The ants marched along the ground, a thin line of movement that occasionally paused to ensure they were tracking the scent markers properly. Coming to a strange blockage, the front ant paused, using it’s feelers to inform the line there was a complication. The line began to fan out, probing the new structure.
Using their heat sensors, the ants knew this object was not living, and was completely immobile. Slowly, they began to fan around it, some attempting to climb over it. All three prongs made it to the other side, informing the lead ant of the exact size and shape of the object. The lead ant informed the rest of the line, and picked a path around it based on the information.
The ants fell back in line, following the scent trail while laying a new one. As they moved, they came to the source of their journey, their home, and noticed something immensely different. Entering their home, the ants residing inside informed the lead ant that their home had changed composition. All the ants were quietly and efficiently expanding the nest now that their home had become a rich source of food.
The ants went back to work instantly, the lead ant pausing as he received a new directive. Informing a small group to follow, the lead ant once more left the nest in search of a new home. With their home now food, it would only be a matter of time before they needed to move. Using it’s feelers, the ant probed the world, heading out down an old scent path.
The hoof came down, smashing the ant and killing it instantly. The creature grimaced, wiping the grime off as it knocked on the burger. There was a sound of movement, and a head peeked out from inside of it. The four behind gave shaky smiles, and the creature began to speak.
“Twilight, you can’t just hide inside a burger all day.” Rarity gave an encouraging smile, grimacing as Twilight merely returned to the inside of her burger, tail sticking out slightly. Sighing, Rarity open the folds of the bun, entering the burger, shuddering as she tried to ignore the squishy meat under her.
“Leave me alone, it’s bad enough I can’t wallow under a bed anymore.” Twilight sobbed quietly behind her claws, depressed and feeling alone. Rarity brought a hoof around Twilight, looking at the body and wondering if she could even create an outfit that would go well with so many mismatched colors.
“Come on sugarcube, ya’re looking at this tha wrong way. Ya just gotta look at that silver lining.” After all, Twilight could still walk and talk. Sure, magic might not ever be possible again, but that didn’t mean Twilight’s life had to end. Twilight merely shook her head, and a third pony came in, taking a bite of the burger.
“Jeez, this burger is tasty, you’re saying this was a tree?” Both Rarity and Applejack glared at Pinkie Pie, who gave a sheepish smile. Twilight nodded once, still hiding behind her claws.
“Come on Twilight you can’t just let some mean old flowers tell you what to do.” Stepping inside, Rainbow Dash also snuck a bite of the burger’s bun. Behind her, Fluttershy quietly followed. Hollowing out the bun, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash shared a quiet snicker. Rolling their eyes, Rarity and Applejack try to comfort Twilight.
“Hey, is my sister here?” A small filly look around, before noticing Applejack and giving a smile. Behind her was a whole line of ponies. Apparently a lot of people wanted to see inside the burger house.
“Woah,” exclaimed Apple Bloom as she was pushed inside, the burger quickly becoming crowded. Twilight raised her head, swishing her tail as she began to cry harder.
“Just leave me ALO-ne?” Looking around, Twilight blinked as her house had returned to normal. Except now everypony was a statue. Biting her lip, Twilight glanced around with worry, what did she do now? Who should she turn to?
“Oh god oh god oh god.” Twilight wondered if swearing to Celestia would be better than swearing to some unnamed god, but quickly shock it off. Priorities, she had to think. What could she do about her current situation. The good news was she now had her home back, but the bad news was her friends were now statues.
“Okay, first priority: Find a way to reverse it.” Nodding, Twilight pulled out a list, and wrote her priorities down in clear, even font. While her magic handwriting was far superior, she was surprisingly doing ok with a claw. Of course, if any of her friends were not statues, they would have wondered what the horrific thing she was drawing was.
“Second: Find some way to learn to control this magic.” While she hated to admit it, Twilight knew she had to at least learn how to turn it off. She couldn’t keep causing burgers, statues, and other such random things to happen. Looking at her list, she sat down and considered her options. As she swirled her tail, she blinked as the chair began to levitate.
As she began to rotate counter-clockwise in the air, Twilight tapped her chin, considering her options.