“Say, what’d you do before all of this?” Bailey asked. Between the beeps and boops of the medical machinery, it was a welcome break to hear a voice.
“What, before the Stable?” Shooting replied.
“Yeah. You said ya’ll were from Hollow Shades, didn’t you? Both of ya. What’d you do there?”
Shooting exchanged a glance with Blueberry before she shrugged. “I was--well. I wasn’t a guard, but I defended the town, in a way. It’s a forest out there, and we were arguably in the Everfree… our weather wasn’t controlled by Cloudsdale. It worked on itself.”
Bailey’s eyes visibly widened at the revelation, but Shooting could only chuckle. “Relax. There wasn’t a lot of scary things out there, but there sometimes were wild animals who were… upset. My job was to… take care of threats like that. Stay in the sky, high up. Watch for intruders.
“When they started building the Stable - I guess we were considered a big enough town, but that never made sense to me - they handed out jobs. You know, just in case.” The irony of her words wasn’t lost on her. As the white and red bat pony came back and checked her vital signs, she continued talking. “Since I was the only pony in the city who was proficient with a gun, they told me hey, you’re security mare. Which was smart - you can’t just pick up a gun and hit anything. You’d just as easily shoot a friend, or waste all your ammo, if you could even figure it out to begin with. Especially in here, metal walls? You miss a shot down here, someone is going to take a bullet. Almost certain.”
“It’s an acquired skill,” Blueberry said, nodding. “It’s a lot like lockpicking. You really can’t just guess and get it right. Or, on the locks you can guess on… those would get picked really early on, honestly.” She chuckled. “I’m sure whatever was left in a building up there, Megaspells or not… it’s all been picked already.”
Shooting nodded, half listening as Blueberry continued to speak. The trio was interrupted by the squeak of a mechanical door opening, a mare in a labcoat entering the room with a clipboard floating in her magical grasp.
“Well, Star,” the doctor mare said. Just like everyone else, the doctor hadn’t escaped the sticky, sweet grasp of the stable’s food supply, her body quite a bit thicker than when she entered. She fared better than most ponies—something Star attributed to her medical profeciency—but it was unavoidable. “I don’t see any drugs currently running through your bloodstream. That’s both good and bad.”
Shooting nodded, giving a hard swallow. “Alright.”
“The good news is, that means you aren’t under the influence of anything. Whatever caused you to have your… spontaneous feasting, that’s gone. The bad side of this is that… I don’t really have a way to reverse … mmh.” The mare bit her tongue slightly, thinking of a way to soften the blow.
Thankfully, Shooting’s body did plenty of softening for it. In the four days she’d been “missing”, her appetite hadn’t gone anywhere. Lost in the trance of the ice cream troughs, Shooting didn’t remember a single minute, but she didn’t need to; what happened was obvious. Shooting Star’s body plumped up significantly more than it had before she was lured in. There wasn’t a single hope in the Stable that she was going to be fitting into her armor any time soon, that barrel of hers having thickened up more than anything else. Her belly grew, hanging several inches lower than it did before, and now beginning to bulge against the inside of her thighs. Her rear took a good ballooning, too, that rump having lost any of the firmness it still had, squishing slightly outward as she seated herself down.
“This is,” Shooting said, reaching down and pressing a hoof into her gut. She frowned a little as it sank in, a new sensation for her, bottoming out against her abs. “All me.”
“…Right,” the doctor said, squinting a little. “The only way that’s going away is old fashioned diet and exercise and, let’s be realistic, none of us are going to get that down here.” She gave a forced chuckle, before clearing her throat when nobody else laughed. “Ah—anyway. You are otherwise cleared to go, Star.”
Shooting gave a little nod as the mare trotted off. Turning to give a smile to her allies, she nodded to Bailey. “So,” she said. “Want to show me your new office, Miss Overmare?”
) ( ) ( ) ( ) (
As the trio walked, Shooting’s mind wandered to the other two mares with her. While Blueberry had been overweight before the stable, and Bailey was just, well, big, the thirty-five pounds she’d somehow managed to gain in three days was rocketing her weight past them. She took slight comfort in the idea that she’d be lighter than Bailey—especially as she looked over the Overmare’s body.
Still, walking was, at best, rather annoying. Each step forward prompted her thigh to grind in against the soft curve of her gut, slowing her down. She cringed at the thought that a few more days of this and she’d be waddling, but she pushed the thought out of her head before it got too deep.
“…and it just kinda started openin’ up fer me,” Bailey said, Shooting only having paid attention for the last bit. “Guess the computer automatically went and fiddled with my ID card. Could just open the door, like, what. Was weird.”
“That is strange,” Shooting commented, pretending like she’d heard all of it.
The trio stood in the entryway, the cold metal of the stable’s interior turning into more of a round shape as the entered the coridor that the Overmare’s office was in. A large, silver door blocked further entryway.
“And she was never there, you said?”
“Nah. Wasn’t shit. There wasn’t no Overmare before, that’s why you weren’t gettin’ no response.” Bailey hoofed her ID card into the slot. It blipped green and the door began to slide open, gears squealing as the door opened. Shooting folded her ears back.
Once the door opened, Shooting couldn’t help but let her jaw go slack.
Beyond anything else, the first thing she noticed was the sheer size. The Overmare’s office was nearly the size of the atrium. It was far less empty, however.
Despite the lone desk in the middle of the room, with a single terminal sat on it, the rest of the walls were covered. TV screens, bookshelves—you name it, the room had it. Most ominously was a large, tall screen covered in green text. Shooting went to check that out first, stepping over to it.
Listed individually, in three columns, was every citizen in the stable. A number hung in place next to their name, each citizen ranked in decending order by it.
“Ah, yup,” Bailey said. “Thought you might get a kick out of that. That there’s every pony—“
“Listed by weight,” Shooting chimed in.
“You’re smart, girl.” Bailey chuckled. “Now, here’s what’s really interestin’. See the last ones on the right, there?”
Shooting turned her attention that way, eyeing the end of the list. Rather than their weights being listed in neon green, they were emblazoned with bright red. All of their names were dead last on the list, and their weights were rather average for a pony.
“Those ones, they ain’t gained a pound. They’re eatin’, ‘cause they ain’t lost any weight, but they’re not blowin’ up like the rest of us.”
Author's Note
The unfinished chapter 3 of Broken Scale.
This chapter was leading towards the ponies who weren't gaining weight being an Equestrian Games troupe passing through the town when the spells dropped, and were actively watching their weight. This was going to lead to the vault's robotic doctors taking this into their own hands, declaring them "severely malnourished", and copious amounts of force feeding.
Broken Scale was essentially going to end with Glaze Filling eventually winning the election after a few cycles, making the decision to open the door because she doesn't believe the mega spells dropped, only for them to find a massive number of raiders outside trying to break in, which would have led to, obviously most of the characters dying because they were far too overweight to possibly fight back.
Bailey was intended to be the great, great grand mother of Raspberry Tart from the original FO:E, and Stonershy's story, Anywhere but Here, having survived the raider attack. This never hashed out because shortly after, Stoner seems to have disappeared from writing AbH and cut all contact with me for... some reason. Never did know why.
And yes, the first few paragraphs are openly making fun of Little Pip and the original FO:E. I still believe that the original FO:E was one of the worst things to happen to the fandom as a whole.
Baby Got Back to the Future
Rarity tugged the measuring tape tighter around Twilight’s barrel, both ends gripped in her light blue magic. “Twilight, be a dear and raise your wings out of the way, hmm?”
“Oh! Sorry,” Twilight said, wings raising up and out, just as requested. “I still forget that they are there sometimes.”
“I know you do,” Rarity said, tightening the measuring tape fully around that barrel once the wings were out of the way. “I can’t imagine how. They’re so stunning that were I in your position, I think I’d spread them any opportunity I could!” With the measurement taken, the tape fell loose across Twilight’s back, a pencil and pad being taken up in that same blue glow as Rarity scribbled down the number.
“Oh, you’re such a flatterer,” Twilight said, giving a little roll of her eyes as she tucked her wings back in. “They really aren’t that big of a deal.”
Rarity opened her mouth to respond, but instead just found her breath taken away by the sudden appearance of a bright, round ball of light, smack in the center of the boutique. Her hooves scrabbled on the floor as she pedaled back, shooting a glare at the back of Twilight’s head. “TWILIGHT. Stop that immediately! What are you doing?”
“That isn’t me!” Twilight shouted, but rather than the horrified backpedaling, Twilight was practically galloping in place, her hooves dancing up and down. “Well, it is, but — not me me! It’s happening again — the time travel spell! Watch, I’m coming through any second!” She let out a happy squeal, throwing her head back as her hooves tapped against the floor. “I hope it’s something good this time!”
The ball of light swelled as the spell coalesced in their realm, the bright whiteness of the magic becoming almost blinding. That, of course, didn’t stop Twilight from staring directly into it, though she did take a few steps back to be at the same distance as Rarity, throwing a foreleg around her withers, who only shivered in response as she kept a foreleg over her eyes. “It’ll keep growing, and then it’ll…”
POP. The spell exploded into the universe, sending several cracks of white, magical lighting in every direction, before leaving two mares in it’s place.
“Wait… what?” Twilight said, squinting slightly.
Rarity simply kept shivering, but at Twilight’s voice she peeked over her leg, before furrowing her brow heavily and letting her hoof drop back to the floor with a clop.
Sure enough, both mares were seeing double. Or, perhaps, in Twilight’s case: triple.
The version of Twilight before them was… plus-size. Well, perhaps a bit understated; the mare was big. Soft, wide flanks rounded her out, the mare’s hips wide enough to be visible from the front. A round belly hung beneath her, widening her stance even farther; even with the bright white dress she was wearing, it was readily apparent that her barrel was significantly rounder than the present Twilight’s was. Of her visible coat, which wasn’t much, thanks to the flowing nature of the dress, her neck was significantly thicker, the beginnings of a double chin forming just below her snout.
Rarity wasn’t able to escape the changes that the future would bring either. While she was certainly “heavier”, it wasn’t due to her body size. Rarity was absolutely decked in jewellery; it was as if she was given every bit in Canterlot and told to use it to give herself a makeover. Huge, gaudy necklaces, of which there were several, hung from her neck, overlapping in their sheen; multiple earrings of various sizes hung from her lobes, threatening to buckle her ears under their own weight. Her dress, too, as white and bright as Twilight’s, though somehow even frillier. Even though she was the same size in the future, her dress managed to be wider than Twilight’s.It exploded with absolute divinity, white lace and trim running all up and down the sides and back, looking more like a ballroom gown than anything else. And that mane — her mane was absolutely divine, styled in a totally new fashion that she’d never seen before. In fact, it was so shocking and unique, she hadn’t even noticed when her future self had been shouting.
“Are you even paying attention?” Rarity shouted, waving her hoof in front of Rarity. “This is SERIOUS. You need to listen, we’ll get pulled back any second now!”
“I — wha’?” Rarity shook her head, pulling herself out of her dazed wonder and back to the present, where she was speaking to the future. Or something. “Yes! Yes, of course, dear! What is it?”
“Listen VERY carefully, everything depends on it! Do you understand?”
Rarity nodded. “Yes, yes! Go, go! What is it?”
“First of all, tell Twilight to not do this silly spell in our Manehatten boutique! She ruffled up so many of the dresses!” Future Rarity gave a heavy roll of her eyes; Present Rarity simply stared, eyes wide, and gave a meek nod. “But! Besides the point! Whatever you do,” Rarity said, her lips pursing as she drew them tight, slowing down everything, including her speech. Two hooves raised up, grasping current Rarity by the cheeks as she leaned in close, their snouts so near that she could feel her own breath as she spoke. “Do not. Invite. Rainbow Dash.”
“To wh-” was all Rarity was able to get out before her future self disappeared, a bright white flash echoing through the room with a loud crackle. The only remainder was a few wisps of smoke coming from the now blackened spot on the floor where the unstable energy had manifested.
Rarity, eyes still wide, simply looked over at Twilight who was beaming a massive smile.
“That… was so cool.”
) ( ) ( ) ( ) (
“So this… whole thing. You’re saying that I did that?”
Twilight nodded, levitating a spoon into her tea, stirring sugar into it. She paused after the first lump, and left it alone, stirring just that one in. “Well, the spell only works once for each pony. I’ve already used it on myself before. And, since we were the only two ponies who came through…” Twilight said, shrugging as she took a sip.
Rarity leaned back in her seat, taking a long, deep breath. Her mouth quivered a little as she thought it over, horn glowing as she too took a sip from her tea. It was warm outside, but it didn’t matter; clearing her head with fresh air was far more important for her mental state, even if all the other cafe patrons were inside.
“Really, Rarity,” Twilight said, reaching out across the table with a hoof. “It’s not a big deal. This happened to me before, too. And the only thing that fussing over it did was make me miserable for a week. Besides, do you even have anything planned that would have us in dresses like… that?”
“No. No, I suppose I don’t,” Rarity said. She hunkered down under her parasol, blocking the sun from beating down on her back before she took another sip of her tea. “But… it must have been important, right? I mean, why else would I have done that?”
Twilight gave a little giggle, shaking her head. “No, not at all. When I used the time travel spell, it was because of a total misunderstanding. And going back in time? It didn’t do anything.” Twilight waved the hoof that was across the table, beckoning Rarity to take it in her own. “Rarity, trust me on this. It isn’t worth worrying about.”
Rarity sighed and placed one of her hooves against Twilight’s, nodding before they both retreated their forelegs. “Oh, I suppose you’re right, but it’s still so … strange. Didn’t you see me? I was… amazing. And that dress! And the boutique — I said Manehattan boutique!” She drew in a sharp breath through her nose, letting it out slowly. “Are you sure that’s accurate, then? Because darling, if that’s what the future holds…”
Twilight let out a little chuckle, giving a shrug of her shoulders. “As far as I can tell, from the research I’ve done? You can’t change the future.” Twilight’s mouth turned into a smile. “That said, I am, ah… going to be cutting back a little bit. I might not be able to effect the events in the future, but hopefully I can prevent my waistline!”
“I didn’t want to be rude, but — yes, I did notice that, too. That was rather strange,” Rarity said.
“Well, I’m sure not everything has to come true, I guess. I mean, time travel magic, that’s such a… new concept, even if I have done it before! It’s actually rather fascinating, but don’t get me started,” Twilight said, bringing a hoof to her muzzle to suppress a chuckle, before taking another sip of her tea. “What else did you say? I mean, uh, what else did future you say?”
“See, that’s the thing about it,” Rarity said, brow furrowing again as she leaned in closer, giving another little huff. “I was told to ‘not invite Rainbow Dash’.”
“Not invite — wait, to what?” Twilight asked, cocking her head to the side.
“Um.” Rarity forced a big smile, looking up at Twilight’s eyes as she widened her own. “I might not have heard the first part of what sh— I said.”
“What do you mean you ‘didn’t hear’?” Twilight said, furrowing her brow just a touch, annoyance teasing at her features. “You had a literally once in a lifetime opportunity!”
Rarity gave a gasp and a huff, leaning back away from the table. “Well, I couldn’t help it! I’m not around magic as much as you are, Miss Princess, so when big flashy things start shooting off in my Boutique, I get a little scared! And besides, I was too stunned by how regal I looked in the future! I looked like… well… a princess myself!”
Twilight waited for a moment when Rarity was looking away to roll her eyes. “Yes, we both looked stunning. But, I guess it’s for the best.” Twilight gave a short shrug. “The less you know, the better. We don’t want to alter anything, right? Could affect the future in a bad way.”
“I guess,” Rarity said with a small, defeated ‘hmph’. “What did your future self say?”
Twilight shook her head. “Honestly? Nothing. I know better than to fuss over it, so I just didn’t tell myself anything. I was just excited to get a second chance to see the time travel spell.”
“That does sound like… you,” Rarity said. Before long, she took a deep breath in, letting it all out at the same time. “Oh, you’re right. There’s no point getting worried. Everything will be fine.”
) ( ) ( ) ( ) (
Nothing was fine, and everything was terrible.
Rarity checked, double checked, and triple checked the measuring tape around Twilight’s barrel. With the measurement taken, she picked up her notepad last week’s measurements were in, and there was no way around it.
Twilight had lost weight. There was one less inch around that barrel.
Rarity winced, and tried again.
“...Rarity? Is something the matter?” Twilight asked, her out-stretched wings giving a little flick.
“Oh, no, of course not, dear! I’m just…” Rarity paused. “Happy for you,” she forced out between grit teeth. “Your diet, it seems to be going well?”
Twilight nodded. “It has, yeah! I haven’t actually weighed myself, but it must be working if you’ve noticed.”
Rarity scrunched her snout. “Indeed.” With a quill in her magic, she jotted down the new measurements on the next page, giving a tiny little huff. “Wait right here, let me get something from upstairs.”
“Oh, sure!”
Rarity turned and trotted up her stairs, pushing open the door to her room with magic before stepping inside and taking a long, deep breath through her nose. She flopped across her bed, getting off her hooves. Her head shot between her forelegs, closing her eyes for a few moments as she thought in solitude.
Twilight had told her not to fuss. In fact, she’d been clear about that. That the future couldn’t change, even if she tried.
And yet, it did. Not even a week since the time travel spell had reached them, and the course of time was already altered. Twilight had lost weight. The future in which the Manehatten boutique became a reality was changing right before her eyes. Twilight, as far as she could tell, was wrong.
She could just follow Twilight’s instructions. Don’t fuss. Leave it alone and see what happens. But that relied on Twilight’s theory that the future cannot be changed to be true, and, as she had just learned, that was inaccurate.
Alternatively, she could ensure the future. That meant perhaps being a bit unfriendly towards Twilight’s waistline, but at the same time, who knew what could happen if she didn’t? The very fabric of time and space could be altered!
A small part of Rarity’s conscience tickled at the back of her head; this wasn’t for the sake of the future as a whole, and she knew that, but before the selfishness of her plan could really set in she was already levitating a little envelope out of her dresser and out the door, back down the stairs.
“Oh Twilight,” Rarity’s voice sang. “I have a little proposition for you!”
“Oh! Um, what is it?” Twilight asked.
“Well, I happen to have two tickets to the new diner in downtown Ponyville, and I was wondering,” Rarity said, stepping in front of Twilight to give a little flutter of her lashes. “If you would like to come with me tomorrow?”
“Me?” Twilight tilted her head. “...Really?”
“Of course, you,” Rarity said, beaming a huge smile. “You’re the best mare for the job! And besides, wouldn’t it be nice to come and see a new place opening up in your town? You are the princess, after all.”
Twilight scuffed a hoof against the ground, averting her gaze to the side and down as she mulled it over, eyes flicking back and forth a few times. “I’m just — I don’t know, I’m kind of surprised.” She, in turn, gave her own big grin. “But excited! I’d… be delighted to, Rarity.”
“Nothing to be shocked at all about, dear,” Rarity said, setting the envelope down on the shop’s counter. “We’re close friends, are we not? And I’ll get to work on your dress tonight. Of course, won’t be finished by tomorrow, but I’ve not much else to work on.”
“Great, Rarity,” Twilight said. She bit her lip, as if holding something back, hesitating for a few moments in the silence before moving towards the door. “Thanks! This will be fun!”
“Oh, it will!” Rarity said, waving a hoof as the door closed behind Twilight.
) ( ) ( ) ( ) (
Rarity fussed, but she was getting used to that considering it was all she’d done all day.
But now, she was prepared. She’d double checked the restaurants menu, pleased to find that this was indeed the new place that was going to be offering hayburgers. Which, given the circumstance, was a really nice coincidence considering they were one of Twilight’s favorite foods. The only question left was dress.
She didn’t want to go too formal. After all, this was just a casual dinner with a friend at a not exactly five-star restaurant. At the same time, though, she wouldn’t want to be seen with a princess of Equestria and be too under dressed. It was quite a conundrum, and one that required at least four dresses to be discarded and tossed into a pile on the floor.
Maybe she was overthinking this. There was nothing wrong with being mostly casual on this expedition. Her horn shined as she levitated over a wide-brim hat, settling it on her head. Pink, with several decorative flowers along the rim, and a puffy white fur-like fabric along the edges. Subtle, but fancy, but not so much that it would overshadow everyone else.
Being rather cool out, but not cold enough for an actual coat, she levitated a purple scarf — that matched her mane perfectly — over and around her neck, tucking it into itself.
Makeup was applied, quickly but carefully, and again in only the places where it was absolutely necessary. This wasn’t a go all out scenario, she constantly reminded herself. A little mascara, a light colored lipstick, and Rarity struck a pose in the mirror. Yes, this was perfect.
Rarity made one double-check for the entry passes, making sure they were tucked away in a small, one-sided saddlebag slung over her hips. She checked herself in the mirror one last time, before nodding, then headed out into the streets.
It was actually a fairly nice evening, Rarity noted as she trotted towards Friendship Castle. The weather was subtle; just cold enough to where it was cozy, but not biting, and that lovely part of fall where the trees were just beginning to change color, but before the miserable part of having to rake thousands of fallen leaves off your yard.
Trotting up the stairs to the castle, she telekinetically raised the knocker on the door and clapped it against the metal plate a few times, before taking a step back.
“Coming!” Twilight shouted from within the building. A few hoofsteps later right in front of the door, before a brief pause of silence, and then the door swung open to reveal Twilight...
...who had dressed farmore than Rarity had. A long, flowing dress followed behind the mare, reaching down to the ground both around her hips and along her backside. A bright blue, with white trim, and several crystallized pieces along her chest, sparkling in the bit of sunlight that was still lingering in the sky. Even her mane had been styled differently, combed up and parted to the side, rather than her trademark bangs.
The second she noted the disparity, Twilight’s cheeks flushed red.
“Twilight, dear,” Rarity said, raising a hoof up to her chest. “That’s… you look marvelous!”
“Yeah, I — but…” Twilight stammered out, taking one step back from the doorway, before she shook her head. “I’m so sorry, I must have misunderstood…”
“Twilight, darling,” Rarity said as she steps forward, shaking her head in response. “I’m flattered that you would go this far!”
“Well, thanks, but I’m — clearly I’m way overdressed…” Twilight paused for a beat. “I’ll go change, real fast. I’ll be right out!”
“Well, you don’t have to, but I understand.” Rarity nodded as Twilight turned and galloped up the stairs towards her room, leaving Rarity alone.
Rarity settled herself against one of the chairs in the lobby, but it didn’t take long at all before Twilight reappeared, trotting down the stairs with more than a little spring in her step. It was clear she’d freshened up a little as well, a new set of makeup, particularly her mascara. Much like Rarity, she now sported a small, knitted scarf, wrapped around her neck and draped across her chest loosely.
“All right, there we are,” Twilight said, beaming a big, wide smile. “Are you ready?”
“Absolutely!” Rarity said as she slipped off the chair, nodding to Twilight. “Let’s go.”
They exited together, Twilight closing the door behind them, before giving a grin and a nod to Rarity. “So, where is this place?” Twilight asked as they departed.
“Mmh, it isn’t far,” Rarity said, taking the lead, though they mostly walked side by side. “Three blocks away. Just on the edge of the town, actually, towards the tracks that lead to Appleloosa. Which I thought was a strange location for it, but alas, that’s where it is.”
“Oh, huh. That is a little odd, isn’t it?” Twilight chuckled as she followed along. “What kind of food do they have?”
“Well, I’m glad you asked,” Rarity said, glancing over towards Twilight with a smirk. “It’s a hayburger joint. Which I happen to know is a particular affinity of yours, is it not?”
Twilight gave the slightest blush, giggling into one of her hooves. “I think that’s a little overstated, but yes, I don’t think you’re going to be hearing a complaint from me. That sounds great!”
Rarity gave a little chuckle of her own. “Good, good.”
The rest of the walk was fairly quiet, and a few minutes later the pair arrived.
The building itself was fairly small; quite a bit smaller than Rarity had been expecting, but alas, it looked well enough. It was clearly not that upscale of a place, but then neither was Ponyville, so it really did fit right in. Brick walls, glass storefront; it was truly a typical burger joint, but instead of being in a big town, situated right here in Ponyville.
The crowd out front wasn’t massive, but there werea few ponies gathered out front, and several with cameras. Ponyville was a small enough place that a new place opening was big news, even if it wasn’t a huge shindig.
As they approached — or, rather, as Princess Twilight approached — ponies began to take notice. Cameras flashed as the pair made their way to the door, both of them putting on big, wide smiles. Several of the reporters in the audience began to scribble things down on their notepads.
“See?” Rarity said, horn glowing as she retrieved the entry passes from her saddlebag. “I told you ponies would like to see you out here like this.”
“You were right,” Twilight said, bowing her head slightly to the bouncer pony at the door, who bowed deeper in return. “I guess this is what ponies like to see.”
As they entered, the greeter waved to them. “Hi! Welcome to the Round House!” Rarity and Twilight both bowed towards her, which she responded in kind with. “Just the two of you?” Rarity nodded again, and the greeter smiled. “Great! Just follow me.” Being an earth pony, she knelt down and bit onto two of the menus, nodding her head towards the aisle.
The diner was a quaint little place. Everything was absolutely polished to a shine, like one of the old-time burger joints that it was styled after. Chrome lined the chairs and tables, the fabric of which was a checkered red and white, matching the walls and the tiled floors. There weren’t a terrible amount of ponies in the room, with only half the booths full, though it was still somewhat early for dinner. Not that either of them had argued.
The greeter pony paused at one of the empty booths, before holding out a hoof towards the table. Rarity and Twilight took the cue and slipped into it, one on each side, before the mare placed one of the menus in front of each of them. “Alright, and how about drinks for you two?”
“Just water, dear,” Rarity said.
“Same,” said Twilight.
“Great, I’ll get that for both of you!” She took a step back and gave a full bow, chin nearly reaching to the floor, before she rose back up and trotted off.
Rarity could absolutely get used to that.
They both raised their menus in their magical auras, floating them in front of their faces. It was fairly standard burger joint food, really; not that Rarity had expected anything else. It was exactly what it said it would be, and nothing else.
Still, there were some differences from Ponyville’s other hayburger restaurant; notably the addition of new flavors. Rather than just one-size-fits-all, these were far more unique. An Appleloosan burger, which was topped with onion rings and baked beans; one styled after Canterlot, including a gourmet mustard and bleu cheese; another, named after Vanhoover, which was topped with… poutine?
Perfect.
A few moments passed, their water delivered, before Rarity spoke up. “So what are you thinking, Twilight?”
Twilight bit her lip, giving a little giggle as she peeked over her menu. “Well, it’s awful on calories, but I was actually looking at the Vanhoover burger…”
Perfect.
“Oh, you as well?” Rarity asked, cocking an eyebrow.
Twilight mimicked the motion, her own eyebrow lifting up high. “...You were thinking that one too? Wow. Never thought you’d eat something like that.”
Rarity feigned offense, letting out a gasp as a hoof rose to her chest. She couldn’t keep herself from smirking, however. “Now, Twilight! I know how to have fun, after all!”
Twilight snickered, nodding. “I know, I know! I’m just saying. Yeah, that’s what I’m going to get.
“Well, then, I will too,” Rarity said, nodding in solidarity.
As if on cue, the waitress returned to the table just in the nick of time, placing her forehooves on the table as she set down her notepad on the table, pencil between her teeth. “Okay! What are we getting for you two lovely mares?”
“Vanhoover hayburger,” Rarity said.
“Two of them, please,” Twilight added.
The waitress nodded as she scribbled down the order, beaming a smile at the pair. “Alright! Won’t be long. I’ll be right back!” She hopped off the table, stuffed the notepad in one of her apron pouches, and meandered off towards the kitchen.
The pair entertained themselves with small talk, though the wait wasn’t very long. A refill of water later, and the waitress was making her way towards the table, two plates resting across her back. As she lined herself up with the table, she leaned in against it, shunting the two plates onto the surface.
With a hoof, she pushed one burger in front of each mare, beaming a big smile. “Alright, can I get you two anything else?”
Rarity shook her head. Twilight, eyes already locked on the hay burger in front of her, shook her head a few moments later. The waitress, satisfied with those answers, nodded and took off to take care of other customers.
Rarity’s nose scrunched slightly as she looked at the mess of a meal in front of her. A thick hay burger patty lie on the bottom bun, which was all fine enough, but the toppings were a mess. A heavy layer of hay fries, no doubt deep fried, lay on top, before being absolutely covered in vegetarian gravy, cheese curds, and then more gravy.
Rarity cringed at just how… uncouth of a meal it really was, but just as she opened her mouth to say something she looked up, to see Twilight’s snout already deep into it, her own burger encased in a purple glow. “I take it you’re pleased, then,” Rarity said.
“Mmmh, very!” Twilight said, nodding as she leaned in for another bite, alternating between that and the serving of fries that weren’t on the burger itself.
“Very well,” Rarity said. She squinted slightly as she floated her burger in front of her, gravy and melted cheese dripping from the bottom and splattering onto her plate. Her eyes squeezed shut as it came closer to her mouth, before she finally opened her maw and took a bite…
And slowly opened her eyes. While it wasn’t the classiest of meals, it wasn’t… bad. She chewed, letting the flavors mingle around her tongue before she swallowed. It certainly wasn’t something she would find herself eating often, but as a novelty… she could live with it. Not that she was going to be eating nearly all of it.
Twilight’s infamous love for hay burgers still rang true, judging by the speed she was plowing through her own. Rarity had only eaten a single, laborious bite, but Twilight’s was half gone. A few of the fries floated up to her mouth as well, the clearly hungry alicorn snapping those up too as she sipped from her water.
“Well, I think I made a good decision bringing you here, hmm?” Rarity asked, a little grin teasing at the corners of her mouth.
Twilight giggled, giving a little shake of her head as she floats a napkin up to her mouth, wiping along her lips to collect some of the gravy that missed being eaten. “Sorry, sorry! I know, you probably want me to slow down and eat properly.”
Rarity scoffed, shaking her head. “Oh, hardly. I’m happy if you’re happy, Twilight. It’s your meal as much as it is mine.”
Rarity took a few more bites, though given how dainty they were compared to Twilight’s massive chomps, it was barely a dent in the heavy burger’s girth. As Twilight polished off the last of hers, Rarity set her own back on it’s plate, leaning back in her chair. “Well, I’m stuffed,” Rarity said, giving a little squirm as she looked away.
“Really?” Twilight asked, looking at Rarity’s plate. “You’ve barely touched your food.”
“Oh, well, you know,” Rarity said, pausing for a beat. “I’m… not as used to fried things as I think you are!”
“Oh. That… makes sense?” Twilight said, tilting her head.
Before she was given any real time to think about if that did, indeed, make sense, the plate was gripped in a light blue glow and stacked on top of Twilight’s own plate. “It would be a shame for it to go to waste, darling,” Rarity said, leaning forward a little closer. “And you love them so much, it’s all yours.”
“I’m not sure,” Twilight said, leaning back in her own bench, a hoof rolling down to rest along her stomach. “That was pretty big… maybe I should just get a doggie bag and save it for later.”
“Oh, you know better than that,” Rarity said, giving a flippant wave of her hoof. “All that gravy? This will be a soggy mess within the hour. That’s certainly not the right way to eat such a … delicate … food.” Rarity furrowed her brow at her own words, before shoving her conscience out of her mind, replacing her scowl with a grin.
“Well… good point. And I have been doing so well on my diet, I guess I can indulge a little…”
Twilight’s willpower shattered immediately once they convinced it that she was allowed to eat the rest. That second hay burger was raised up in that lavender magic glow once again, brought to Twilight’s mouth as she bit into it.
Rarity, now burger-less, sat back and watched. Pleasure tickled at the back of her head at the sight, but that too was stamped down, shoved into a closed, and locked behind a door.
Twilight’s eating slowed as she approached the end of the second burger. The fries were already gone, just leaving the last few bites of the main portion. Twilight let out a short groan as she took another bite, and from under the table they could hear an audible groan from that poor belly; finally, though, Twilight stuffed the last of the burger into her maw and, with a slow chew and swallow, finished it off.
“Dessert?” Rarity asked, though it was mostly a tease; there was no way.
“Absolutely not,” Twilight confirmed. She paused, bringing that napkin up to her mouth as she wiped at her lips, nodding slowly. “Okay, I am stuffed.”
“I’d imagine so, dear,” Rarity said, giving a little chuckle as she reached across the table, patting Twilight’s foreleg with a hoof. “Ready to go?”
“Yes, absolutely. I need a nap after all of that.” Twilight giggled as she shifted slightly in her chair, nudging herself down to the floor on her hooves.
From Rarity’s position, there was zero doubt that Twilight was absolutely full. It wasn’t exceptionally exaggerated, but it was exceedingly obvious that Twilight’s stomach was rounder than normal, taut skin pulled against her swollen middle. It wasn’t enough for it to cause her mobility problems, but it clearly showed. Rarity couldn’t help but grin as she hopped out of her own booth, trying to not draw attention to Twilight’s gastric overextension.
“Very well, then,” Rarity said, nodding towards the door. “Shall we, Twilight?”
Twilight nodded and took the lead, trotting out of the restaurant with Rarity in tow. She was definitely walking a bit slower, and it was obvious why, especially when Twilight’s stomach gave an annoyed little gurgle at the movement from walking.
“Thank you for taking me out, by the way,” Twilight said, breaking the short silence as she looked towards Rarity.
“Oh, it’s no problem at all, dear. I know you’re quite a fan of hay burgers,” Rarity said, meeting her eyes as she smiled.
“Heh. You… definitely know me well,” Twilight said as she stepped up the stairs towards Friendship Castle.
“I do! You’re one of my closest friends, after all.” As Twilight reached the door, Rarity called out, “have a good night, Twilight.”
Twilight paused as she reached the porch. Before reaching a hoof out to open the door, she turned and looked back, realizing that Rarity hadn’t followed her up the steps. Rarity could have almost sworn that she saw a little tease of a frown at Twilight’s mouth, but surely that was just the shadows of the night playing tricks. “O-oh, you too, Rarity!” Twilight called, waving a hoof before the door swung open and she disappeared inside.
Rarity turned towards the path to the Boutique, absolutely ignoring the little prickles of her conscience that ran along her withers, assuring herself that this was the right thing to do.
Author's Note
Later in the story, Rarity was going to feel incredibly guilty about everything and head to Friendship Castle, spewing her heart out about how at first she was being totally selfish, but now she's developed real feelings for Twilight. To which Twilight would look at her, bewildered, and say "well duh, why do you think I kept going out with you?" And happy ending.
The "thing" that Rainbow Dash would do is fuck up the wedding cake for the Twilight/Rarity wedding reception. Upon finding out that it was going to be delivered late, Rainbow would attempt to help out, not realizing that, of course, flying really fast with a fuckhuge cake would destroy it.
YAY HAPPY ENDING, also fat Twilight.
“Fluttershy, please. You have to eat.”
The open can scraped against the concrete floor, ash piling up along its forward rim. The sticky syrup inside quivered as the magic jostled it, before coming to rest. The faint image of sliced fruit hung under the surface, barely illuminated by the sole candle between them.
Fluttershy turned away, burying her snout in her forelegs.
Twilight sighed, inhaling through her nose. The scent of burnt gunpowder still hung in the air. It would wrap her for days, leaving her to wallow in it. “Fluttershy.”
Fluttershy didn’t answer.
“Fluttershy.”
Fluttershy answered. Even under the thick, dirty coat she wore, Twilight could see her shoulders start to shake, the motion rolling down her body as a soft sob escaped her snout.
For a brief moment, the thought of using the final two cartridges in the gun crossed her mind, before she wiped away the tear streaming down her cheek, carving a clean spot through the caked ash on her gaunt face. A small trail of purple shone through the chasm.
The fork, wrapped in purple, rose to her mouth and Twilight forced herself to take another bite of fruit. She swallowed, hard, to prevent the bile rising from her stomach. Not tonight. She needed her strength tomorrow.
) ( ) ( ) ( ) (
The carriage felt heavier. Twilight knew it weighed less; they hadn’t found any supplies in weeks. That didn’t stop it. It was illogical; less items meant less weight. That didn’t stop it, either. Even with the coat she wore, the strap around her chest chafed. The cart rattled as they walked, axles creaking, a constant reminder that it, along with the rest of the world, was falling apart.
Supplies were low. They could probably fit all of it in one of the bags, if they wanted to. Two cans of pears. Their map. The useless pieces of garbage they were lugging around for no r-
Twilight caught herself, eyes shutting as her hooves stopped in place. No. The Elements of Harmony. That’s what they were. Even if they’d failed them, they were still the Elements of Harmony. Five were in the cart, the sixth - Kindness - being worn by Fluttershy. At least, she hoped. She hadn't seen her take it off, but the heavy jacket she wore kept her from seeing it for weeks, now. For the first few weeks, Twilight wore hers, too, but that was a long time ago.
Twilight hadn't noticed herself lost in thought until she felt a hoof against her chest.
Twilight's eyes flicked towards Fluttershy. Her coat and mane had long since lost their luster, gray and ashy just like the rest of the landscape. Just like Ponyville, just like the forests, just like herself. Just like the Elements. Everything. Dull, lifeless, without color. If she squinted, she could still make out a tiny bit of yellow and pink. There were days where she wouldn't move. On those days, Twilight had to carry her in the carriage.
Twilight was thankful today wasn't one of those days. She didn't think she could go on if it was.
"S-sorry," Twilight stuttered out. She wasn't sure if she meant it. "A little longer, and we'll make camp."
Fluttershy nodded. Hooves aching, Twilight grunted and started to pull the carriage again.
Along the tracks, buildings were rare. There were the frontier towns that were built along them, at the ends of the line, but they were a long ways away from that end of Equestria; even when they found one, they were often pillaged for anything worth taking years ago. Still, today, they were lucky. Today, they found a small barn.
Pulling up alongside of it, Twilight shrugged the harness off, letting it clatter to the ground where a plume of ash kicked up. “Come on, Fluttershy, I have a good feeling about this,” she lied.
Twilight’s horn glowed, gripping the revolver in her vest with her magic. She didn’t pull it yet, but she was ready. She was always prepared. She’d never let them get Fluttershy. It didn’t matter what she had to do.
As she pressed a hoof against one of the massive barn doors and pushed, it swung with little resistance. That put her on edge. It meant that nobody had barricaded it before everything. It meant that she was walking into the total unknown.
Her fears were dispelled, then immediately replaced with others. The barn was ransacked. Furniture turned over across the floor, sprawling out chunks of discarded wood and mouldy hay. The building may have been abandoned, but not before it was turned over for everything that it had.
Twilight stepped inside. Her horn lit brighter, spraying the room with a bright purple light.
Her heart only sank farther and farther as she meandered around the musty room, snout filling with dust causing her to sneeze a few times. Each time, she clenched her magic around the revolver’s grip a little tighter, just in case that sneeze would be the one to draw attention to them; in this case, thankfully, it never did. Twilight brought her handkerchief up to her mouth, wiping away the blood from her lips.
Behind her, Fluttershy took a careful, tentative step into the building. Head low, mane dragging against the ground, she too picked through the corpse of the barn. A hoof here, and nuzzle there.
Something towards the back of the room glinted. Something glass. A relic from before the world died. Something that took Twilight’s breath away, and caused her to nearly sob with glee as she presented it to Fluttershy.
Twilight had found candy.
) ( ) ( ) ( ) (
"Do you know where we are?"
Twilight held out the map of Equestria. It was tattered, torn, fixed, then torn again, but just like the two ponies it kept doing what it needed to do, until it couldn't anymore.
Fluttershy shook her head, looking at Twilight. As she gave a nod of approval, she raised a gray hoof, pressing it against the paper. To the east, right outside Baltimare.
"No, silly," Twilight said, giving a little chuckle before she cringed. Laughing hurt. Talking did too, but she forced the words out for Fluttershy's benefit. "We passed that over a month ago." Twilight raised her own hoof, pressing the edge against the map. Just south of the Canterlot mountain, along the tracks they had been following.
Just east of Ponyville.
Both of them grew quiet.
Fluttershy broke the silence. A hoof across the table, two tiny little morsels of crunchy-coated chocolate on the wood between them.
"No, they're yours," Twilight said. “That’s all there is. Maybe all that’s left in Equestria.”
Fluttershy didn't move to reclaim them. Her head shook, a small dusting of ash flittering down to the table from her head. She reached out further, pushing them closer to Twilight.
Twilight smiled. The muscles she used to do that were atrophied, and at first it was lopsided, but she smiled. Her eyes closed, looking off to the side. "I'd be lost without you, Fluttershy." The pieces of candy were wrapped in purple before floating to Twilight's mouth, jumping in before crunching between her teeth.
Memories slammed into her like a truck. It had been months since she’d tasted sugar, and years since she’d seen Pinkie Pie. She didn’t swallow - she didn’t want it to end. The chocolate melted against her tongue, coating her mouth in a foreign flavor. The world crumbled around her. Her thoughts were everything.
"It reminded me of her, too," Fluttershy said.
Twilight's head shot up. She hadn’t recognized that voice. Weeks, maybe months, since she’d heard it last.
"Twilight?"
"Y… yeah?" She stammered out, still in total disbelief. Fluttershy was talking to her again.
Fluttershy's head ducked before she let out a brief squeak, droplets of moisture dribbling against the wooden floor, splattering against its hard surface with rolling sob Fluttershy made. "I miss them so much."
Twilight pounced. In an instant, her forelegs were wrapped around Fluttershy's withers and she squeezed. She squeezed harder than she had ever before, feeling the warm tears soak through the thick coating of ash along her neck. Before long, she felt forelegs along her back, too, a light hug that fit the pegasus in her grasp so well.
“I want them back, Twilight.”
Twilight grasped for words, mouth turning all sorts of shapes as she tried to form a coherent sentence. In the end, all she’d ended up coming up with was “me, too.”
Fluttershy’s grip squeezed tighter. “I thought you’d forgotten them.”
“No, Fluttershy. No. Oh, Celestia,” she sobbed, burying her face against Fluttershy’s filthy overcoat, nestling herself right between her chin and shoulder. “I could never. I could never. All of them -- I couldn’t.” Between sobs, the pair let out small chuckles. Glimmers of laughter in a wasteland of emotions, saplings of happiness in a forest of dread. “Do you remember the party? When I first came t- to -- to Ponyville.”
“The hot sauce,” Fluttershy said, before her body was wracked with a different pulse - laughter. The sound was like music to Twilight’s ears. She’d never heard something so amazing in her life. She’d forgotten how great it was to laugh.
Fluttershy didn’t need to say anything else. Twilight knew exactly what she meant. “Yes. Yes, that…”
For the first time in months, they slept in each other’s grip, bathed by the warm glow of friendship. Outside, a little blue balloon on a gold necklace pulsed with magic.
Author's Note
This was my foray into serious fics. I mentioned wanting to do this several times, but never had the courage. Based heavily on the book The Road, which is both my all-time favorite book and all-time favorite film. This is very sad and not at all fetishy (in fact, an overarching theme is lack of food, so it's literally the opposite of most of my stories), so if you are just here for jerk material, skip it.
The story would have followed Twilight and Fluttershy as they realize that the Elements of Harmony still function; they just need to be "recharged" by honoring them.
In the end, they would learn that the Elements empower whichever element was needed most at the time. During Nightmare Moon's attack, that was magic, and so that's why it empowered Twilight. However, now, it's Kindness, and Fluttershy would ascend to Alicorn once they reached the sunlight on the west coast.
