The Cuddlebug Initiative

by I Thought I Was Toast

Tibia vs. Scootaloo

I hunted my prey— friend, I mean, in the ways of old.

Skirting from bush to bush as a squirrel, I stalked the orange filly with a mane the same delicious fuschia of the Hearth’s Warming Fire.

My fur was silky smooth – the perfect texture for cuddling anypony – and my tail was extra large from sheer fluffiness. I was cute enough to give anypony else a heart attack, but my prey had proven herself to be made of sterner stuff time and time again.

Today, however, I would prove victorious!

She continued deeper into Whitetail Woods, humming to herself. Occasionally, she would buzz her wings with a quickness beyond any pegasus I had seen and dash forward with a burst of speed. I had to scramble in those moments to keep up with her, but I was determined to catch her today.

She glanced around every now and then, but I made sure to act natural whenever her gaze came across me. Looking for nuts. Handling nuts. Eating nuts. There was certainly no reason for her to suspect I’d soon be eating her.

Finally, she rounded a corner of the path to what I knew to be a relaxing little glade that was perfect for resting mid-hike. It was the ideal spot to make my move, so I rounded the trees with a burst of speed, and—

“Sup, Tibia?” Scoots wasn’t even looking towards me as she pulled an energy bar from her saddle bags. Her ears just flicked and she knew; she always knew.

“Wha— Huh? How could you tell it was me?!” I pouted as I burst from my perfectly crafted squirrel guise.

I’d been secretly practicing for days, too….

She snorted and the sweet taste of cotton candy wafted through the air. “The same squirrel following me my entire hike through the woods? What was I supposed to think?”

“They could have been different squirrels, though!” My wings chirped discordantly as I gave a high pitched whistling whine. “How did you know?! You always know when it’s me!”

She smirked, the taste of sugar in the air growing stronger. “You try way too hard when it comes to handling nuts.”

“Hssss!” I stomped my hooves. “One of these days I’ll get you! Mark my words: you shall be snuggled! Ceaselessly.”

Scootaloo snorted again. “Yeah, no. Just because everypony else is going cuddle crazy doesn’t mean I will. You’re better off just going to one of Pinkie’s patent-pending snuggle siestas.”

She narrowed her gaze at me. “I thought I made it clear to you that I don’t do sappy stuff. I’m too cool for cuddles.”

“King Thorax’s Cuddlebug Initiative!” I chirped back dutifully. “Section three, subsection c, paragraph two, the Rainbow Dash clause: nopony is too cool for cuddling.”

“Well, I am!” Scootaloo huffed, angrily taking a bite of her energy bar and sitting down on her haunches. “And so is Rainbow Dash!” She crossed her forelegs and frowned at me.

“Really?” I grinned. “Then how do you explain Rainbow Dash showing up at most of Pinkie’s snuggle siestas?”

Scoots glared for a few moments, taking another violent bite of her snack. “It could be a changeling….”

Now it was my turn to frown. “That’s rude and you know it.”

Scoots rolled her eyes. “So is pestering me for snuggles. Don’t you get that no means no?”

“Of course!” I smiled. “That’s why I didn’t jump you the minute you saw through my disguise! You still haven’t answered my question on Rainbow Dash, though.”

“Maybe she just likes the excuse to nap! I don’t know!” Scoots threw her hooves up in the air. “It doesn’t need to be about the snuggling! Why can’t you just let it go?!”

“Because you look like you need a proper snuggle.” I shrugged.

She also looked delicious, but King Thorax said ponies didn’t like to hear that until they were older for some reason. No idea why. I took great pride in the fact that my brood siblings all thought I was the tastiest of us.

“Grrrglmrglmfff!” My stomach decided to signal that far too much time had passed since breakfast.

Scootaloo arched an eyebrow at me before digging in her bag to toss me another energy bar. “Here. I’ve got a spare today. Don’t expect anything more, though.”

The hollow feeling in my heart spiked momentarily at the spicy sensation of Scoot’s annoyance, painfully reminding me of the party I was missing. The sting of my failure was starting to become far too apparent, and I couldn’t help but sniffle.

“Oh, no. None of that.” Scoots snorted, standing up to stretch. “You should have known better before you chased after me. Now, are you going to finish my jog with me, or are you going to just sit here and cry?”

“Maybe I should have known better…” I muttered to myself before standing to likewise stretch. My many plates cracked and popped as I bent and twisted, and I hissed at the sensation.

“You alright?” Scoots looked up at me with a frown.

“Yeah…” I sighed. “I’ve just never been something that small for that long.”

“Does it take more magic or something?” Her wings buzzed impatiently. “I… I guess I can wait a while if you need more rest.”

“No, it just—” I stopped as a wonderfully evil idea hit me. I would have cackled like Queen Chrysalis if I could have. It was just that good.

“I mean, yes!” I stumbled slightly for added effect, making it look like I’d started in denial. “Yes, it does and I need a bit of you know what to get me back to town!”

Scootaloo squinted at me. “Yeah… you know, for a changeling, your acting skills are really bad….”

I pouted. “It’s not my fault! King Thorax got rid of all the acting classes! He doesn’t want us replacing ponies.”

She snorted before turning to canter down the path. “That doesn’t stop the other nymphs, now come on! We’re wasting time!”

I had to gallop after her to keep up, and was soon gasping for breath. It was so tempting to just fly, but I held back as much as I could. I knew Scoots would better appreciate the effort if I stuck to running. I only broke into flight when she buzzed her wings to dash ahead of me, and even then I kept low to the ground, following her closely.

Then she decided to break into a gallop, and I had no choice but to fly.

“Catch me if you can!” She gave a mocking laugh and burst even farther ahead with a buzz of her wings. All I had to go on was the trail of dust she left behind and the sound of her giggling.

We went deeper into the forest for about half an hour before she turned around so suddenly I almost crashed into her. Another half an hour back, and she finally stopped for another rest. While she settled down on her haunches, I stumbled into the clearing and collapsed onto the ground with a wheezy whistle.

“Not so easy to catch me when I really get going, is it?” She grinned.

I managed a feeble shake of my head before having to drop it to the ground again. My heart was so empty that my entire body felt numb, and the edge of my vision had gone dark.

“Hey… are you alright?” Scootaloo shuffled from hoof to hoof. “I tried not to go too fast for you.”

“Need—” I gave a raspy, wracking cough that sounded like somepony kicked a hornet’s nest, “—food.”

“Well, grab an energy bar then! You’re kind of freaking me out!” She tossed her bags at me, wings buzzing.

“Need—” another cough, “—love.”

“Oh, geeze… you’re not acting, ether….” She looked about, hopping from hoof to hoof. “Can you wait for me to go grab somepony?”

I groaned. Why did I ever think skipping the snuggle siesta for this was a good idea? Scootaloo wouldn’t even snuggle if my life—

A tiny wing struggled to wrap its way around me in a hug as a warm body pressed against me. The taste of metal, rainbows and honey flooded my heart, and Scoots glared at me as I raised my head to look at her.

“Not. One. Word.”

I blinked, soaking in the delicious honey and letting fill the hole in my heart. She was just as sweet as I imagined – like honey buns spun from hopes and dreams. Her friendship was so light and fluffy and pure that it mixed with the sharp, metal tang of her resolve and the spicy flare of her annoyance to make an indescribably unique taste.

“Mmm…” I drooled a little, and she slugged me.

“None of that either!” she squawked. “This is bad enough as it is.”

I licked my chops clean and looked at her. “Thank—”

“Not. One. Word.” Her glare deepened, and the spicy undertones to her feelings strengthened. “This never happened, neither of us is going to ever speak of it again, and if you ever do bring it up, I will deny everything.”

Alright, then. No talking. That didn’t mean no thanking her.

I thrummed from deep in my chest, pushing my head into the crook of her neck. It was hard to properly chirp as I leaned into her side, but I managed to make a few – my right wing scraping my side.

“Tibia, stop….” Scootaloo blushed and her emotions took on a rubbery texture. “You’re making this really weird….”

I thrummed even louder, chittering as I tried to snuggle up even closer. Scoots wiggled slightly away and I wriggled even closer than before – only for her to wiggle away again. We kept up at this for a good five minutes, scooting all over the clearing. My chittering became outright laughter, and soon even Scootaloo was giggling as our little game continued. The taste of rubber and rainbows faded to be replaced with cotton candy, and the tension eased out of her muscles.

Eventually, we flopped over on our sides, panting from all the laughter.

“Feel. Better?” Scoots gasped for breath.

“I could run a marathon.” I gave a wheezy whistle. “After I catch my breath, that is. You have fun?”

The flavor of rainbows quickly returned as Scoots realized what she’d been doing. “Yes…” she mumbled, looking down at the ground. “But it doesn’t mean anything!” Her wings buzzed as she glared at me, daring me to say otherwise.”

“Of course, it doesn’t.” I smiled. “Nopony is too cool for snuggling!”

Scoots frowned. “Yeah, yeah. Just don’t go spreading it around if you want seconds.”

“You want to do it again sometime?!” I gave a high pitched, whistling whir, and chirped a few times for good measure.

“If you keep quiet, then sure.” Scoots shrugged. “It was… fun….”

I was so ecstatic from that I even managed to beat her in the race back to town.

Soon…. Soon, I would experience Snuggaloo Two—Electric Bugguloo.

Author's Note:

So, yeah... Simple. Short. Cuddly. Weird to be using the reformed changelings, though.

Comments

[CategoricalGrant]

Thanks for your submission! So unique!

[Samuel-Neocros]

It is unique...

[fireflutterpony]

I honestly think the show is missing a grand opportunity in not having introduced some changeling nymphs into the CMC/other foals circles of the show. Some bugfoal goofballs trying to work out how to friend would be wonderful.

Oh yeah. This story. Utterly delightful syrupy goodness.

[SeventhBrony]

ALL HAIL THE HUGGLINGS!

[JackRipper]

I need to stop telling you about contest entries...

[pahnazd]

That was so adorable!

And that pun at the end - I have no idea whether to love you or hate you. But I love puns, so I'll stick with loving

[Orkus]

Ooh! Stitches like!

[Blaze the draconic mage]

THAT WAS ADORABLE

[Carbon]

We want more Tibia"s action!

[Neece]

That last line
I hope you can pay Nasa, for my sides are in orbit right now

It was also cute as flutter butter on spring rolls. More soon, please?

[UniqueSKD]

Dear I Thought I Was Toast,

I Thought This Would Be Crap. I Thought Wrong.

Good story. Added to Watch, and Liked.

Sincerely,
UniqueSKD

P.S - I LOVE that cover art.

[UniqueSKD]

8568053
Whoa! A Story Approver!?!

Has this site always had one of you guys?

[JackRipper]

8569050
I... uh... yes?

We look at the stories of new users, or anyone who manually submits stories to the moderation queue.

[UniqueSKD]

8569057
No offense but...when I used to care about writing stories on this site, I always had the option to moderate my own stories. I just thought this was a new thing that was introduced recently. Is it? How long have you been a story approver?

[JackRipper]

8569059
None taken. And you do have the option to moderate your own stories, and it’s called “auto-approval.” We just tend to people that don’t have that feature, new users and users with a record of misconduct.

I’ve been an approver for a few months now.

[UniqueSKD]

8569075
Oh right, I get it now. Well, welcome to the site if you can excuse the lateness of the welcome.

[JackRipper]

8569093
I’ve been registered since 2015 my dude.

[UniqueSKD]

8569107
I'm not your dude, dude. I could be a friend, but you probably don't need any more right now. Which is cool, it's fine.

Well, I'm not going to stick around and bother you. You've got other stories to approve of and I'm only wasting your time. It was nice chatting to you, Jack. I'd say I'd enjoy talking to you some more again, but it seems unlikely. Besides, this isn't really the best site for friendly chatter anyway. Thank for the small conversation though. Have a pleasant day or evening, whatever your time zone. :)

And again, to the author of this fanfic, you done good. Thumbs up to you.

[Christopher Whatley]

I like stuff like this.

[Ekhidna]

s1.storage.akamai.coub.com/get/b56/p/coub/simple/cw_image/61ae8b52fba/7d7fd47a17ed54b786263/med_1449404193_00015.jpg

[Frostbite is crazy]

The last line made me laugh because sjin from the yogscast had been using that line (except for the snuggloo) for his terraria series.

[Honey Lavender]

8567974
On a side note, are new nymphs hatched unreformed, and then they have to reform themselves by being taught to give love? Or are they hatched already in skittle bug form? So many questions about the changeling reformation, so little time...

[harts fire]

awwwww a super sweet story, i love it.

[Crescent Glaive]

Soon…. Soon, I would experience Snuggaloo Two—Electric Bugguloo.

Pfft....

[Alondro]

Alondro gets hugged by a cherngelerng... he then sues for sexual harassment, because it's so easy to do!

[Harmony Pie]

8569999
Not cool

[Carapace]

I, for one, welcome our cuddly overlords.

[zalla661]

Yet another cute adorable story where the power of love and cuddles overpowers coolness. Scoots can deny it all she wants, we know she loves cuddle time. Rainbow was just a nail in the coffin for her ego.

[headless_rainbow]

Whoever downvoted this doesn't have a soul.

[IceHawk]

We need more huglings.

[Carapace]

8570632 As a redhead who upvoted this fic, I take offense to that! :P

[VShuffler42]

I loved this!
This was really good. And even though I will always prefer the design of the unreformed changelings more, I still like the new version. Having said that, the cover art is amazing! Definitely downloading it.
We need more Cuddlebugs and Snugglelings, they make the world a better place. But what's with Rainbow Dash; What's her story? I WANT TO KNOW!!!

8567974
I know right! That would be great for season 8!

Now wanting to snuggle and cuddle with a cute changeling and crying on the inside because I can't,
Signing out, VShuffler42

[Lord-of-Rhodor]

Aww... Fluffy and sweet, just the way I like it! Kudos good author, thou hath pleased Us and left Us feeling warm and fuzzy inside!

Also, what do rainbows taste like? *spots a certain blue fast pegasus* Hmmm...

[Jonny Bench]

If a changeling went to that much trouble to try snuggling with me, i’d give it to them. They deserve it when they put that much work into it

[I Thought I Was Toast]

8571058
Rainbows are spicy according to the show itself. Pinkie tasted one in the weather factory during the episode where Rainbow made a Sonic Rainboom.

[Lord-of-Rhodor]

8571129
Oh yeah. I completely forgot about that. In my defense, it has been a while...

[Aerial]

How disgustingly adorable.

[Chrome Masquerade]

“Of course, it doesn’t.” I smiled. “Nopony is too cool for snuggling!”

[Kikio3000]

So cuuuuuuuuute! Tibia looks so fluffy! :3

[Alondro]

She smirked, the taste of sugar in the air growing stronger. “You try way too hard when it comes to handling nuts.”

This can be taken in different ways...

[Alondro]

8570457 I like cuddling lions. I love them and squeeze them and call them George!

[NavelColt]

'Tibia' as a changeling name? Cuddling changelings? I wonder where I've seen these things before...

Very cute! Definitely a policy Thorax would come up with.

[DragonSam98]

Excuse me while I grab my insulin.

Ahh...much better!

Anyway, all diabeetus aside. This is a great cuddlefic. I really like the interaction between Tibia and Scootaloo, and it feels right. One small nitpick I did have was how harsh Scootaloo was near the beginning, but then again she did come around to it. Also I will admit that I'm a bit behind on my seasons, so I really can't judge her too harshly for this. I also like the rainbows are spicy reference, as well as the end line.

There really isn't all that much more for me to say here except that you did a great job.

Keep up the good work good author, and also have a like and a favorite for the feels!

[tsaukpaetra]

Cute.

[kalash93]

So this fared well in the contest. You should submit it to the Reviewers Cafe.

[Ephedianroyalty]

I saw this and was like “track, like, favorite, then read.”

She also looked delicious, but King Thorax said ponies didn’t like to hear that until they were older for some reason. No idea why. I took great pride in the fact that my brood siblings all thought I was the tastiest of us.

OH. MY. GOD.

[ChakatRedstripe]

Cute I like

[Seraphem]

D'awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

Just adorable!

[Raccoon Writer]

Soon…. Soon, I would experience Snuggaloo Two—Electric Bugguloo.

Does...does that mean...possible sequel?