Chapters How to Tag Friends and Influence People
Autumn was just beginning in Ponyville. The harvest needed to be brought in, and brought in it was. Ponies were starting to dress a little warmer as Winter's encroaching shadow started to arrive in the pleasant little equestrian town.
Something else, too, was approaching. Slowly, unsteadily, panting, it slowly made its way into the apple orchard. The last lights of that day's sun made themselves known and gave shadow to the passing form. It was ponylike, certainly, but thin, ungainly. It moved with difficulty, moving from the covers, from tree to tree, as it steadily approached the barn.
Whatever had kept this thing going was starting to wind down now. Its movements became more erratic. A very faint glow came from the thing's head, and slowly, weakly, the barn door came open, the bottom half swinging outward. The mysterious shape went through, closing the door after itself. As storm clouds finally robbed the sun of its last twilight moments, there was a dull thud from within, and the rest was silence.
As the rain started pounding on the roof of the little farmhouse, the Apple family was settling down. It was the last applebuck of the year before the cold, and everything was starting to wind down. Through this, Applejack saw the night sky blotted out entirely by the blackened clouds, lit with the occasional lightning bolt.
Something was giving her a feeling of unease. Something she couldn't quite put her hoof on.
Pulling a poncho around herself, no mean feat for being done by equine mouth alone, she said loudly to the others, "Ah'm a-checkin on the harvest before bed. Can't be too careful a' the barn roof leakin'. That's the last thing we need."
"Eee-yup," came the reply from the large red stallion, her taciturn brother Big Macintosh.
Through the door she sped, quickly through the outside, not wanting to be in the rain any more than was necessary. Lantern in hoof, she made her way to the barn.
After a few moments, she burst through the farmhouse door, pale in face, but fear held tight in the grip of a no-nonsense mind. "Apple Bloom, head up t'bed right now."
"Why? What's-"
"Jest head up. Ah mean it. Big Macintosh, come with me."
The two ponies headed back to the barn. Applejack strode in first, shining light within. Big Macintosh looked closely, his eyes widening when he realized just what he was looking at.
There, unconscious, on the floor, caked in dirt and dried blood, was a strange pony. Though around the same age as Applejack, there was no cutie mark on their flank. Starvation was writ large all over this creature. The bones could be seen through the skin. The barest amount of movement was the only way they could tell that it was mere unconsciousness and not death that had overcome the emaciated pony.
Big Macintosh looked at Applejack expectantly.
"Ain't no way we can care for this poor soul here. Git the wagon. We need to get whoever this is to the hospital."
Big Macintosh hesitated.
"Aw road apples, Mac, they cain't even move." As he moved to get the cart, rolling the sealed barrels off first, Applejack nudged the pony who'd found their barn. "Hey stranger, can y' hear me?"
The pony opened their eyes, a task seeming to take all their strength. They tried to say something, but couldn't, and quickly fell right back to unconsciousness.
With great care, working together, the mare and the stallion managed to get this skeleton of a pony into the wagon, and together they pulled it down the muddening road, the rain showing no partiality or mercy.
A month later, after intensive care by the hospital staff, it became clear that this was a stallion, one who was slight, not any bigger than a mare of the same age. The dirt and blood now long since washed away, carefully fed back from starvation, the stallion had light brown fur and a reddish brown mane, the latter of which was once probably cut short, but was now shaggy.
When he'd regained consciousness, he didn't say much. He asked where he was when he first woke up, and when he was told the hospital in Ponyville, he seemed to relax. Other than thanking the nurses and doctors for their care, he didn't talk about anything else. When asked for a name, he thought for a moment, and gave them a strange one.
doomcup.
Soon, the stallion was fully recovered, but he was a new pony in a new town, and didn't quite know what to do with himself. There was talk, and this blank flank could hear the whispers of rumor all around him. Adult blank flanks weren't unheard of, but very uncommon. The circumstances of his being dropped into this town, however, did much to control the tone of the speculation going on around him.
He wasn't prepared to tell anyone just where he'd come from, and why he was in such dire straits. He didn't want to raise a fuss. He didn't quite know where the name "doomcup" had sprung from, but he wasn't well going to give his real name. He wanted to leave that behind, like everything else he'd left.
The ponies here were friendly enough. He just wished he had the words to really talk to them, but...
He'd been allowed to stay with the Apple family until a place for him to stay could be found. He gladly helped around the farm as a way of trying to pay them back for helping him in his dire time of need.
Applejack caught his eye very often. Sometimes he'd watch as she passed by, and strange feelings welled up that he couldn't speak to or speak of. He wished he just had the words.
"You gon' daydream all day, or are you gon' get this thing off the top shelf?"
"Oh! Right, sorry, right away."
doomcup was a unicorn. This much was very handy, and part of his convalescence was relearning how to use the magic it gave again. If they'd only known that it was really newly learning instead of restoring an ability he had. The recovery had been quite an education. What great things he could do with his horn that hooves alone couldn't!
He longed to do much more than what he thought was possible. But how could he get what he truly wanted?
Either way, in a wave of green magic, the sought for item floated down from the high shelf, finding its way onto Applejack's back.
"Thanks, sugar cube, ah appreciate it."
doomcup gave a smile. He was happy to help.
A place was eventually found. Somebody's sister's cousin's uncle's brother's best friend's roommate's dad had an old house near the Everfree Forest that they had no real plans to do anything with. It's what charitably would have been described in real estate listings as a picker upper, but doomcup didn't mind. His time with the Apple family had taught him a thing or two about being handy around the house, and he soon had the place looking, if not brand new, then at least suitable for habitation.
Pinkie Pie had been so gracious as to throw a little housewarming party for him to be awkward at. Pinkie Pie. Never before in his life had he seen anybody so colorful, so bouncy, so full of life as that mare. Whenever he saw her, he couldn't help but smile himself. They didn't call her the element of laughter for nothing.
And yet...
He couldn't bring himself to say anything. Not even at the party in his honor, which few attended. Pinkie, her sisters Maud and Limestone, Applejack and Big Macintosh, and a few others he hadn't quite gotten to know that well.
He did want to know them eventually, though. One, Rarity, was a beautiful pony, who'd seem like an alabaster statue come to life were it not for her softness. Her cultured voice and her thrilling eye for fashion awoke yearnings in the stallion very easily.
Last was another pone, and this one he felt some odd kind of kinship with. He'd caught her name as Starlight Glimmer, and she had come along, he thought someone had said, to "further her studies in friendship", whatever that meant.
She too was beautiful, as much as real starlight would be. More, from her he felt the vibe that she too was an outcast, a misfit of some kind. Here, he valiantly tried to strike up a conversation.
"Hello there, Starlight Glimmer."
The mare took a draw of her pint glass of punch. "Hi."
"Thanks again for coming to my housewarming party."
"Sure, it was nothing."
Silence. Uncomfortable silence for doomcup. He knew he had to fill it with something, but what? It wasn't helping that whenever he looked at her, very vibrant images filled his mind. Images that would be far more welcome if he were alone.
He wished, fervently, that among his classes during his recovery was how to talk to people. He thought for a while, struggling for a topic.
"It's getting cooler by the day now. I wonder if we'll see snow by the time Decemberween rolls around."
Starlight gave him a strange look. "December what now?"
He tried to squash the panic rising up his neck. "You don't have Decemberween here? The day fifty-five days after Halloween?"
"What's a Halloween?"
"It's a holiday where you dress up and try to get candy, and there's scary things, though I only ever heard about it, since..."
"Oh! You mean Nightmare Night?"
"Oh, is that what it is around here? Interesting. I wonder how different it is from what I know."
"So what is this Decemberween about, then?"
doomcup tried to explain. Starlight tried to understand.
"...and so to celebrate, there's pageant plays and exchange of gifts, including outdated media in your shoes."
"Ah ha, really interesting. Um, I'm going to get some fresh air, okay? Have a good housewarming or whatever."
She slipped away, trying, and failing, to look like she wasn't rushing out as quickly as discretion would allow.
doomcup couldn't help but feel he'd failed somehow. It's not his fault that he didn't know any of the customs around here. He cursed his past, and then he cursed himself for remembering.
He picked up some punch and decided to sit in a quiet corner away from the noise for a bit.
"...know, but he really creeps me out."
He was able to hear a conversation going on just outside the door.
"Aw, but he seems really nice! You should have seen how he lit up when the party started! Jumping like a little colt."
"You ain't been around him like I have, Pinkie. I've caught him looking at me all funny, and I don't like being looked at that way. Can't have no conversation with him neither, with all his weirdness. Where did he come from, Mars?"
"Now Applejack, dear, you're being quite harsh with him. We have no idea just what he's been through. For all we know, there's very good reasons for him being the way he is."
"Ah know. At least here he'll be far away from the rest. Ah know he ain't as comfy around other ponies, and he seems to like the woods, so he can have at it. Ah'll just be glad to be on my way."
"It is quite strange. How does one reach his age without a cutie mark? I don't think I've ever seen a 'blank flank', if I may be so vulgar, nearly as old."
"Aw, lighten up! I'm sure he can find something he's good at."
"Ah cain't help but feel sorry for him. Y'all didn't see the sorry state he was in when I found him in the barn. Ain't nobody should be treated the way he'd been."
"When I was talking to him just now... he's so bizarre. You know, not only did he not know what Hearthswarming or Nightmare Night were, not only did he tell me about these strange variants where he came from, but these were versions he had never even celebrated! He's so strange!"
"Ah had to teach him how to do things I knew how to do as a li'l filly. Whoever saw a pony so useless? How had he never learnt to do them things fer himself?"
"You're being too hard on him! I'm sure he's a really nice and fun guy once you get to know him! He just needs some time!"
"Pinkie, darling, you're a lovely soul, but you must have some standards. No self respecting pony would ever truck with someone so-"
"Did y'all hear something just now?"
They had. The sound of a glass dropping to the floor (thankfully without breaking). The sounds of hoofsteps going up the stairs. The sound of a door slamming shut.
"Ah think he heard us."
The blinds shut. The party's guest of honor was now sharply feeling dishonor. He flopped on the bed, burying his head into the pillows, staining them with tears.
How could those ponies who'd been so nice to him before say such mean things about him? What had he done to make them dislike him so? Why?
He wanted to be their friend- no. He couldn't lie to himself. He wanted to be more than friends with them. But this is how they saw him? With pity and revulsion?
He tried to take heart that Pinkie Pie liked him, but Pinkie Pie seemed to like everybody. This was why he liked her so much, sure, but it didn't make him feel that much better.
He wished he had something, anything, to let him be what the others expected.
He'd only learned about cutie marks recently, but he wished so much that he had one.
By the time his door started knocking, he'd drifted into sleep.
How to Tag Friends and Influence People
Stars swirled around him. doomcup was alone, floating in the depths of space. Lights of billions of galaxies, billions of stars, all shone around him.
And yet, he felt warm. He felt like the cosmos around him was giving him a warm caress.
A soft voice came from somewhere in this fantastic scene, so he thought, until he realized it was being heard in his own mind.
"You feel quite alone, don't you?"
He nodded, looking around to see if he could find anybody making that speech. He could find nobody.
"It is the way of things, is it not? I've heard your cries and I know your desires. Dry your tears. Listen to me, and I will give you everything you want."
He was unable to speak. He waited attentively for the voice to tell him what to do.
"Go to the Everfree Forest. Look for three stones in a row. From there, you will find your way to everything you desire."
doomcup woke up, stretching as the sunlight started to make its way across the room from the south window, its arc tracing the day very slowly across the wall. He wondered just what was going on.
They'd told him that Princess Luna had returned (and were puzzled that the news hadn't reached him) and was controlling dreams again, but he'd heard her briefly one day, and knew it couldn't have been her. He wasn't sure whether he believed the voice in his dream, but he could use a walk, and even in his dire straits, the forest had been comforting.
He opened the door, and found below a bunch of cupcakes and a note. With his magic, he pulled the note to his face.
"We're sorry. Please enjoy these cupcakes.
He ate into one hungrily. They were good cupcakes.
He took them downstairs and put all but two in a box. The last two he put into a paper bag, which he tucked into a saddlebag along with a map, compass, and a few other bits and bobs. He retrieved a hat (an old one of Applejack's, a parting gift), drifted a cloak over himself, and struck out for the Everfree Forest.
The woods looked very different under the cover of day. He felt relaxed as he walked on. The sunlight streaked down through the gaps in the canopy. All kinds of birdsong met his ears, mixed with the low sounds of the fantastic beasts that filled it.
The stallion already felt in higher spirits, just from being in this hallowed woods. He felt totally at peace, a smile working itself onto his face where none had been before.
He hunted up and down for the three rocks, but not hurriedly. He wanted to take his time. Whatever was there to be found, he was sure it'd be there and wouldn't be going anywhere.
Eventually, he did indeed come across three large rocks, mossy from long having stood there. The clearing let the sunlight shine brightly on them, the noonday sun sitting directly overhead.
He carefully examined them, looking for something, anything, to confirm that his dreams that night had been more than just images that had been projected into the backs of his eyelids.
Scraping some of the moss off, he finally found what he was looking for: an arrow, pointing to the east. He followed it, though the going was difficult thanks to the vegetation all around.
At last, when he'd gone as far as he could stand and was ready to write off following the dream as wishful thinking, he saw something in the overgrown shrubs. It looked like it could be some kind of stone structure, but he could see no door. After taking a moment to rest, he followed the stone, all around, looking for something, anything that would allow him ingress.
It was very much like a box that the earth had half swallowed, one side more than another. The stone was hewn, but well worn. This hadn't been used for a long time. No paths made its way to it.
At last, he thought he saw a small opening, mostly covered by dirt and vines. With the air of one rolling up their sleeves, he wheeled his head around as he exercised his unicorn magic on the vines around, pulling them out of the way without touching them. Clearing the rubble was a bit harder, but he eventually managed with enough magical sweating.
After a rest, he took stock. Was he crazy? Was he about to enter this strange building with who knows whatall inside it? Was he going to do this ridiculous thing just because a voice in a dream told him to?
Of course he was. What else was there?
He squeezed his way in, producing a barely sufficient light that let him see where he was going for a meter or two ahead, and threw the shadows into sharp relief beyond that.
He stayed at the entrance for a time. He felt a strange feeling of apprehension as he looked at his surroundings. Strange tapestries, barely touched by the ravages of time, bore out strange and eerie images that defied description. There was strangely far less dirt and mold and stray plants than one would expect in a place that had been so open to the elements.
He steeled himself, and walked forward, his hooves echoing into the dark depths.
He thought, as he wandered those halls, that he could hear something faint in his head. Whispers, mumbles, too faint and indistinct to make out words. And yet, they seemed to help him through this place, guiding him at forks as he went deeper and deeper in.
Eventually, after countless ages of wandering, or what seemed like it, there was a light at the end of the tunnel, growing soft light at the end of the hallway.
The voices subsided, and at last a clear voice entered his mind with a single word.
"Welcome."
doomcup looked around at this chamber, putting out his light that had become redundant. No obvious light sources were around. Before him was a stone seat, empty, but feeling like there was something sitting there. Or rather, that there should have been.
Beneath the seat, like a footstool, was a stone chest. Carvings and bas reliefs on it showed many ponies celebrating a big one. It put him in mind of Celestia or Luna, but it didn't look like either of them.
"It has been a very long time since I have had any supplic- er, guests in my home. I know your wishes. Do you wish them to be true?"
doomcup closed his eyes, feeling that feeling welling up within him. "I do."
"Open the cask in front of you. Once you do, everything you desire can be yours."
He looked at it. There was a lid. It looked massively heavy. He'd barely gotten the hang of using unicorn magic in normal ways. Could he really do this?
He remembered the conversation he'd overheard yesterday. He resolved that he'd damn well try.
His horn shined as the strain of his effort made itself obvious all over him. The lid struggled to move. He slowly buckled under the force of its weight. It was heavy, so heavy, the weight of it...
He looked up in his struggle. Was that a loose bit of ceiling above him? The gears in his head turned very rapidly. His magic worked on that too, but it only needed a little encouragement.
The ceiling chunk fell, and working quickly, doomcup channeled the falling force and levered it onto the stone lid.
It went flying, and came down on the stone floor, shattering.
"Cleverly done, my suppl- friend. Look within, and see the help you need."
He looked.
Next thing he knew, he was outside again. He looked around, and was surprised to see that he now had a cutie mark!
He was confused that it was an @ symbol. What could it mean? He was very confused.
He also took the box that he found next to him. Was this what the voice had given him? He opened it.
It was full of strange little tags. They looked like they attached to the ear, and they too had a little @ symbol on each of them.
He was very confused. He picked up the box and started to leave, but before he did, he turned around to have one last look at the ruins.
They were gone.
He trotted through the woods again. He wondered what exactly he was meant to do with these things. The voice had stopped talking to him. He thought it was very rude that it didn't tell him what these were or how they worked.
He stopped for a moment, and took one of the small tags out of the box. He examined it up and down, then moved to attach it to his own ear.
He suddenly got a surge of thought in his mind that this would be a very wasteful thing to do. He should just put the tag back in the box.
He did so, a little confused at what just happened.
He thought again. Wasn't there an enchantress of some kind living here in the Everfree Forest? Weren't they somebody skilled with magic and lore and such? What was her name?
Zecora. A zebra. He'd never met a zebra before. He hadn't really met many at all before he came to Ponyville.
He checked his map. It wasn't that far of a walk. He'd certainly pay her a visit.
He approached the door of the rhyming shaman, the exquisitely made masks and totems displayed everywhere around the entrance. He took a moment to examine them, intrigued by the strange artistry he'd never seen before. He then remembered what he'd come here for, and knocked on the door.
"Who knocks outside, come in, abide!"
Yes, he'd known about the rhyming. Didn't they say she did it to keep her mastery of the Equestrian language? Being of limited education, he found rhyming and poetry a bit difficult, so he was impressed that she'd managed it.
He opened the door and walked inside. "Hello, I'm Hu- I'm doomcup, the new pony in Ponyville?"
"Of you, there is much I have heard. For what with me you'd have a word?"
The unicorn took off his hat and hung it behind him on the hat rack, or so he hoped it was. "I was walking in the forest, and I found something. I was wondering if you'd know what it is."
He drew the box out and placed it in front of the zebra, and opened the lid.
As Zecora examined the tags, he examined her. There was something hypnotic about the stripes. The same basic shape of a pony was there, but with a few different contours, a few different curves...
He shook himself back to the current moment as Zecora spoke.
"These things I've never seen around. Can you tell me how they were found?"
He nodded, and recounted what he'd seen as he went into the ruins, but leaving out the matter of dreams and voices. Something within him told him that these would be unwanted distractions. He wondered just why he was having these thoughts, but soon shook it out to return to the business at hand.
"Such a tale is very strange. I do not see what these would change."
"As far as I can tell, they clip to a pony's ear. I'm not even sure if they do anything at all."
Zecora considered this, rolling a tag around in the box.
"If their use we are going to find, perhaps we shall take one, and put it on mine."
"Your ear, you mean."
She gratefully nodded. Not every rhyme was going to be a winner.
"Well, if you're sure then. Still, are you sure you want to risk it?"
"It is their use that use will prove. Put it on me, I can't, I have hooves."
doomcup picked up the tag with his magic, and felt a strange feeling of excited apprehension. Everything in him said to go ahead and do it, but there was a niggling doubt needling the back of his brain. Should he really do this?
He clicked the tag in place.
The world held its breath for a few seconds.
"So, do you feel any different?"
"No change at all, I feel the same. A boring result, quite a shame."
"Huh, okay."
He felt something poking the back of his brain. This stuff was supposed to make him friends, right? He wondered if...
"Zecora? How do you feel about me?"
Zecora gave a smile.
"On my answer you can depend. My welcome and beloved friend."
Well, how about that? He supposed he'd see how far he could push this.
"So, if I asked you to do something as a friend, would you do it?"
"On me, you truly can rely. Whatever things you ask, I'll try."
doomcup took a moment to think. Why not start with something a little innocuous?
"Would you hold your breath for as long as you can?"
She gave a nod, drew a deep breath, and held it. She was doing her best to hold it for as long as possible. The seconds felt like minutes going by. She was starting to turn colors, which was a bit disturbing.
"Okay, you can breathe now."
With a massive exhale, Zecora started to catch her breath.
"Are you okay?"
"*Pant* of course, I merely held my breath. *Pant* from this I will not catch my death."
"Okay, just take a few moments."
So she would do that for a friend? Okay, let's try something else, he thought.
Once she'd caught her breath again, he turned to her and asked, "Zecora, could you try to speak for the next couple of minutes without rhyming?"
A look of confusion crossed her face. "I could try, but it would be hard. I find..." she started to look very uncomfortable now, "...not rhyming... mutes... my bard."
She blushed and looked away. "I'm truly sorry, friend of mine. I cannot make myself not rhyme."
doomcup thought on this. So you couldn't make a pony act against their nature? That was fair.
"It's okay, Zecora, I was wrong to ask. I'm sorry."
"Forgiven and forgotten now. Twas not important anyhow."
Okay, he thought to himself, you've come this far. There's nothing for it. Time to cross the rubicon. Alea iacta est.
"Zecora.... could you kiss me?"
He was as surprised at these words leaving his mouth as the zebra was at hearing them, but sure enough, she approached closer, put a hoof on his shoulders, and pulled closer to give him a kiss, the first he'd ever had. He felt like his heart was going to beat out of its chest.
After a few seconds, she pulled away. "I feel that you are getting hot; did my kiss for you hit the spot?"
He was completely speechless. He couldn't think straight. He felt the pounding, both in his chest, and from elsewhere entirely.
Zecora looked downwards and saw his excitement becoming tangible. "It seems you have become excited. Shall I to your cock be invited?"
There was surprise that she'd be the one to make the suggestion, but suddenly doomcup wasn't really feeling in an inquisitive mood. This was just like those forbidden books he'd snuck around reading back when... he terminated that line of thought. It would have wrecked the mood.
"Zecora, could I ask you as a friend to help take care of this?"
"My yes for this, a certainty. Come and lie on this couch for me."
He found his way to it, a wicker deal with a sprinkling of cushions. They were pleasantly soft. He reclined on them, his pony erection standing tall before Zecora's eyes.
She took her time to admire the amazing thing. It was a very inviting member, very gently used. For the stallion's relatively slight build, it was impressive indeed.
"This will be no problem, take heart," Zecora said, moving her mouth to the tip. He could feel her breath on it when she finished the rhyme, "on this I know just where to start."
With this, she moved to the base and started licking it. Slowly, from the bottom, along the side, past the medial ring and up towards the tip, she ran her tongue, in slow, even, gentle laps.
The young stallion bit his lip, trying hard not to squirm. This was so much better than doing it himself. Even using his unicorn magic on it didn't feel this good.
The zebra ran her tongue in circles on the tip of his cock for a little while before finally taking it into her muzzle, gently bobbing up and down on it before starting to suck and massage on the member in earnest.
Just at that moment, the door came open and in walked Twilight Sparkle!
"Hi Zecora, I-"
She looked at the scene. Zecora didn't react, but doomcup looked straight at her with panic written on her face.
Twilight just gave a smile. "Oh, you're busy. I'll just come back later."
And having reacted as if Zecora was just washing the dishes or something, she walked right back out, closing the door behind her.
Once he recovered from the near heart attack, he was thoughtful, or as thoughtful as one could be while having an attractive zebra sucking on their dong.
So, he thought to himself, when somebody's wearing a tag, whatever they're doing is just normal stuff? How very curious.
He pondered how it worked before Zecora finally took his entire length down her throat and started really working it. He couldn't hold out very long against this.
His cock flared and he came, orgasm hitting him hard as he pumped three or four torrents of hot pony cum down her throat. Zecora was taken off guard, but managed to swallow it all without much fuss.
She pulled off of him, his softening erection flopping out with a satisfying sound of smacking against his belly. "So tasty is your pony spoo, I'm glad I could do this thing for you."
"Th-thank you, Zecora. I think Twilight wanted something, so I'll be on my way now. But I'll come back soon, okay?"
"Come whenever you have the time. For any reason, any rhyme."
He took his leave and struck out into the woods as Twilight passed by him, for whatever she needed from his new dear friend.
He got home without any trouble. He flopped down on his bed.
He'd got his dream. He'd finally done something sexual with a mare. He finally had a friend. And he had a cutie mark, though he still wasn't sure what the @ symbol was supposed to mean.
So now he knew what the tags were and how they worked.
But... did he really want to use these on other ponies? Zecora had put on a tag by choice and in ignorance. Could he get himself to put these tags on others? Would it be a bridge too far? Could he live with himself if he did?
But the memory of that conversation at his housewarming party came flowing back.
Nah. He could live with it.
He pondered just who he'd make his "beloved friend" next, until at last sleep took him.
How to Tag Friends and Influence People
It was the next day already. The sun once again began tracing itself across doomcup's wall. He got blearily up, stretching and smacking his mouth. He thought about the things that happened yesterday and wondered if he had dreamed the lot.
He got up, heading for the door, when, in the corner of his eye, he saw the box. He saw the box that had the eartags.
It was real. It had happened.
He went downstairs, finding his way to the kitchen. One of the things he'd been introduced to in his time in Ponyville was coffee, a magical brown liquid he'd never known before, and knew that he could never live without now. As the kettle on the stove heated up, he poured the roasted beans into the grinder, then turned the crank with his unicorn magic, grinding them into a fine powder.
From a cabinet, he took a mug, a gift from the Pie sisters. It was finely carved from stone and given a nice ceramic finish. On this he placed a contrivance, a filter made out of layers of cheesecloth. On this, he put the grounds, right as the water was coming to a boil.
He poured the water over the grounds, and took in the aroma of the quickly brewing coffee. Such a delightful smell was already doing much to get him waking up fully. He dumped the grounds and tossed the used filter in with the other bits of laundry.
Finally, he took a sip of his finely brewed darkness.
Ah. That was heaven~.
Having his fill of the coffee, he went out the door, skip in his step, a few eartags in a pocket of his nice new vest, just in case.
He thought he'd go into town today. No particular reason. The bustling activity of even this town was a breakneck paced city compared to what he was used to. There were so many other ponies around him that he could easily get dazzled.
His first thought was to go to the library. He did want to see if there was anything written about the things he'd seen when he went into the Everfree Forest. He got as far as the door before hesitating.
Did he really want to? It was common knowledge that Twilight Sparkle practically lived there, at least for a while. After yesterday, he wasn't quite ready to see her again. What if the tag's effects then had worn off by now? He didn't want to have to answer questions that he didn't actually have the answer to.
So he left off and found himself around the marketplace. Boy, did it look like everypony and their sister came here today. It was a sea of color, a sea of cutie marks, a sea of mostly mares, he had to admit.
As he walked around, he let the various market stalls and their pone's cries pass by around him. He had a few bits left from when he helped around the farm as he was recovering. He had to figure out something to do to keep himself afloat with them, but there was plenty of time for that later, and anyway he was sure he could find some friends to depend on in the meantime.
As he was pondering this, he suddenly ran smack dab into some other pony, knocking them both to the ground.
doomcup was up first, and jumped to the other's aid. "Oh, I'm so terribly sorry! Let me help you up, Miss..."
A hoof smacked away his as the mare swiftly rose, patting the dust off her blouse. "Ms., young man, Ms. Harshwhinny, and you should watch where you're going! Completely unprofessional!"
Professional certainly described her. Everything from her attractive but practically styled mane and tail to her tasteful but understated jewelry and clothes said that she was no nonsense. The trophy cutie mark did nothing to dispel any sense that this was a pony who wanted to win, whatever it may be, and do so as professionally as possible.
"I am sorry, you're totally right, I should have been watching where I was going. Are you alright?"
"Just dust. Now if you don't mind, I have things I need to get back to. The Winter Games are coming up, and there's so many details I need to get onto..."
The lines on her face certainly said she did an awful lot. If there was a hard worker, she was it. doomcup thought quickly.
"At least let me make it up to you. Would you like to have lunch on me?"
She looked at him like he'd asked her to count the moon. "You? You don't look like you could."
"I insist! It's no good to work yourself too hard. Name the place and I'll meet you there."
Ms. Harshwhinny grumbled. "Fine. There is this new restaurant I've been meaning to try. Might as well not risk my own money on it."
"Oh, um, which one's that? I'm afraid I've only been in Ponyville for about a week."
"Hm, had you figured for someone new here. If you'd like to treat me to lunch... what is your name, anyway?"
"They call me doomcup."
"Humph, they do give people strange names these days. Alright, Mr. doomcup, if you insist on paying my way, meet me at The Tasty Treat come noon."
"Great! Meet you there."
And they parted ways.
"What did I invite her to lunch for?" he said to himself, before he once again felt the weight of the eartags in his vest pocket. Ah yes, of course.
He took his time around the market, also getting himself a notebook and a pack of pencils for later. He was going to keep well track of what was going on.
It was true, he hadn't actually eaten at a restaurant here in Ponyville before. He'd usually eaten either by himself or at the table of another pone. When cooking was introduced to him, he'd taken to it like...
He thought about this. Like something that took pretty okay, good in fact, to something they weren't familiar with before. He realized he was a bit too hungry to come up with good similes. Good thing he had that lunch date.
It wasn't intended as a date, sure, but soon it would be.
He wondered if he should feel bad about that last thought.
Soon, just as the bell was ringing for noon, he'd made it to the front of The Tasty Treat. Like a lot of things before his coming to Ponyville, he hadn't seen anything like it before. Already a world of smells was meeting his nose. They were strange ones, but they made his mouth water.
And right at the door was Ms. Harshwhinny. "Hm, right on time. At least you're punctual. You have the makings of being professional, at least. Come on in, I don't have that much time to spare for this."
"I'm really curious what they have to eat here. There's so much in Ponyville that I've never had before."
Ms. Harshwhinny looked sidelong at him. "Really? Where are you from, anyway?"
doomcup stopped dead in his tracks. "I don't like to talk about it. Let's enjoy our meal here, why don't we?"
She looked at him suspiciously, but before she could say anything about it, a pony came up to them.
doomcup stared. He knew he was here with a mare, but this mare that had walked up was gorgeous . Her naturally wavy curly purple mane and tail, how tall she was compared to him, the eyes, the smile....
Harshwhinny nudged him. "Hey, she's taking us to a table. Get your head out of the clouds."
"Oh, right! Of course."
This was bad. He knew, from all the books he'd secretly read, that this was a bad idea. You should never pay more attention to some other pone than the mare you were taking out. But he couldn't help himself. She was utterly stunning.
"So what will you be having today?" the mare who introduced herself as Saffron Masala asked. He looked at the menu, seeing a bunch of words that he never had before, and unable to match them to anything he'd ever seen before.
"How intriguing," Ms. Harshwhinny said, handing her menu back. "I think I'll have the house curry."
"Um, yeah, I'll have that, too." the embarrassed stallion followed.
"Very good! And how spicy would you like it, from one to ten?"
Spicy? He did like spicy food, he came to find, but maybe he should take it easy.
"Three."
Ms Harshwhinny gave him a look, and said, "One for me."
"It will be ready very soon!"
The vision of a mare walked away, and doomcup was faced with Ms. Harshwhinny's full attention once again. Full attention was a very uncomfortable thing to be under.
"You have no idea what curry is, do you?"
"I don't. I don't know what anything on the menu is."
"I commend your honesty, if nothing else. Well, I hope you're ready for what you have coming. This is where you can show me just what you're made of. In my course of work, Mr. doomcup, I have to see just what ponies are capable of. Few earn my respect. You, if nothing else, have earned my curiosity."
She has really nice eyes at least, doomcup thought to himself, looking into them for a bit.
"I'll give you a little professional advice. When our host arrives with our food, you should ask for some milk."
"I suppose. I wouldn't want to inconvenience her, though."
"Suit yourself."
Soon, Saffron Masala did indeed return. Before each of them she put a plate. On it was rice, which had some chunks of stuff in it with an orange-red sauce. doomcup could smell the heat coming off it. There was also naan, and Saffron had thoughtfully brought a glass of milk without needing to be asked.
"Well?" Ms Harshwhinny said with her trademark facial expression. "Dig in, Mr. doomcup."
He took a fork with his unicorn magic, took up one of the bites of curry with rice and the chunks, and placed it in his mouth.
He barely managed to chew and swallow it before coughing, his eyes watering from the force of the spices.
"And how is it?"
"*Kaff kaff* it's a bit stronger than I expected. Just need to adjust. Real tasty otherwise."
Ms. Harshwhinny finished swallowing a bit of her own. "The milk's right there when you need it. If you really want to impress me, you'll make it through that plate before you need a single drop."
She was asking for a challenge? That's fine by him. If nothing else, he found he did like a good natured challenge.
He hungrily wolfed down the curry. It was indeed tasty, and he found out later that the chunks were some kind of thing made from bean curds. He didn't mind. It was fiery as it went down, but he did it. The plate was completely clean before Ms. Harshwhinny was halfway through hers.
She looked at him with amazement and a little admiration. "Well well. I didn't expect you to make it all the way through. You certainly are able to endure, and that's worth some respect."
"Thanks. I wasn't expecting a three to be that hot, but once I got used to it..."
"Well, you've certainly earned the milk."
"Not yet."
"Mmm?"
"I'm not going to drink the milk until you've finished yours, too."
"You absolute madpony. If you really need it, there's no need to keep going. Honor has been satisfied."
"Then shall we make things interesting?"
He took an eartag out of his pocket and placed it on the table between them.
"What's that?" Ms. Harshwhinny asked.
"It's a little memento of mine, an eartag. If I manage to make it through you finishing your curry without having to get up or drinking the milk, you have to put it on."
"Hm... no, I don't think that'll be enough." She waved to Saffron as she was passing. "Excuse me, could you give Mr. doomcup here seconds of his order, on me?"
"Of course, just a few minutes."
Ms. Harshwhinny gave an unbecoming grin. "Mr. doomcup, if you can eat a second helping of that curry before I finish mine, without getting up or drinking the milk, I will gladly wear that silly tag."
doomcup gave a nod. "You're on."
Dammit, he thought to himself. My mouth is still burning from the last one, but I'm so close! I can't give up now.
The second plate came, and he set on it immediately. He did like the taste, no matter how much it burned. He ate it, the inferno in his mouth and down his throat burning as he did so. He finished the entire plate just as Ms. Harshwhinny finished the last bite of hers.
"*kaff wheeze* There. Challenge met."
Ms. Harshwhinny chuckled. "So you have. I am genuinely impressed. As promised, I'm putting this thing on." She took the tag. "This just clips on, right?"
"Yeah", the burning stallion replied as he finally soothed the burning with the milk.
He watched with pleasure as the eartag clicked into place. Bingo!
"So, Mr. doomcup, how do I look in this?"
"It suits you!"
Was he imagining things? Was the oh so professional Ms. Harshwhinny actually blushing?
"I don't know why you wanted me in this thing in the first place, Mr. doomcup, but I'm glad you like it."
Their bill came. It was a bit more than doomcup was expecting, but he had just enough to cover his part. Ms. Harshwhinny gladly ponied up her part for the extra helping.
"Thank you for lunch, Mr. doomcup, but I have to be on my way."
"Um, could I ask you to do something first? It won't take long."
"Of course, anything."
He jerked his head in the direction of the restrooms. "Want to duck in there and fool around for a few minutes?"
Ms. Harshwhinny gave out a laugh of surprise. "My, you're forward! Very well, but let's make it quick. I have people waiting."
Next thing he knew, he was in the stallion's room with her. It was like something out of the forbidden books he'd read. He scarcely believed it was really happening.
"Shall we start, Mr. doomcup?"
"O-of course."
She lunged in and kissed him. This was so unlike the last time. It must really be in Ms. Harshwhinny's nature to take control of the situation.
He let her kiss back, then let out sounds of surprise and pleasure as she pulled off and moved to his neck, then chest.
He felt his heart pounding and his equine cock hardening as she sunk lower and lower until, suddenly, she came straight back up and looked him in the eyes.
"If you want me to take care of you, Mr. doomcup, you'd better take care of me at the same time. You know how, right?"
He swallowed. "Uh, theoretically."
"Well, give it your best professional try."
With this, she turned around and bucked her legs back, resting them on the stallion's shoulders. In his face was her pussy, a mare's pussy, puffy and wet. The smell was driving him crazy.
Without even thinking, he dove in, licking all over Ms. Harshwhinny's succulent lips, losing himself in eating it out. All the while, Ms. Harshwhinny had total mastery of his cock, sucking and licking on it like it was as natural as breathing. Truly she was amazing at this. He hoped he was being as amazing.
Low moans came from the mature mare as he did, so he was sure he was doing something right. With his horn magic, he started lightly massaging her clitoris, the very most sensitive part of a mare's genitals.
He knew he wasn't going to last much longer. He could feel the precum oozing out of his cock. He knew with just a few more seconds...
Ms. Harshwhinny pulled off and took her legs down, stretching for a moment and catching her breath. "Whew, I need to remember I'm not the young mare I was. You almost made me forget."
"Why did you stop?"
"Because I'm ready, Mr. doomcup. Make me your mare."
She raised her tail. There was her marehood, wet, shimmering, winking, begging for a pony cock.
So this was it. He was about to lose his virginity. He hadn't expected it to be with someone like her, but he couldn't really bring himself to complain. He let nature take his reins, and he reared up onto her, taking hold with his forehooves while his cock found its way to its partner, pressing against the wet lips.
With just enough force, it slid into her.
"Oooooh," Mrs. Harshwhinny moaned, "it's been so long since I felt this... you know what to do, right, Mr. doomcup?"
Only answering with bestial horse noises, he started thrusting. He only knew the pleasure of the rut now. Every wet smack, every moan, every movement only made the pleasure that much more tangible. This was paradise. This was everything he hoped it would be.
With great effort, doomcup got back just enough mental control to use his magic to once again massage his mare's clit, bringing her to even higher plateaus of pleasure. He knew he had to. She felt far too good for this to last much longer.
Finally he heard her inarticulate squeal of pleasure as he felt her orgasm, her cunny tightening and smasming on his cock and her fluids dampening his legs.
This was it. He couldn't hold back anymore. He had an orgasm far more intense than any he'd ever had before. He bit her neck as he came inside, what felt like gallons of the hot stuff firehosing into her.
After a few moments of panting and rest, he finally pulled off of her, their combined fluids dripping to the floor.
"*Pant* Mr. doomcup, I was going to tell you to pull out first."
"S-sorry, lost myself in the moment."
"So did I. It's no matter." She checked her watch. "I need to go now. Thank you for the fun time."
"I had fun too. Let's do this again sometime."
She walked out, still dripping.
After washing himself at the sink, he went home. Once again he was on the bed.
He had a hard time believing that what had happened had happened. He felt good. Really good. He felt like a stallion, for probably the first time in his life.
He let this glow ferry him all the way to sleep.
How to Tag Friends and Influence People
The letter was in the mailbox that morning, standing out so plainly from all the rest of the assorted gray mail that had accumulated in the recent weeks. People had found that doomcup lived there, and with taking any residence for any period of time came the inevitable junk mail. He mostly used it as note taking paper now. What didn’t offer good writing space was set aside to be used for paper machie and other such crafts.
This envelope, though, was in a signature style unmistakeable as coming from anypony else. The pinks and blues and yellows gave it away.
He struggled to remember the calendar. Was it some day? He couldn’t think of any holiday around this time; he’d managed to catch up on all the dates and details for the important ones.
No. Wait. It was that day? How did anypony find out that day, much less her?
Yes, today was doomcup’s birthday. He hadn’t told anybody, because he was so used to not celebrating it. It was a secret the whole time he’d been there, and now Pinkie Pie knew.
He had to open the envelope now. Was it a party? As much as he’d appreciated the one for his housewarming, the press of all the pones around had been too much to handle. And even though they’d made up for it later, some things still were sore about that day….
But Pinkie had defended him. Pinkie alone had his corner. That much brought warmth.
He stopped getting lost in the past and actually looked at what was in the envelope.
It was a card. Just as garishly pink and yellow and blue as the envelope, and in big writing it said “Happy birthday!”
He had never gotten a birthday card before in his entire life. He was already shedding tears from the warmth inside.
He brought himself to open the card. He expected some pithy joke or some such; cards in stories tended to have them, after all. But this card seemed to want to get to the point right away.
“As soon as you get this, come to Sugarcube Corner, go up the stairs, then knock ‘shave and a manecut’ on the door. Your gift awaits! --Pinkie Pie”
He meditated on this. Sugarcube Corner, eh? It wasn’t that big, so a party wasn’t waiting for him there, was it? But what would Pinkie be doing if it wasn’t a party?
He had to know. He went inside briefly to put the card in a safe place with his other treasures, tossed the junk mail into the pile with the rest of the scrap paper, and went on his way.
Sugarcube Corner was oddly empty today. There was Mrs. Cake at the counter just in case, who was giving him a wink as he walked past. Did she know what was up? There was no way, right?
Up to the door. What were these flutters in his stomach? He raised a hoof to the door.
Before he could give the special knock the door burst open, and to cries of “You’re heeeeeeere!”, he found himself pulled inside by a Pinkie who was clearly far stronger than she looked.
“Eeeeee, I knew since it was your birthday you’d wanna celebrate it but I know you were kinda off by yourself at that party so I thought a little one on one would be a lot more fun and I knew you’d come right after you got the letter and-”
“Pinkie!”
She blinked for a moment. As I prepared to ask the question bugging me, I couldn’t help but take her in visually. Her work at the bakery, and perhaps overindulgence at the treats of it, had lent a good bit of plush to the mare’s figure. There was plenty of soft cushioning to be had.
“Yes doomie?”
“How did you know it was my birthday? I didn’t tell anybody.”
She waved her tail at him, which she couldn’t do without showing her amazing ass. The wobble was very real and very hypnotic.
“It’s my tail! It just senses things I really need to know, and I got a really big feeling that it was your birthday today! Aaaaaaaand I may have gotten a little letter from Twilight who’d been looking through the royal records.”
doomcup was shocked for a moment. His birth was in the records? I mean, eventually everyone even in some far off corner of equestria would have some records, but his? He didn’t really think anypony would even have cared enough.
“So what’s the present you wanted to give me, Pinkie Pie?”
“Oooh! Righty tighty! You got here waaaay faster than I thought you would, so I still need to wrap it. Can you wait right there for a few teensy weensy seconds while I do that?”
“Of course” doomcup said not understanding, watching as Pinkie quickly dove behind a privacy screen
After a few cartoonish shudders, she came out again. To his amazement she was wearing…. A simply stunning outfit. The fishnet stockings, the skirt failing to hide anything, the big bow around her neck.
“Here’s your present, me! You get to do anything you want with me today!”
Once the stallion picked his jaw up from the floor, he double checked her ears. No, there were no eartags on either of them. She was offering herself to him without any kind of suggestion or loosening whatsoever? Just like that?
“Pinkie, I… I don’t know what to say”
“How about a ‘thank you’?”
“Oh of course. Thank you! You’re such a wonderful gift. Um, do you do this for anypony else on their birthday?”
Pinkie looked very surprised. “No, of course not! But I knew it’d be what you wanted cause everypony tells me how you can’t keep your eyes off me whenever we’re in the same room and I know I noticed you looking at my plot and my face and getting so flustered if I catch you and-”
“So, anything? Let’s get to the bed then!”
Flopping down on Pinkie Pie’s bed was the most comfortable feeling he’d ever felt. It was so soft and inviting, and threatened to swallow him like a pool of quicksand. Pinkie followed, before nearly running into his stiff pony erection.
“Oooooh, you do like your gift! Whatcha wanna do with it first! How about-”
BLMF. Before Pinkie could get another schtick started, doomcup used his unicorn magic to grab Pinkie’s head and place his cock squarely into her muzzle. Without any further urging, magical or otherwise, she started sucking. She took his entire length down her throat, with no trouble whatsoever. He felt her tongue and her throat giving it the most special massage treatment all over as she started to bob her head up and down, applying suction that would be the envy of industrial vacuum cleaners.
“Oh, b’slest! Pinkie….” he moaned, unable to believe the sheer sensation. Every dip of her head, every cycle of her movements, she gobbled his cock as greedily as she would have any cake or pie. It was beyond belief, beyond rationality, just like her.
It was Pinkie Pie’s own signature fellatio.
How long was it going? He couldn’t tell. Every second was like hours in the best possible way. But pretty soon, he had a now familiar feeling building inside of him.
“Mmmmh… P-Pinkie, stop!”
She immediately hopped off his boner with a surprised look, a quizzical jack in the box popping up. “You don’t like it, doomie?”
“I do, way too much! There’s a thing I wanna do before I can’t go on.” He got up from the bed. “Can you lie down on the bed? On your back? I’m ready to truly take my gift.”
Pinkie let loose a squeal and a face that radiated joy, and immediately flopped on the bed. “Okie dokie lokie! On the bed, ready and waiting!” She spread her legs, and the stallion could see she was indeed ready. Very ready.
He climbed on top of her. The physical closeness between them was intoxicating. The feeling of her body against his was making his heart pound so hard. His erection rubbed against her waiting wet pussy as he looked into her deep blue eyes. He felt so good.
“I’m ready for you, Pinkie.” he said in a low tone.
“Take me, birthday colt.” She said in an uncharacteristic whisper.
And with a sloooow pull back and a quick thrust, he was in.
Pinkie gave a yelp of pleasure and moaned like she didn’t care who heard her. For his part, doomcup was lost. The entire world didn’t exist anymore, except for him and Pinkie.
This was far different from anything he’d ever done before, with anypony he’d done it with before. It was magic. It was so much magic. There was life, laughter, music, in every single movement, every single squeeze, every single tone of her voice, every single look in her eyes, every single thrust.
Was this… love?
Through Pinkie’s squeals of delight he tried to make out words, but he couldn’t make out any. At this point it was just a string of loose syllables. He found he couldn’t say anything either. It was all too much. The words had been pounded out of his brain like an iron bar rolling it into paste. The words in his heart wouldn’t get said that way.
He felt the buildup in his loins again. If he couldn’t make himself heard before then, it’d be too late. Finally, he looked into her eyes one more time…
…and kissed her.
Deeply, passionately, with everything in him, he kissed her. She kissed back, to his delight. They kissed eachother right as they both started bucking their hips. Was this…?
They both came. Together. Huge waves of hot thick semen hit Pinkie’s walls as her fluids splashed all over their crotches. The world around them was just a pink haze of pleasure now. It stayed that way for an eternity, but some eternities are smaller than others…
After a few more times, the door to Pinkie’s apartment opened, and in fell Mrs. Cake, tumbling at the sudden removal of the door’s support.
“Mrs. Caaaaaake, were you listeniiiiiiing?” Pinkie asked, in a teasing tone. She wasn’t embarassed, doomcup noted. He decided he wasn’t either.
“I can’t help it! The two of you have been making enough noise to wake the dead! Anyway, doomcup, your cake is ready downstairs whenever you want it. Happy birthday.”
“Thanks so much, Mrs. Cake. I can’t say how much this means to me.”
And soon Pinkie and doomcup were at a table eating a very delicious small cake, with a single candle.
“I didn’t know how old you were, so I told Mrs. Cake to just put one in. Your first birthday here in Ponyville!”
“That’s fine.” doomcup said, dreamily taking another bite of the cake as he stared at her. Suddenly, there was a hard clicking sound as something slipped out of his vest pocket.
“Ooh! Lemme get that! You keep eating your cake!” Pinkie blerped as she dove for it. “Oooooh, it’s an eartag! Those have been getting really really popular now!”
“Uh, yeah,” the unicorn said, a bit embarassed. “I give them out as tokens to friends, and I-”
“Put it on me!”
The surprise was plain on his face. “Of course. What we had today was really special. If anybody should be wearing one, it’s you. Though… I feel like it’s not enough.”
“Aw, it’ll do for now, more than enough! Now put it on me! Put it on put it on putitonputitonputiton-”
Cl-click. With that, the eartag was on.
doomcup couldn’t help but feel a little pang of guilt. The only one who he’d gotten intimate with before the tag went on… maybe he could talk to whoever had gifted these to him, that mysterious mare from that dream, to see whether he could release her from it, so he could give her something even better.
Maybe like a golden diadem or something. Maybe a special golden earring.
Something more than a plastic tag. Something truly worthy.
Author's Note
I decided to skip ahead just a little since going in sequence was giving me problems. Not sure who I'll be doing next. Watch this space!