It Is Recommendsday, My Dudes #146 · 6:51pm January 3rd
Today, I'm feeling a bit of silly so I'm gonna dig into the pile and pull out a favorite comedic farce of mine and the appropriate matching more serious story. Partially because of that vibe, and partially because it's got a really odd connector between the two: pregnant Rainbow Dash. (Not the most unusual connector I've had, but it's certainly a bit off the standard.)
So for that we'll lead with Rahheemme and Not So Secret.
Applejack returns to town after being out for a few days and returns to a girl's game night. As it turns out, she missed a big event - or nothing happened, depending on who you ask. Rainbow Dash insists nothing is different at all. Everypony else is completely certain that Dash is pregnant and for reasons that not a one of them understands? She's decided to keep it secret. Despite wildly changing her diet, morning sickness, putting on weight... she's insisting that she's totally not pregnant, that's a silly joke, where would you ever get a crazy idea like that from?
As I said: this is a farce comedy, so you probably know what to expect. Rainbow Dash spends the entire story getting increasingly more and more pregnant and while more and more vehemently denying that she is. The dumb excuses and wild stories she comes up with get wilder as we go along, and it's just damn funny.
The girls also get plenty of time to shine too, of course, as they help as much as they can and try to do all the appropriate things for when a friend's expecting. Colored, of course, by the fact that Dash is denying everything so they have to repeatedly jump through hoops to justify baby showers and maternity shopping to a Totally Not Pregnant Rainbow Dash.
Really, this one's just fun. It's very silly.
So I'm pairing this, as mentioned, with a bit of a more serious story: The World Beneath Her Wings by Void Chicken. (As I'm sure will be asked, yes, this is a sequel but the original isn't super needed aside from knowing that Rarity and Dash are together. Still read the first though, it's damn cute!)
After being together for a while, Rainbow Dash and Rarity decide to have a foal. There's obvious biological obstacles, but Friendship is Magic and also Twilight is basically cheating. Dash is the one to bear the foal, and the highly experimental spell to start the process works like a charm. Everything's happy! Of course, there's a problem: they're still Element Bearers. And the chances of going several months without some kind of world shattering crisis are basically zero. So when one shows up and Rainbow Dash ends up at the center... well, more would be spoilers.
So the first thing I'm gonna complement this story on is the pacing. That isn't something I bring up often - usually it either works or it doesn't - but here it's an important part of the story's flow and Void nails it. Getting the initial setup done and building things seems slow for an Adventure-tagged story, but later events show off why it's critical. This would be a much worse story if the pacing hadn't been so on point, and the slow start allows for an excellent gradual acceleration.
I also really like the mystery behind things: Dash doesn't get used very much in thinky situations, so getting to see her at the crux of puzzling out the centerpiece of the adventure is unique. Keeps it interesting, too, because even though she leans on the team brains (like Twilight and Starlight) often, at the core she's the one who does all the mystery-solving and she does it in her way.
Plus, to slightly reiterate one of the early points: this is very cute. Dash and Rarity have great chemistry and feel like a couple. They aren't just LOVE LOVE LOVEY LOVE and have the give-and-take of a proper relationship while still obviously deeply caring for each other. And their shared emotions over the as yet unborn foal just add another layer to things.
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(reads) Yep, very nice picks. I've done a few...(checks list) Ok, more than a few pregnancy stories, and it's always nice to see a different take on the process. (we had twins. corner me at a con sometime and I'll tell you stories that will make you swear to abstinence.)
5762235
I pity your ability to sleep.
5762237 They're 28 now. I have a grandson by one. God, I'm old.