Chapters The unicorn sipped her tea and took a glance out the window. She smiled as some orange leaves fluttered in the morning wind. The chill in the air made her feel ever the comfier, curled up on her nice warm seat with a good book. Living in a little cottage deep in the White Tail Woods meant she was surrounded by fallen leaves, but dealing with an overabundance was no problem for a spell caster of her considerable talents.
Her coat was black as night, and her mane a soft lavender that flowed over her shoulder. Her physique was what she heard many current-age ponies call a ‘mom bod’, with her curvaceous flanks giving a groove to her cutie mark - a cauldron with a lollipop sticking out of the purple liquid inside.
“There’s no doubt about it,” she said, adjusting her half-moon reading glasses, “Autumn is my favourite time of year.”
Her ears twitched at a gentle knock on the old wood of the cottage door.
“Oh, now who could that be?” she wondered. “Do excuse me, my dear.”
Her horn glowed with a lavender purple aura, which then covered her body as she slowly floated off her seat and onto the floor.
Her seat was in fact an earth pony. A mare who the unicorn had found wandering the Woods the night before. She couldn’t just leave the poor dear on her own on a cold night, so she used some of her magic to bring the young lady to her cottage to stay for the night, and to give her something to eat while she was there. She couldn’t bear to watch any creature go hungry.
Of course, once the mare had one bite of the unicorn’s baked treats, she couldn’t stop herself. She ate and ate and ate , growing herself into a gargantuan ball of soft, jiggling fat that was currently splayed out on its back and snoring quietly. Something the unicorn’s guests were wont to do, not that she complained; she was having trouble concentrating on her book recently, and she needed something soft to rest on while she took in its contents.
“Oh, you’re still asleep, aren’t you?” she chuckled, gently pressing a hoof into her guest’s side. “Well, once I see who’s at the door, I’ll get breakfast going, hm?”
She sauntered to the door with a natural sway to her flanks, and used her magic to open the door. On her stoop was a pegasus stallion wearing a mailpony uniform. He looked a little apprehensive, though she wasn’t sure why.
“Good morning, ma’am,” he began politely. “Are you Spellbound?”
“Why yes, I am,” the unicorn said with a warm smile. She quite liked the look of him.
He presented his wing, with a plump envelope between its feathers. “Letter for you.”
“And you’re giving it to me personally?” Spellbound’s smile grew as she took the letter in her magic. “You simply must let me give you a little something for being such a gentlecolt.”
She fluttered her lashes, and his pupils dilated before he shot into the air.
“Sorryma’amnotimelotstodohaveagoodday!” he squeaked.
Spellbound puffed out her cheeks. “Why do the cute ones always run?” she lamented. “And he was such a skinny young thing too. More’s the pity.”
With her magic, she unfolded the envelope flap and opened the letter inside, starting to read.
Dear Spellbound,
Thank you for showing interest in partaking in the annual Nightmare Night Festival. We are pleased to inform you that your request to operate a stall for the Night Market has been accepted. Please find the corresponding information inclosed.
Sincerely, Petal Wind Manager, Ponyville Department of Recreation
“They let me in!” gasped Spellbound, her front hooves pattering on the floor. The main reason she loved autumn was because it contained Nightmare Night, her favourite holiday of the year. A night of treats, tricks and scares, that she herself had enjoyed for centuries now.
Indeed, along with the letter was a whole slew of information, including a map pointing out where her stall would be placed, and a list of what she was and wasn’t allowed to do.
“No provocative costumes,” she quietly read aloud as she paced back into the cottage. “No pranks that will cause harm or discomfort to guests or festival staff.”
She snorted at that. The very idea that she’d hurt or disturb any creature. They didn’t add that part just for her , did she? Was it because she turned the Running of the Leaves into the Waddling of the Leaves a few weeks prior? The onlookers seemed to agree it was all in good jest!
She trotted over to a nook that housed her huge, trusty cauldron, and zapped the enchanted coals beneath with her magic to stoke the fire and quickly bring the water inside to a boil. A mischievous smirk crossed her muzzle.
“I don’t plan to hurt anycreature, but Nightmare Night is not the time for good behaviour.” She scanned the shelves surrounding the cauldron. “Now, where did I put the Poison Joke…?”
Stalling For The Right Moment
The day of Nightmare Night was soon upon Ponyville, and the town square was alight with locals working to set up the festival. Streamers of paper ghosts were strewn around the lampposts, fake cobwebs were set up in every possible area they could be hung and appreciated, and plastic pony skeletons were propped up in amusing poses against walls and on tree branches.
In the marketplace were creatures setting up their stalls to sell holiday goods. The likes of face painting, small toys and games were put together around the square. Spellbound was amongst them, having arrived in the early afternoon to display a variety of snacks and sweet treats she planned to sell. She had her classic cookies, brownies and cupcakes styled after spiders, bats and rats, all favourites amongst trick-or-treaters, but this year she wanted to try something new. Something different. Hence why she had a batch of brand new candies set out separate from her usual fair, and behind her was a cauldron, smaller than the one she used for work, filled to the brim with a fizzling liquid.
“Dare you try the mystery treats? Two bits each,” she murmured as she wrote as much on a sign and set it with her new snacks.
“As long as none of them are pumpkin flavoured,” she heard, turning to see an orange earth pony mare working the stall across from her. She had plenty of pumpkins and pumpkin snacks of her own set out on her own counter, and was even advertising personalised carving.
“Certainly not, Pumpkin Spice,” said Spellbound with a smile. “I know better than to intrude on your patch, as it were.”
All she needed now was a name for her stall. She stared at the plain board above the counter, tilting her head and tapping her chin. After what felt like hours of thinking and mulling, her scrunched face softened and, with a glow of her horn, set the name on the stall with a flash.
SPELLBOUND’S TRICKS AND TREATS
“Perfect!” she chirped, smiling proudly at her stall.
The festival’s director, Petal Wind, trotted over to look for herself. “A lovely stall, and in the spirit as well. If you’re all done, would you mind giving a little hoof just to tie up some small things before we officially open?”
“It would be my pleasure,” said Spellbound.
“And, please behave yourself tonight,” Petal added, with the voice of somepony who was very much in the know.
Spellbound’s smile didn’t waver. “I shall try my best.”
At sunset, the Nightmare Night Festival was opened and in full swing. Creatures dressed up in costumes wandered around the stalls and attractions if they weren’t going door-to-door for treats to pay Nightmare Moon not to curse them. Of course everycreature knew the legend was just that, but tradition was important in Ponyville. Tradition also meant everycreature was also in a costume fitting the event, apart from Spellbound - her black cloak and crooked hat fit the criteria, but they were simply what one would call her work clothes.
Many guests were enjoying the games and showing off their costumes, and as Spellbound had hoped, her promise of a mysterious Nightmare Night experience had brought in quite a crowd. Her classic snacks sold as well as usual (which she had left unenchanted, just for tonight), but she was delighted to see that bits were practically being thrown at her for her mystery treats.
“Thank you, my dear,” she said once again. “Please enjoy!”
Because I certainly shall.
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Have You Tried Their Never-Ending Chocolate Bag? It Never Ends!
A hippogriff fluttered away from the stall, looking quite pleased with herself. Her slender, light purple body was clad in the dynamic blue and yellow of a Wonderbolt uniform, with her sky blue mane and tail flowing in the breeze as she hovered along.
“Man, that witch pony was so nice ,” she chirped. “And her snacks are so cheap .”
Like many customers before and after her, Silverstream was enticed by those enchanted treats. What caught her eye was what the mare called a ‘Bag of Bottomless Bites’. She said it contained all the chocolate balls a sweet tooth could take. Silverstream had more of a sweet beak , but she was sold all the same.
She fluttered down onto an empty bench in the park away from the festivities, and looked at the bag in her claws. It was black velvet, with a stylish purple design resembling a mare’s head wearing a witch hat. She loosened the string and opened the mouth of the bag to peer inside. She licked her beak at the pile of chocolate balls inside.
“But is it really bottomless?” she wondered. Only one way she could find out. She put her claws into it and pushed down. Down. Down. Much further than the bag would make her expect.
“Whoa!” she squawked when she got shoulder deep, using her wings to keep herself balanced on the bench and not tumbling into the truly bottomless sack. “Okay, she really meant it!”
She was impressed so far, but the proof was in the pudding. Or in the chocolate, in this case. She fished a ball from the bag and popped it in her mouth. Her eyes shot open as the sweet, delectable flavour exploded in her break, making her fur bristle and her feathers ruffle.
“Bottomless and delicious?! Now this is my kinda snack!”
Wasting no more time, she started cramming clawfuls of chocolate balls into her maw. She didn’t care that a number of them were rolling onto the ground - after all, there were plenty more where those came from.
What she hadn’t noticed (and should probably have been worried about) was how her Wonderbolts costume was starting to feel snug. With every few gulps of chocolate, her slender body swelled a little thicker, and her outfit tried to accommodate it.
But she was blissfully unaware. She was falling into a chocolate-fuelled reverie and had no intention of coming back out any time soon.
Rrrrrip!
Silverstream paused and looked around. “What was that?” she wondered, investigating the source of that very close sound, akin to torn paper. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, she shrugged. “Must’ve been something else.”
She went back to stuffing her face, since she couldn’t see the tear in the seat of her spandex.
She got herself comfy on the bench, slumping down and letting the chocolate balls pour into her beak. Her hind legs kicked happily in the air while stretching the fabric to a dangerous degree. Even with her stomach right in her line of sight, she gleefully ignored its bloating into more and more of her vision with the more chocolate she swallowed. Her backside crept across the bench as it grew wider and wider, as did the rip in her costume.
But still she kept eating, her mind drowned in a sea of endless chocolate. She shook the bag to get even more to fall into her gaping mouth. “Mmf, so good !”
More little tears sounded, and light fur and feathers bulged out of more gashes in the spandex as she kept developing more layers of soft, thick flab. The noises were followed by a low, ominous groan of wood and metal as Silverstream’s seat bended beneath her. Not even her starting to squeeze against the armrests deterred her from gorging.
“It’s a good thing this bag really is bottomless,” she giggled, “because this stuff is so good ! I never wanna–”
CRUNCH!
“–STOP!!”
The heavy hippogriff squawked as she suddenly found herself collapsing onto her back. The bench could handle her steadily growing weight no longer and surrendered with a vengeance. She slammed with enough force to send a small tremor through the ground, and the sudden impact was enough for her to finally explode out of her costume with a mighty RRRRRRIP. Her stomach, now a great balloon filled with jiggling lard, bounced and wobbled violently for many seconds before finally settling down. Her flabby legs splayed out at her sides, like an overfed starfish.
“Oof! What in Celestia’s name happened?” Silverstream looked around herself, and found a more important question popping into her head. “Where’s the bag?!”
She looked up at her gut, and let out a sigh of relief when she saw the bag perched on top.
“Oh, there you are.” She reached her claws toward it, but got nowhere close. She tried to roll forward, like she was making a pitiful attempt at a sit-up. “Nngh… get down here…!”
With a thump, she flopped back down with enough force to send her stomach shaking back and forth, causing the bag to fly off. She grunted as its mouth covered her beak, causing a constant onslaught of chocolate balls to pour into her.
Now this I can work with! she thought cheerfully, happily chewing and ballooning even bigger…
The Part With Juicy Content
“Tricks and Treats , huh?” a dragon muttered to herself as she walked away from the eponymous stall. “We’ll just see about that.”
Smolder was wearing a tattered, dark purple dress that contrasted her bright orange scales. Recently she had become more confident in letting her girly side out of her tomboy exterior, but she hadn’t gotten bold enough about it to get a tiara to go along with it. Even though it would be an awesome black tiara.
She only had a few bits to work with for the evening, and she decided to get something from the strange mare’s stall that caught her eye: a small tart with the crust cut like a jack-o-lantern. She didn’t know why, but something about it really appealed to her. And not just because many creatures were lined up at the stall for its wares.
“Alright, little treat,” she said to it, “let’s see what makes you so tricky.”
She popped the tart into her mouth and slowly chewed, taking in the experience.
“Nice texture,” she mumbled. “And really juicy. Never thought I’d like blueberry.”
She gulped it down in short order and licked her chops. Satisfied, she took a few steps before putting a hand to her stomach.
“Ooh, filling too. Right, let’s see if there’s anycreature to prank.”
She kept going through the crowd, darting her eyes around for a potential target to pull a Nightmare Night prank on. A harmless one, of course - it’s much better when everyone involved is having a good time.
“Hey, you’ve got something on your nose,” a pony said to her, pointing to her face.
“Oh,” she said, wiping it with her arm. “Thanks… where is it?” she muttered, looking at her clean scales. She wiped it again, and found nothing. “Guy was probably messing with me.”
“Hey, nice costume,” a kirin smiled. “Love the blue scales.”
“Blue?” Smolder raced to a darkened shop window and saw a blue-faced dragon staring wide-eyed back at her. She looked down and her heart skipped a beat when she saw a torrent of blue slowly covering her arms and hands. “What the…?!”
She grunted and put a hand on her stomach. All of a sudden, that full feeling turned into a bloated one, like she had eaten far more than just one tart. So bloated, in fact, she almost felt her middle swelling.
“Geez,” she groaned, “what was in that thing…?”
Moments passed before she realised she could feel her stomach pressing against her dress more and more. She looked down and gawked at how her middle really was swelling up! Her feet were disappearing beneath the steadily growing curvature of her stomach right before her eyes.
“Okay, this isn’t good,” she whimpered. “Maybe Starlight knows how to fix this.”
She pushed through the crowd looking for the unicorn in question, while her body continued to grow rounder and more awkward to move. Her legs were forced further apart as her torso became more spherical, turning her jog into an awkward waddle.
“You… gotta be kidding…!”
Onlookers stared wide-eyed as Smolder slowly lumbered around, trying desperately to keep her balance with how round she was getting. Her arms were forced to her sides as they slowly sunk into her big blue body. Similarly, her legs could barely bend. The stitches on her dress strained and groaned as they tried to keep together, but one by one they popped and snapped.
“Aw, my costume!” she growled. Her tail lashed angrily behind her, as much as it could while it was sinking into her bloating body. Her cheeks puffed out and she let out a little burp, sending a small stream of blueberry juice trickling from the corner of her mouth. “The heck is going on?!”
One errant step was all it took. She yelped and her wings flapped desperately to keep her balanced, but it was all in vain as she flopped onto her front. Her body bounced gently, having gotten more taut than she appeared, and the gallons of blueberry juice inside her sloshed from the impact. She had grown into a house-sized blueberry dragon.
But that wasn’t the worst of it. That came when a crowd started to gather around her.
“Whoa, what happened to her?”
“She’s so round .”
“Hey look, she jiggles!”
“Hey, back off!” she snapped, helplessly wiggling her hands and feet. Her limbs had been completely sucked into her body, and her head had almost joined them. She groaned as she felt her horns pressing against her bulk, like they were threatening to pop her and cover Ponyville in juice.
“This better wear off soon…”
You Bought Fizzy Lifting Drinks!
A griffon fluttered away from the stall, his talons wrapped around a cup. He was clad in a black superhero costume contrasting his exposed blue feathers and yellow beak.
He landed near the music stage and looked at the cup, and the fizzling orange and purple liquid inside. He sniffed at it, then took a sip, letting the taste dance around his buds for a moment before he smiled.
“This Witch’s Brew stuff isn’t half-bad,” he said to himself. “Never thought I’d like pumpkin soda.”
He took another, larger swig. And another. He had no idea why, but the more he tasted, the more of it he wanted. Before he knew it, the last drop had splashed onto his tongue.
“Aw, done already?” he frowned, shaking the cup. “Maybe that pony’ll give me a refill? She seemed pretty nice.”
He started walking back toward the stall, images of him lounging in a pool full of Witch’s Brew with a straw popping into his head. His beak curled upward at the idea.
“Oof,” he grunted, putting a hand on his stomach as he felt and heard it bubbling and broiling, like a cauldron in itself. His face scrunched a little from a buildup of pressure inside. “On second thought, this stuff isn’t sitting right…”
His cheeks puffed out, and a loud belch erupted from his beak, sending a cloud of purple smoke with orange glitter dissipating into the air. The pressure in his stomach relaxed as quickly as it built up.
“Oh, that’s better,” he said with a smile, followed by a hiccup. “On third thought, I’m gonna get that refill.”
He sauntered onward, another hiccup escaping him. Then another. And another.
“Well this is hic annoying,” he grunted. “What am I hic supposed to do hic about these again?”
He tried holding in a deep breath, but a stronger hiccup forced him to release it. He thought about asking somecreature to scare him, but he doubted it would work if he knew it was coming.
“How do I hic get rid of these hic stupid things?” he growled to himself. He put a hand on his stomach, suddenly realising that his costume felt rather confining. “Oh man, and now I feel bloated…”
He grunted as his stomach felt tighter and tighter with each hiccup, to the point it was badly sticking into the belt around his torso. His body started to swell around it like an hourglass, and he struggled to undo the clasp.
“Too… tight…!” he gasped, puffing out his cheeks as he struggled to relieve the pressure. “Hic! ”
SNAP!
Gallus gasped as the belt suddenly snapped right off, and his stomach bloated out quickly enough for the costume’s fabric to tear open in places. A squawk escaped him when he saw that his middle was just inches above the ground.
“The heck was in that stuff?!” he yelped. The locals around him started to stare at his inflating middle. “I gotta get outta here!”
He spread his wings and gave a strong flap. Usually this would get him a few feet off the air to comfortably hover over the crowd, which was why he was sent into a panic when he hurdled high up into the air!
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” He flailed his legs in an attempt to get some form of control. He grabbed the roof of the town hall until he finally felt gravity pulling himself back down, and he let go only to be sent gently bouncing down the tiles and harmlessly onto the ground.
“Talk about your weight loss drinks,” he breathed, before letting out another hiccup that caused his middle to swell up bigger and his costume to tear even more. A few more surges later, he felt himself get even lighter, and he dug his talons into the ground to make sure he didn’t go flying away again.
But still the hiccups continued, and the more his body literally ballooned. A pink flush appeared beneath his blue feathers as he looked back at himself. He was becoming so large that one could feasibly strap a basket to his legs.
“Could somecreature at least tie my tail to a lamppost?!”
“Enjoy, dear,” said Spellbound as she waved off yet another customer. A wide, proud smile spread across her face as she looked at the sheer amount of bits she had collected as the night went on and the festival was starting to wind down. “I think my Tricks and Treats were quite a success.”
“Excuse me, Spellbound,” she heard just as she was about to start packing up, and she turned to see Petal Wind walking up to her with a face that could crumple stone. “Could I have a word with you?”
“Certainly,” said Spellbound with a smile. “What can I do for you?”
The festival organizer waved her hoof to the festival grounds and Spellbound followed it. She saw quite a large collection of large creatures. Some were huge blue spheres burping up berry juice, others were tied down like the giant weightless balloons they were, and most of them were massive ground-covering blobs of thick rolls and folds stuffing their faces with bottomless bags of chocolate balls. Whoever was left unaffected was either gawking in disbelief at their enormous peers or carefully bringing them to safety, whether by rolling the blueberry creatures, carrying the balloon creatures by a string like children, or trying to pull those bags away.
“You can explain to me what’s going on here,” demanded Petal Wind.
Spellbound looked for a moment longer, then regarded her with a playful smile. “I have no idea.”
“Really?” Petal Wind raised an eyebrow. “Because I’ve been keeping an eye on your stall all night. All those poor festival goers were customers of yours at least once, and now they’ve all turned into… those !”
Spellbound’s smile didn’t waver. “That is certainly an interesting coincidence.”
“And I’ve been getting whiffs of that Witch’s Brew of yours,” added Pumpkin Spice as she stomped up with a scowl of her own. “There’s pumpkin in it, isn’t there? After I told you not to use pumpkin!”
“All these accusations!” Spellbound put a hoof on her chest and whipped her head back with a dramatic flourish. “It wounds me that you both think I’m to blame for this!”
“Well if it wasn’t you, then who was it?” asked Petal Wind. “Because this looks like your M.O.”
“My pumpkin lattes certainly don’t turn creatures into blimps,” snapped Pumpkin Spice.
“I assure you, dear,” said Spellbound, leaning on the counter with her head in her hooves, “I did not use even a seed in my Witch’s Brew . Perhaps the way I mixed it together just happened to make it smell like pumpkin?”
“I’ll be the judge of that.” The mare set a couple of bits on the counter. “Gimme a cup.”
“Certainly.” With her trademark warm smile, Spellbound used her magic to dunk a cup into her cauldron. “As for the other… ailments? I admit I enjoy a good prank, especially on Nightmare Night, but I’m hardly the only trickster creeping about, hm?”
Petal Wind arched an eyebrow. “Forgive me if I’m a bit skeptical.”
“Perhaps a sample will put your mind at ease?” Spellbound hovered one of her blueberry tarts to the organizer. “You can see for yourself that they’re completely harmless.”
“For your sake, it better be.” Petal Wind took the tart and bit into it, while Pumpkin Spice took a swig of the Witch’s Brew . The two looked at their respective treats, seemingly impressed, before they eagerly finished them up.
“See? Nothing to worry about.” Spellbound grinned and used her magic to hastily gather her things. “Now, I should be going home now. It’s getting quite late and I need my beauty sleep. Thank you again for the opportunity, dear. I’ll make sure to send you a few bits to show my gratitude.”
Petal Wind wiped the juice off her mouth. “Wait, Spellbound, I have more–”
“Happy Nightmare Night!” chirped the unicorn, before she vanished in a flash of light.
“–questions,” sighed the pegasus. She shook her head and looked at the ground, where she found a sheet of paper. Curious, she lifted it in her hoof.
Don’t worry, it will wear off by morning!
“What will wear off?” she wondered to herself, before she crossed her eyes to look at the blue tint on her nose. Next to her, Pumpkin Spice let out a hiccup.