Moondancer did not dream that night. Instead, her consciousness was peacefully submerged within an ocean of oblivion. A beguiling warmth spread over her entire being that lulled Moondancer ever deeper into slumber, refusing to relinquish its possessive hold upon her. She would have continued to be ensnared by her lethargy when a loud clattering accompanied by a yelp returned her once more to the waking world.

Her eyes shot wide open, but quickly squinted against the brilliant sunlight that invaded the interior of her room. Moondancer grumbled for it seemed that, the night prior, she had forgotten to close the drapes in her drunken state. When she made to pull the covers over her face to shield against the blinding light, she found that she couldn’t move. To make matters worse, a minor pain throbbed inside her head; like a drum it beat in synch with her heart and lingered in the back of her skull.

Moondancer looked over her shoulder only to see that Lemon Hearts had completely wrapped around her. She sighed and knew that she only had herself to blame for this. The silver lining was that Lemon Hearts had, at the very least, kept her hooves above Moondancer’s hips this time.

“Lemon Hearts,” Moondancer hoarsely said. “Lemon Hearts wake up.”

The mare in question was undisturbed by the pleas and nestled her head into the crook of Moondancer’s shoulder. Whenever she attempted to pry herself away, Lemon Hearts simply squeezed tighter to fortify her hold. It got old very quickly.

Yeah, that’s enough of that, Moondancer thought.

In a flash of brilliant light she teleported in front of the bed away from her warden’s clutches. Lemon Hearts immediately noted her friends’ absence and made her discomfort known. Mewling in her sleep, her face furrowed as she grasped blindly for anything to hold on to. Moondancer took pity on her friend and pushed a pillow to Lemon Hearts greedy hooves. The mare found purchase in her new prisoner, clutching it tightly against her barrel; smiling all the while. A pair of glasses levitated to their rightful place upon Moondancer’s face before she left the bedroom.

The noise she heard had been concerning but no other disturbance had been made there after. Moondancer wandered down the hall back into her living room to see that almost everything was exactly as she had left it. The bags were still strewn about, Twinkleshine covered her face with her hooves, but Minuette was missing.

Another harsh clanging rang, this time from the kitchen. Moondancer knew that it had to be Minuette’s doing.

That didn’t sound good whatever it was. I hope she didn’t hurt herself.

Twinkleshine covered her ears with pillow as she tossed and turned from the racket. “Make it stop, please,” she groaned.

The clock declared the day to be a quarter past ten so it wasn’t unusual to already be up and about. She wanted nothing more than to return to her bed but seeing to her guests took precedence. Moondancer trotted to the kitchen to offer whatever help she thought Minuette might need, but wasn’t prepared for what she saw.

On the laminated tile rested the door that had once been attached to her refrigerator just a few hours ago. A light dusting of baking soda was plastered all over the floor with a few condiment bottles cluttered about every which way. Minuette was oblivious to her host as she trotted in place whilst muttering to herself. That was the sight that Moondancer was presented with. She cleared her throat and Minuette froze. The mare turned to Moondancer, a look of pure panic displayed on her face.

Minuette’s eyes darted back and forth between the slab of aluminum and her friend. “… Good morning?”

Moondancer raised an eyebrow.

“Now… I know this looks bad, but hear me out,” Minuette said through a strained smile. “I was hungry so I raided your pantry only to find that you’re seriously lacking in… everything really. So, being the humble and best friend that I am, I went out and bought the perfect hangover food for you and the girls. But, as I was trying to put the milk away in the fridge, it wouldn’t open. So I yanked harder on the handle and it flew right off, nearly taking my head with it.”

Moondancer continued her silent treatment. It was just far too early for this nonsense. On the table she saw that there was a brown paper bag set next to a pink takeout box and a jug of chocolate milk. She pointed to the confectioneries. “Is there an apple fritter inside that box?” Moondancer asked in a flat tone.

Minuette tilted her head. “Um… yeah. I got some egg and spinach sandwiches too.”

“Good enough for me.” Moondancer walked around the mess in search of some dishware. Swiftly, the cabinets were opened as she levitated the plates and cups to the table; serving herself a relatively unhealthy breakfast composed of one of everything.

Minuette stood transfixed as she watched her friend munch away at a pastry. “You’re not mad? I thought you’d be mad.”

Moondancer savored the delicious treat with every bite as she sat herself at the head of table. She promised herself that she would try to eat healthier, but it wasn’t exactly cheating if she was freely given junk food. Maybe. Probably. Besides, it would be rude to decline her friends offer.

“Do you want me to be mad?” she asked with a mouth full of fried dough.

“N-no?”

Moondancer swallowed the remnants before she continued. “Minuette, that thing was super old. I’m not really surprised that it came off and I don’t blame you for it.” That wasn’t necessarily true but she knew it was what Minuette needed to hear. Moondancer didn’t much care for the thing and would have bought a new one, but knowing herself she would have just put it off. “Just… try to be more careful with my other things at least, okay?”

“A-are you sure?” Minuette asked. “I can pay for the damages, I promise.”

“Like I said, it’s fine. I’ve got it covered.”

“…Still.”

The mare was stubborn. Minuette was the type to fully pay back what was owed with interest. It was endearing, but also annoying in the way that she fretted needlessly over matters.

“Look, if you really want to make it up to me, how about you help me look for a new one. We can go to that store that Twinkleshine got all smug about and shop there. If you really still feel crummy you can just pay for lunch afterward. Deal?"

Minuette looked contemplative for a moment. Moondancer was afraid that she would refuse her offer and would insist on making things ‘right’ but was pleasantly surprised when no objections were made. “Deal!”

From just how expressive she was it seemed to Moondancer that Minuette was relatively unaffected from yesterday. Usually Moondancer was the one designated as the sober escort to shepherd the rest home since they tended to be too inebriated to handle themselves. Minuette was always the first to go overboard, but she never suffered from any hangover that Moondancer was aware of. She was jealous of the constitution that her friend had, but then she wasn’t big on drinking in the first place.

“Sweet, Celestia, keep it down!” Twinkleshine moaned as she stumbled into the kitchen. Her mane was like a rats nest as it clumped and stuck out in odd angles. Her eyes were screwed tightly shut as a hoof rubbed at her temple. The mare looked absolutely terrible. “My head is killing me.”

“Is the princess finally awake?” Minuette cooed. She went to ruffle the mare’s mane but her hoof was quickly batted away. “Well, we got some food over here so hurry up and eat up before it gets cold.”

“I don’t think I can really stomach any food right now,” Twinkleshine blanched as she strode past the metal chunk on the floor. She was either oblivious, or chose not to care, as she walked over the baking soda, spreading it everywhere one hoof step at a time. The mare took a seat next to Moondancer and gently rested her head on the table. “Do you have any coffee or some orange juice, Moondancer? I’ll totally love you forever if you do.”

“I do have coffee, but you’re not getting any,” Moondancer said as she took a quick sip of the milk. “That stuff is terrible for you after a night of drinking. Presented before you is a smorgasbord that will specifically resupply your body with the materials it needs right now.”

Moondancer put together the same spread that she was currently enjoying and placed it all in front of her on the table. Twinkleshine cracked open an eye, and if it were possible, somehow managed to look more nauseated from just a glimpse at it.

“I’m not feeling particularly hungry,” Twinkleshine said full of lethargy.

“This food is super good for you though!” Minuette exclaimed. Twinkleshine grumbled at her friend’s sudden outburst but still the mare went on. “It’s all stuff that’ll help you out in a pinch after a night out in town.”

Twinkleshine wrinkled her nose. “I don’t understand. I ate a bunch last night so why am I the only one that’s all messed up? You two look fine for the most part.”

“It’s because you drank an assortment of mixed drinks instead of staying with a single type,” Moondancer lectured. “It didn’t help that your dinner was primarily composed of vegetables.”

“Yeah, you should know better when drinking, Twinkleshine,” Minuette chided. It seemed that she been cleaning up the mess on the floor while Moondancer had been focusing on her food. “You know the old saying, ‘eat your bread, or you’ll be stuck in bed, wishing you were dead'. Now you’ve gotta make up for the loss.”

“That’s right. There’s protein, cysteine, sugar, and complex carbohydrates that all work in tandem to help rejuvenate the body. You need these things since your stomach is botched and your blood sugar is low. The spinach contains magnesium which is an anti-inflammatory. The sugars here will help rejuvenate the losses whilst they slowly break down the rest of the day since your liver is completely taxed from the night before, while proteins will help detoxify it as well.”

Try as she might, it didn’t look like the importance her words reached Twinkleshine in the slightest as the mare frowned. “…I don’t wanna.”

Moondancer adjusted her glasses. “Just eat the fucking food, you foal.”

Twinkleshine’s ears flattened against her head. “Alright, alright, jeeze. Don’t gotta be that loud though.” She sat up and brought the glass of milk to her lips, quickly emptying it in one go. Her thirst somewhat slaked for the moment she then got to work on the food on her plate.

Minuette, it seemed, had already finished cleaning the floor and joined them at the table. She quizzically tilted her head. “What’s, fucking? Did you mean bucking?”

Moondancer waved a hoof. “It’s just something that I picked up from Greg last night. From what I could surmise it has the same connotation, so sure.”

“Wait a second. When did you have time to hang out with him? You were with us the whole night.”

“You were pretty out of it, huh?” Moondancer slowly said. “After I went to the restroom we just happened to bump into one another and somewhat hit it off I guess.”

It was a half-truth but it was better than letting them know what really happened.

“Huh, well, Lemon Hearts wasn’t too far off then,” Twinkleshine said through a mouthful of bagel and eggs.

“Hmm?” Moondancer hummed.

“He’s a cute guy I’ll give you that, but I honestly didn’t think he’d be your type,” Twinkleshine waggled her eyebrows at Moondancer. “Went off to play scientist with the alien then, hmm?”

“He is not my type!” Moondancer huffed. The other mares winced at her outburst and a blush appeared on her face. “That stallion insulted my home and called it a dump! Not to mention that cocky attitude of his is completely undesirable if you ask me.”

Yesterday night did hurt a bit. Here Moondancer had finally met the alien that she had heard so much about and it was… not what she expected. It wasn’t a bad thing, it was just wasn’t what she had anticipated at all. Honestly, she felt that they got along well enough. Then at that last little stretch after he had just got her out of reminiscing about a particularly bleak part of her life, he went and insulted her home. She knew that he meant every word of what he said despite his apologies. She wasn’t mad – for the most part—that was just an underlying feeling fueled by her own embarrassment.

“Well… he’s not wrong,” Minuette said in a soft tone. Shock etched itself on Moondancer as she looked agape at her friend. “Moondancer, you’re one of my best friends and I love you, but this place is a dump.”

“That’s not…”

“Thank, Celestia!” Twinkleshine interrupted. “I didn’t want to be the one to say anything, but it’s true. This place looks like it’s gonna fall apart. I don’t know how you can stand to live in a dump like this.”

Minuette frowned at Twinkleshine. “You should really look into fixing your home up, Moondancer.” She was already wolfing down some baked good and looked as though she was getting ready to work the others that had been piled up on her plate.

“For sure, this place has definitely seen better days.”

It wasn’t that they were wrong by any means. Moondancer was quite aware of the structural flaws and the general wear and tear that her home was under. It was more so that she, while loath to admit it, was more or less a slob. Her workaholic nature didn’t help matters as well, but perhaps this was a good opportunity.

Moondancer wasn’t blind to what was going on inside her home. There were cracks on the wall. The roof was coming apart. Her sink had been leaking for who knows how long and so many more problems that it made Moondancer’s head swim.

Her friends seemed to be holding themselves back for a while. While Minuette had made her position apparent before, Moondancer believed that it was just her motherly nature making a fuss. With so many piling on her like this, she took it as a sign. She had already decided that she was going to take a break from work, so that time could be better utilized to help renovate her home. Replacing her fridge could be just the push that she needed to get started.

“Okay, maybe you two have a point,” Moondancer conceded as she rubbed the back of her neck. “I thought just cleaning up the place would be enough, but maybe I do need to look into getting some help.”

Twinkleshine looked abashed. “Oh… well I didn’t mean to be a downer or anything. I just meant it in a way that… you know?”

“What she meant to say was that we just worry about you sometimes is all, Moonie,” Minuette said.

Moondancer shook her head. “No, no. You two, and as much as I’d hate to admit it, Greg, are right. I’ll start looking into this when we shop for the fridge. As of now I’m available whenever you are, Minuette.”

The mare pondered her friend’s words while she hummed. “I can go tomorrow if you’d like. After last night it’s probably best that we all just take it easy today. Plus, I still have to let Abacus know that I’m fine. I told him I might stay over at a friends if I got too sloshed, but I don’t want to worry him.”

“Hey, there’s no rush. I don’t want to make it feel like you’re being put on the spot.”

“Moondancer it was my fault so I’ll help you out as soon as I am able. Besides, something tells me that you’d go right back to eating junk food in an instant.”

That wasn’t necessarily true, Moondancer thought. Sure she still needed to restock her pantry but Moondancer felt her friend should have more faith than that. Moondancer was an adult who had the willpower to preserve before such vile delicacies … Who was she kidding? It was possible that she’d crawl back to old habits as soon as they left.

“Thanks,” Moondancer said and then turned to Twinkleshine. “You’re welcome to come along as well if you’d like.”

“Nah,” Twinkleshine declined. “I’ve got some errands to run, but I’ll tell you the gist of what you should do when you get there.”

Moondancer didn’t want to make her friend feel excluded in any way. It seemed spending her day off perusing kitchen ware wasn't Twinkleshine’s ideal way to relax. At least she had a good reason for declining though. It was most certainly because she was too lazy and let them pile up in the first place, but she wasn’t one to judge.

“Heh, so you can act like an adult when it suits you.”

Twinkleshine snorted. She was, if anything, reliable when it came down to budgeting. Managing a warehouse and its workers required a certain economic sense to keep up and running, after all. It was just ironic since she was so frugal with her own money more often than not. But, if she wanted to buy something, then Moondancer was sure that there was no one better to turn to for advice on deals and haggling. She gave Moondancer a brief rundown on what to ask and recommended the salesperson that she made her purchase with.

After Twinkleshine finished, Moondancer felt like she understood the explanation well enough. Well, it was one thing to learn something but entirely another to actively apply it. Moondancer felt that she wasn’t bad with money per se; she just wasn’t very literate in this matter. What income she had was just spent on bills and left in the bank usually. She never made much effort to actually spend it. With Minuette there to help guide her, she felt that she should be fine though.

“Hey, since you’re serious about renovating, why don’t you ask Greg for some help?” Twinkleshine asked. “I’m sure he’d be happy to lend a hoof.”

“I guess it couldn’t hurt,” Moondancer blew a strand of hair out of her face. “You all seemed to have given him such glowing praise.”

“C’mon, give the guy a chance at least. You don’t have to give him the ‘buck me eyes’ like Lemon Hearts does or anything. Stuff like this can really add up quickly if you don’t know what you’re getting in to. If nothing else, I’m sure he could point you the right direction on what to expect at least for such a big project.”

“Please, I have some modesty at least,” Moondancer smirked. “If anything, Lemon Hearts is probably seething that Greg had his hands all over you last night.”

Twinkleshine ceased her eating and her lips turned into flat line. “…What?”

“How do you think we got back to my place? You were having one of your little fits that you get when you’ve put away one too many. I had to put you to sleep just so we could leave. Minuette was already being hauled by Vintage Brew since she had passed out, so Greg had to carry you.”

Minuette just giggled and shrugged her shoulders. She probably suspected that was what happened since she didn’t make the trek herself. Red had slowly crept up Twinkleshine’s neck as Moondancer went on, and spread all over her face.

Twinkleshine frowned. “Oh, Celestia. I don’t really remember this. I wasn’t that bad was I?”

“I believe your exact words before you passed out were, ‘Oh you better not, Moondancer, or I’ll bop you so hard that—‘“

“That… what?”

“Well, I shot you in the face already at that point. I think I can take an educated guess as to what you were going to say though.”

“…Sorry. I would never—you know how I get.” She shyly said.

“Apology accepted, dingus.”

Nothing was unusual at all about the way Twinkleshine behaved that night. Honestly it was about what Moondancer come to expect. They would all get drunk and Twinkleshine was liable to either become giddy or irritable. It was a coin toss every time but she was easy enough to handle. It wasn’t the first time she had put her to sleep and it probably wouldn’t be the last.

“Hey, he didn’t complain or anything right?” Twinkleshine asked as she rubbed at her foreleg “Like, I wasn’t too heavy was I?”

“No. He said you were quite light in fact.” Relief was painted on Twinkleshine’s face as she heard her words.

Didn’t think Twinkleshine would be one to care about something like that, Moondancer thought. Well she is a mare after all and Greg is a guy.

The mare was made of rougher stuff than her friends. Just because she was tomboyish didn’t mean that she wanted to be thought of less as a mare. Twinkleshine wasn’t on the level of say, Lemon Hearts, in terms of etiquette, but she tried in her own little ways.

“You worry too much, Twinkleshine!” Minuette exclaimed. “What stallion enjoys playing around with a twig? A nice curvy mare is much more attractive to them and you have got it going on in all the right places. I know Abacus thinks so at least.”

Twinkleshine sighed. “I guess. I’ve been stress eating a little bit after the accident at work and of course it all goes straight to my flank.”

Ah so that’s what it was, Moondancer thought. Honestly she had hardly noticed. If that was a bad thing, Moondancer couldn’t say. She was just happy to see her friends after so long that she probably didn’t pay it much attention. After a quick glance at her friend’s rear, there was no denying it; it had gotten bigger.

“Yep, it sure did. But that’s not a bad thing,” Moondancer added. “Wide birthing hips is a very attractive and desirable feature in a mate. It’s instinctual to want a partner that has such since it means it will help ease the process of childbirth.”

“Boo, way to make it sound so clinical,” Minuette said in a flat tone.

“Yeah, booooooo,” Twinkleshine nudged Moondancer and rocked her back and forth, then quickly barked out a laugh. “But, I get it. It’s nice to know that I’m thicc. Wait… what was that about, Abacus?”

“Nothing…”

“Has that nerd been eyeing me up?”

Minuette let out a nervous giggle while shaking her head. “Psh, no, no… sort of.”

“How should I even take that?”

“It’s—uh, complicated,” Minuette’s darted around trying to avoid her friends.

“Uh huh. Please, do go on.”

Minuette fidgeted in her seat as she thought of how best to continue. “We have this… game we like to play, see. He pretends to sneak peeks at other mares and I catch him in the act. It makes me like crazy jealous and really gets me all riled up.”

The gears started turning inside Moondancer’s head. “Okay, I think I know where this is going…”

It fell upon deaf ears as Minuette chose to continue. “When we get home I whisk him away to the bedroom and lock the door behind me. I have to make sure to drain him of everything he’s got. Only when he’s a panting, hot mess beneath me that can’t even see straight anymore, is when I know my job is done. We sleep just like that afterward coated in my scent. He washes of course before work, but the faint smell of me lingers in his coat, letting all those other mares know that he’s mine.”

“Alright!” Twinkleshine shouted. “We get it. Totally too much information.”

Moondancer agreed. That was something that felt she really didn’t need to know. She knew the two of them loved each other very much so it was harmless enough. However, Twinkleshine was right yesterday; it was apparent who wore the pants in the relationship. Her friend was a little possessive but if they were both consenting adults then who was she to say anything. It did get Moondancer thinking. Had she also been a part of this couples weird games? She decided that she didn’t want to think about it too hard.

At that point all three of them let the conversation peter out in favor of eating their breakfast. Moondancer didn’t mind; she had a lot to think about. The replacement of her fridge for one but also just overall upcoming expenses. She was no expert in this matter by any means but she knew it would certainly not be cheap. This was an investment to be sure, but was that her only option?

Moondancer felt that she could simply sell her home and move into a more accommodating one. Perhaps it would be cheaper but she wasn’t so sure about that option. The place would most likely not have much value being in the condition it was, it’s only redeeming quality that it was in such a close distance to the business district; that and the library that Twilight had left her.

It wasn’t like all of her memories of her home were good either. Particularly those from a certain birthday. She had worked through them sure, but every so often she did feel a twinge when the memories resurfaced. It all made her head hurt debating what to do.

One step at a time. Just buy the fridge and take it from there.

By now, it felt like the food was doing its job at alleviating her hangover. Moondancer chalked it up as just a minor placebo effect, but she did feel better nonetheless. She willed a pitcher in the air and filled it with water from the sink all whilst resting comfortably in her seat. It refilled her milk coated glass with the stuff, but she didn’t care in the slightest that the two liquids mixed together.

“That’s disgusting,” Twinkleshine blanched at her cocktail.

“It’s all going to the same place, no? So what does it matter?” Moondancer asked as she took another sip.

“Moonie, honey… no,” Minuette disapprovingly shook her head. “At least wash the glass out first.”

“I don’t see the big deal,” Moondancer paid no mind to her friends as she drank deeply from her cup. The liquid was cool and thick, with a hint a chocolate that very much clashed with the water. It wasn’t good, by any measure, but Moondancer didn’t care. She was just giving her body what it needed at this point. “Delicious.”

They were just discussing Minuette’s weird sex play, but the chocolate milk was apparently the thing that was just too much. People are weird, Moondancer thought.

By now the three of them had finished eating and were in much higher spirits than before. They couldn’t stay forever though as Twinkleshine looked to the clock in the living room and sighed.

“Well, it’s getting to be that time girls. Should probably head out soon.”

“Yeah, I shouldn’t keep Abacus waiting for too much longer,” Minuette hopped out of her chair and put her dishes into the sink.

“Lemon Heart’s was still sleeping, yeah?”

“Yeah, she was snoozing away quite comfortably last I checked,” Moondancer said. After a moment of thought Moondancer shook her head. “That mare can sleep right through an earthquake so I wouldn’t bother trying to wake her up; she’s like a log.”

Twinkleshine gave a toothy grin. “I thought you would never share a bed with her after the last time. Well, I hope that vile mare didn’t try to snatch your innocence again, Moondancer.”

The two snickered at Moondancer who rolled her eyes. “Hilarious.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.” Twinkleshine jumped off her seat and exited the kitchen, presumably towards the bedroom.

Moondancer followed Minuette’s lead and gathered the remaining dishes, placing them into the sink. She wasn’t sure what Twinkleshine was planning but it couldn’t have been good. The mare had a glint in her eye that spoke of mischief.

“Rise and shine!” Twinkleshine shouted followed by what sounded like liquid being dumped.

“Ahh!” Lemon Hearts cried from across the house. “You bucker, Twinkleshine!”

The mare could be heard fleeing the scene of the crime with her victim hot in pursuit. The next few minutes had Minuette trying to calm down a drenched and irate Lemon Hearts as she attempted to pummel a laughing Twinkleshine. Moondancer sighed as she held the two in place with her magic.

It’s too early for this nonsense.

Author's Note

Remember to drink your choccy milk after a night of drinking. It helps a lot.