for official merchandise!”
The blaring voice coming through the loudspeaker was largely ignored by Thunderlane as he  looked over the items being offered by numerous dealers in the tents outside the arena. The crush of ponies around the dark grey stallion was annoying and it was freaking hot but the fact that he'd managed to beat out Rainbow Dash for the ticket in a raffle made it all worthwhile. Oh, and getting to see the Wonderbolts too.
It wasn't that he hated his weather boss. She never asked any of them to do anything she wouldn't do herself and her dedication was second to none. But her damn ego really irked him. He smirked at the memory of her mortified face when they'd called his name out at the lottery and handed him the ticket.
He sighed as he pawed at the merchandise.
“Ah, well, maybe I better bring her a shirt or something. I don't wanna be stuck on lightning duty when I get back.”
The shirts were a little expensive but several official plush dolls came in under 40 Bits.
One Spitfire for Dash, one Fleetfoot for Rumble, one Fire Streak for Rumble to give to Scoots. Heh, that kid...oh, pinups!
He drooled over the sexy posters, searching desperately for anything with his favorite Wonderbolt, Misty, on it. He'd always loved how muscular she was, the definition of her toned body showing through her tight suit. He still had a little space left in his room, maybe on the ceiling over his bed.
Mmph, dose abs...
“Hey buddy, roll your tongue back in your mouth and buy something or move it.”
The rude stand owner glared at him and Thunderlane wished he had something smart to say back but he wasn't the wittiest stallion around. He settled for glaring back.
“Then just sell me one of these and all those dolls there.”
Weighted down by swag, he turned to the exit and walked through the crowds, trying to find the path through the unfamiliar Canterlot streets.
Was it Starswirl St. to Feather Ln. or-?
While his mind turned over the street names and directions, a sudden rush of air and explosion of wings rocketed past him. His bag slipped from his body and sped off with the pegasus who had just swiped it.
But, if there was one thing Thunderlane could do, it was accelerate.
Not wasting a single second, he shot from a standing position into full-on flight aND pursuit.
“Hey, gimme my stuff back!”
The thief looked back, eyes wide in shock that anyone could catch up to him so easily. He turned a sharp corner, flying close to the building. Canopies and jutting building fronts flashed by Thunderlane as he flapped his wings, easily dodging every obstacle.
Just...a bit...
He reached out, foreleg swiping at the thief's leg and barely missing.
Dammit, closer!
“I'll handle this.”
Dark wings unfurled ahead of him, shiny armor covering a light grey body.
With a single swat, the thief wobbled in the air, slamming hard into the cobblestone street below. He rolled, the nasty fall rattling his brain and spreading plush dolls over the street with a single poster twisting in the air and falling into Thunderlane's outstretched hooves.
Thunderlane swooped to the ground, landing by the guard who had cuffed the thief to a lamp post and was calling some other guards for a pick up. The calling crystal on his breastplate stopped it's momentary glowing as the call for help ended and he turned to look at Thunderlane. He nodded, picking up a few of the dolls and giving them over to the younger pegasus.
“Are you okay? We have a lot of thieves at the airshows.”
Thunderlane pouted, squeezing the Spitfire doll in his hooves. He knew it was the guard's job but it kinda pissed him off anyway to have his thunder stolen just as he was about to catch his own criminal.
“I was about to catch him myself. I didn't need your help.”
The guard's expression was no more expressive than a stone wall.
“I'm sure you were.”
“I really was!”
“Yes, I'm sure.”
Thunderlane clicked his tongue. Arguing with calm ponies never failed to make him even angrier. And angry Thunderlane tended to make stupid decisions.
“You don't believe me! Alright then, we're gonna race, right here, right now! You'll see what 9.3 Wing Power can really do!”
The guard merely blinked at him, clearing his throat a little while he thought of the best way to calm the irritable stallion in front of him.
“I'm actually on duty. Sorry. Please, run along and have a nice day.”
Thunderlane turned, stamping his hoof as he walked away. It was bad enough that he'd been robbed but now he'd been denied the chance to get even with his savior.
Wait...that sounds pretty bad...
A deep breath swelled his lungs and he let it out, a little calmer.
It's fine. I've still got a couple days off. Let it go and let's have some fun.
“Hey, guard.”
His ears perked up and he looked over.
“Sorry. And thanks. But if we ever meet when you're not at work, we're racing. Okay?”
That same calm, unemotional face merely stared back.
“Sure.”
----------------------
Thunderlane rolled in bed. That gentle rap rap of a hoof on his hotel door wouldn't go away, no matter how much he ignored it. He'd stayed out entirely too late last night after the air show and didn't feel like getting up at all. Though it had been worth it. There were some really interesting clubs in the lower districts where a tourist like himself could see some very revealing shows.
With a tired groan, he finally rolled out of bed, pushing his body along the floor without actually bothering to stand. Only when his tired skull hit door did he stop.
“Who is it?”
“Telegram, sir.”
Thunderlane lay on the floor, the covers dragged over half the room.
Eh, I don't need to open the door for that.
“Slip it under.”
The small, white envelope slid under the frame and right in front of him, the smell of citrus immediately opening his eyes for him.
He sniffed at the letter, wondering who could have sent him a perfumed note. Whoever had, it smelled divine.
“Let's see...”
He opened it and slid the letter out, reading it aloud to himself.

“Dear Thunderlane,

I'm in dire need of a favor, dear. I ordered some clothing and patterns from a small boutique up there run by a friend of mine, Silk, but I simply don't feel like paying the postage. Could you do me a big favor and pick them up for me? It's a shop called FeatherSoft Boutique in the shopping quarter.
I would be eternally grateful!

Hugs and Kisses
-Rarity”

Dating Rarity had been a mistake, apparently. She now felt it gave her free reign to come to him for favors, even after he'd decided that she wasn't his type and they'd agreed they wouldn't work well together.
He picked himself up, stretching his wings and back, his ankles popping. The sleep was starting to clear from his mind and he realized how hungry he was.
Well...I guess I can do it. Might meet a cute mare in a dress shop, right?
That thought perking him up, he left the messy room for the maid and headed out for another nice day.
-----------------
Wandering around Canterlot was like running a maze. So many streets dead ended at shops and there were so many narrow areas to slide through off the beaten path, that at times he felt like he was just walking in circles.
Some passing mares, dolled up in what he guessed passed for high society fashion, seemed like the perfect pair to ask about a dress shop.
“FeatherSoft? Ugh, that's such an out of fashion little store.”
“No, didn't you hear? Fleur de Lis shops there now!”
“What!? Since when?”
“Well, the story is that Photo Finish was doing a shoot and all the clothes got misplaced...”
Thunderlane rolled his eyes as they got into the meat of discussing the who's and what's of the Canterlot elite, clearing his throat to see if they still knew he was there. The pegasus mare looked annoyed at this intrusion on their oh-so-important conversation. She pointed off to the east.
“Right, right. Up that way and fly south along Luna St. It'll be on the left.”
“Thanks ladies.”
His wink and nod went unnoticed as they walked away, having already forgotten him.
Ladies around here sure are stuck up...
He floated up into the air, slowly scanning the area below him as he sailed along. The street in question, named in honor of the returned princess, was nothing BUT dress shops, all with large front windows and all with the same cursive font on their signs. Telling one from the other was a chore but he finally found it towards the end of the street.
A big feather backed the store name and lots of little feathers added to the décor of the entrance. Mannequins stood in the front window dressed in some finery Thunderlane didn't really understand. Clothes were a mare thing and even on them he didn't find them all that fascinating. 
The bell tinged over the door as he entered, the only sound in the strangely empty shop. Mannequins stood about the show floor, some wearing saddles and others in socks, some wearing a bizarre bit of cloth that only covered a small part of the hind quarters.
It meant very little to Thunderlane even as he stared, trying to figure out what was supposed to be interesting about it. It covered all the good bits...was that it? Was it the hidden that made it exciting? He did get the same feeling from looking at Misty in her Wonderbolt uniform, her suit unzipped to-
“Hello?”
Thunderlane whirled with a start, knocking over a mannequin in the process, grimacing as it's foreleg fell off with a crack as soon as it hit the ground.
He was definitely getting yelled at for that.
Stupid Rarity...
“Sorry 'bout that. I don't normally react that way to-”
What he saw when he turned was a dark blue mare standing there, an amused smile on her face at his overreaction. Her mane was a much lighter blue, which brushed his face as she lifted the mannequin to it's feet and reattached it's leg.
“It's no problem. A lot of stallions are nervous in lingerie shops.”
He shrugged. He didn't know what lingerie was but stallions were afraid of it?
“I don't know about that, but Rarity sent me to retrieve a package while I was in town.”
A big smile stretched over her face at the name.
“Oh, you're Thunderlane! I'm Silk, the owner of FeatherSoft.”
She stopped a minute to give Thunderlane the once over.
“Hmm, that Rarity always did have good taste in stallions.”
“Had. We aren't together any more.”
Thunderlane smiled a little, getting closer.
“Good news for you, huh?”
She just laughed, taking a step back.
“Sure, if I liked seeing blood. My boyfriend is pretty jealous. Nice try though, I might have gone for it if I were single, cutie.”
She went to the counter, looking around for the package. Even if she were attached, Thunderlane still liked the way her rear bounced as she searched.
“Must have left it in back. Wait right here and don't leer at my customers.”
Thunderlane craned his neck around the empty store and shrugged at her.
“What customers?”
With a little playful sneer, she disappeared into the backroom.
Thunderlane continued to poke around the shop, looking at things he didn't have names for but was slowly finding to be titillating. He could see it now, after the revelation earlier. If he couldn't or wasn't allowed to see something, it made him want it.
“Silk? Are you there? I think this needs to be a little-”
Thunderlane turned to the voice, coming face to face with a grey stallion slipping through the curtain separating this room from the dressing room. They stood still a moment, Thunderlane looking at the stallion wearing a garter belt, stockings, panties and a saddle, not that he really understood what it all was. His face seemed familiar though...
“Ah! You're that guard! This is perfect!”
The guards eyes went wide, pupils nothing more than dots.
“N-no, you have me mistaken with somepony else. Sorry.”
He stepped back, trying to get back into the dressing room but Thunderlane grabbed his neck, pulling his head in close.
“Nah, it's definitely you. I told you if we ever met outside your job, we'd have to race, right? Man, I'm lucky lately!”
The stallion's mouth opened...closed...a fierce blush burning on his cheeks.
“I'm...um...I'm a little busy at the moment.”
“Yeah, but after? C'mon, just give me a chance to get even, a race for a race. Please?”
Thunderlane smiled his big, goofy grin at the stallion, the guard absolutely dumbfounded. It had taken him a moment but he finally realized that this out of towner pony hadn't even noticed what he was wearing.
“Um..well...”
Whatever word he was searching for just would not leave his stunned brain and travel to his mouth.
“Hey! Let him go!”
The owner of the shop stepped between the two, angrily shoving Thunderlane.
“Don't harass my customers, especially not my friend here. Leave him alone. Go in the back Grey Skies and I'll handle this guy.”
Thunderlane cocked his head, totally confused.
“I'm not harassing him. He owes me a race. He saved my stuff yesterday and we couldn't race while he was on duty so I said if we ever-”
Grey Skies, as the guard had answered to, poked his head out of the curtain separating the dressing rooms from the show floor.
“He's telling the truth. I did, sort of, agree to a race. He's...not bothering me. Not really.”
The mare looked at Thunderlane, her turn to be confused.
“So, you weren't...bothered by what Grey Skies was doing?”
Thunderlane groaned exaggeratedly.
“For the love of Celestia, he's buying clothes! Is it supposed to? You Canterlot ponies are weird.”
Silk looked at the still blushing Grey Skies and grinned that little smile that he hated. It always meant trouble and always for him.
Setting Rarity's package to the side, she gestured to a mannequin robed in some rather complicated looking lingerie.
“How do you think Grey over there would look in this? I realize you don't know much about fashion but please, give us a real opinion.”
Grey retreated to the back. Whatever she was cooking up in her head was going to be trouble for him.
Thunderlane looked the mannequin over, trying to imagine it over the rather muscular pegasus. The lacy fabric over the strong legs and hindquarters. His belly with those abs.
For some reason, looking at it now and thinking of that powerful looking guard dressed in it made his face hot.
“I guess it'd look...pretty good. I'm really not a good judge of these things.”
She carefully undressed the mannequin, her horn aglow with a soft, blue light.
“Well, Grey is just helping me with checking designs and things. Would you be a dear and help him into this? Then he's all yours for whatever you have planned.”
She placed the carefully folded clothing on his back and gave him a little hip bump towards the changing rooms.
“Sure, if it'll get me out of here.”
Without even a knock, he pushed past the curtain. Grey froze stock still, his panties halfway down and his tail tucked over anything revealing. For just the barest of moments, Thunderlane stopped and swallowed. He didn't know what it was but that awkward pose was...kinda sexy.
He shook his head, swishing the thoughts from his mind.
Ha, yeah right. Maybe if it were one of those Wonderbolt mares.
“Hey, Silk said if I got you into this last thing here, we could get out of here. That's okay, isn't it? I'm not intruding am I?”
Grey picked the underwear up, setting them aside on a bench. No one but Silk had ever seen him like this...he'd hoped, he'd prayed that no one besides her ever would...and yet this seemingly oblivious stallion had just walked in like it was no big deal. Thunderlane picked a corset off the top of the pile on his back with his teeth.
“How does this go on?”
“Um, just help me get out of this and I can do the rest.”
Thunderlane came right up to him, looking at the snaps and clips. He tugged on the saddle strap, loosening it on the first try and pulling it over Grey's back end, the stallion blushing as he lifted his hind legs.
Thunderlane undid the garter snaps on the stockings, his warm breath on Grey's legs. Grey tried to think of anything to avoid a very embarrassing situation and keep his pride tucked.
Grandma...dead puppies...um...uhh! Ah, sounding! Cannibalism!
“This last one is tricky.”
Grey felt the younger stallions hooves grip the outside of his back leg and he grit his teeth. This couldn't be any w-
“Ah, there.”
And it was over. Celestia be praised! He hadn't completely shamed himself! He looked back at the clueless Thunderlane who seemed to be examining the lingerie to be put on.
“Now, I can, uh, get the stockings off myself. You don't have to do anything else. Can you please stand outside?”
“Yeah. Make it quick.”
He slipped out to the main room, Silk sitting at her counter and grinning like a mad mare.
“So, thanks for all of your help. I don't want to keep you but if you leave an address for wherever you're staying, I'll make absolutely sure Grey goes to see you just as soon as we're done. Is that okay?”
Thunderlane sighed, hoping he'd be able to race the stallion a little sooner rather than later.
“Agh, I guess.”
He quickly wrote out the address and took Rarity's package, a new little box on top. When questioned about it, Silk just grinned some more.
“That's a little something for you.”
And she'd say no more. Thunderlane left the strange little shop that had none of the same kind of clothes he'd seen in Rarity's store and flew back towards his hotel to leave off the package.
This town is weird.
-------------------
“Yes! Yes, victory tastes like so much delicious candy!”
Grey Skies didn't like to make excuses. As far as he was concerned, anything good or bad that happened to a pony was largely a result of their own choices and faults.
But, even if he'd flown at his best, there was a small part of his mind that had asked him, very persuasively, to hang back just a bit.
You can just wait until the last lap and make up the difference.
It had whispered to him.
I mean, look at those shapely legs! And that strong back, those nice, preened wings. Just a peek, please?
“Um, 'scuse me?”
Grey Skies snapped out of his innermost thoughts, visions of Thunderlane's flexing leg muscles still fresh in his mind. He was back in the abandoned castle area far down on the Canterlot mountain, the younger Pegasus talking to him.
“Ah, yes?”
Thunderlane smiled, a little embarrassed.
“Yeah, sorry about all the celebrating. I don't get to win much back home since I'm always racing the local speed demon. I'm sorry.”
Grey Skies kept his face unemotional, trying to get his personality back to his normal guard mode. That is, blank faced.
“Oh, think nothing of it. It was nice to get out on my day off and do something.”
“Yeah, racing is the best. Well, that and weather work, though that's my job. But I really do like setting up the thunder.”
Thunderlane rose up and struck his hooves on the worked stone for emphasis, the sound echoing around the empty area.
“Ah, that's a nice noise.”
He put his hooves up on the low wall and looked out off the mountain. Grey swallowed as a foolish thought entered his mind. He opened his mouth, hesitating. Even if he was a guard, trained to fight law breakers and the occasional magical beast, putting yourself in the way of emotional harm was never easy.
“Thunder-”
“Hey, you wanna get something to eat?”
Huh?
Thunderlane flapped up into the air, readying to head back up to the city proper.
“You must know some good restaurants around here, right? Show me the good places in town before I leave tomorrow morning.”
A certifiable gift from Celestia herself is what it was.
“Oh, you're leaving tomorrow?”
“Yeah, my vacation is almost over and I gotta get back to Ponyville. So? Can you?”
Grey smiled and took to the air beside the handsome young Pegasus. Even if it wasn't, he could pretend, just a little, that it was a date. That's the best he could hope for.
“Sure, let's go.”
----------------
Ponies of all shapes, sizes and styles walked by the two companions as Grey led the way through the familiar territory. Well, semi-familiar. He didn't come to the club district very often. Just rarely, and only with Silk.
The place Grey had chosen was  a nice little restaurant called Rose Bloom, tucked away in one of the corners. The only problem was the location. It was directly across from some of the more...colorful...establishments. Thunderlane noticed the almost rocking club building and pointed.
“Hey, what's that place? The Wink + Nod? Looks lively.”
Grey knew it was pretty lively. It was the nicest cabaret in Canterlot that serviced gay stallions and mares and most definitely NOT the kind of place he wanted to take Thunderlane. Well, he did but he knew he never would. The fact that a lot of Silk's best customers hung out there a lot and knew him through her would reveal just a little more than he wanted to. There was a perfectly easy way to steer him away though.
“Yeah, it's a gay bar. Amazing food though.”
“Huh. You've been in there?”
“Oh! Uh...for the food. Silk wanted to go in...for the food. They have very good...food.”
Grey wished he could kick himself. Little slips of the tongue were things he always watched out for. Why did his brain have to choose today to ignore them!?
“Well, you seem to think the food over there is really good. Can we go there?”
No no no! He needed to think. What would make someone not want to go to a gay bar?
“You're gonna get hit on.”
Ha! Perfect!
“Eh, it's not a big deal. I mean, a simple 'not interested' is fine, right?”
Dammit!
“I...suppose...”
“So can we go?”
Thunderlane sighed, looking into those big yellow eyes and feeling his resolve melt away. There was a good chance that nopony would bother talking to him if Silk wasn't there.
“Sure, okay.”
They crossed the street and could already feel the thump of the heavy bass inside. The rather sturdy stallion working the front desk looked up and smiled wide, smoothing out his vest.
“Section?”
“Restaurant, please.”
He lead the two through a set of double doors and and an incredible, frantic view appeared before them. The ground floor level was a massive rectangle, low lighting providing luminance to move. It looked out on a giant dance floor in the area beneath, hundreds of ponies dancing in the midst of lasers and glow sticks.
“Hey, that looks like fun! We don't have any clubs like this in Ponyville. Really wish there were some mares down there though.”
“There are mares but they're all fillyfoolers. I don't recommend trying to pick them up.”
They took a seat in their booth, patiently waiting for the waiter to come take their order. Thunderlane craned his neck to see down into the dance floor, his head bobbing in time with the beat. Grey cleared his throat, trying to make conversation.
“You don't get to go to places like this? I mean clubs, not gay bars.”
“Nah. Ponyville's a quiet place. I like it, don't get me wrong, but I like all this stuff you guys have here. Clubs, loud music, stores with all kinds of stuff, Wonderbolts wandering the streets. My only complaint is how unpleasant some of the ponies around here are. No offense. You and Silk seem pretty nice.”
The waiter quietly appeared and jotted down their order, disappearing into the dim lighting around them.
“No offense taken. I know how some of the upper crust of Canterlot are. Even though I work in the palace normally, they consider me 'blue collar' and contemptible. I don't hear about it to my face though. That's the fun part of being able to arrest ponies.”
Thunderlane laughed out loud despite that it wasn't that funny, his voice getting lost in the music.
The food came quickly, the service excellent as always and Thunderlane dove right into his pasta. The first taste was a show in itself as Thunderlane made the most bizarre face, the fork sliding into his mouth.
“Sweet Celestia! It's like...I don't know, it's...?”
“Good?”
Grey took a sip of his water. It always helped to keep the taste fresh every time.
“It's like an orgasm in my mouth!”
Grey choked, spitting back into his glass. Several interested stallions turned ears their way and Grey couldn't help but blush and wonder just what kind of unwholesome trouble that little outburst would bring.
Luckily, nothing happened after that and they ate in relative peace. The other patrons were polite enough to think the two grey stallions were together and left them alone.
Thunderlane finished his meal first and stared out onto the dance floor, still bobbing his head to the beat, his hooves tapping on the table top.
C'mon Grey, say it. He asked you out, sort of, at least do this!
The guard pony swallowed, his hooves fidgeting.
“Um, Thunderlane, you wanna go down there...and dance?”
As soon as the question left his mouth, he regretted it. The look of quizzical confusion on Thunderlane's face told him that he'd definitely noticed that stallions didn't ordinarily ask stallions to dance. The look passed quickly from his face, replaced with excitement that stretched his face into a big grin.
“Sure! Hell, I'm leaving in the morning. Dancing sounds great.”
A wide eyed, open mouthed gape was the response by the normally stoic guard but he quickly recovered, quietly coughing into his hoof.
“Just, look out down there. When you're on the dance floor, somepony will try for a grind.”
Grey led the way to the stairs, Thunderlane smirking excitedly at his first club experience. Of course, when he told the story later, he'd tactfully forget to mention that it was at a gay club. Dash would probably get too much of a kick out of that.
They pushed through the wall of dancers and quickly found a spot for the both of them. The crush of bodies pressed them on all sides, leaving little room for anything besides small steps.
Well, that and grinding on each other.
The ebb and flow of the crowd pushed them with it, the two moving from place to place in the sea of ponies, feeling the beat in their hooves as it rumbled through the floor.
A sheen of sweat covered Thunderlane in the warmth from the other dancers, and a smile lit his face as he threw himself into music. It didn't matter where he got to dance, he was going to make the best of it.
Spreading his wings to get a little room, he whirled this way and that, using his wings for quick turns in his small area. Grey watched, amazed that somepony could move like that, having never been in a place that before.
Stallions peeked and openly stared in awe at the agile stallion.
Grey felt himself grow bolder, staying close to Thunderlane, their warm breath mixing together.
Even with everypony surrounding them, he felt all alone with the young stallion.
Closer...
Closer...
Grey snapped out of it, freeing himself from the spell he'd put himself under. He was mere inches from Thunderlane, the pegasus unable to tell what was just about to happen on the dark and frantic dance floor. It would be better to end this now and think of it all as just a happy memory. Grey yelled over the music, right next to Thunderlane's ear.
“Hey, we should probably get out of here. Don't you have to leave early?”
Thunderlane nodded and they made their way out. It was deep night outside and the air was cool, a pleasant breeze blowing through the streets. The area was alive at the beginning of the night scene and Thunderlane sighed.
“Wow, it sure was nice getting some time off. This trip was great.”
He clapped Grey on the shoulder, smiling.
“Thanks for everything. It was cool hanging out with you.”
Grey nodded, a slight smile of his own curling his lips.
“Any time you're in town, we'll get together. Don't be a stranger.”
“I won't. Later.”
Thunderlane took off, hovering back towards his hotel and Grey watching him go. The memory of what happened after he'd left the shop that morning replayed in his mind.
Silk had teased him about it all morning. She had a knack for knowing when Grey was interested in anypony and was always pushing him to get involved. But, even if Celestia didn't give a single damn if her guards were that way or not, some of the other guards would definitely have lost a little respect for him.
“But I know a secret, Grey.”
She'd said.
“You know my special talent is knowing who's into what. And that stallion just needs a little push. If you know what I mean.”
She always had to make things dirty. But, Grey knew she had a knack for knowing everypony's sexual orientation. It was almost psychic. But...Grey wasn't that assertive. He couldn't give that little push.
“Oh well...”
He slowly walked back towards home, enjoying those final few moments with Thunderlane again in his mind.
-------------------
It was nice being back in Ponyville. Dash had been all ready to give Thunderlane some ridiculous job just to be petty about the whole drawing fiasco but a Spitfire doll to the face had fixed that.
It turned out that he'd had an even bigger enemy in Rarity though since he'd sort of...forgotten to give her her package. For a week.
After being chewed out in as ladylike a manner as Rarity could manage (ice cold whispered threats) he'd flown home and gotten the package immediately.
And now, back inside her boutique, he placed it on one of the main tables. Her horn lit ash she opened it, much calmer now that she had her patterns.
“Oh, and that lovely dear even sent along some samples!”
Rarity peered into a small box, levitating out a pair of green panties. She took a second look and one eye rose in confusion.
“Why does it say 'To Thunderlane' on here?”
“Oh, Silk said she had a little gift for me for doing you this favor. Is that it? Clothes huh?”
He grabbed them from the air and held them out. They were certainly soft and the black lace around the edges was nice. It looked a lot like the ones Grey had been wearing.
Rarity stared a moment, holding a hoof out and fumbling for something to say. Sure, Silk saw this sort of thing a lot in Canterlot but it was brand new for Rarity. And she did kind of want them for herself, as a guide.
“Um, sweetie, those can't be for you...those are only for mares.”
“Yeah right. I saw a royal guard in Canterlot wearing them. And a whole bunch of other stuff too.”
Another long pause filled the air as Rarity thought about whether to leave well enough alone. As long as Thunderlane didn't put them on, he'd be fine. Not that there was anything wrong with that, Rarity quickly reminded herself. It was just odd to think of Thunderlane in that way.
But the idea that Silk had given them to Thunderlane meant she'd taken one of her wildly accurate guesses...and that Thunderlane was either a cross dresser without knowing it or he was gay without knowing it. Or both.
In any case-
“Thunderlane! Take those off!”
He stopped mid rump wiggle, the panties pulled up snug on his hips. A bikini style if Rarity knew her lingerie. Though, and she hated to think it, they did look good on him. Damn that Silk, she knew how to make them.
“Why? Are you going to be a fashion snob and tell me I don't look good?”
“Listen, darling...”
She dripped sugary honey with her words. She didn't want to hurt Thunderlane's feelings even if he occasionally deserved it.
“Those are panties. Mare's wear them to look good for stallions. It's the truth.”
“But what about that other-”
“I'm...I'm pretty sure he was gay.”
Thunderlane blinked several times, that sentence stopping every action in the room. The possibility existed that this guard wasn't gay but she couldn't seem to make using the most extreme case.
Those words seemed to have wrecked Thunderlane's ability to do anything but blink which he did for a couple minutes. She hadn't intended to shut him up entirely.
But to Thunderlane, it cast the entire outing they'd had in an entirely new light. He just...felt weird. He couldn't describe it.
“Sweetie...are you alright?”
He slipped the panties off, putting them back in the box and closing the lid.
“I'm leaving. Later, Rarity.”
He looked at the box, hesitating a moment and then grabbing it in his mouth. Rarity couldn't read his mood at all though Thunderlane was usually an open book. It was a bit unsettling to see his mood shift from happy to...whatever this was, so quickly.
He left without saying anything further and Rarity wondered if she should try to chase after him but the ringing of her shop bell stopped her. The tall telegram pony handed her a note, patiently waiting as she read it.

Dear Rares,

Coming to Ponyville for a visit. Should be there tomorrow morning, the day after you receive this letter. Hope you don't mind but I'm bringing a friend.

-Silk

PS- I'm bringing a photographer for some photo shoots. Mind if we use your boutique for one of the locations?

PPS- Does Sugarcube Corner still sell those cupcakes I like?

PPPS- Never mind, I'll just stop by when I get there.

PPPPS- You don't know any models do you?

Rarity sighed. Even if they were old 'friends', Silk was inconsiderate so much of the time. The messenger still standing there smiled at her.
“Tip?”
It was unusual for Rarity to be flip but the letter had made her just the teensiest bit cross and it colored her remark.
“Don't let anyone teach you to sew. You'll pay for it the rest of your life.”
-------------------------
Of course, all that animosity had melted away when Silk arrived  and the two had exchanged hugs and heartfelt greetings. Even if she was hard to deal with, the two clothiers were on good terms.
“And who is this dashing young stallion? The boyfriend you're always talking about?”
Silk laughed and Grey shook his head.
“No, I'm just a friend. I'm supposed to be rotated out to Ponyville for guard duty soon so I'm supposed to familiarize myself with the location.”
A friendly bop on the chest from Silk preceded further explanation.
“AND he's gonna be modeling for the shoot.”
“I am not.”
“And he's here to look for a handsome young stallion he's fallen head over hooves for.”
“I. Am. Not.”
Grey blushed fiercely, his face practically burning bright enough to read by. Rarity figured this must have been the guard Thunderlane had made friends with.
“Oh, you're the guard Thunderlane spoke so highly of? He seemed to have a lot of fun with you.”
A nudge in the ribs from Silk only made the guard pony blush harder as he stared at the floor. Before any more could be said, Grey turned for the door, eager to be shed of this conversation.
“As I said, I have to report to the local guard captain. I'll see you later Silk. Nice meeting you Rarity.”
The shop bell tinkled as he left the two mares to their work.
“Ahh, that stallion. I don't know what I'm going to do with him. He's just so uptight.”
Rarity snorted, laying out some of the boxes Silk had brought and levitating out the frilly garments.
“I just don't think you're uptight enough. You shouldn't push him into things like relationships. It would be especially embarrassing for a rough, tough guard I'd imagine, if anyone knew of his...preferences.”
In the few moments Rarity had been turned away, Silk had put on a rather complicated corset/stocking combo.
“I know Rares, I know. I'm not as thoughtless as I seem. This is about all I'm going to do. He should be able to handle the rest from here.”
That explanation seemed to satisfy Rarity. The photographer walked in at that moment, carrying a few lights and her camera. Putting everything else aside for now, it was time to work.
--------------------
Thunderlane sat, his head down on one of the tables at a local cafe. The box sat in front of him, the ribbon on it again to keep it's contents safe. Or was it to keep them away from himself?
Every once in a while he'd take a drag off of the straw he'd put in his soda and sigh.
He was lucky to have already finished that day's work since he'd felt far too...something...to get anything else done. Rarity was pretty smart about clothes and she knew a thing or two that he didn't about Stallions. It just made everything she'd said credible. Horribly credible.
The...panties? Yeah, that was it. They'd felt, well, really good. The shape and fit had hugged him just tight enough, slightly lifting his tail. And they were so soft. It felt like when he nestled on clouds and slightly sank in  for a good nap. He wanted to wear them again.
But...was he gay?
He looked around. There were stallions at other tables. All different colors, athletic builds, personality types. He didn't find anything particularly attractive about them.
Was it that he'd seen Grey in such an...intimate way? His strong body covered in soft, frilly lace and sheer fabric? He turned it over and over, his soda slowly disappearing but no matter how much he thought, he couldn't pin down exactly what had made him think this way.
“Thunderlane? Is that you?”
He barely raised his head to look, going back to his laying-sitting position and then springing backward in shock when he realized that Grey Skies was standing right beside him.
“Grey!? What're you doing here?”
He shrugged, helping the shocked Pegasus to his hooves.
“I'm being rotated into a guard position here. I didn't mean to startle you.”
Grey held the wing, brushing his own wing over the feathers and dusting it off.
Thunderlane stared, his heart pounding in his chest.
“Something wrong?”
He rapidly shook his head, folding his wings back against himself and away from the guard. That momentary touch of Grey's hooves on his wing, the brush of his feathers over his...it had been so gentle.
“Ah, no. Just a lot on my mind. It's really...it's really good to see you Grey.”
A few moments of polite staring led to an awkward silence between them, Thunderlane nervously kicking the cobbles underfoot. What was he supposed to say? 'I just found out you were a coltcuddler and it makes me feel weird?'. Yeah, that was really polite.
Grey seemed not to notice or he pretended not to. It was hard to read somepony whose expression almost never changed.
“Wanna meet later? I need somepony to show me around your town, if you can. I'm afraid I don't know anypony else here on such friendly terms.”
“Yeah. That sounds good. When will you be free?”
A faint smile tugged at Grey's face.
“I'm supposed to help Silk until about 8. I'll be free about then so come find me at Rarity's place.”
Even as little as that smile was, it made Thunderlane's heart flutter in his chest.
“Y-yeah. Alright...”
Grey said goodbye and trotted off to observe the town. The dark grey pegasus touched his chest, feeling the steady beating there, his breath rising just a bit faster than it should. His wings would have popped open in an instant if he hadn't been forcing them to stay down with all the willpower in his body. All the same signs of attraction he'd always felt for mares and yet...
What do I do?
--------------------------
As nervous as Thunderlane was, he decided to get there early. The inside of the boutique was dark save for the excessively bright lamps set up around the area.
Four sets of eyes fell on him as soon as he set hoof in, the bell incredibly loud in the quiet set. The photographer Silk had brought with her merely went back to work. Rarity nodded at him and Silk waved him over to the out of the way area they stood in. Grey Skies, corset pulled tight on his belly and stockings covering his legs, reclined on some pillows in the middle of the room, sometimes standing or posing with mannequins. Thunderlane's presence added an entirely new level of personality to Grey and to the photos, eliciting several 'Go~ods' from the photographer as he buzzed around the newly blushing stallion.
Thunderlane knew, factually, what was going on but it didn't seem to want to process in his mind.
“What's going on here?”
Silk grinned, rubbing her chin as she watched the photographer work.
“I got Grey to agree to do some photos. Sadly, I won't be using them for advertisements but it's still fun to do stuff like this.”
Rarity clicked her tongue, whispering to the two.
“I can't tell if he likes it or not since his expression hardly changes. But, he is a little handsome...even if he's dressed like that.”
Thunderlane could only stare, his mouth slightly falling agape as Grey moved as directed, most of his poses a little intentionally shy or embarrassed for that innocent look.
There was a great amount of danger in watching like this, Thunderlane knew. He clapped his legs together, trying to look away but his eyes would betray him, peeking at the most opportune moments to see something that sent his heart racing.
On top of earlier, his heart pounding in his chest as Grey touched his wing. On top of their first meeting where his eyes lingered a little too long on the stallion and his clothing. On top of their trip to that club where they had danced together.
It was more proof than Thunderlane needed, everything piling up at once. He was acting like a lovestruck mare and he'd even been on what anypony else would have known immediately was a date!
There was only one thing that came to mind. He ran.
As soon as he set foot outside he vaulted into the sky, flapping his wings as hard as he could, shooting up into the sky. Clouds shot past as he headed for the stratosphere. He just wanted to be alone, to forget that he had started to feel this way.
The air thinned and he headed south, pushing his body as hard as he could, flapping until his wings started to ache and sweat poured off his forehead.
A nice, white cloud below him seemed like a lonely place to rest and he plummeted down, catching the wind with his wings at the last moment and alighting softly on the fluffy surface. He flopped down, a poof of white flying up around him.
He didn't want to think about it any more. Maybe if he just ignored it, this whole thing would just go away. He could pretend it never happened. But...he didn't want to hurt Grey. It wasn't his fault-
“There you are.”
Thunderlane snapped towards the voice and, of course, it would have to be Grey. His outfit was still on though, the same white as the clouds. His wings folded as he dropped to the cloud and walked closer, an eyebrow raised in concern.
“You just...well, ran like a thief for no reason. Is something wrong?”
Thunderlane let his eye roam over the stallion, smiling a little sadly.
“Aren't you worried somepony is going to see you?”
A little sigh and a shrug were the the cross-dresser’s answer.
“I'm a guard. I help people in trouble first and foremost. Especially my friends. Now what is it? What's wrong?”
Thunderlane looked down at his hooves, not wanting to make eye contact.
“Are you a coltcuddler?”
He couldn't see Grey's expression. He didn't want to.
“Yes. I am.”
The answer wasn't hesitant or soft. It came right out into the open, filling the space between them. The next part wasn't so brave or confident.
“Do you hate me?”
Now Thunderlane looked up, his breath catching in his throat as he almost yelled.
“No! I...I hate myself for not knowing how to deal with this.”
“Oh...”
The silence stretched out again and Grey could feel that same sense of despair that he always felt when anypony found out. He'd lost several good friends who couldn't understand his life style and now...he was losing somepony he really liked.
“Well, we don't have to be friends, if you don't want...it...wouldn't be the first time.”
“No...”
Thunderlane shook his head, stepping closer. He looked into Grey's eyes, tears almost coming to his.
“I could deal with that...what I don't know how to handle is...that I'm in love with you. I didn't know I was...that way.”
Thunderlane pressed his face into the stunned Pegasus' chest, seeking comfort from the stallion that had brought all of this out of him. A warm arm wrapped around his neck, pulling Thunderlane close.
“It's okay. I know. I know how it feels when you realize it.”
Thunderlane buried himself in the warmth of the embrace, his own hoof rising to Grey's neck. He felt the soft stockings, the tight corset that wrapped around him. His feathers were as soft as the cloud they stood on, a wonderful contrast to the hard muscle of his body.
He lifted his head, looking at the guard pony and knew. He didn't have to be scared. There was a pony right in front of him that would help him understand. A pony whose very definition of life was to help and protect.
Their lips met, the nervous trembling leaving his body as Grey Skies held him, his warmth chasing away the fear and doubts that been building up in Thunderlane.
Whether he liked mares or not, whether he liked stallions or not, it didn't matter right then. That world of what was normal or right was a million miles away and had no control over that moment of joy.
The spell finally broke and the kiss ended, the pair staring at once another, a light blush on their cheeks.
No words were exchanged as they spread their wings and lazily flew back towards the world below. A scary, sometimes intolerant world but neither worried about any of that. They accepted one another and that was that.