//------------------------------// // Chapter 17: Hunger // Story: What is a Tatzlpony? // by Skylight77 //------------------------------// Fluttershy was nearly heartbroken upon hearing those memories and it left her conflicted on so many levels. While those memories were not the unbelievable things she expected to hear, she still couldn’t believe it. It went against everything she knew of her fillyhood friend. Rainbow Dash abandoned somepony in their time of need. But… it wasn’t her fault, was it? Her memory was taken. Except that didn’t change who Rainbow was. Though, if her memory was taken, she wouldn’t know they needed help, right? Why was her memory taken and why did they allow this to happen? It became so conflicting in her mind that Fluttershy was hyperventilating out of control. “FLUTTERSHY!” Fluttershy yelped when she heard her name being screamed right at her ears, which echoed a few times. Her eyes shrunk and she shook her head, still a bit aching from her headache trying to recover. She found herself lying on her back on the ground with Rainbow standing above her wearing a worried expression. “S-S-Sorry!” Fluttershy said as she settled her breathing. Rainbow moved off as Fluttershy was sitting herself up. Although her head was hurting again, she placed a hoof to her chest to take in a few deep breaths. She was ashamed to suddenly develop a panic attack and worry Rainbow that way. “Thank you. Give me a moment.” Fluttershy thought back on Rainbow’s recalling memories and went over what she learned. Somepony turned Rainbow into a tatzlpony. The first thing Rainbow could remember was that she was suffering. Whoever turned her into that must’ve caused that suffering. Somepony came to Rainbow and not only stopped her suffering, but also seemed to free her from wherever she was trapped. But… this pony… it sounded like she sacrificed herself to free Rainbow from whatever torture she was suffering. The question was… why? And what sort of connection did she have with this client, if this was indeed the pony Clang was talking about? So many questions, but… “Rainbow,” Fluttershy started as she collected her thoughts. “Do you remember what happened next? Where did you go?” She had a feeling that she already knew, but she wanted to hear it from Rainbow. Thankfully Rainbow had seen that Fluttershy calmed down from her panic. Moving back to the mat, she laid down, taking an extended glance towards Fluttershy. After a nod of confirmation, she looked to the sky and recalled her memories. ______________________________________________________________________________ Panting, rustling leaves, and the distant sounds dangerous creatures lurking around the forest, all focused on her attention as she rushed through the forest. She had no idea where she was going, but she didn’t think about that. In fact, she wasn’t thinking at all, not even sure why she was running. The only thing on her attention was what was ahead. Many thorns tread her path, but they became no obstacle for her. All the while, her mind blurred. Rainbow soon found herself in a clearing. She expected herself to be completely out of breath when she stopped, but she wasn’t. For some reason, it felt like she hadn’t even been running for that long, like something else aided her escape other than her legs. The running distance felt comparable to about a mile of traveling, something she felt as a common everyday thing. All it took was a couple pants and a deep sigh to regain her breath. Her mind continued to clear as if something was swirling inside her head. The more it cleared, the more the pain in her mind eased. Soon her visions were able to focus on where she was, making her surroundings clear. She found herself- ______________________________________________________________________________ “-here,” Rainbow looked her surroundings over as she finished. Fluttershy closed her eyes, nodded, then examined their surroundings as well. It was just as she thought. This was the place Rainbow stayed at before she found Fluttershy. That would also explain why she wanted to show this place, as it would be the best place to tap into her memories. If only it wasn’t so… discouraging. But Rainbow didn’t seem that bothered. Why was that? “What did you do while you were here?” Fluttershy asked. Rainbow didn’t immediately respond. She picked herself from the mat and walked off it. As she made her way to the lake, she continued recalling her memory. ______________________________________________________________________________ Her mind was at peace seeing where she was. The sight of the fresh lake before her eyes made her smile in relaxation as she walked towards it. Feeling this calm was as if the previous events had never happened. ______________________________________________________________________________ “That must’ve been when your memory was fully taken…” Fluttershy commented on as she followed Rainbow’s pace. ______________________________________________________________________________ She looked upon her reflection from the lake, seeing the form of her cyan coat and magenta eyes, decorated with red lightning bolt markings next to them. It looked all too new to her, but at the same time, it didn’t. There were no thoughts she made on it, only acts. ______________________________________________________________________________ Rainbow extended her tongues out and dipped them in the water, including the one that was tied. Fluttershy saw her keeping them submerged for a while, wondering what exactly she was doing. It almost looked like she was sucking the water in with her tongues, but upon closer examination, her tongues were swirling each other and cupping themselves into what was practically a bowl. With the water cupped together, the tongues retracted back to Rainbow, scooping a large cup of the lake’s water into her mouth, which she swallowed pleasantly. The flexibility on those tongues continued to surprise Fluttershy. Rainbow continued recalling her memory as she made her way to one of the trees. ______________________________________________________________________________ Seeing the berries from those trees made her experience a very strange hunger. It wasn’t from a cause of her belly rumbling, but rather the feeling of being empty. She felt the need to fill it. Through instinct, her tongues reached out to those berries, grabbing several at a time. They were brought in her mouth, but she didn’t chew. Instead, she swallowed them whole. ______________________________________________________________________________ As Fluttershy was removing something from her saddle bag, she flinched harshly and nearly dropped what she held upon hearing what Rainbow just said. “W-What?!” she asked, wanting to know if she heard that correctly. Before she jumped to conclusions, she let Rainbow continue. ______________________________________________________________________________ The feelings of these berries inside her did not affect her strange hunger. She could feel her insides, but she could not feel the berries inside them. The berries were large, but the taste was empty. After giving it a moment, she sucked in her breath, reached her tongues inside, and pulled the berries out. They were placed in a pile in front of her, to which she examined, but quickly lost interest in them. ______________________________________________________________________________ Fluttershy held a glass container in her hooves and pulled out what was inside. It was one of the large green berries, the very first one Rainbow gave her that she never ate. As she listened to Rainbow’s story, she dug up the soil near the other trees and planted the berry underneath, where it would grow just like the others. Fluttershy had to hold a hoof up to her head, breathing rather heavily. Hearing this story puzzled her, but at the same time, it felt like it was wearing her out. Looking up above the trees, she noticed that the sun was starting to set. Nightfall would be arriving soon while they were still in the Everfree Forest. While Fluttershy wanted to know more about this strange hunger Rainbow described, she had a different question that felt more appropriate at the time. “Did you get to sleep anywhere around here before you left?” Rainbow nodded and walked towards said area. Fluttershy stumbled a bit, but she was able to follow where Rainbow walked to. When Rainbow stopped her walking in front of a tree Fluttershy couldn’t help but giggle. “Of course…” she said as she shook her head. “Even as a tatzlpony, your favorite napping places are still high in a-” Fluttershy got interrupted when Rainbow started digging fiercely into the earth, causing dirt to fly violently in the air. Some of that dirt hit against Fluttershy’s face, making her yelp and look away. With her hooves in her face, she couldn’t see what Rainbow was digging up, or even how she was digging so fast. This felt like Diamond Dog levels of digging speed. When the digging stopped, Fluttershy was able to remove the cover from her face and see. In front of her was a large hole leading underneath that tree. Peering down the hole, she saw Rainbow inside, looking up at her while nestled between the roots. “O-Or low inside a tree?” Fluttershy finished her extended sentence break. Rainbow was motioning her head as a sign for Fluttershy to join her. “W-Well… um…” She slowly dipped one hoof inside the hole, unsure about this being an ideal resting place. When it came to Rainbow, she always preferred sleeping outside with the sun shining on her. Now, as a tatzlpony, she preferred here? Or at least, this is what she preferred before she was found. Spreading her wings, Fluttershy let herself fall gently in the hole. Before she joined Rainbow, she closed her eyes tightly and held a hoof to her head, moaning a little. Her headache was mostly gone, but it didn’t stop her from getting a little dizzy. She waited until this dizziness passed before opening her eyes again. Rainbow looked a bit worried. “I’m okay,” Fluttershy said. “Just give me a moment.” She dropped her saddle bags to the side and opened it, taking out another pill for her head. There was enough packed in those saddle bags to last them a good few days in the Everfree Forest, even with Rainbow’s crazy appetite. As insurance, Fluttershy also packed a few medicine pills in case of something like this. After taking another set of pills, she joined Rainbow in between the roots. She slid herself in the spot next to Rainbow, sliding in slowly, hind legs first, and being careful not to scrape herself until her body was comfortably nestled, or rather, as comfortable as she could get herself. The roots were softer than she thought, making her smile. It actually wasn’t that bad. “It’s rather lovely!” Fluttershy said softly. Rainbow smiled seeing Fluttershy’s comfort. She nuzzled her cheek against Fluttershy’s for affection. The affection made Fluttershy’s body heat up in embarrassment. It wasn’t bad, but she just wasn’t sure what to think of all these feelings building up in her. These were feelings she found getting harder to deny, only held back by believing it was only happening from Rainbow being a tatzlpony. “Rainbow…” Fluttershy started again, trying to focus back on what was important. After all, there was something she was especially curious about and wanted to ask. "That hunger you talked about... Do you still feel it? Even now?" Rainbow's smile feigned a bit and she answered by nodding her head. "Oh..." The answer left Fluttershy concerned. "Well... Does it bother you?" Rainbow turned her eyes down. "No..." she answered, making Fluttershy tilt her head. "Eating a lot of food... helps keep my mind off it." That answer made Fluttershy gasp internally. It explained why Rainbow seemed to love eating so much. She's been trying to resist that hunger's urge as much as she could, and hadn't been very successful thinking back on it. Was it really that hard to resist that temptation? Surely it was. Now Fluttershy really felt guilty for using her Stare on Rainbow that day. The thought of scolding her for something she couldn't control made her own heart sink. “What did... you do… after you rested?” Fluttershy asked slowly, trying to get her mind off that guilt. Rainbow closed her eyes and recalled her story. ______________________________________________________________________________ She only stayed at that clearing for one night, leaving the area first thing in the morning. The hole she dug up was covered back before she left. Her stomach still held a strange hunger she wanted to satisfy. None of the berries in the forest helped satisfy it. However, chewing on some of them gave her a taste that was quite awesome. It didn’t satisfy that hunger, but it did stop the growling her stomach had since morning. She met with multiple creatures as she explored, many of them small. They ranged from squirrels, horned rabbits, a long snake, and now, a strange flying insect with big eyes. It stared at her with a huge smile. There was a feeling of familiarity with this insect, like she experienced something with it that she couldn’t forget. Just like the other creatures, she lashed her tongues out at this insect and dragged it in her mouth, swallowing it whole. Unlike the others, this creature squirmed and buzzed in her stomach. That feeling held some sort of affect, but there was no taste for it. Suddenly, the buzzing grew more intense. It was like another one of those insects had spawned in her stomach. Another set of buzzes spawned. And then another. Eyes shrinking and teeth gritting, she quickly reached her tongues inside and pulled out the insect to stop the buzzing. One of those creatures were suddenly many. Six, seven, eight, she wasn’t sure, and they were all different colors. One of them had their teeth latched on a berry she had previously swallowed. It turned out that they were eating the berries she swallowed. They tried going back inside her mouth, making her yelp and fly away. ______________________________________________________________________________ Fluttershy was quite baffled by this turn of events. There was only one thing she could say to it. “Parasprites?” She was sure she had more to ask, but that was the only thing that came to mind at the time. Her eyes were starting to get heavy, feeling sleepy. The pills she took earlier were starting to take effect. Rainbow continued, and Fluttershy tried to stay awake for the rest of the story. ______________________________________________________________________________ With one berry left wrapped around her tongue, she panted heavily after her quick getaway from those parasprites, having to use all her speed to fly away. That sudden burst of speed quickly drained her energy, but was worth it. Flying that fast even felt a bit exhilarating, but was not her focus right now. Looking behind her gave her the confirmation that she managed to escape those parasprites. They were nowhere in sight. Her panting stopped when a certain lullaby penetrated her ears. They responded by rising high while her head pointed in the direction of the sound. It sounded like chirping mixed with singing from a lovely soft voice. The tone of that voice piqued her curiosity. She had to see what it was. With the berry still held in her tongue, she moved towards its direction. ______________________________________________________________________________ Fluttershy moaned as she listened to the story. It appeared that Rainbow was closing her eyes as well when she told it. “That must’ve been the day you found me,” Fluttershy said. “Then… you were only alone for one day as a tatzlpony… Mmm…” She thought for a bit as she counted the days since that discovery. “Four days… Tomorrow will be the fifth… the fifth day you’ve been a tatzlpony…” Of course, she didn’t know if that was the exact number of days since Rainbow’s transformation, but it was the amount of days since she escaped whoever captured her and turned her into this. These were the questions now. Who captured Rainbow Dash? What motivation did they have to make her suffer? Why did they have to turn her into a tatzlpony? Was the client who hired somepony to capture Rainbow Dash this same pony? What relation did this client have to the pony who freed Rainbow? How did clearing her mind stop her suffering? And why did the pony who freed her go to such lengths to free her? ______________________________________________________________________________ The sight of this yellow pegasus gave her a very strong sense of familiarity, and pleasance. She didn’t know it at the time, but this pegasus was indeed Fluttershy. It made her adrenaline rush all around her body. That feeling piqued her strange hunger, making her want to feed. So she did. As her tongues lashed out, they quickly ensnared Fluttershy from hoof, to tail, and to head. Fluttershy struggled fiercely in her grip. That struggle felt promising to her as she pulled Fluttershy in, her tail keeping herself still by being planted in the ground. When Fluttershy reached her mouth, she began swallowing. The fit seemed a lot tighter than everything else she swallowed, yet Fluttershy slid through her throat easily, like she was swallowing something much smaller than her. Her three tongues also made it easy to press Fluttershy’s wings and legs together while they pulled Fluttershy in. She gave one last swallow, and Fluttershy disappeared in her stomach. Her stomach noticeably expanded before she removed her tail from the ground. There was a taste this time. It was a wonderful taste. The feeling of Fluttershy within her stomach satisfied that strange hunger she was feeling, the one that made her feel empty inside. Now she no longer felt empty. But looking down to her stomach, she felt worried. Fluttershy wasn’t struggling inside her, not even moving. Her hunger was satisfied, but she didn’t want this to happen. Immediately, she sucked in her breath, reached her tongues inside her stomach, and pulled Fluttershy out. Even with her throat bulging largely, pulling Fluttershy out wasn’t any more difficult. When she pulled Fluttershy out, her saliva splattered like a pop. Seeing Fluttershy relieved a bit of her worry. Although Fluttershy wasn’t moving, she could feel breathing. Fluttershy was just passed out, but also covered in saliva. Still feeling a bit guilty, she set Fluttershy down to a nearby tree, using her tongues to lick off the excess saliva that covered Fluttershy’s body. She left Fluttershy to sleep at that tree, heading back to the Everfree Forest. Before she went inside, she noticed the berry she attempted to give to Fluttershy. Still wracked with guilt, she took the berry and placed it in a spot she believed Fluttershy would find it. Her first instinctive response was the front of the cottage door. After leaving it there, she ran away and didn’t look back. She was now very afraid of herself, not wanting to go back. But there was something that gave her hope. That strange hunger she had, she didn’t feel it right now. Even with Fluttershy no longer inside, her strange hunger was satisfied for the moment. ______________________________________________________________________________ Before they finally fell asleep, Fluttershy remembered the last and most important question there was left to answer. Were tatzlponies good, or bad? ______________________________________________________________________________ Meanwhile... The front door to the cottage was slammed open by a single panicked filly. “Fluttershy?!” Scootaloo called as she rushed in. “Rainbow Dash?! Oh, please be here! Fluttershy!” Angel jumped out of her mane as he scurried off to search for either pony as well. Fear was written on both their faces as they searched. One room after another, nothing came up. Checking under tables and beds showed no signs. Even opening closets and windows provided no answers. Scootaloo and Angel met back at the living room, both showing signs of no luck. “No, this is bad... “ she agonized. “Really baaad!” Angel held both paws to his face as his eyes pulsated as if they were about to cry. They went back to the front door, looking outside. Both hoped deeply for their prayers to be answered. “Please be okay, Fluttershy...”