Fortunate Misfortune

by OutOfTheBlue

Joining the Workforce

One part of pony culture that the changelings have taken to with great enthusiasm is foods with sugar and desserts. They have an almost dangerous craving for the stuff that led them to literally eat the whole bag of sugar plain when I introduced it to them. Does this have something to do with their insectoid anatomy?

--excerpt from Among The Shapeless by Wanderlust.

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I awoke to the sound of pounding on the door. I had remained unnoticed yesterday, but I couldn't let my guard down. Constant vigilance. I heard Carrot Top's muffled voice say,

"Morning! I'm about to make breakfast so if you want a shower now's the time."

"O-okay."

I have no idea what a shower is.

"Where's--"

"Down the hall, second door on the left."

"Thank you."

Well... that answers the where, but not the what. I crawled out of the bed and exited the room before walking to the aforementioned door. Inside was a room with a strange floor, a "toilet" (ponies have personal latrines in their houses) and a... thingamajig. It was white... and hollow... and had a weird thing at the top... why must ponies make such odd contraptions!

I assumed this was a "shower" and stepped into its hollowed out centre. Nothing happened so I began looking at the various doohickeys poking out the front. Two were like small... round... things while the other looked like some sort of droopy, shiny thing with a little ball on top. I tentatively touched one of the round things before pushing it slightly to the side. It turned and water began to flow from the dangly thing. I sniffed the water before taking a little drink. Yup, still better than the water at the hive.

I next tried turning the round thing on top of the droopy part. It wouldn't budge until I accidentally pulled it up and it began to rain. I let out a startled yelp as the cool water hit my back and I sat down hard. A faint yell from Carrot Top could be heard through the door.

"You okay? What was that thump?"

"I-I'm fine! I just... bumped something!"

Carrot Top apparently was satisfied as she didn't ask more questions. I stood back up and looked longingly at the raining water. If only I could drop my disguise. I froze as I saw that a blanket like device was hanging from a large metal circle around the top of the "shower." I grabbed it and tugged it slightly, curious as to what it did. It easily slid along the circle and towards me.

"Wait! With this I can cover the entrance to the shower!"

I quickly pulled it across and let my disguise melt away. I let out a blissful sigh as the water began to drum against my chitin. I noticed the second of the round things and gently turned it too. Suddenly, the water became warm.

"Incredible! They can make water warm with a simple turn of a... thing!?"

I lifted my head and let the water run down my face and neck. I stepped closer and closer to the water until--

*slip*

*riiiiiip*

*THUD!*

The next thing I know I'm lying in the bottom of the shower completely wrapped in the covering device while the water continues to rain down. Hoofsteps pounded up the stairs and I heard the door begin to open.

"WAIT! DON'T COME IN!"

The door stopped and Carrot Top said,

"Why? What happened?! I heard this huge crash and--"

"I slipped... and grabbed the, uh...."

"Curtain?"

"Yes! But now it's all wrapped around me and--"

She sighed.

"It's fine. I'll help you--"

"No! I mean... no thank you. I can do it myself."

"You sure? It can't be easy trying to--"

"Yes! Yes, I'll be fine!"

There was a moment of silence before the door closed. I sighed in relief before using my magic to remove the curtain. Once free I donned my disguise and exited the room. Once downstairs Carrot Top looked at me before groaning.

"Horse apples. I forgot to get you a towel. I just don't do well early in--"

"I-I am sorry!"

She paused and looked at my nervous face before holding her hooves up in a placating gesture.

"I'm not mad at you for getting water everywhere! I was just saying that I... Mornings and I don't... towel...."

She sighed before flopping into a seat and starting on her breakfast. We both maintained an awkward silence before she pointed at a plate with food on it.

"There's yours. Hope you like toast and eggs."

"Thank you."

The food was quite delicious, but the apprehension and worry radiating from Carrot Top was not.

"Carrot Top, I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable."

She jolted upright and gave an exasperated growl.

"That's what's making me feel bad! The constant apologies! I feel like you're scared of me!"

I flinched back and I felt sweat begin to form on my face. She was growing suspicious! She pointed her hoof at me before saying,

"See! That! That right there! How do you think it makes me feel to see you looking at me like I'll go feral at any moment!"

"I'm sorry!"

She slammed her head on the table.

"Stop. Saying. Sorry."

"I'm...."

Oh... I won't finish that thought. She gave me a meaningful look and said,

"Are you scared of me?"

I will not answer that because I am scared of being found out. I mean, how many ponies are there that are terrified of ponies? Probably none. And if I want to blend in, I need to be like every...pony else.

"O-of course not!"

That... wasn't as confident as I wanted.

"Look me in the eyes and tell me you're not scared of me."

I looked right into her eyes and tried to maintain eye contact as I did as asked.

"I... am not... scared... of... you."

By the end my eyes had slowly moved to avoid hers. What! It's hard to lie like that! She sighed before picking up her plate and putting it in the sink.

"I know we just met yesterday and I kinda was the reason you got hit by a cart, but I want to be your friend. So what can I do for you to not be scared of me?"

I awkwardly shuffled my hooves as I tried to think up an answer. I mean, so long as I'm a changeling who's trying to avoid being noticed, I'm not going to trust anypony.

My silence remained unbroken until Carrot Top moved to the front door.

"Fine. We'll talk about it later. Let's get you to work."

I nodded and followed along after her. I really didn't want to talk about it later, but later was better than now.

We walked through the town as the ponies were just beginning to wake up. Carrot Top waved to several ponies who were heading in all different directions, each one busy with some thing or another. It all reminded me of the hive, except, happier. Changelings never greeted eachother or said "good morning" or even joined other changelings for their morning meal unless it was required.

After a brief walk we were standing outside a small building with stands of flowers outside. Three mares were busily arranging these flowers as Carrot Top approached them.

"Morning, girls!"

They all turned and made that face the ponies kept making.

"Good morning, Carrot."
"Hi, Carrot!"
"Hello, C-T."

She gestured at me and said,

"You remember the stallion I was talking about yesterday? Well, here he is. Meet Broken Mirror."

The three mares looked me up and down before approaching me. One with a yellowish-white coat and a striped red and light red mane held her hoof out.

"I'm Roseluck. Nice to meet you!"

Next was a light pink mare with a greenish yellow mane.

"I'm Daisy."

Finally was the darker pink mare with a yellow mane with a white flower in it. She held out her hoof and quietly said,

"Lilly."

After taking part in the pony tradition of "hoof shaking" I stood silently as Carrot Top and the three mares talked. Trying not to eavesdrop. (according to pony culture that is rude.)

Carrot Top circled the mares up and whispered,

"Quick warning, I've noticed that this guy is... accident prone. Also he seems very... well... like if Fluttershy was a stallion."

Daisy nodded.

"How many times has he apologized for no reason this morning?"

"Uh... I don't remember, but quite a bit. Also he's pretty skittish so... go easy on him, please?"

Roseluck smiled.

"No problem. Although, where does he live? This is the first I've seen him and Pinkie hasn't thrown him a party yet so I can only assume he's new in town."

"Well, with me at the moment. I'll start looking for a cheap place for him today."

Lilly piped up.

"Why not that little house that mare from Manehattan built a few years ago?"

The other mares nodded at the suggestion. For sake of reference, here's the short version of her story. A wealthy businessmare had decided to build a second house in the country to "get away from it all." When she said she wanted a little house, it was little. It had a small kitchen, one multipurpose room, and a bathroom on the first floor. The second floor was just an attic that she'd turned into a bedroom. After about three weeks she got bored of the small town and moved away. Her house never sold given nopony really needed a tiny house here. So it was now dirt cheap.

Daisy smiled at Lilly.

"Good idea, Lilly! I'm sure we can work something out so he can live there and start paying it off gradually."

"And furniture, he'll need to get everything from couches to a bed to tables to... whatever stallions like."

Carrot Top gave the three mares a questioning look.

"Why are you so eager to help out? You don't even know the guy?"

Roseluck waved a hoof dismissively.

"Well he does happen to be a mysterious stallion that drifted into town one day. It's like the start of a romance movie!"

Carrot Top blanched.

"No. Please don't play matchmaker. The last time was bad enough."

Daisy gasped.

"Bad!? How was it bad!?"

"You tried to discreetly set Thunderlane up on a date with Rainbow Dash, then with Cheerily, and finally with Twilight Sparkle! Just be glad nopony knew it was you who was sending those letters!"

Lilly blushed.

"Well, it's not like anything too bad happened."

Carrot Top raised an eyebrow.

"Okay... it was pretty bad."

"Yeah. Just... don't make him uncomfortable, okay?"

The three mares nodded.

"Good. I'll leave it to you to show him the ropes."

She then turned and walked back over to me. I'd sat down and started looking at the flowers when she said,

"Well, when you're done feel free to head back to my place. I'll be out for a bit."

"O-okay. Thank you."

She made the face again before trotting away, giving a little wave to us all as she left. I turned to the three mares and gulped.

"S-so... what is it... you need me to do?"

The mare named Roseluck gestured to a set of saddlebags that had flowers poking out the top.

"Well, I'll give you a list of houses and you'll deliver these flowers to the ponies that bought them. Don't worry, we marked the flowers with the ponies names."

I took the list... and I couldn't read. That was something taught after you completed basic infiltrator training and were ready to become the understudy of an infiltrator. But... I can compare the squiggles on the paper to the squiggles elsewhere!

They gave me the paper and I set off in search of the first squiggle. Daisy called after me,

"Be careful! Don't damage the flowers!"

I nodded and continued my search for the top name on the list.

With me no longer there, the three mares began to titter. Daisy formed a huddle and began,

"Soo... what do you think of the new stallion?"

Lilly answered,

"Well... he does seem pretty quiet. And his name is Broken Mirror...."

Roseluck sighed,

"I know. He probably has had a tragic past that he's running from. I can so see him and Carrot slowly falling for eachother. Imagine, the mare that took in the mysterious wanderer eventually breaks through his shell and convinces him to stay with her."

They all "ooh"ed before Lilly piped up.

"Or what about him with Fluttershy? They're totally kindred spirits. And they'd be such a cute couple. They'd probably snuggle by the fireplace and whisper sweet nothings to eachother. They'd live in quiet simplicity, growing old together and becoming that sweet old couple that everyone goes to for romantic advice."

"Aaaaw"s rang out from the other two. Daisy grinned before adding in her two cents.

"Or him and Rainbow Dash. Opposites attract and all that. They'd totally balance eachother out! He'd be the quiet and sensitive one while Rainbow Dash would be the fiery go-getter! He'd cheer her on at her races and then she'd--"

Roseluck held out a hoof.

"Okay. I've been ignoring it for a while now, but what is it with you and trying to set up Rainbow Dash?"

Daisy rolled her eyes.

"She's such a tomboy it would be great to see her realize her feminine side."

The other two shrugged before realizing that there was a small line of ponies waiting for them to sell them flowers. The mares groaned.

"We'll finish this later."

--------------------

I knocked on the front door of the first home on the list. It had taken a bit, but I had eventually managed to successfully compare the squiggles. Finally a pony came to the door. She was a mare with a bright, white coat and a stylish purple mane.

"Hello? You do realize you don't need to knock to come in, darling?"

I shrank back a bit, my ears flattening against my head.

"I'm sorry. I just--"

She waved me off.

"Oh, it's no problem dear. Do come in."

"But I--"

"Nonsense! I insist."

I begrudgingly followed her inside. Her home was truly massive compared to others and oddly open. She made a sweeping gesture and declared,

"Welcome to Carousel Boutique. Where everything is sleek, chic, and magnifique!"

"Uh... thank you?"

She made happy sounds quietly before saying,

"The thanks is all mine! Now then, I am Rarity. The owner of this establishment. So what is it that you want this fine day?"

I gulped before squeaking,

"I have flowers for you!"

She froze and shock began to radiate from her. She coughed awkwardly before saying,

"That's... very thoughtful of you, but I really can't accept. I mean, I don't even know you and--"

"B-but isn't your name on the list!?"

I held out the list which she picked up in her magic. Her eyes widened and her cheeks turned pink.

"Oh my. I do apologize. I completely misunderstood what you said."

"I'm sorry for not telling you."

She waved her hoof and tutted.

"Oh it's not your fault, darling. Now then, I'll be needing those flowers."

"R-right, sorry."

I opened up the saddlebags and let her float out a bundle of flowers. She hummed thoughtfully as she arranged them into a glass vase near the stairs.

"You know, you must be new to Ponyville."

"Y-yeah."

She nodded before giving me a happy look.

"Well, drop by sometime and I'll make you some nice clothes. Consider it a welcoming gift and an apology for holding you up here."

"Oh, I'm--"

"Nonsense. Now, I see that the Cakes order is next on the list. You probably don't know how to get there, do you?"

I shook my head.

"Well, allow me to escort you. I need to pick something up for my sister anyway."

I dumbly nodded, glad to not have to compare squiggles for this one. We walked down the street before entering a building that looked very... odd. But it smelled fantastic. Now, not the fantastic that emotions smelled like (I'd been taking sips from passing ponies all day) but good nonetheless.

Upon entering, a very happy mare greeted us.

"Hello, Rarity! Who's your friend?"

"Oh, he's a new pony in town. He's delivering flowers for Roseluck, Daisy, and Lilly. His name is... why, I was never introduced!"

She turned to me and I shrank back.

"Sorry."

She waved it off before saying,

"Nonsense, it's mainly my fault. So, what's your name?"

"B-broken Mirror."

Rarity nodded before leading me to the mare from before. She nodded to me and made that weird face again.

"Hello, I'm Cupcake. So, you have my flowers? I'm making special lavender honey tea cakes with them."

I nodded before opening the bags and allowing Rarity to remove the flowers. Cupcake took the flowers before saying,

"I just made some chocolate chip cookies. You want one?"

I apprehensively nodded and she gave me a circular thing. I took a bite and... sweet delicious love! This is the best thing ever! I instantly devoured the rest of the "cookie" and licked my lips clean. Cupcake blushed and pure happiness flooded out from her.

"I take it you liked it?"

"It was fantastic!"

"Well, I think I can spare a few. For a welcoming present of course."

I eagerly took the bag she offered me and ate another of the cookies. Just the a pink blur zipped past me from behind a potted plant. The only thing I could understand was,

"BROKENMIRRORCHOCOLATEPAAAAARTYYYYYYY!!!!"

...

What?

Author's Note:

I'm still alive! Yay!

Comments

[I need a new name tbh]

Ooh. Pinkie. Dis gon b gud.

[OutOfTheBlue]

8392466
I hope so.