While visiting the Crystal Empire as part of a liaison unit from his hive, a young changeling excitedly tracks down the workshop of a local plush maker, eager to pick up his special order. When he discovers the shop maker is actually a changeling from another hive, his walk-in turns into an unexpected friendship, and a memorable experience.
* Featured 10/29/19 - 11/01/19!
* A collaboration between myself and Racingwolf!
* Calor & story are (C) to me, Scy, cover art and author's notes art are (C) to Racingwolf!
Chapters (1)
This was absolutely adorable!
Aww, this was super cute
...and I wish I could have been at home, hugging my own plush Thorax while reading this, rather than rushing through it while stuck in the middle of a 24-hour shift
oh well, I guess it's due for a re-read tomorrow
How do you manage to pack your stories with so much CUTENESS?!
I don't normally post replies to fics, but this is so adorable, and so good, that I'm holding back happy tears from reading this.
You did it again, my friend. Well done.
>chapter title
This requires experimentation.
Thorough experimentation.
Hahahaha, oh my god this was adorable.
Or "new-ageling," if you will.
I actually kind of like the sound of that better than the more usual "changedling" and it is more eye-catching...but it also looks awkward typed out, so...can't win them all, I guess.
Anyway, adorable changeling tale as usual, NavelColt.
...Kinda want a Changeling plushie... Not the "metamorphosed" ones, though, their pastel carapaces look weird… Most of them were cuter before the change.
Can't speak on Ocellus, though, she'sadorable....And with my ponysona's somewhat Changeling-like coloration, perhaps he'd appreciate one, too. Although, depending on when he left the Everfree, whether he was among other ponies to hear of the Canterlot assault or not is variable, so he might not even know what they are... Or he may have been right in the thick of it with his marefriend.
It's a toss-up whether she'd want one, she loves animals, which Changelingsmightcount as, but she wasthere…Hnnnnggggg
Jesus, I think Calor gave me diabetes
Ohhh! So that's where that gas company got it's name from!
It's so fluffy I'm gonna die...
My sole nitpick is that Calor kinda breaks the usual Changeling naming scheme. That's about it though. And it's a very silly nitpick, I admit.
9913195
I feel like we've had a conversation about Thorax plushies before and you mentioned you have the really big Thorax just like I do, but maybe I'm crazy. 
Do you have a giant buggo plush like me?
Either way, please do hug him, yes.
He needs your love, after all!
9913246
You've made me smile. I'm glad you decided to comment, and I'm glad it had such an impact on you.
9913403
*distressed bug noises*
9914259
Calor represents all the fluff and cute I enjoy writing about with buggos.
Mission accomplished, then.
9914705
Honestly there are only so many insect body parts that sound interesting, and I used most of them for one-time appearance changelings in KoLB.
Oh god, that's too precious and adorable. Let the hugging commence!
9914923
Like I said, it's a dumb nitpick.
9914923
He's just such a cute and kind buggo and he deserves more hugs than he can physically get in any amount of time! 
Nah, I have a small one that I mentioned once in the context of Rain Curfews (I wouldn't mind having a lifesize one too, but unfortunately can't exactly justify the expense at the moment), and I do hug him, like, 50 times a day... and it still isn't enough for either of us!
9915013
I have a small and giant Thorax. One is for watching over my computer desk, and one is a bedbug. 
Oh okay.
media.giphy.com/media/111ebonMs90YLu/200.gif
9915024
Here's mine on a couple of pictures I took a while ago (along a few other characters):
images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/2510c5e4-55f5-48fb-a488-16d3cb8cdede/dd1731h-e015cadf-87f1-4b93-b71a-c2cf0837f17e.jpg/v1/fill/w_1032,h_774,q_70,strp/my_mlp_collection__2019__by_theowtcast_dd1731h-pre.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9OTYwIiwicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvMjUxMGM1ZTQtNTVmNS00OGZiLWE0ODgtMTZkM2NiOGNkZWRlXC9kZDE3MzFoLWUwMTVjYWRmLTg3ZjEtNGI5My1iNzFhLWMyY2YwODM3ZjE3ZS5qcGciLCJ3aWR0aCI6Ijw9MTI4MCJ9XV0sImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl19.s0wNLguns4lb2LDuQ2Vo0nN3GI6Yjb_UPdqm6f_LpHI
images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/2510c5e4-55f5-48fb-a488-16d3cb8cdede/dcuinmj-df9a7acd-6424-4774-8194-acd8e6888034.jpg/v1/fill/w_1032,h_774,q_70,strp/hearth_s_warming_eve_by_theowtcast_dcuinmj-pre.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9OTYwIiwicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvMjUxMGM1ZTQtNTVmNS00OGZiLWE0ODgtMTZkM2NiOGNkZWRlXC9kY3Vpbm1qLWRmOWE3YWNkLTY0MjQtNDc3NC04MTk0LWFjZDhlNjg4ODAzNC5qcGciLCJ3aWR0aCI6Ijw9MTI4MCJ9XV0sImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl19.sWRxICXwaRnxNOvYfwSnOv1LN0twSZnBaLiu69vLz6I
9915226
I was going to get Pharynx to go with my Thorax twins, but I opted for a custom plush of Calor, instead. 
It was a consulation gift to myself for not finding any plushies that I liked at this year's BronyCon. He's going to be travel-sized and laying down, like a beanie baby, and should be shipping from the artist in another week or so. 
They're so well-made! I'm jealous of your Pharynx.
9915233
You can always pretend that one of your Thorax twins is actually Pharynx in disguise (because he wanted to confuse the enemies or something
)
Can we see Calor when he's done?
9915253
I like Ocellus but not enough for a plush. 
I'll get Pharynx eventually, he'll be the last I need.
Of course!
So this is what you've been talking about for weeks on end over on Discord. Good thing I recognized you on here so I could read this story and see it for myself. This definitely made my day what with how adorable it is. I can tell you and your collaborator had a field day coming up with the dialogue, the setting, and the adorableness.
9914612
That pretty much sums this one up.
Very cute, I wonder how could it look as a comic or a short animation, also for a moment looking at the image I was thinking of a real sized plush being hugged
Cute interaction in a plush store. I have a few Pokemon plushies I got from my middle school's reading program prize tub, and I have some Sonic ones I got from my uncle, who was a fan of Sonic back when the series was starting out.
I wouldn't even be surprised if the Crystal Empire had a stand selling plushies of their bug king friend. I mean, somewhere out there somepony is selling Celestia lookalike pool rafts and commemorative plates (Best Gift Ever and Parental Glideance, respectively).
This does bring up the question if there ARE other changeling hives along with Thorax's. There could be, and we've just never thought about it before.
Nice work!
Are you TRYING to give me a cuteness heart attack?
9915562
encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcTBXtmbx7LtgyVD20sdQbi42qJFnp7BksEqmnvbTh2uxCqLy9G2
You should make a story with Light Heart101 !
Yes, officer, this story right here. It has illegal concentrations of sugar and fluff!
wow such a amazing one shot a grate fun story.
To the author - i saw the cover art (along with title) after reading it like several hours ago i'm going ''omg this so cute & adorable!''
reminds me of a time way back in the 90's/00's era had a bunch ty beanie babies, some anime plushies (sailor moon to be exact!) & Disney bean bags [they were the ones i played with the most & were out of / from Disney catalogue] but tragically before moving to another house, most were destroyed by a rain storm:'( we had an attic in our old house. only some survived.
p.s: i do like that scy (the black changeling) has a birth defect which something very rare & not talk about in any fic i've read before.
also your 'changeling oc' calor is such a cutie!
lastly thank you for letting me relive a piece of my childhood *hugs*
Coming from the guy whose main oc is an alicorn with a teddy bear for a cutie mark, I enjoyed this story. Good job.
9915929
I hope you're adopting new ones to slowly fill the void. 
Thank you for replying something so heartfelt, and I'm glad you enjoyed the story!
I'm so sorry you lost plushies! I'd be devastated.
9916114
Fluff is my middle name.
Though not a very good blanket.
Only changeling plushes I have are of Chrysalis.
An excellent piece. World needs more of the happy, friendly changelings.
EEEEEEEEE <3
Dies from sugar overload.
9916170
Unfortunately i cannot...the reason being is my dell laptop right now it's three years is breaking down on me and i'm so sick of the issues surrounding it! if you wanna hear about my dilemma feel free to PM me
p.s: yeah it hurt to lose all Disney bean bags (btw weren't protected enough because they were in a milk crate) i'm not making that mistake ever again!
also some of them were rare like this one https://www.amazon.com/Disney-Winnie-Winter-Frost-Plush/dp/B00474V5UY
I feel as warm and fuzzy on the inside as that Thorax plushie must be.
My ponysona actually came to realize himself as a changeling recently, and thus hasn't worked through the whole metamorphosis thing, so it's cool to see another ling who spreads love through less direct means.
9915769
I require a new genre tag labeled 'Fluff' or 'Feel-Good'. 
9914705
If it bothers you that much, "calor" is a word of Latin root, as is a good share of the other established changeling names in canon by happy coincidence (Chrysalis, in fact, is the only one that is the technical exception that I can think of off hand). So by that logic, the argument can be made that the names merely need to be of Latin roots to be valid to changeling naming conventions.
At least this works for me, but then, I also happen to know a little Latin, so maybe I'm bias.
9921346
Is "mirage" a word of Latin root? (The episode A Matter of Principals mentions a changeling named Mirage) It doesn't sound like it, but I could be wrong
By the way, "chrysalis" is a word of latin root (I checked).
9921394
No, unfortunately, "mirage" itself is of French roots, though the terms origins likely came about as a portmanteau of two Latin words (but that's not unusual--a lot of common words do. Latin was a pretty influential language in its day), so I guess you could say it's got some Latin blood in it, so to speak.
I'd forgotten about Mirage, but she was also a changeling from, presumably, a ways back in changeling history, so we could always explain it away as it being due to the naming conventions of the day that have since changed. Amusingly, as French is a language of Latin descent, you could also assume the reverse for the MLP world and build the headcanon that the changelings language of Mirage's day (French) later evolved into a different one (Latin) closer to modern day.
And of course, every naming convention still has the exceptions to it, so Mirage could simply be an instance of someling wanting to break the trend for a change.
As for "chrysalis," it appears in Latin, but it's more technically a borrowed word from ancient Greek. I suppose the Latin version gets credit for popularizing the modern definition of the term, though.
Like I said before, it's a technical exception, so I guess it depends on how particular you want to be about it.
9921476
Oh. Okay then
This was MOST well done! In fact it was actually quite a bit better than I had expected! Certainly more the light sort of fluffly and amusing little fic I thought it would be. Honestly I would enjoy a sequel of this!
9921966
Fluff/feel good stories are my speciality as a writer, because I enjoy making both myself and others feel good by reading something.
Thank you!
Never thought of a potential sequel, but I do see Racingwolf and I working again in the future, so who knows.