But unbeknownst to all of them, a grim warning lay in wait just outside their door. A warning Anon himself had written and would subsequently ignore. On the calendar, in big bold red letters was the message: “STALLIONS’ BARGAIN DAY AT THE MARKET: DO NOT GO SHOPPING”.

Oh no XD that gonna be one heck of a grocery run

It hast risen! Huzzah!

While a short chapter, it was nevertheless nice to be able to read a new chapter from this series. Seems like Sgt Murphy is not yet done and ready to drop off another drama bomb on the herd in the next chapter of The Long and Short of It!!!

Oh boy, am I excited to see the trainwreck that is probably the Equestrian equivalent to a Black Friday sale. Let the battle for the bargains begin!

Always a treat to see an update from this story! It remains a classic in my bookmarks.

Are we getting a Black Friday analogue next chapter? That’s sure to be a crazy story segment…

How ominous… I love it

One the greatest stories and one of my top favorite is back

uh oh, we have grab hags incoming next chapter!

Lmao

Right, she hasn't told them about the forced r&r...
Only slightly surprised Anon doesn't know kink. Well, not that deep of it anyways.
Surely there's preservation spells that can help the food keep, that are just not used on the regular due to energy requirements? There's not even any food kitchens for the poor it could be donated to... 😭

Great update, can’t wait to see more!

I absolutely love this story. Always loving when a new chapter comes out

Thanks for updating. I love this story.

SQA-non to Bobbles after adding some fresh greentext after four months of silence: I command you to rise from your grave and rescue my daughter post my horsewords!

While I love this story, this chapter feels like a 'status quo maintained' chapter. So much happened and it doesn't seem like anything was addressed.

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I get what you mean, but there is a reason for it: a personal journey of self-discovery that stays consistent with the tone of a romantic comedy is a bit of a tightrope to balance. We'll get there.

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It's because this is the setup half of a larger chapter. I thought here was a decent place to cut it because I actually wanted to put something out, but you're absolutely right that the personal growth stuff unfortunately got left behind as it ended up being kinda backloaded. I honestly also really don't like that it turned out that way, but I really didn't want to make it take any longer.

But unbeknownst to all of them, a grim warning lay in wait just outside their door. A warning Anon himself had written and would subsequently ignore. On the calendar, in big bold red letters was the message: “STALLIONS’ BARGAIN DAY AT THE MARKET: DO NOT GO SHOPPING”.

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That's more than fair and I appreciate the honesty. I've just been eager for them to finally make some progress with their various issues.

“STALLIONS’ BARGAIN DAY AT THE MARKET: DO NOT GO SHOPPING”

What that fuck is stallions bargain day and why the fuck is there a warning to avoid shopping on that particular day! What the hell am I going to be reading! The only thing I can even draw close to a comparison is black Friday!

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And I love to hear that! It's good to hear despite all the time passing I've still got people hooked. And I do really appreciate the feedback. I was worried people might feel that way about this chapter, and knowing those fears weren't unfounded is genuinely a good thing to internalize as I move into how I pace this final stretch.
All I can say is hang in there! I'll do my damndest to deliver the payoff soon. Very very soon.

Never occurred to me what nyotaimori would look like in pony world.

“Then when I was done, I realized I still had some time and didn’t know what to do and—” Pike interrupted herself with another fanged yawn.

Ahhh I see, the workaholic is trying to "relax"

“Nooo! I’m not a moth, I’m a baaaaaaaaat...” she sleepily cried. But not even a moment later, those melted away to the soft sounds of a snoozing Pike.

A bat burrito, always adorable

But unbeknownst to all of them, a grim warning lay in wait just outside their door. A warning Anon himself had written and would subsequently ignore. On the calendar, in big bold red letters was the message: “STALLIONS’ BARGAIN DAY AT THE MARKET: DO NOT GO SHOPPING”.

Well, isn't this gonna be fun

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Have you ever seen Ben-To?

An angry screech started to build in the back of Pike’s throat, but she forced it down, and added that to the long list of reasons she hoped Jargon put her into a self-defense situation one day.

But she can’t be Hyde, she’s Piker!

Hurray for a new update! An excellent chapter.

Heck yeah, this story always makes my day.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGXydvogzYo

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Weird but black friday is far worse but I guess it's leveled out by being just 1 day out of the year

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No matter how many life-changing revelations, heart-wrenching confessions, or moments of self-discovery you have......tomorrow is still gonna be surprisingly ordinary, most of the time.

Food, chores, work, relationships. The change (hopefully) comes when you start applying those new revelations to your life, and is usually a pretty gradual thing.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fvKzW_uiPk

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ya, i remember seeing the fights and trampling as the doors opened. it went downhill from there. i don't even leave my house black friday OR cyber monday. by time things calm down, there's nothing left. even shopping on the net, your competing mass buyers and snipe bots.

go ahead, fight over the latest and greatest crap. i'll order last years goods with a strawberry cream soda in my pj's and whatever upgrade parts the rubes have already complained about from last year and have something twice as awesome at 1/3rd the price.

and don't forget your stun gun, your gonna need it!

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Doesn't really apply here. It's pretty obvious something is going on with Pike. Something that's affecting her a lot. Something that should be addressed asap. That isn't even counting the issues with Anon and Cut.

Oh sweet Celestia. On a level of bargaining from a scale of garage to Hong Kong night market how bad do ya folks think it will be.

Stallion 1: That's mine you bucker!
Stallion 2: I had it first you lame bastard!
Stallion 1: RAAAAAAAGH!
Stallion 2: WAAAAAAAGGHHH!!!
Anon: huh, replace the apron with a ball and this is pretty much how Rugby was played back home
Cut: I'm scared
Pike:... i'd say this isn't that bad but I've had skirmishes less bloody
Anon: this is surprisingly fun, woo! go green pony! kick his flank!

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I think her name is rookie
Pony names be weird as

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In a cosmic coincidence, her real name is Rook. She'll never be able to shake the Rookie nickname.

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HAHA
I KNEW IT

Love all the “Eeeeeeeeeeeeee”!

This is my favorite story on the site right now. Has been for a while.

Nice

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I knew it. I bucking knew it!

Wait, buh—wha—? How the… ?

I’m out of chapters? What sorcery is this?!

Not even I usually read fast enough to go through near 200k words in less than two days. What speed reading enchantment did you weave into this, Bobbles?!

Now I have to find something else to do with my weekend!

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Oh shit, you right. Good catch. Night Glider is a completely different character who does not even exist in this story as of now so that's a serious brainfart on my end lmao.

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Thank you.

SQA, Bobbles, your work is a delight to read, and the cast is colorful and full of life.

I binged on it all, and it was a treat to warm my heart!

Thanks for sharing your work with us, and I hope to see you at the next release!

“—but Aunt Jargon made me go to a restaurant where we ate off of a stallion once. It was uh... not great.”

Got the Captain Laserhawk reference, if not then someone explain to me.

It's been a lo-o-ong time. How have you been?

Update ETA?