Home Sweet Shy

"I'm telling you, Seabreeze, that stallion... he reminded me of my father."

"Your Fatheer?" Seabreeze asked, out and fully clothed once again, hands clinging tight to her coat's shoulder as they hiked through the trees. "Yuu deeden't saay hee woorked oon th' train."

"He doesn't." the pegasus replied, her face downcast. "He... well, he used to work in Cloudsdale, at the Weather Factory, before... b-before..."

A silence stretched out for a few seconds. The blue breezie's antennae bent backwards, before he asked. "Yuu... deed say yuu knew what eet was lyke wheen... I-If eet's noot tuu much foor mee tuu ask... what happeened?"

Fluttershy heaved a sigh, before raising her head to look ahead. "... it happened when I was six years old. They told me that one of the water renderer machines at the factory had undergone some... catastrophic meltdown. There was a spill, that dissolved all cloudcrete that it touched, and was about to break free of the factory, and get into Cloudsdale itself. It never did though... thanks to my poppa and his friends..."

"Theey stoopped eet?"

"They did... He'd been working there for years." A small smile surfaced to her lips. "He collected clouds from there. A tiny whisp from the first run of production from every year he'd been there..." the smile faded away. "His experience helped save the city... at the cost of his own life."

The tiny stallion was very quiet, digesting that news. "... A-Aye'm sorree. A-Aye doon't knoo what tuu say..."

She heaved a sigh, and shook her head. "My family was among the last to know. I was just a little filly... I thought he'd abandoned us, that he... didn't love me, my mother, or my little brother anymore. It took a long time for me to finally accept that it was all an accident... but even still, it..."

He tilted his head, his voice soft. "Eet steel hurts, dooesn't eet?"

She bit her lip and nodded, before turning her head to the side and looking at him. "And that... is why I pledged myself to helping you, Seabreeze. I have to get you and the other Breezies back home. I don't want your little filly to grow up the same way that I did... wondering if her father ever loved her. If I can help it at all, I'll not see a family torn apart, the way that mine was."

He held a hand to his chest, touched by the statement. A thankful smile broke out over his face, before nodding. "Thaank yuu, Fluttershy... Aye'm sorree foor all dee trouble wee've caused yuu soo faar..."

She shook her head again. "Things are going to happen, and I'm still new to this 'Host' business besides..." She idly caressed the side of her hefty bust, the cargo inside ever-present in her mind, but currently being well-mannered and still. "But as long as we have an understanding... so long as we work together, I think we can make it. We're just going to have to keep trying. We're not out of the woods yet..." she then proceeded to lift her head and look about herself and the foliage surrounding her. "Both figuratively and literally. Uhm... which way is Highwind Lake again?"

Seabreeze lifted his head to look around as well. "Weel... eet's a beet hard to teel from heere... aye doon't usuallee goo thruu thees areea. Tuu manee trees foor a Breezie t' get loost in."

She raised an eyebrow. "You've never been in these woods before?"

"Yees, but noo? Ees a beet complicateed. Th' breeze uused in th' migration usuallee bloows inna straight lyne, one way at th' staart, and th' otheer way at th' eend. Eet takes us tuu th' fields at th' beeginnin', and theen it takes us hoome afteer. Anee deetours froom th' breeze, eeither reejoins eet later, oor resuults in a Gastheer."

A thought tugged at her. "When was the last time the Breezies had a Gastheer? Did it turn out okay?"

"Th' laast tyme waas... five yeears agoo, aye theenk. Aye waas steel een school, buut theey steel had a beeg to-duu aboot eet an' let th' claass oot thaat day . She was a mare, a beet older thaan yuu, whoo... theenkin' baack, reeally had nuu great attachment too th' role. Aye theenk th' flock thaat yeear haad maneeged too talk 'er intuu eet, buut shee just wanteed eet all oveer an' doone weeth. Deedn't eeven staay foor th' party."

The pegasus couldn't help but smile wryly. "I guess it takes a certain kind of pony, doesn't it?" she mused. "Well... while I can't say I'm not in a hurry to get you all home, I'm willing to go the extra mile to make sure you all arrive safely."

She got a vibration of gratitude from within her inhabited parts, Seabreeze himself smiling again. Looking up at the trees towering above her, she then sat her bags down as she made a decision. "I'm going to fly up above the tree line, try and get our bearings. Everybreezie hold on tight."

She spread her wings and braced her legs, before leaping up with a downward stroke... and then suddenly finding herself having to flap harder than usual, as she realized a bit late that she was hauling more weight with her than she was accustomed to. She managed to hang in the air for a few seconds, wings beating furiously, before they tired and she allowed herself to drop to the ground again.

"Hah... hah... h-hoh goodness." she breathed, face flushed with embarrassment. "I-Im sorry... I knew I was heavier with everybreezie on-board, but I didn't think..."

The small stallion had a thoughtful look on his face. "Aye knuu wee woould add weight, buut eeven aye waas soore wee woouldn't bee that heavee..."

"Well, then again, I'm not exactly the best flyer ever." the mare confided. "Even Flitter's got more practice than I do. And there was one time I even forgot I could fly, when her sister... u-uhm..." she paused, the memory causing her to blush for multiple reasons. "W-well, anyway. I'm amazed you breezies are so weighty. I could have sworn there were a few times yesterday, where you made my breasts levitate."

He looked up, a light going on in his eyes. "Yuu meean when wee uused ouur weend magic?"

A silence fell for a few seconds. "... you... can use your wind magic... while inside me?"

"Aye, that wee caan, thoough eet's noot all that muuch. Eet's part oo' whaat maykes us weeghtless, wheen wee're flyin'." He took wing off her shoulder, and turned around to face her, the long transparant membranes barely fluttering. "Wheen theere's moore o' us, thaat's wheen th' magic coomes stroong eenough foor us tuu tame th' breeze. Aas eet ees, eef wee uuse it inside yuu, eet'll at leest, mayke yuu weightness. Oor at leest, parts oof yuu weightless."

This was some new information. She placed both hands on her belly as she thought about it. "It'll put a strain on you all if you use it inside me though, won't it?"

"Noot as muuch as yuu theenk. Wee canna hoold eet forever, but wee can goo loong eenough too say, luuk aroound over th' trees?" His face had a smile as he said this, suggestion clear in his voice.

Fluttershy smiled back, before taking a breath, and nodding. "O-okay, let's do it then. Uhm... will y-you need to...?"

"Nuu need." he replied, fluttering down to her bust, and then making contact with her bared skin using his antennae. His speech reverted back to Northslandic as he started chirping instructions to the Breezies within her breasts, then fluttered lower to do the same to her belly. Then even lower, ducking under her skirt, to talk to the ones in her gonads, the yellow pony's face flushed at that final action.

At last, he flittered back to her shoulder, and seated himself, gripping her jacket's collar. "An' nou, aye suggeest yuu hold oon tight~"

She opened her mouth to ask what he meant, but got her answer almost immediately. Within her, she felt her charges beginning to shift around, a gentle hum now beginning to overtake all her inhabited body parts... and then, it happened.

Right below her nose, she watched as her breasts began to defy gravity, lifting themselves up so that they stuck straight out of her ribcage, her back suddenly relieved of the strain of supporting their weight. Her belly too seemed to lift, becoming a perfect sphere that made her feel as if she was floating in water. And finally, her balls, which had been pulling at her crotch for a while now, began to float and hover between her thighs, seemingly looking to escape the panties they were trapped inside.

"O-oh, oh, m-my goodness..." she stammered, her eyes growing wide as she watched her own body suddenly reacting like it was filled with helium. They didn't stop either, the pegasus treated to the sight of her own cleavage rising up to meet her, the massive mounds beginning to lift further and further up, soon overshadowing her head even as she lifted an arm to try and corral them, a hand on her belly attempting to do the same. "M-my goodness... I-I've... I-I've never... a-ah!"

That gasp was a reaction to feeling her hooves suddenly leaving the ground. Gaping, she felt her body orient itself on her back as she proceeded to rise up into the air without a single flap of her wings, buoyed aloft by her own breasts, belly, and balls. Drawing her legs up to herself, her arms were busy rubbing her humming surfaces, eyes wide with amazement as she continued to rise even higher.

"Heh." Seabreeze couldn't help but chuckle at her reaction. "Hoow's that foor givin' yuu a ride, huh?"

"It's amazing..." she breathed, her heart pounding, but completely awestruck by what was transpiring. "It's like I'm one of Pinkie's party balloons... I'm floating in the air. No wings needed." She looked behind her to see the forest floor steadily falling away, her body in no great hurry to go anywhere. "No need to find a cloud to rest, or to make sure you don't make a mistake with your wing position... though, I wonder..."

After a few seconds of ascending, she spread her wings and flapped them, righting and steadying herself. Then, despite being as full of wind drag as she was, she proceeded to perform a very tight loop-de-loop, followed immediately after with an immelman turn. Righting herself again, she couldn't help but giggle. "I think Rainbow Dash would have been proud of me for that."

"Waarn mee beefore yuu doo that ageen?" the small stallion wheezed, all limbs clinging to her shoulder. "Besydes, doon't wee 'ave otheer theengs what needs doin'?"

She grinned sheepishly, before looking up again, at the trees still arcing above her. She gave another flap, and proceeded to fly upwards, this time with no issues at all. It didn't take long for her to clear the peaks of the many spruces and pines, the landscape that was the forest stretching on for many miles below her hooves, far-off mountains and hills decorating the horizon.

"Okay then..." she turned to her diminutive friend. "Can you recognize anything from up here?"

"Weel..." He stood up taller, a hand shading his eyes as he took in the surroundings. "Eef aye doon't mees my guess, thoose ones ovah theer shoould bee th' Smokee Mountains..."

She listened to him peek out the landmarks, looking along with him, but as he continued she found herself folding her wings, which resulted in her body once again gently reorienting itself, so that she was 'lying' on her back, still held aloft by the orbs attached to her chest, her torso, and her groin. She still found herself oddly giddy about this arrangement, after having spent a day carrying them, they were now carrying her. This won't be forever... but a mare really could get used to this! she found herself musing, a blush coloring her cheeks.

She looked again behind her, at the trees drifting lazily beneath her. Being a pegasus, one tended to be comfortable with heights. Like she was comfortable now, as she peered past the trees to the forest floor below, delighting at seeing bits of wildlife here and there. A small group of deer, a single bear trudging along. An adorable family of squirrels. A pair of young foals staring at her with wide eyes. The-

A pair of young-

"Seabreeze!" she suddenly exclaimed. "We need to get down now, somepony's seen us!"

The breezie sputtered, glanced around, and spotted the same two young ponies who were watching them from a distance. Hurriedly, he pressed his antennae against her bust and began rattling off words in his native tongue. Whatever it was he said did the job, as the humming sensation from within all her parts began to lessen. Flaring her wings wide, she then proceeded to glide back down into the woods, hopefully in the opposite direction of the prying eyes.

Finding a small clearing, she descended, her weight beginning to reassert itself as her passengers dialed back their wind magic. Once she was on solid ground again, she pulled her collar away, and motioned for the blue pixie to get inside. Said pixie did not dawdle and dived in, the pegasus pulling her coat away from her nipple to allow him to fully take shelter.

After she felt the last of him disappearing inside her breast, she looked around. That had all been in a rush, and he hadn't been able to tell her in which direction the lake was in before it had happened. Biting her lip, she stepped towards the bushes exiting the clearing, resigning herself to trying that again, once they were further away from any-

A filly's upper torso suddenly erupted from the bush nearest to her, waving about arms in a sweater with way-too-long sleeves. "FNARGLEBARGLE!!"

"AHHH!!" was Fluttershy's completely rational reply to the surprise.

"For goodness sakes don't do that." came a colt's voice directly after, soon joined by the colt in question as he poked his head out, beaming a withering glare at the filly. "You just about scared the poor mare half to death!"

"Correction." the filly replied, holding up a finger. "I scared her half to life. It all depends on how you look at it! Sometimes the glass is half-empty, sometimes it's half-full-..."

"Yeah yeah, and sometimes it's chocolate milk and thus makes the point moot." he finished for her, climbing out and standing up before the pegasus, revealing himself to be touting a vest, a cap, and a backpack. With a worried expression, he asked "Are you okay, ma'am? Ponies don't usually show up this far out in the woods."

"Unless they're mysteeerious." the filly spoke again, fingers wiggling about as she stretched the syllable. "Are you a mysterious pony, ma'am? Come here to sneak away our Nightmare Summer candy, or do dastardly dances in the dark, o-or deliver the midnight mail?"

A hand covered her mouth. "You'll have to excuse my sister." the colt replied wearily. "She's got a bit of an imagination."

"Anth thyu don'th?" came her retort through his fingers.

Watching the back-and-forth between the two siblings, Shy found herself calming down, even lifting a hand to hide a smile from watching their antics. She finally cleared her throat. "N-no, I'm just a traveler from Ponyville. Uhm, I need to get to Highwind Lake. You two wouldn't happen to know where it is, do you?"

They both lifted a hand, before she hastily clarified. "The actual lake, not the town."

"Oooooooh... That way!" they both proclaimed in unison, pointing off towards the northwest.

"It's a fair ways away from town. Two days on hoof at least." the colt added, looking up at the pegasus with a raised eyebrow. "You sure that's where you wanna go? You said you're from Ponyville, right? The Smokey Woods aren't like the Everfree, but they aren't exactly a cakewalk either, you know."

"Well... my special talent is dealing with animals, so I don't think I'll have any problems... though." She clutched her jacket hem. "There aren't any monsters living out here, are there? Timberwolves or anything?"

"Timberwolves? Psh lady, you're gonna wish you only had Timberwolves to deal with!" the filly grinned, showing off braces. "Just last week, we had rumors that there was a Shambling Mound, shambling about the place!"

"Rumors so far." her brother added, reaching into his backpack and withdrawing a book. "My sister and I've been keeping an eye out for it. If you run into it, my advice would be to run, as far away, as quick as you can." He flipped the book open, thumbing through its pages. "And even if you don't, you'll still have to contend with Highwind Lake itself."

"O-oh? How so?"

"They don't call it 'High-wind' Lake for nothin'." the sister replied. "You wanna talk about choppy water? This is like, chop-suey water! No boats, no rafts, no floaties, nothin' gettin' on that lake. Not in one piece anyway!"

"And it's all localized, over the waters of the lake itself. Nopony knows why it's like that." He placed a thumb on top of a page, and turned the book to Fluttershy, showing her a sketch of a huge, oblong body of water with a jutting crescent of rocks along one side, the remaining space on the paper covered with writing in black and red ink. "Nopony's ever gotten to the opposite shore, and nopony can explain why that is. But there are theories, like it being an ancient monument built by the first pegasi..."

"A failed experiment to build the most raddest amusement park ride ever..."

"Or a guard wall." The young stallion closed the book. "That blocks off an entrance to another dimension, possibly of the Breezies. There's been an awful lot of rumors about Breezies just by themselves around here."

Fluttershy's ears perked. Did you know about this, Seabreeze? she pondered. I'll have to ask you once we're alone. Drawing in a breath, she then nodded to the pair. "I see... that doesn't change the fact that I need to get there, as soon as I can."

The colt narrowed an eye at her. "How come, if I may ask?"

She fought down the urge to stammer. "I-I'm afraid those reasons are my own."

He didn't seem satisfied with this answer, but he was prevented from pressing further when the filly gave him a playful shove. "Aww c'mon, don't be like that, brother. A girl's gotta keep her secrets, y'know." This was followed by a quick wink and a grin.

Returning the smile, Shy made as if to grab her bags... before realizing she'd left them behind. "O-oh dear, I left my bags further in the forest-"

"You mean these?" The pair proceeded to pull her purse and suitcase out from the bushes behind them, handing them off to the pegasus. "Found them a little ways back, after we saw you up in the air. That was you, wasn't it?"

She blushed a bit, but heaved a sigh, caving in. "Th-thank you... Yes, it was. I was just trying to get a better view of the area. Seeing you two caught me by surprise."

"Well what can I say? We are very surprising!" the filly put her hands on her hips and laughed, going slightly crosseyed, while her brother simply shook his head.

Fluttershy couldn't help but be reminded of Pinkie and Twilight, looking at this pair. A quick glance at the sky showed the sun rapidly approaching the high noon point however, and she picked up her bags once more. "If it is two days walk, then I'd better start hoofing it. Thank you for your help!"

"No problem!" the sister chirped, waving a sleeve.

"When you come back, stop by town, wouldja?" the brother asked. "We live at the big tacky-looking souvenir shack. Can't miss it. Would like to know that you made it back alright!"

"I will." she promised, as she proceeded to turn northwest, taking to her hooves. "Thank you again!"

They waved their farewells, and as their voices receded in the distance, she could hear the colt musing "I dunno, maybe we should follow her."

"And I think maybe you ought to give the conspiracies a rest. She fessed up to her being up there, what more do you want?"

"I'm telling you, she was floating in the air like a balloon, not flapping like a pegasus. Mark my words, there's something strange going on in these woods..."

The hiking was pleasant enough, if she was to be honest. Out here in the woods, she didn't really need to disguise herself all that much. As the day wore on, she found herself shedding her coat, which allowed her better access to what breeze there was, not to mention more breathing room.

It also allowed the Breezies within her more room to move about. Several times already during her walk, she felt them shifting around, causing the sweater stretched over her breasts and belly to bulge and undulate from their actions. Now free of prying eyes, she found herself often lifting a hand to gently rub these surfaces, calming down the passengers within them, speaking to them in soft tones.

Several times she'd thought to call Seabreeze back out, but after having gotten the directions from those foals, she had no trouble keeping to a straight line. When the sun starts setting, I'll stop to make camp, and we can have another peek over the treeline to make sure we're on the right track. she decided. She still had a few hours left before that at least.

In the meantime, she was a stranger in a strange forest. Which suited Fluttershy just fine, her eyes and ears constantly open for the sights and sounds the woods had to offer. More than once, she had seen a family of rabbits pop up to watch her pass by, and the curious birds kept her constant company. She would whistle to them every now and then, trying to be friendly, but had gotten muted responses so far. At one point, she swore she even saw a giant sloth!

Now this is my kind of adventure! she found herself grinning, her inhabited condition momentarily fleeing her mind.

She saw a heavy fallen branch in her path, and spread her wings again to flap over and clear it. As she landed, she then suddenly yelped, as she felt her panties bunch up. In particular, they had bunched into a cord that strung itself directly between her immense testes, the pinched sac between them twinging something awful. On top of that, the occupants inside those jewels were now a bit panicked, jostling for attention.

She stopped long enough to bend over and reach under her skirt, and pull her panties down. Doing so brought her hands in contact with her balls, and she had to stop and cup them to confirm her suspicions. They had been feeling heavier as the walk went on, but she wasn't certain if it was just the strain of carrying them that was getting to her.

She had her proof now. They had indeed grown since last night, filling her hands completely. Beneath their surfaces, she could feel the rounded forms of pregnant bellies, becoming increasingly more and more gravid as time passed. At this rate, I'm not going to be able to even move, if I don't get them home in time!

Trying her best to stretch the slimmest portion of her undergarments so that they could best support her slowly-swelling sac, she finally got them re-seated, standing back up, and taking a few experimental steps.

Crisp and crackle, her hooves crunched through the fallen leaves of the underbrush, the noises joining the chorus of...

... they were singing just a moment ago...

In the space of time it had taken for her to fix her clothing, the forest had grown quiet. Eerily so. Looking up and around, she spotted a flock of birds on the wing, flying in a single line at speed, high over her head. Another skittering of brush, caused her to turn to the side to see an armadillo, galloping and giving the impression of a living football, while along side it a pack of squirrels dashed for the nearest tree.

They were all fleeing from the same direction, from something further up the path.

There was another sound. Something like a thrumph, echoing among the woods. Slow and steady, like footsteps. And they were coming closer.

The pegasus found herself taking shelter behind the biggest tree in the area, setting her bags down and peeking around its trunk to peer into the gloom. The shadows of the pines that offered respite from the noonday sun, now cast a pall across the ground, the distance fading into a darkness of brush and leaves. Slowly those steps came closer, bit by bit, one thrumph after another. And then from out of the shadows...

Fluttershy bit her tongue as she fought down her urge to scream. The form that emerged from the shade was huge, bigger than the largest grizzly she'd ever seen. It was low-slung to the ground, the surface of the mass entirely covered in molded leaves and vines, with desiccated corpses and bones of small creatures found here and there among its sick foliage. The thing walked slowly but purposefully, carrying itself along on five limbs, every footstep leaving behind a barren patch of earth as it absorbed any life that was caught unawares underfoot.

At the head of the mass rose a single eyeless lump, otherwise featureless save for the wide maw of crooked wooden teeth. Sickly green tendrils emerged from this lump and undulated in the air, like catfish whiskers. As it drew closer, she could hear it wheezing with every step, vines probing the air on the search for something, anything that it could get its roots on...

The Shambling Mound that the foals were talking about!

She kept her eyes on it, even as it drew nearer. On its current course, it would pass within spitting distance of the tree she was hiding behind. Some sorts of monsters, she was comfortable with dealing with, having helped Manticores and others in the past. This creature, was not one she was familiar with. Plant creatures in general had never been her forte... And even though it possessed no eyes, she still got the impression that it would know she was there, the instant it passed by.

She didn't have much time.

Her occupants had begun to squirm, apparently having sensed her fear. She bit her lip, before reaching a hand up to grab at the sweater fabric around her left nipple, pulling it away. "Seabreeze!" she whispered, eyes not straying far from the approaching bulk. "I need you out here right now. We're in danger!"

She felt what could only be described as a scramble in that breast, before she felt a Breezie hauling itself out of her teat with no pause for care. She kept the garment lifted till she felt them climbing up her cleavage, pink mane and blue hide revealing the breezie she'd called for.

"What's gooin' on Fluttershy-...!!" were the first words out of his mouth, before he spied the hulking form in the forest and slapped his yap shut.

"It's a Shambling Mound." she explained breathlessly. "I've never dealt with them before, but even I know they're bad news."

"Aye..." his own voice was pitched quietly to match hers, clinging tight to her shoulder as he watched the monstrosity. "Theey've naught a mind but tuu absorb every leevin' theeng they can geet their bloody roots oon. An' as beeg as that oone ees... eet musta been at eet for moonths allreadee."

"It's coming this way. What do we do?"

He furrowed his brow in thought, looking at the approaching Shambler, and then over to Fluttershy herself, and then at her bust and belly. At length, his expression hardened. "Weel... Oone theeng's for suure, we canna leeve that theeng free tuu waander aboot an' choke th' woods tuu death."

Her face paled. "You can't be serious. There's no way we can fight that thing! We're only thirty breezies and one frightened living house of a pegasus!"

"Noot bye anee oone oourselves, noo. But wee might steel haave a chaance..." He looked up into her scared eyes, determination smouldering in his own. "Aye have a plann. Buut eet's gonna need yoor help. An' theeirs..." He bit his own lip, before reaching an antennae down to touch one of her breasts, speaking out again. "I know we've had a rough journey so far... but we're almost there. The Gastheer needs you... I need you. And I know that you can all do it. Are you with me?"

The mare's eyes widened a bit as, little by little, ripples of what she knew were 'yes' overtook her breasts. The tiny stallion nodded, before looking up at her again. "What aboot yuu, Fluttershy? Yuu said eet yoourseelf, wee need tuu woork togetheer. Caan yuu help us, help yuu?"

She still thought that this was crazy. But with every second that she waited, the thrumph of those heavy footsteps came closer. At length she finally found herself sighing, before giving a nod. "Okay, Seabreeze... I'll trust you. But what do we do?"

He looked around for a quick second, before letting go of her and taking to the air. "Naught a breeze t' bee fouund. Aye need t' find a spoot. Bee right back!"

He then suddenly took off from the opposite side of the tree, before the pegasus could say or do anything, leaving her gaping. She made as if to grab her bags, but the instant she lifted her purse, she heard the wheeze of the Shambler reverberate in her ears. It was right on the other side of the tree.

Willing herself to stay quiet, she pressed her back against the trunk, attempting to become motionless. A big heavy THRUMPH sounded as a foot planted itself mere feet from her position, accompanied by a sickly slurping noise as grass and bushes were uprooted into its form. Another foot landed, and then another. Its head began to clear the tree, the vines surrounding its maw waving in the air, searching, sensing...

Fluttershy watched, eyes wide, as the beast proceeded to carry on, past her hiding spot. Maybe she was safe? It didn't have eyes after all. Still, she felt better if she kept something between herself and that monstrosity. Eyes still locked upon that form, she lifted a single hoof in order to scoot herself around to the other side of the tree.

As luck would have it, there was a single dry twig in the spot she placed her hoof. It went snap.

The mountain of vegetation paused, the vine tendrils freezing, before waving about in new ways... and then to her horror, the Shambler turned its massive head in her direction. It saw her now.

The pegasus was rooted to the spot by terror, her charges shivering alongside her as it turned itself around to face her. It ambled, leisurely but inevitibly, towards her, the jagged plates of wood lining its maw parting as it towered over her, the stink of rotting vegetation on its breath washing over her. Closer it got, its head raised high, vines waving as it prepared to eat her in a single bite-...

"OI! OVEER HEER YAH MOOSSY LOOGPILE!!"

For such a small pony, Seabreeze had quite the set of lungs on him. The Shambling Mound paused again, and turned its head in the direction of the thrown insult. An action that gave Fluttershy enough time to take off like a shot through the woods.

Wings flapping frantically to add as much speed as possible to her swollen frame, the mare didn't look back, even as she heard a massive crash and sudden thundering of the creature now in pursuit behind her. Despite its tremendous bulk, it was apparantly quite capable of sprinting whenever it needed to, matching her own pace.

Seabreeze rejoined her swiftly, beating his wings frantically to pull ahead of her. "Aye've foound a cleering! Folloow mee!"

With that he streaked off back into the woods, Shy desperately on his trail. Now that she had a rhythm going, she was able to feel that the Breezies within her were assisting, that hum from her floating episode earlier returning to lighten her load, if only a little. She began gaining speed, and soon the crashing sounds of their pursuer began fading in the distance.

Up until both ponies burst out of the bushes into yet another clearing, this one easily big enough to hold both them and the monster. And through the strands of her mane, she could feel it. The whisper of a breeze filtering through the air...

"Noot much tyme 'fore eet catches up!" the small stallion called out, glancing behind them as the steady thuds of the creature began to get louder once more. "Fluttershy! Wheen aye geeve th' woord, leeft yoour top ooff!"

For a breif second she was scandalized, at the thought of essentially flashing her tits to this unnatural mass of animated moss. But then the next second, she could feel a stirring inside of her breasts, of her inhabitants organizing themselves. Of a hum that was still going through them, lifting her mammaries a bit higher, at the ready. She bit her lip as she realized that this was part of Seabreeze's plan. He was going to need the rest of the Breezies. And they were going to need to be able to get out, very, very fast.

"Fluttershy! Oon my woord! You understaand?"

Cheeks flushed, she nodded, her hands going down to grip the hem of her sweater. "I-I understand... I'm ready, Seabreeze."

The steady thrumph Thrumph THRUMPH of the Shambler's footfalls drew even closer, interrupting any further conversation. With a breath's pause, the Mound suddenly smashed through the shrubbery, into the clearing. The instant it landed, the vines upon its head wreathed once, locating them immediately and swiveling to pounce-

"NOW!!"

Fluttershy tore the front of her top upwards, and her heavy, enormous bust bounced once, before the humming within them intensified. Staring, she watched as each globe lifted themselves up until they were like torpedoes, sticking straight out of her ribcage...

And then, she bit back a shreik, as Breezies proceeded to launch themselves out of her darkened nipples, one right after another squeezing through those sensitive teats in rapid fire, wings immediately deploying as they sailed into the air to take up position behind Seabreeze, a rallying cry now echoing through the air. "Bescherm de gastheer!!"

It wasn't the entire flock, she knew, as twenty of the fairies took to the air and flew towards the creature. But getting the rest of the Breezies out of herself to help would have taken too long. The ones that lived in her breasts, had the easiest access in and out of her body. First-responders. That was the term.

And as she watched, she could see, and feel, the breeze shifting as their magic was brought forth, the zephyr now following along the small flock as they began to harass the beast, diving in close only to narrowly escape an enraged swipe.

"It's so big! What a monster!" she heard one breezie cry in their native tongue. It sounded like Flaafi. "What can we do against it?!"

"Maybe we can reach the core root inside?" another replied, their tone not very hopeful. "If we're not eaten by its vines first!"

"I have an idea, but we need to work together to pull it off!" Seabreeze responded, looking back at his flightmates. "That thing isn't alive as we know it. But..." he allowed a grin to blossom upon his face. "Even plants, especially walking weeds, need to breathe!"

This energized the squadron, the lot of them chattering as they grasped what he meant, and they began to change formation, wings touching tip to tip. The breeze following behind them began to widen, and at length, strengthen. Soon it was a gust, which then became a full wind, still dancing at the Breezie's beck and call. And as they flew, they continued circling around the monster, the thing turning its head back and forth as a wall of wind began to materialize around it.

It's just like the water cyclone for Cloudsdale. Fluttershy realized with a shock. They're flying in circles to suck all of the water up and out of the center. But instead of water here, it's air that they're sucking out. And with no air for the Shambling Mound to breathe...

The creature's wheezing began deepening, becoming ragged and more pronounced. Feebly, it lashed out at the wind wall with both foot and vine, only to have these attempts rebuffed by the sheer force of the air. By now, the pixies themselves had turned into blurs, lost amongst the ripples of the cyclone.

It paced in place, turning around in circles, its movements becoming slower and slower, vines becoming sluggish, its horrid maw gaping wider and wider as it gasped for air. At length it stopped moving, all five feet rooted in place, seemingly readying itself to leap...

...and then, it began to come apart, whatever life force that was holding it together fleeing its form, as the branches and vines and moss that made up its body became undone, debris getting caught up in the wind. Bit by bit it crumbled, as the last of it finally dissolved into mere twigs and leaves, the remains of its victims finally freed.

Fluttershy could barely believe her eyes, as the Breezies began to wind back down, their wind magic switching off as the cone of air began to dissipate. "You did it... I can't believe it, you did it!"

"Wee deed eet!" Flaffi cheered, breaking formation to hug Seabreeze around the waist, catching the small stallion off-guard. "Wee deed eet, Seabreeze! Yuu leed us tuu veectoree!"

"Oi, nuut soo haard!" he complained, though it was said with a grin. This didn't stop the rest of his flock from pouncing on him as well, as all around them, twigs and bark began to descend from the sky. The pegasus found herself bouncing out there to scoop up the entire flock into her arms, giving them her own extra-soft hug and a very quiet "Yay!" of celebration.

"Thaank yuu for beeleeving in mee." Seabreeze continued, becoming a bit misty-eyed at his flockmates celebrating him. "Aye waasn't soore yuu all reeallee cared..."

"Yuu deedn't seem tuu beleeve in uus first." the lemon-coated breezie mare from before spoke up, hovering beside the both of them. "Yuu nevar toold uus aboot yer mare and fillee. Eef wee'd had knoown sooner, wee woouldn't 'aave dillydallied lyke wee deed."

The blue stallion froze up at the words. Looking back and forth at the gathered flock, he then rubbed the side of his head sheepishly. "Deed aye noot? Aye coulda swoorn that aye deed... or deed aye..."

His pondering was interrupted by a sharp whistle from across the clearing. Some of the breezies had not been idle, and had been sifting through the Shambler's remains, in search of something. That thing had now been found, as Fleecetail whistled again at them, pointing down to the ground.

Fluttershy and her group hurried over to the spot. There, among the leaves and twigs, sat a single tuber-like root, with a leaf-studded vine sticking out of it. The vine twitched sporadically, like a dying animal.

"Thee coore root." Flaffi breathed, hovering just a bit lower. "Theese ees hoow a Shambleer staart oout. A root weeth veery baad voodoo."

"I-is it dead?" Shy found herself asking, leaning over to inspect its writhing form. "It's certainly not looking good."

"Eet's trying tuu plaay deead." Seabreeze replied, treating it with a glare. "Thees haas happeened beefore. Ponies theenk eets deead, go away, eet waits aand then buiilds eetself baack up, stroonger thaan beefore."

"Fortuunatelee," he looked back up at her, hands on his hips. "Wee knoo juust how tuu handle thaat~"