It Is Recommendsday, My Dudes #68 · 7:51pm Jul 6th, 2022
Normally, I pick stories to use that have a thematic connection: the same main character, similar thematic notes, so on. This month I'm gonna have a bit of fun and pull out story sets that have really weird connections. This week is a perfect example: two horror stories about hugs.
The first and more light-hearted of the pair is The Snuggling by The Sleepless Beholder.
The Canterlot High girls are having a sleepover - as they do - and everybody's having a good time despite the storm outside. Unfortunately as the power cuts out, Sunset's geode surges. And she devolves into an Equestrian monstrosity: a human who must snuggle. Released from mortal bounds, she stalks her friends through the darkened house, leaping from the shadows to get hugs and cuddles as they flee, trying to find a fluffy body pillow to placate her.
Right, so was not kidding when I said 'light-hearted'. It's horror only in the strictest sense of the term, using the general beats of a slasher movie except Sunset has warm hugs instead of a machete.
It's not a deep story, but it's a great laugh, cute as hell, and wonderfully silly. Really, as much as I enjoy it I'm not sure what else to say about it. It takes a simple but ridiculous premise then delivers on it beautifully. It helps that Sleeps is a top-notch writer for adorable fics (See things like Balloon To The Moon and The Cutest Deliverer) so there's a lot of great pedigree here.
The less light story this week is Flash Notion's Warm Hugs.
Coming through the Everfree/island quicksand portal to Equestria, Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle (human flavor) are worried. The Canterlot High portal has been closed and there's been no responses to Sunset's increasingly worried messages via the book. So the two journey to the second portal and pass through to investigate.
Once there, they find Ponyville a ghost town - empty streets and a silent town in disarray. Ominously there is graffiti on the side of a building: STAY APART! DON'T LET THEM TOUCH YOU!. It isn't until they find Fluttershy that everything is explained... and nothing makes sense.
This one's a great piece of horror. The threat is so painfully Equestrian - a horrible infection passed via hugs - and yet Flash Notion still effectively drives it home as a threat. It's creepy and weird, more so because of the borderline silliness of it. It's a really unique take on the whole zombie apocalypse concept and I love it.
Plus the ending really sticks with me. The escalation is wonderfully well paced, hits a great climax, then drops down into an end that feels just perfect and has hung out in my memory ever since I first read it. This is a really awesome piece, and it's a shame that it's barely hanging above 10 votes.
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