They could hear somepony talking inside after going quiet themselves. Two ponies, neither sounded young, like a student. Two adults, from the sound of it. Big Mac perked. "Wait, is that?" He hurried to the door and opened it in a grand sweet. "Sugar Belle?!"

There was Sugar Belle and some odd stallion. The stallion, purple, shrank back at the suddenly open door. Sugar Belle looked annoyed, not embarrassed. "Did you forget?"

"Forget... what?" Big Mac inclined his head. "Seems clear ah went an' forgot somethin'."

"You really are out of sorts." She closed with Big Mac and gave him a swat. "Silly thing. Last night? Picked up a pony?"

Big Mac's eyes widened. "How did I forget that?!" They had, as Blossom, snatched up Sugar Belle. It was... What had she been thinking? She remembered, but also didn't. Her frazzled nature had put a little distance between the two halves in that growing sense of dread.

Their worry had driven a wedge between them. "Gotta fix that... later... Um... Hi."

"Howdy." Sugar looked past Big Mac to the quiet Applejack. "You look... uncomfortable."

Applejack rubbed at her cheek. "Am I the only one? Yer special somepony's all set up fer a major change. Ah'd expect some... reaction out of ya. Also who's that?" She looked to the stallion in the room. "Don't recognize you."

The stallion chuckled nervously. "Y-yeah... We've met. Sorry. Did I not make that sign large enough?"

"Sign?" Applejack took a step back, looking around. There it was, above the door. "Ah didn't even think to look up." It clearly advertised Starlight's office as being closed. "Huh... So where's Starlight?"

"You're looking at her." He rolled his eyes. "I was just... trying a thing."

Applejack squinted at the genderbent unicorn. "You too?!"

Starlight waved their hooves wildly. "Relax! I was just trying. Not a permanent thing for me. I'm pretty done. Stallions, neat, but nah."

Applejack raised a brow. "So, what, is bein' a mare just that much better? Seems everycreature's rushin' fer one side. Can't work like that."

Sugar Belle inclined her head slowly. "It isn't a contest. Are you alright, Applejack."

"Yes!" She stomped, just for her facade to crack. "No... Sorry. This is a big day, fer me, alright? Starlight, if that's still yer name? Can ya help or not?"

Starlight snorted at that. "Still Starlight. I just said, I'm not sticking with this. I am a mare, still am. You were a breezie, did you feel like that was your 'true self'?"

"No..." Applejack thought to that brief experience. "That was somethin', but happy jus' the way ah am..." She took a slow breath. "An' ah want mah sib to be just as happy, so can ya help?"

Starlight waved the two of them in. "Close that, thanks. I'm not trying to advertise this little experiment." They relaxed when they were all inside and their form was properly hidden. "Alright, so, wanna go mare fulltime? We can do that... But this isn't as simple as the first spell I did. I have to properly prepare. It'd be even better if we had support, so! I'm going to bother Twilight, as soon as I finish inverting. I am not walking the halls like this."

Sugar nodded at Starlight. "We were talking about that before you got here."

Big Mac started back. "Ya were?!"

Sugar blinked softly. "You... are really out of it." She rest a hoof on his head. "Poor thing. What do you remember, from the last couple of nights as Blossom?"

Big Mac thought back on it, but it was... "Huh... Don't remember clearly... Ah was... distracted." That hadn't happened before. They could remember their time with Blossom just as clearly as anything else before. "I must be... powerful upset."

"Powerful!" Sugar blurted in agreement. "Poor thing." She hugged her special somepony close. "We're going to get this taken care of, so relax. Now, one thing."

"Yeah?" Mac nuzzled Sugar gently with a shy smile. "What's that?"

"Why didn't you take a picture?!" Sugar pouted. "I'm the only one here that has no idea what lovely mare I'll be attached to."

Applejack burst into fresh laughter, filling the room with it. "Ah... needed that. Um, if it helps, Big Mac cut a fine shape as a mare. Assumin' they're goin' back to that, yer in fer a treat... assumin' yer alright with a mare fer a special somepony?"

Sugar colored at that. "Y-yeah... So long as it's Big Mac inside... That they'll be pretty makes it even better. I'm pretty normal as ponies go."

"Ya stop that!" Big Mac gave Sugar and Applejack a glare. "What's with the mares around me not knowin' how pretty they are? Yer both such lovely ponies. Stop puttin' yerself down."

Applejack swatted at the air towards Big Mac. "Yer my brother. Yer vote only goes so far on that particular line. Don't mean ah don't 'ppreciate it, still..."

Sugar colored, looking Applejack over. "He's not wrong." She caught herself a moment after that. "Oh! Sorry. She's not wrong."

Starlight sank behind their desk. "Anywho! I'll go back to being my usual self in not too long. I do not feel confident working big magic while I'm out of whack, which I am. You three--" They waved a hoof at Mac, Sugar, and Applejack. "Go entertain yourselves. I'll swing by when I'm ready to start. And stop crowing about how pretty you are."

Applejack drew her hat down to cover her darkening face. "Sorry... Wasn't tryin'." She fled before more awkward words could happen.

Sugar drew Mac along with her. "See you later, Starlight."

"'Bout that." Big Mac walked alongside her. "Why were ya here?"

"She's where..." Sugar trailed off, frowning as they walked through the school. "You really are lost right now. You did that. Or the other you, at least." Sugar raised a hoof to her chin. "Which isn't you right now. Let's get you sorted." She leaned in against Mac. "You have friends, don't forget. We all want to see you happy."

They all met outside where Applejack was pointing the way. "Look, um... Sorry, but we really should try to put in a day's work if nopony's recoverin' from any powerful magic."

Big Mac nodded at that. "Ayup." He started for the orchard. "Comin, Sugar?"

"Couldn't keep me away." Sugar hastened to their side. "One thing. You know, Blossom can still see you just fine."

"Huh..." Big Mac seemed to consider that as they hiked through the town. "Maybe that's 'cause she's already in a good place? There ain't no big questions over her head."

"Maybe." Applejack thumped in a sudden side jump against Big Mac. "Let's clear your thoughts up then. Ah can appreciate a goal. When you start rememberin' her side, then it's all fixed. Until then, you still need our help." She offered a hoof towards Sugar. "Wit' me?"

"With you." She clopped her hoof to the offered one. "Let's fix this. I want both of these lovely ponies to be happy, and this one's my special somepony, so they especially need to be in a good place." She went in to deliver a quick smooch to Big Mac's face. "Just to be clear, I love you. I loved you, and will keep right on loving you. Big stallion or big mare. You're Big Mac either way... Joanamac, huh?"

Applejack snickered suddenly at the name. "Ya heard then?"

"'Course I did! I need to know my special pony's name."

Big Mac blushed at the conversation. "Sorry fer not havin' you more involved... are ya mad?"

"A little." She squinted at Big Mac. "You should have told me... I would have come a galloping the moment you mentioned it."

"Which is why I didn't." Big Mac leaned against her. "I didn't want to worry you."

"Aw... But, as a special pony, this is exactly what you should be worrying me about! I'd rather worry than just not know when you're going through a big thing, alone, without me." Sugar rubbed her side to Mac's. "I'm serious, about us, together, which means I want to be involved."

Applejack nodded from Mac's other side. "Ya got two mares that care powerful fer ya, and the rest of yer family back home. Y'ain't alone, all we're sayin'. Stop pretendin'. Even if we ain't going' through what you are. Ah got my own problems." She coughed softly into a hoof. "And you shove your nose right on in. So expect us to do the same. Partta what love's all about."

Sugar waved at some ponies they were going by.

"Hi." One of those ponies waved back. Lyra was grinning at them. "Decided mare life wasn't for you, BM?"

Sugar colored and almost stumbled. "They know?! Um..."

Big Mac veered off towards Lyra and Bon Bon. "Jus' the opposite, actually... Um, just they're busy." They pointed back at the school. "So we gotta wait afore the big magic's done."

Bon Bon gave a thoughtful hum at the idea. "That makes sense." Her eyes slid from Big Mac to Sugar. "You're their mare, right?"

Sugar darkened but nodded quickly. "That's me. I didn't think... anyone aside of an Apple would really hear about it... Maybe Barb?"

Bon Bon smirked a little. "They had some questions, and we had some--"

"--answers," cut in Lyra suddenly. "Poor pony didn't even know how what they wanted to be worked."

Sugar inclined her head left and right. "But they..." She trailed off. "Do they know?" she asked Big Mac suddenly.

"No... No, they don't."

Bon Bon's brows went up together. "Don't know what? Care to share? We're already in this deep."

Lyra clapped her hooves in a merry clipclop. "We're experts at keeping secrets. Pros!"

"Lyra..."

"What?" She stuck out her tongue at Bon Bon and smiled at Big Mac. "Go on."

Big Mac looked between the mares with them and the curious mares ahead. "Well..." Was it safe? "This is... a secret, a big one... Ya helped me out. Only... fair... ah guess..." Lyra was looking more excited by the moment.

Applejack walked between them. "Hold up here. Big Mac's a little overwhelmed and this ain't the right time to press them for things, especially secret. Can ya wait at least a week afore askin'?"

Bon Bon held up her hooves. "No offense intended. We were just asking."

"No harm, no foul." A lyre popped into being, strumming gently. "We love Big Mac, as a friend. We want the best for him."

"Her," corrected Sugar Belle. "That is something to get used to... I... I heard you're a big lady mare."

"Still big." Big Mac smiled, thinking of their mare form. "Still Big Mac, just a different Mac. Still love you." The two touched noses and rubbed in fond exchange.

Lyra clasped her hooves together. "Aw! Too precious... Well, when you're ready, come and chat! I love hearing secrets."

Big Mac cocked a brow at her. "Even ones you especially can't go sayin'?"

"Especially those ones." Lyra winked at Big Mac. "I feel so special knowing those. Like the... And the... Oooo, that's a good one." She didn't say any of those secrets, but even noting they existed seemed to please her quite a bit. "One more? Yes, please. Ready for it."

Sugar nudged Big Mac along. "We'll send Big Mac along when they have their hooves under them."

Bon Bon put out an arm ahead of Lyra. "Let them go. Hope you feel better soon. We're rooting you on."

Lyra took this as a direct challenge, cheering and clopping for the group as they left.

Sugar shook their head once they had made their escape. "They're a bit... nosey. What were you asking them about? You already know what being a mare is like."

Big Mac's coloring drew darker by the moment. Not saying would be a lack of faith. They couldn't do that. "Ah was wonderin' how a mare and a mare show they love each other."

Author's Note

There, they said it nice and plain. No secrets between these ponies. Was this a good idea?

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