Pink Lovers and Applebuckers

Twilight Sparkle’s personal laboratory wasn’t exactly built with spacious designs in mind. Now, living in a magical grand castle made up of Crystals and Sun knows what does have its perks. It let her have a fresh new home after her first was destroyed by Tirek, was built in the span of mere seconds, and was both home and fortress for her fellow Elements and close friends. The transition period to settle in did take a little time, but Twilight had few complaints concerning the vastly larger residence. It had somehow even knew she’d want a room dedicated to her research of all things in Equestria, magic or otherwise.

Now when she’d first set up the room, it had certainly appeared spacious enough to give her plenty of area to work with. After installing new equipment and adjusting little things here and there to her liking - blinds on the windows helped for those experiments that required darkness or a cooler room on a hot summer day - she still could move about without feeling so cramped. But in the midst of her latest endeavor, the Princess of Magic was finding it quite...cramped.

Especially with her fellow Element of Harmony, Applejack, staring her down with folded arms, a stern frown, and a practiced glare Twilight imagined still made Applebloom quiver when she was busted during one of her and the CMC’s shenanigans.

“Y'all wanna try ta run that by me again? Real slow like.” AJ said. Her tone wasn’t harsh on Twilight’s ears, but the apple farmer wasn’t one to mince words when she had to.

“I just wanted to use Big Macintosh for an experiment. A safe experiment!” Twilight insisted, holding her hands up defensively as AJ’s eyebrow rose up in suspicion. “It’s for my research!”

“What kind of research is needin’ mah big bro standin’ in here with no shirt on and you gettin’ all up on him, dressed like that?” AJ questioned, nodding at the alicorn researcher. Twilight spared a glance down at her attire: perhaps the black mini-skirt and short sleeved white shirt were a touch suggestive. The skirt only came to mid-thigh, barely able to go lower on her thick hips. Her shirt didn’t display anything obscene, but with how tight it was on her figure, it left little to wonder just how big Twilight’s chest was now compared to her old self. The pulled back ponytail and half-rim glasses completed the ‘sexy scientist’ look, she realized, and she gave a small tug on her lab coat.

“Now, Applejack, hold on. First of all, this outfit was Rarity’s suggestion, not mine. She wouldn’t stop going on about ‘working what I got’, or however she said it.” Twilight insisted while gesturing a hand at herself, “second, your brother’s shirtless so my instruments can study his vitals accurately; clothing can interfere sometimes.” Twilight walked past her friend to approach the nearby seated Big Macintosh, the red farmer relaxed and silent while a piece of straw dangled from the corner of his mouth. Being without a shirt put the impressive stallion’s physique on display, it was true; Twilight had taken her time in delicately applying her nodes on certain spots of Mac’s forearms, biceps, and pectorals. He’d been quiet thus far short of a few assenting grunts and “eeyup”s to her questions before Applejack had shown up.

“Third; I’m trying to work on an improved and more accurate spell designed to help ponies out. I needed a prime example of a healthy, fit, strong stallion to use as my basis. We really can’t get far beyond Macintosh’s level unless you want me to go borrow Rockhoof and use him instead?”

“...alright, fine, maybe I’m jumpin’ the gun a bit.” Applejack said, resting her hands on her jean-clad hips. “Ah just know ah pay attention ta things round here more than folks think. Watchin’ out fer mah friends’ sakes. Ah know y'all been toyin’ round with some magic shenanigans. Ya went from a twig to a cover girl in short time, Twi. Then Fluttershy went and tangled herself in with some of her boys. Then ah hear Dash braggin’ bout havin’ a buck and tumble with the Bolts after dabblin’ a bit herself in y'all's stuff.”

“...ponies in this town really do talk too much.” Twilight commented, looking aside.

“What’re ya even trying to fix? Ya said this is to help ponies out. Is there some kind of magic bug goin’ round or such?” Applejack asked.

“Look, AJ. What I did for myself, at first, was an experiment in itself. I didn’t expect to become like this, but I got what I wanted. It was by pure chance. And my thorough research, of course.” Twilight explained. “But Fluttershy’s experiences and Rainbow’s told me that it can be a focused, controlled experience. A spell that can be manifested, harnessed, and used to help other ponies. Some who feel lacking, or like they’re stuck in the wrong body. That’s how I felt. And I want to help others not suffer with that feeling.”

AJ’s expression softened, her yellow eyebrows lowering as she listened to her friend and fellow Element. “Well...shucks, Twi. I get y'all's intentions are good n’ all that. But fiddlin’ with magic and ponies is always gonna cause some tricky trouble. Ah’ve had enough of that mah self; Flim and Flam tryin’ ta con the farm out with their magic machine, Tirek takin’ magic fer himself, even that one time ya’ll made all of us gals swap cutie marks by accident. Ya gotta draw some lines, and ah always do when it comes to mah family unless ah got no choice.”

“But that’s just it, Applejack, this is entirely voluntary!” Twilight insisted. “Look, just hear me out on this. I promise, it will make sense. And if you still object to it, then I’ll go to somepony else, and I won’t hold it against you or Mac either.”

Applejack nodded her agreement, leaning back against an empty table. “Go on, then.”

The purple alicorn sighed in relief; Applejack’s stubbornness still reared its head once in awhile, but she was doing better of late in containing it. “What I’m trying to make work here is like...giving ponies the step up from where natural development stops assisting them.” She said while pulling over one of her rolling chalkboards, flipping it over from a side with complex chemical formulas to a blank side she could draw on as she spoke. Her horn glowed as a piece of chalk began to draw on said board while she continued.

“Natural magical development is a process that carries on in everypony, no matter the species or location. The same magic that gives a pegasus flight, that gives earth ponies their strength and health, that gives unicorns their magical talent; it always is a process that must run its natural course inside anypony to ensure they develop from child to adult properly. Interfering in that process can cause hindrances like stunted growth, magical weakness, even physical abnormalities. It’s part of the reason I suspect some pegasi, for instance, grow up with too small wings to sustain flight.”

“Like Applebloom’s friend, Scootaloo?”

Twilight pointed a finger at her blonde listener. “Exactly, yes. So, my theory posits this question: when the natural development process ceases and the individual is left only with outside resources to work with, what can be done to fulfill the gap between where they are, and where they should be?” Twilight’s chalk writing paused, having illustrated a simple depiction of a basic unicorn child to adulthood with a question mark in the middle of the two. “My own experience is a bit more dramatic of a sample, but it did serve to bring the question to mind. I was a mare in an alicorn body that was stunted because I didn’t grow into it naturally; it was one I was summoned into by my magic. But because I didn’t start as an alicorn, my body couldn’t keep up with the change in development.”

Applejack’s brow furrowed, but she nodded.

“So, frankly, y'all are tryin’ ta play catch up with yer magic, cuz it didn’t go as planned. And since you made it work for y'all, yer tryin’ ta see if you can do it fer others?”

“Mmhmm!” Twilight affirmed, then turned to Big Macintosh, silent and watchful. “So, in saying that, I chose to start with Earth ponies first. An Earth pony’s magical development is best demonstrated in their physical well-being. A healthy stallion or mare has many of the traits Mac here exhibits: strong body structure, solid immune system, rich, soft mane,” Twilight noted as she happened to pass her fingers through Mac’s hair, making the earth pony give a snort of notice but keeping quiet still.

“Hands, lil missy.” AJ quipped, making Twilight pause and smile bashfully at Applejack.

“But as we’ve seen, some ponies don’t get to reach full development. They grow up but their magic only goes so far, leaving them lacking in physical departments or in their unique talent. They can work out, use medical products, and other regular means to try and help but that only covers some of it. If their magic isn’t up to par, internally, then they’ll never find that balanced state they want. So my goal is to try and find a way to bring forth that magic and make it be able to be supplied to another individual.”

AJ’s quiet stare left Twilight standing still for several long, drawn-out seconds until the farmer spoke up. “Twilight, ah’m gonna need that in plain Equestrian, please.”

The lavender-colored alicorn sighed and brought a palm to her forehead, albeit gently. “I’m trying to help ponies who need more magic in their bodies by substituting the missing magic from another source. Like...watering crops by using water from another lakebed if your main one is low on said water.”

The metaphor seemed to click finally for the earth pony, whose eyes lit up in understanding and nodded. “See, y'all shoulda just led with that.”

“Yes, because Sun forbid anypony uses words with more than three syllables.” Twilight muttered to herself. AJ didn’t hear her, but Big Mac managed another snort, humored by her muttering before she continued. “What this will do is simple, and procedural. First, these runes will analyze and mimic Mac’s magical signature,” Twilight explained, pointing at said runes that were carved in a circle surrounding Mac’s seat, “Second, my magitech will read the runes’ signature and then attempt to duplicate it from myself. Me being the Element of Magic, I of course have plenty to spare.”

“Uh-huh.” AJ intoned, nodding.

“Then, third, once the readings have measured out a sufficient amount of magic to pull from me, it will then convert said magic from my signature to one matching Mac’s signature, which will be physically presented here in this container.” Twilight finished, nodding at a medium-sized beaker that rested under a glass tube that was connected to her magitech machinery. “Now, of course, there shouldn’t be any pain or harm from this process. If anything, Mac shouldn’t feel much more than a few tingles.”

Mac, quiet as always, just nodded at the science mare’s explanation. Applejack wasn’t as gung-ho, however, frowning once more. “And there ain’t no way this is gonna hurt ‘em, or backfire, or none of that? Right?”

“The chance is literally less than 1%, AJ. I wouldn’t try to deliberately harm anypony, you know that.”

“...alright. Go on, then.” AJ said, taking a seat on the other end of the room. “But ah ain’t leavin’. One wrong move here, and ah’ll shut ‘er down myself.”

Twilight rolled her eyes, but turned her attention to the shirtless Big Macintosh. “Alright, Big Mac. Ready to help further science’s cause?” His nod was all she needed before she slipped her goggles on and her horn lit up. As soon as she did, the runes began to glow as well, mimicking her aura color and shining bright in the room. The red stallion shifted in his seat, straightening up after a few seconds before he gave a small huff.

“Tinglin’ some.” He said aloud, earning a nod from Twilight.

“Step one, complete. Step two!” Twilight’s horn shined brighter, as her tech came to life and coursed with energy. An arcane rope connected from two metal poles atop the machine to Twilight herself, making her coo at the curious sensation before shaking her head, regaining her focus. The magical energy coursing through her focused at a point on her forehead, just about where her horn was she guessed, before seeming to flow out and towards her device. Ten seconds of this passed, and Twilight could see it was starting to work.

...only then did she see her machine beginning to smoke and blink its lights in disorder. The magical pull she was feeling began to fluctuate, smaller then bigger then back and forth. The strain didn’t really take a toll on the alicorn, but her eyes wandered to Mac, whose eyes were wide. He remained in his chair, seeming to be stuck as his arms and chest gave a twitch as if small shocks were zapping him through the readers attached to him.

“Lotta tinglin’!” He declared. AJ took this as a sign to act, the chair scraping on the floor as she shot up and stomped towards Twilight’s machine.

“AJ, wait, don’t do that!”

Twilight’s warning fell on deaf ears as the cowpony took one well-practiced swing of her leg and kicked out at the magitech. It was enough force to knock it off and onto its back, thereby disrupting the entire magical flow going between the machine, Twilight, and Big Mac. Twilight had all of two seconds to throw her hands up over her face before it exploded, kicking up a cloud of smoke that hid everything in the room from view. Coughing, Twilight used a simple burst of magic to both open the nearest window and to banish the smoke out said window. Her vision clear, she could see AJ fussing over her brother, pulling off the readers attached to him while he stood up.

“...why is everypony’s instinct to not listen to the scientist?” Twilight lamented, looking to her machine before addressing the two. “Are you ok, Big Mac?”

“Eeeyup. Ah’m fine now.” He intoned before AJ whirled onto Twilight.

“1% chance ya said.”

“Yes, I did. And mathematically, I was still correct, because it could still happen.” Twilight replied, unphased by her friend’s anger in favor of trying to understand what went wrong. “...perhaps its the machine unable to handle alicorn magic properly compared to basic unicorn magic?”

“Twi, is he gonna grow extra limbs or somethin’?” AJ questioned, bringing the alicorn’s attention back to the present.

“No, no. He shouldn’t. There was a feedback loop but as I said, none of the magic used was harmful or given harmful intent. At most, he’ll feel a bit wired from magical exposure and just burn out the extra energy with exercise or chores at home.” She assured the blonde. “Which is a good thing, I’d think.”

“Hmph.” AJ huffed before folding her arms and looking at the wreckage now of Twilight’s tech. “...sorry ‘bout the machine. I was goin’ on instinct: kick first, ponder later.”

“It’s fine. Knowing our luck, you might have prevented a catastrophe in doing so rather than holding off.” Twilight said, making the apple siblings both chuckle. “If anything strange does happen, Mac, just come find me and we’ll figure it out. You should be completely fine by tomorrow’s end, if not the next day. I’m sure of it.”

Two days later

“I hate magic.” Twilight intoned, her stare - lackluster and deadpan - focused on Sugar Belle seated across from her. Pinkie was present as well, since they decided to meet at Sugarcube Corner. Sugar Belle was red-faced and bashful looking before the alicorn, despite Twilight’s politeness at her arrival. The two had always gotten along just fine since her integration into Ponyville society, and she had even helped encourage her and Mac’s relationship. It had been a source of quiet delight to see the pair being in their own little world when she happened upon them out in town.

She was allowed to like the sappy romances.

“So, let me see if I got this right from you.” Twilight said, rubbing at the bridge of her nose, “Big Mac isn’t in danger, or under harm. He is, in fact, in exceptional good health according to the doctor you took him to. The issue now is that he’s...too big.”

“Mmhmm.” Sugar Belle intoned, tapping her fingers on the table.

“And when we’re saying too big, we’re not talking his height, or his weight. But his…’equipment’, lets say.”

“We couldn’t think of what could’ve made anything change for him except for that experiment he volunteered for you. It’s the only thing that’s been different for him lately. He still eats the same, talks the same, still treats me like the kind gentlecolt I know him to be.” Sugar answered, smiling to herself before her cheeks took a darker shade. “We were...making use of Applejack and the family being in town to just enjoy some time together alone. But um...well.”

“The baguette was too long for the oven? Did he butter the muffin? Put icing on the cheesecake?” Pinkie offered to help her. “The cream was too rich for the batter?”

“Pardon?”

“The rooster was too big for the hen house?”

“I don’t-”

“There was more dough than the oven could handle?”

“We used half a bottle of lubricant and I was doing splits wide enough to win the Equestrian Olympics.” Sugar Belle finally got out before covering her mouth. Pinkie’s eyebrows raised before she giggled.

Twilight groaned and let her head rest on the table in response. The cool material pressed against her forehead was only a brief relief for her headache before she rose back up. Sugar Belle’s concerned expression soothed her irritation, if only enough that she could push it down and put on a more calm face than how she internally felt.

“Well...the good part of this is, at least, Big Mac isn’t in pain or harmed. Was there anything else abnormal you could tell? Aside from the uh...increase in size?”

Sugar Belle glanced aside, a hand to her cheek. “I was still able to get him some relief. I wasn’t going to just blue ball my coltfriend. He uh...let’s just say that I’m very very grateful he keeps the water hose near the barn.”

“So increased release of fluids as well. Interesting.” Twilight noted, partially to herself and for the sake of helping Sugar Belle. “Well...have you spoken to Zecora for any natural remedies? Sometimes, trying to cure magic with more magic doesn’t wind up working out the best.”

“We did. At Big Mac’s suggestion actually.” Sugar Belle told her. “She was stumped as we were. Her words were, and I think I’m quoting it right: ‘The stud’s ailment is too enduring; for my behalf, there is no way for curing. What magic has been done, must be solved before you try more fun.’”

Twilight frowned at the wording Zecora chose, but scribbled it down in her mental notebook. “Recreating the conditions of what happened to Big Mac is simple enough for me to replicate. If I analyze each step of the process and try a few hypotheses, it’s likely I will find the answer to our dilemma. The good news is I won’t need to have Big Mac present to do this; it’ll be better that way anyway.”

Sugar Belle looked a little relieved at the alicorn’s reassurances. “Can you guess how long this may take? He’s handling things fine, so far, but I know we both don’t want this to drag on.”

Twilight did some calculations in her head and paused before offering an apologetic smile. “Uh...possibly two weeks?”

Sugar Belle frowned at this. “That...sounds a little like dragging on. A lot of it, actually.”

Suddenly Pinkie Pie’s head shot up, a lightbulb emanating above her head. Both of the other mares gave a start as an actual lit lightbulb fell from above Pinkie’s head and onto the table but not shattering, thankfully.

“I think I got it!”

“You have an idea?” Twilight questioned. “Involving advanced medical theory and intersecting chaos magic?”

“Yeah! Just smaller words.” Pinkie replied, making Twilight pout before the bubbly mare continued. “Discord told us once how chaos only works to solve itself. You can’t try applying logic to it.” At Twilight’s confused expression, she elaborated. “It’s like my Pinkie sense. You remember trying to debunk that, don’tcha?”

“It made me forever wary of any delivery ponies flying above me, for certain.”

“What’re you getting at, Pinkie?” Sugar Belle asked.

“If we wanna fix what’s going on with Mackie, we need another spot of chaos. So, we give Sugar Belle here a dose of it, she and Mackie do the horizontal tango, and they work it out!”

The unicorn pony shook her head quickly at the suggestion. “No, no, no thank you. I think my life has had enough moments of being given magic from other ponies. Even if it was miss Twilight here. No offense, Twilight.” She apologized quickly.

“None taken. But Pinkie’s theory does hold weight, in a sense. But if not you, what else could be done?”

There was calm for a few moments as both mares pondered in silence, until it was interrupted again by Pinkie Pie.

“I...I could do it.”

“Say again?” Twilight asked.

“I’d be willing to do it. To be the magic guinea pig.” Pinkie said, glancing at Sugar Belle before a nervous smile crossed her lips.

“And why would you do that? Not that you’re not a charitable mare, Pinkie, but this is serious business. Chaos magic could do anything, and-”

“Twilight. Maybe you should let her talk it out.” Sugar Belle interrupted, making Twilight pause and look at her suddenly bashful friend. Pinkie’s fingers were fiddling with one another as she glanced between the two. “But she asks a fair point. Why would you do it?”

“Well...it’s like this…”