This is Gluttony, this is Gluttony...
It was a quiet autumn night in the White Tail Woods. Brown leaves danced in the moonlight, carried by cold winds, and some animals were out foraging to prepare for winter. But they were wary of an area in the forest’s darkest depths. If one were to brave the dense, untamed foliage, they would come to a clearing surrounded by leafless trees. In the middle sat a cottage that wouldn’t look out of place in a bygone era, with its thatched roof and glassless windows.
“Goodness, it’s chilly tonight,” the occupant murmured from inside. A dark purple aura surrounded the wooden window shutters as they were magically pulled shut.
Living in the cottage was Spellbound, a black-coated unicorn mare with a long purple mane flowing from beneath the crooked witch’s hat on her head. Her cutie mark, a lollipop sticking out of a cauldron, was spread across her plump flanks.
The reason ponies were wary of travelling too deep into the White Tail Woods was due to stories of a witch who liked to lure unsuspecting travellers to her home and fatten them up to be eaten. Spellbound had heard these rumours herself on her rare trips to town, and found herself rolling her eyes.
I’ve never eaten anypony when I do it, she’d think.
Though tonight, she had no reason to be down. It was the eve before her favourite time of the year - Nightmare Night. A night to don costumes, enjoy fun and games under the moon’s gaze, and most importantly, partake in good natured hijinks and collect sacks and buckets of candy. Though, giving a piece of candy to the statue of Nightmare Moon as tribute felt like a waste if you asked her.
While most ponies liked to trick or treat, Spellbound preferred to trick and treat. She’d pick a random citizen or two throughout Equestria and subject them to a prank where the danger was only to their waistline. Then she’d temporarily move her cottage to a piece of land in town so she could watch the fun, as well as hand out treats to any adorable trick-or-treaters.
“The only question is,” she thought out loud as she walked through the cottage, “who shall I have fun with this year?”
Luckily, finding the answer was simple. She entered a circular room at the back of the house, a large black cauldron in the centre, the walls lined with shelves of jars containing all kinds of ingredients. Most of them she used for baking, a passion of hers. She lowered her head and her horn glowed a dark purple. A fire ignited under the pot as she leaned her front hooves on the rim. Her horn glowed more intensely as she prepared a spell.
“Magic cauldron, I entreat,
Show me a soul who lives for sweets.
Stomach swelling with every bite,
Who shall grow this Nightmare Night?”
The green liquid simmered in the cauldron, steam rising up into the chimney above the room. As it boiled more and more intensely, the lime-coloured mist became a veil in front of her, and she could see an image taking form.
She could see a grey bat pony mare with a violet mane. She was walking somewhere, causing that big round belly to bounce between her legs. A cutie mark of three shooting stars stretched across her jiggling flanks. She was holding a slice of cake in one of her white-socked hooves, taking a big bite from it.
“A pony after my own heart,” Spellbound chuckled warmly. “And with a sweet tooth to boot. Yes, I think she’ll do nicely. And I know just the kind of tricky treat to give her.”
The image faded as the steam rose up through the chimney stack, and Spellbound used her magic to lift items off the shelves.
“We’ll need flour, sugar, some eggs, butter, a pinch of cinnamon,” she muttered, popping each ingredient into the cauldron as she listed them. Finally, she brought a large bottle over and tipped a pint of its pink liquid into the cauldron. “And just a hint of Vice…!”
The Nightmare Night celebration was in full swing in Ponyville. Stalls were set up all around the town square to peddle appropriately spooky treats and host games like bobbing for apples, and kids going door-to-door to collect candy.
Midnight Blossom belched as she staggered through the streets, trying to be careful not to upset her swollen stomach. The bat pony had spent the whole evening, and the whole contents of her wallet, on stuffing her face. Jack-o-lantern-styled cookies, candied apples, mugs of cider and even pumpkin pie went past her lips, making her into a bloated time bomb. She had simply chosen to wear her night guard uniform to the event, and the strap around her middle had been undone to relieve as much pressure as she could.
“O-oh Luna almighty,” she groaned, hiccupping and swallowing, “I’m gonna burst... why did I eat the whole pie…?”
She grunted as she halted abruptly. A unicorn in a black cloak had stopped in front of her, the hood covering their face.
“O-oh, sorry,” Midnight muttered, stifling a burp.
“Oh, my fault, dear,” they said in a mare’s voice. “Goodness, but you sure look like you had fun tonight.”
“I sure did,” the bat pony said, managing a smile. “Maybe a b-bit too much fun…”
“Oh, there’s no such thing,” the mare chuckled. “I know this is out of the blue, but perhaps I could get a second opinion from a gourmand like yourself?”
“Gourmand?” Midnight repeated, blinking deliriously. “Me?”
“You indeed.” The mare smiled beneath her hood and produced something from her cloak. A small cardboard box, which floated toward Midnight.
“This is a little baking experiment of mine,” the mare explained, not trying to hide the mischief in her voice. “I’d like to get your thoughts on it.”
Midnight wanted to politely turn down the offer; she had gorged herself so much that she felt she might explode just from tasting whatever it was. Her common sense urged her to tell the mare to find another taste tester.
“What is it?” she asked instead, flipping open the lid out of curiosity. Inside was what looked, and smelled like a cinnamon roll, the top peppered with what she thought was sugar, but was sparkling in different kinds of colours.
“Just a little treat I whipped up, using a hint of magic to take advantage of your deep, dark desires,” the mare said, smirking. “I call it a Sinnabun.”
Midnight looked back down at the treat. The combined smell of freshly baked bread, strong cinnamon, sweet sugar and even a hint of chocolate warmed her nose. Not only did she already feel like her fullness was subsiding, but hunger was stirring anew within her. She stared at the Sinnabun for what felt like ages.
“It looks really good,” she murmured.
“Presentation is important, of course,” the mare said with warmth in her voice. “Now I wonder what you think of how it--oh!”
Midnight had already shoved her face into the box, and the cloaked mare could hear chomping and slurping as the bat pony helped herself to the Sinnabun. Small moans of pure delight erupted from inside the box, until she finally reemerged, licking her lips clean.
“Mm, warm and soft,” she sighed, stifling another belch. “And just the right amount of cinnamon. It’s amazing.”
“Why thank you, dear,” the mare said warmly. “Sounds like I got it just right. And I think I have enough time to send out some more Sinnabuns before the night is done.”
“That’s hiccup good,” Midnight murmured, a hoof over her mouth as the stuffed sensation returned as quickly as it left. “Ooohhh...I gotta...g-get home…”
“Oh, of course, of course.” The mare stepped aside, allowing the bat pony to waddle by. “Careful going home. Nightmare Night isn’t over yet, after all.”
As she forced herself toward home, Midnight wondered for a moment what that mare could mean by that. Only for a moment, because she really just wanted to go home and sleep off that awful stomach ache.
The streets of Ponyville had begun to quiet down as Nightmare Night carried on well toward midnight. Stalls were closing up and foals were returning home after a prosperous evening of trick-or-treating. The patchy clouds allowed streams of moonlight to glow down on Equestria’s capital city, where Midnight Blossom called home. The bat pony had snuggled down into bed, eager to sleep off that nauseous bellyache. She could worry about any calorie-related mishaps in the morning.
Soon, clocks all over Equestria rang out for the witching hour. The time some said Nightmare Moon would come to collect her candy offerings. The time that was the most cursed of the year, where the supernatural entities were at their strongest.
On the twelfth chime, Midnight’s eyes shot open. Her stomach let out a long, deep howl of desperate hunger. She looked at her pudgy middle, mouth agape. She wasn’t so much surprised at how she was already so hungry, but rather that she’d never felt this hungry in her life. She felt like she hadn’t eaten in weeks.
“Hungry...” she murmured, dragging herself out of bed. “Must...eat…!”
She practically galloped to the kitchen, throwing open the fridge door. She saw some leftover cake, a half-eaten hay burger and a few mangos. The moment she laid eyes on any of them, she started shoving them into her mouth like there was no tomorrow.
A burp erupted from her, and she looked around the kitchen.
“Mm...I could use a little more…”
She threw open cupboards and helped herself to whatever was inside. Fruits, sweets, condiments, she didn’t care what it was, as long as it was edible. She munched up mangos, crammed in cookies and slurped down sauces. Whatever it took to satisfy her hunger.
But it wasn’t satisfied. Not yet. She whimpered at the empty shelves lining the fridge, lamenting the lack of more food inside. That’s when she turned her attention to the pantry, and the cupboards around it.
But even with every cupboard laying open and emptied, and the floor carelessly littered with empty wrappers, bottles and boxes, her stomach still roared with pure hunger. It was like she hadn’t eaten a bite at all!
“Ooooh, settle down,” she moaned, rubbing her larger stomach while she licked chocolate sauce off her mouth. “There’s a whole town for us to have a midnight snack on!”
After ransacking the house to make absolutely sure there wasn’t any more food hiding around, Midnight emerged onto the dark, quiet streets. Her eyes were wide with gluttonous mania. She had to eat. She needed to eat. She needed to eat right now.
“Just a little something…” she breathed, stalking through Ponyville with her belly rumbling desperately for more food. “And I know just the place…!”
Midnight spotted a building in the distance that stood out from the others, designed to resemble a sort of chocolate cake-gingerbread house hybrid. Sugarcube Corner was Ponyville’s one-stop shop for cakes, cookies, pies and all other kinds of baked treats. And Midnight wasn’t going to let something as silly as the place being closed for the night stop her from snacking.
She slunk up to the bakery, and was delighted to find a window to the kitchen slightly ajar. After making sure no one was watching, she opened the window and slipped her bulk into the dark kitchen. The lingering smell of baked dough and cream nearly drove her into a frenzy. She threw open cupboards and pantries, finding boxes of unsold Nightmare Night-themed treats.
The ravenous bat pony helped herself, stuffing her cheeks full of spider-shaped cakes with cobweb-styled frosting, cookies shaped like pony skulls, candied-apple pies and pumpkin pastries. She was lucky to find milk in the fridge, so she could wash down the desserts with gallons upon gallons of the stuff.
As she ate, her already-round stomach began to hang even lower and grow even rounder, beginning to poke out from between her legs. Her flanks began to slowly expand, her cutie marks along with them. Her cheeks retained a bit of puffiness after swallowing mouthful after mouthful of sugary delights.
And when she was done in the kitchen, it was like a bomb had gone off. Boxes, cartons and bottles laid open around the floor, all drained of their contents. Cupboards were left laying open and bare, pottery and tableware laying all around in a heap. And in the middle of the kitchen floor, Midnight was laying on her back, shaking a few crumbs from a doughnut box.
“Empty already?” she sighed, tossing the box away. “Oh well, that was still a really nice… Midnight snack.” She giggled and slowly rolled over onto her hooves. Once she was standing back up, a realisation hit her. After all the cakes and cookies she just ate, she didn’t feel full. Not a bit.
“How can I still be hungry?” she murmured in disbelief. She pressed a hoof into her stomach, receiving her answer in the form of an ominous rumble. Her mind began to flood with thoughts of even more food to eat.
A smile slowly crept across her muzzle, dimpling her chubby cheeks. “I suppose I could have just a little more. I mean, I might as well while I’m here…!”
With that, she sneaked out to the storefront, gasping excitedly when she saw the counter’s display windows were still full of that day’s treats. Pinkie Pie must have neglected to put them away, not that Midnight complained. She licked her lips and helped herself to the cupcakes, brownies, muffins and cookies in the windows, crunching, scoffing and munching like a pig.
Most other mares would feel remorse after such a display of greed. But Midnight, after emptying the entire kitchen as well as the display windows, only felt disappointment when she saw not a crumb left in the whole bakery.
“I can’t be finished already,” she whined, “I’m still so hungry…!”
With a sigh, the bat pony began lumbering herself back to the kitchen. Her belly swung like a soft, fluffy pendulum between her thick legs as she forced herself along. Once at the window, she awkwardly hauled herself through, but halted midway as her massive middle squashed in the frame. She hadn’t thought of how she’d grown even larger since she came in...or of much else besides food.
“Oh c’mon,” she complained, her wings flapping and hind legs dragging on the floor inside. “Lemme out of here! I’m still starving...!”
Grunting and groaning, she pushed her front hooves against the wall and her hind hooves on the floor. It wasn't until she thought to suck in her gut that she started making some progress. Her grey cheeks turned a shade of crimson from the effort, but she thankfully managed to flop out onto the street with a pop. She grunted and got to her hooves, her jiggly stomach and wobbly flanks rippling as she shook herself.
“Just...need...another little snack…” she murmured, licking her lips as she began to venture around town. “I think I smell...strawberries…!”
“Shhhshhh!” Midnight hissed, her hoof sinking into her doughy stomach as it loudly growled once again. “We can’t wake anypony!”
After scrounging around Ponyville for every scrap of food she could find, the bat pony had arrived at Sweet Apple Acres, the home of Equestria’s finest apples and apple-flavoured treats. And if there was one thing a bat pony loved, it was fruit. Even from the front gate, Midnight could smell them - ripe, juicy apples just begging to be eaten. Her nose twitched as she sniffed the air, the smell pointing her toward the barn. They had to have harvested some apples to make Nightmare Night treats, and they needed somewhere big to store them all.
“They always have so many apples,” she murmured, creeping across the courtyard. “Surely they won’t miss one or two.”
To her delight, the doors weren’t locked, and she gingerly poked her head into the barn and flicked on the light. Her wings fluttered and her eyes bugged out and sparkled at what they beheld - buckets of freshly picked apples, boxes upon boxes of apple treats, and barrels of apple cider. All sitting unguarded and practically calling for her to come and help herself.
“Oh Luna above,” she gasped, slipping inside and quietly closing the barn door. Her stomach let out another grumble as a drop of saliva fell to the floor from her mouth. “I’ve hit the motherload…!”
Wasting no more time, Midnight lumbered to a bucket of apples and began digging in. Loud moans and crunches filled the air inside the barn and her wings fluttered with pure joy as she took large bites of the juicy red fruits. Cores littered the floor behind her as she tossed them over her shoulder, and they were soon joined by an empty bucket.
Once all the apples had been depleted, Midnight decided on something even sweeter. She flipped open boxes and began digging into whatever was inside. Apple pies, apple fritters, apple crumbles, candied apples, anything she could think of that was made of apples was there. And she was going to help herself to every last bite.
Moans and groans of pleasure erupted from the gluttonous bat pony, punctuated with belches and piggish snorts, as she stuffed her face. Her stomach swelled more and more, getting no more full but much softer, as if she were digesting right away. Her tail flicked and wagged happily between her steadily expanding flanks.
“Mmm, sho yummy…!” she sighed, her mouth full of apple pie and her face stuffed into a box.
The trash pile behind the ballooning bat pony was met with empty boxes, every single crumb vacuumed up by this insatiable glutton wreaking havoc inside the barn. “Mm, these Apple ponies sure know how to bake! Now I just need a little something to wash it down…”
That’s when Midnight set her sights on the barrels of apple cider. She tossed the lid off the nearest one and peered at the bronze liquid fizzling inside. With a giddy, greedy giggle, she put her lips to the cider and began sucking it up, gulping in a slow, savouring rhythm. As the cider depleted more and more, she tipped the lighter barrel to let the remainder pour into her mouth. Once she was sure she got every last possible drop, she rolled the empty barrel toward the trash pile and helped herself to a fresh one.
Barrel after barrel was drained, and as she carried on, Midnight began to feel a buzz from all that cider. She stumbled on her hooves as she rolled another empty away, causing her gut to gurgle and slosh, resulting in a long, deep belch that practically shook the walls of the barn. She put a hoof over her mouth, her chubby cheeks flushing pink.
“Sweet Luna,” she giggled. “Thaaaat was a big -hiccup!- one. Hooope I didn’t -hiccup!- wake anyone.”
With a lazy smile, the bat pony swaggered over to the last barrel, her wings flapping gently to help her keep her steady on her hooves. Her belly was beginning to kiss the ground as she stumbled to the barrel. She went to hold herself over the rim and lean in as she had done with the others, but her new weight, combined with a bit too much force as she pushed herself up, caused her head to be submerged in the cider with a splash. She was quick to realise her predicament, and began to eagerly suck up the cider. Her face was soon free, but her increased mass created a new problem - the lightening of the barrel caused Midnight to topple and roll backward onto her front.
“Oof!” she grunted, the sudden shifting of her cider-balloon belly causing her to belch once again. She shook her head of any remaining droplets before sticking it into the overturned barrel. “Ooh, there’s some left!”
Her fatter flanks wobbled and bounced as she swayed her rump side to side, tail swishing with it, as she excitedly slurped up whatever cider was left in the barrel. She pushed herself in further and further to reach more and more, her globular sides squeezing into the rim of the barrel.
“Mmm,” she hummed happily, her voice muffled inside. “That hit -urp!- the spot! Though, I could use a little bite or two more...oh, but I ate everything, didn’t I?”
Sighing, her hind legs flopped to the side as her rump hit the ground with a soft thud. She had eaten and drank every single thing Sweet Apple Acres had to offer, but she was still so hungry…
“Oh!” she gasped. Her tail twitched in realisation. “Bon Bon has a candy store! I could use a little -hiccup!- something sweet before bed!”
Resolved, her hind hooves clumsily scrambled back up and she tried to reverse out of the barrel, only for it to be dragged along with her. Blinking quizzically, she backed up again.
“What the…?” she murmured, furrowing her brow. It was then she noticed a tightness around her middle. “Oh…for Luna’s sake, I’m -urp!- stuck!”
The tipsy bat pony stumbled backward, having no idea where she was going. She zigzagged and serpentined, not exactly thinking about what she was doing.
“Don’t -hiccup!- panic, Midnight,” she said. “You just gotta find a crowbar or somethiiiiiing!!”
She had managed to back into one of the empty barrels with enough force that she rolled over it. The barrel she was stuck in returned upright, her fat legs wiggling helplessly in the air.
“Oh, great,” she growled, crossing her front legs in a huff. “Things are just -hiccup!- getting better and-”
Creeeeeaaaaaaaak…
“...better…?”
Evidently, the weight of apple cider had nothing on that of an overfed bat pony. The wooden planks bent outward before finally giving up the ghost and snapping, causing Midnight to yelp and flop down to the ground with a heavy thud. Her disturbed belly caused another heavy belch to erupt from her mouth.
“Oooohhhh…” she groaned, shaking her head. “That did not help at -urp!- all...but on the bright side, I’m free!”
Anypony in their right mind would take such a scenario as a sign to quit their glutting and start practicing some self control. Hit the gym and get a diet plan going to shed some of that gut.
Midnight’s belly wobbled and sloshed as she staggered toward the barn door.
“Now, for that candy…!”
The following morning, Ponyville was in a total, confused panic. Ponies were running and flying hither and nether, all with the same question on their lips.
“Where’s all my food?!”
Houses all over town had been broken into, but the only room that was touched was the kitchen. Fridges, pantries and cupboards were left open and empty, with depleted boxes, cans and bottles strewn all over the floor. Strawberry Sunrise was in dismay at how her strawberry vines had been robbed. Berry Punch lamented having no more berries to brew delicious drinks with. Applejack was stomping around town, absolutely livid at how Sweet Apple Acres had all its preciously prepared harvest stolen. The Cakes were in absolute shock at how Sugarcube Corner had been ransacked, so much so that Pinkie Pie was slinking around town in a plaid coat and Trottingham hunting cap, blowing bubbles out of a pipe.
Midnight Blossom watched the commotion from her upstairs window. She blinked curiously, wondering what all the ruckus was about. She certainly didn’t remember seeing any food thieves the night before. All she could remember was stuffing her face, eating a delicious treat a mysterious mare had offered her, then going to bed. This was definitely a mystery.
“This looks pretty serious,” she murmured, rubbing her soft double-chin. “I might have to report to the captain about this.”
Her stern thinking face softened as she heard a long, growling sound, and she looked down at her stomach. She smiled and put a hoof to its side, seemingly ignoring how it was touching the ground and forcing her legs apart.
“But first, maybe I’ll grab a bit of breakfast. Can’t do my duty on an empty stomach, after all.”