"….Eclipse, you're hovering again."

"I am not." Eclipse quickly hopped backward, from where he'd been sniffing concernedly at Noct. "…How's your hoof?"

Nocturnus tested his limb briefly, before fixing his best friend with a grin. "Not good, I'm afraid. I think we'll need to amputate."

Eclipse scoffed. "Idiot. Next time you'll end up with worse than a sprained hoof. It serves you right, showing off for those girls like that."

"Hey, I think things were going pretty well, up to the part where I flew into that tree." Noct shrugged. "Where the heck were you, by the way? You're supposed to be my wingpony, Eclipse."

"Please." Eclipse huffed, rolling his eyes. "I've got better things to do than watch you make a fool of yourself in front of giggling, soft-headed females."


"Ooooh." A broad, knowing grin came to Noct's muzzle. "Somepony's jealous."


Eclipse's cheeks erupted into a fiery blush. "I am not jealous-"


Nocturnus shoved his hoof to Eclipse's snout, silencing him. "Oh, Clipper, my sweet, darling moon, you needn't worry. Those mares meant nothing to me!" Noct squished Eclipse's cheeks to drag him closer, so he could rub their muzzles together obnoxiously. "Don't you know you're my one and only? Only you know how to light the crimson blaze of my love's fire! Only you know how to make those little cookies with bits of bacon in them!"


Eclipse pulled away, swatting at Nocturnus. "….I wish you'd flown into that tree headfirst."


"Nah, I'm young, and therefore immortal." Noct grinned. "You're stuck with me forever, Eclipse."


"Or at least until we join the Lunar Guard. Then I can leave you behind in basic training."


"Cold-blooded as always, friend." Noct pouted, then held up his sore hoof. "…My hoof hurts, Clipper. Kiss it better?"


Eclipse frowned, and snorted, and did an excellent job feigning indifference….but after a few moments, he did eventually take Noct's hoof and press a soft kiss to it. Ignoring Noct's stupid, smug grin, he curled around the smaller pony, snuggling his head under Noct's jaw.

"Luna above. You're worse to care for than a foal." Eclipse sighed. "…I'm only doing this so you don't catch pneumonia and die while my back is turned."


"Right. We're cuddling purely for warmth. Not at all because I'm your best friend, and you can't get enough of me."


"Correct." Eclipse moved closer, nuzzling into his friend's neck. "…Purely for warmth."



a warm-up doodle that kinda got away from me a little
The Night Watch by Lopoddity


Eclipse and Nocturnus maybe had a thing in the past

They come from the same bat pony village, although Eclipse comes from a well-off, refined family, while Noct lived dirt-poor on the outskirts with his mom. They managed to become childhood friends, with scrawny Noct always popping up at Eclipse's place to be fed sandwiches and regale his friend with adventure stories he'd make up. As the colts grow up into young adults, Eclipse finds himself getting a big dumb secret crush on Noct (who has filled out quite well), and he leaps at the chance when Noct proposes they two of them go traveling Equestria together, and finally make their own adventure.

During their time traveling, tensions mount between them, Eclipse grows more and more huffy and in denial and super-tsundere, to the point where Noct eventually gets tired of Eclipse not being nearly as secretive about the issue as he thinks, and one night he simply drags the other bat into a kiss to shut him up.

They traveled for more than a year, and spent quite a few nights together. But they never really fell into a genuine romance, more just "suspiciously close bffs that like to snuggle and screw sometimes". Their relationship came to a natural end, but they still remained best friends, and after their travels, they decided to join the Lunar Guard together, where they continue to bicker like a married couple.