//------------------------------//
// Farewell to Innocence 
// Story: Innocence, Equestria 
// by Quantum Trip 
//------------------------------//

Button Mash waited until his mother was asleep, then sat down at his little writing desk.



Dear Sweetie Belle,

I'm in trouble. This place is crazy! Like, literally crazy. Don't tell your parents about this because I need them to come here so you can rescue us, but I think the parents here let their kids watch them "do it". Yeah, I mean what you think I mean. And my Mom is acting super-weird now too, so I think they've done something to her, and I'm really scared. I think they may have done something to me, too. I can't explain it, but I feel like I'm not in complete control over my body.

I think there's some evil force taking over the town. You're related to Rarity so you're good at dealing with evil forces and stuff, right? I think Role Reversal already wants to bring you and your family here for a visit, so I'll try to make her let you come here soon. Just play dumb, and when you get here we can plan an escape, or find out a way to fix my Mom.

I'm really worried. Don't write me back with any details, though. I'll bet they'll read my mail before they deliver it, and it'd be better if they thought you didn't know about all this.

Your friend forever,

Button Mash

P.S. I kissed a boy but it wasn't for real. It's a long story.



He folded the paper and stuffed it in an envelope, then addressed it to Sweetie Belle. For the return address, he wrote:



Role Reversal
Innocence Village
White Tail Woods, Equestria



"Hopefully that will get it through the mail without anypony reading it," he mumbled, sealing the envelope closed with a lick and adding a stamp.

After briefly stopping by his mother's room to make sure she was still asleep, Button headed into the night and slipped the envelope into the mailbox at the center of town. It didn't look like anypony had followed him.

He returned to his cabin and lay down in bed, exhausted but unable to sleep. At least an hour passed before the darkness claimed his mind.





Button awoke to the sound of birds chirping. He yawned, stretched, sat up, and saw his mother seated at the foot of his bed, just watching him with a smile on her face.

"Yipe!" he said, throwing the covers off of him. "W-what are you doing, Mom?"

"Just watching my favorite little stallion sleep, my sweetie-weetie cutie-patootie," she said, tilting her head to one side and resting it on her forehoof.

"Okay, I'm not gonna sugar-coat it. That's like super creepy, Mom. How long...?"

"Oh, maybe an hour," said Love Tap, adding a yawn of her own. "I probably should have slept in more myself, but I couldn't stop thinking about you. We have a very special day today, you know."

"Special day? Wait, is this the party for Softhoof and I?" Silently, Button cursed himself. He wasn't supposed to reveal that he knew about that. Then again, keeping party secrets wasn't exactly at the forefront of his anxious mind.

"It is! I promise, you're going to love it baby. Do you want to shower together like we used to?"

"N-no, I'm pretty sure I can do that by myself," said Button, jumping out of bed and galloping past his mother to the bathroom. He locked himself inside and sat down on the floor, shaking.

"Maybe it's all in my head?" he said to himself, tugging at the edge of the shower rug with two hooves. "M-maybe Mom's just being sappy for some reason, and everything will be fine. This is fine. It'll all be fine. We're just going to a party, and nopony's going to be weird or anything."

Button settled on a bath instead of a shower. It helped him calm down and stop hyperventilating.





Button Mash breathed a sigh of relief as he and Love Tap walked up to the central cabin. After Mom had her shower, everything seemed to be okay again. She was acting relatively normal, they were both nude as usual (with the exception of his favorite beanie hat), and the fact that they were going to be in public would help keep Mom from embarrassing him.

Upon entering the cabin, Button saw nearly everypony in town: all the adults and children, with the exception of the babies and Upendo. Most of the adults he'd never seen before, but it was obvious who was who, because families were seated together. The tables in the main area had been pushed to the sides of the room, and in the middle were several futons. Each family sat on a futon, except that Role Reversal stood up in the center of it all, surveying everypony with a critical eye. Button deduced that the lone pair of parents in the corner were Role's family.

One empty futon was clearly reserved for Button and his mother, so they walked over and sat down together. Button tried to ignore the fact that his mother began playing with his mane.

"Baby, may I go to the restroom?" asked the stallion who must have been Role Reversal's father.

"Only after you kiss my hooves," said Role, eyes narrow as she held out one hoof to him.

"But darling..."

"Obey," said Role.

Her father's eyes widened and his body stiffened. Almost mechanically, he leaned over and kissed each one of her hooves. "Yes, honey," he said in a soft voice.

Role smiled sweetly. "Off you go! But don't take long, the show's about to begin."

Role's mother giggled. Her father blushed and headed over to a small bathroom adjoining the main area.

"Oh nuts. This is not good," said Button Mash.

"What's wrong?" asked Softhoof. His parents were currently cuddling him on the futon next to his.

Button Mash leaned over and whispered to Softhoof. "I think something evil is going on in this town. My mom's acting really weird and affectionate, like she thinks I'm her boyfriend or something. And then Role just forced her dad to kiss her hooves! Did you see that?" he asked. "Are your parents acting weird?"

"I think it was just a game," whispered Softhoof. "My parents have been hugging and kissing me a lot, but they just love me. It isn't weird, it's nice."

"Now what're you two up to?" asked Role Reversal, reaching over and pulling Button's chin up toward her. She flicked the propeller on his beanie with her other hoof, making it spin.

Button frowned. "I don't know what's going on here, but everypony is acting weird. What did you do to my mom?"

"He's pretty smart. He was bound to figure it out eventually," said Shoe Drop.

Amber Vision shrugged. "There's no harm in telling them now. It's already too late to stop it."

Role Reversal turned around and walked away, then dramatically did an about-face. "Alright, we can do this one of two ways. One, you can follow directions without questioning us. That's the easy way," she said, pouring what looked like a bubbling, pink juice from a carafe into a plastic cup. "Just drink the juice, that's all there is to it. Two, we can tell you everything before you drink. That's the hard way, but it might be more fun that way. I'd love to see the look on your little faces when you learn what's about to happen to you." Role giggled and took a tiny sip of the juice. "Good stuff."

"I already know some of what you've done," said Button Mash. "You hypnotized me and your parents so we'd obey you, didn't you?"

"We don't want you to obey us," said Grey Space. "We just want you to be happy."

"Same thing for parents, although obeying us kids makes them happy," said Role Reversal. "This all started before we became quillpals. I learned how to hypnotize ponies, and I used it to control my parents. But eventually they figured out what was going on and I got in a lot of trouble."

"And we're very sorry about that now," said Role's mother.

"Of course you are. Anyway, we have you to thank for what happened next, Button Mash. Without your information about the Cutie Mark Crusaders, none of this would be possible."

"What? What infor—oh no. That's the love poison!" said Button Mash, pointing at the concoction with a shaking hoof. "But, how? Love poison makes you totally unable to do anything!"

"Yes, but that's where Upendo comes into the picture. Upendo comes from a culture where foals are treated like adults at a much younger age, and he liked the idea of me running wild," said Role. "So he helped me modify the potion. All it does now is make ponies fall in love with each other. I used it to make my parents fall in love with me so that they'd do my bidding. I didn't realize they'd use it on me later, but I'm glad they did."

"We're all in love," said Amber, leaning over to kiss her father. "The whole town, but especially the families."

"I don't get it. How is being in love different than loving?" asked Softhoof. "I already know my parents love me."

"Softhoof, I think it means boyfriend-girlfriend love," said Button Mash, his face visibly paled. "The gross kind. They're gonna make us do that."

"What? That's nasty!" said Softhoof, pulling away from his parents and walking back off of the futon. "You wouldn't do that. You're joking and stuff."

Amber walked up to Softhoof, holding the cup of poison with her magic. "Once you drink this, it won't be nasty anymore. It's that simple," she said. "Don't you want your parents to be happy?"

"Please, son," said Softhoof's mother. "We want to show you we love you. To really show you, for the first time in our lives."

"It's important to us, Softy," said his father. "You can be a girl, too. It'll be so much fun to be a filly."

"They're trying to change you!" said Button Mash, stepping back away from his mother. "Don't let them!"

Role Reversal rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. It's not that extreme. You've both already had some of the love poison, anyway."

"What?" said Button.

"That lipstick she's wearing," she said, pointing to Softhoof. "You've both tried it on. What do you think it's made out of? You don't feel like different ponies, do you?"

A sick feeling hit Button in the pit of his stomach. "I knew there was something wrong with it!" he said. His mind whirled in fear. How much have I been changed already?

Softhoof looked back and forth between his parents and Button Mash, and rubbed his coated lips together. Then he sighed, hung his head low, and walked back to his parents, embracing them.

"No! Don't do it!" shouted Button Mash.

"They're my parents!" said Softhoof as he started to cry. "If I can't trust my parents I can't trust anypony!"

"You can trust me..." said Button.

"No, I can't. I can't lose my parents. I'm sorry," said Softhoof. Role grinned and levitated the poison to him. Softhoof held it in both hooves and drank it in one slow, steady gulp.

"Button, it's okay," said Love Tap. "This way you can see how happy Softhoof is, and that'll make the process easier for you."

Almost immediately, Softhoof began to smile. "You have to do it Button, it's... it's awesome," he said, as he leaned up to kiss his father on the lips.

Button Mash turned his head to the side so he wouldn't have to see. First came the echo of a few soft, tender kisses and spirited gasps, but moments later it sounded like the colt was trying to eat an ice cream cone before it melted on a hot Summer day.

"Guys, we don't want to gross Button out, so why don't the three of your go to the guest bedroom next door?" asked Role Reversal.

"I'm already grossed out and it's not getting better," said Button, eyeing the distance between himself and the door. Role and his mother both blocked the way.

"Honey, why don't you just try a little sip? You'll see, it's not so bad!" said Love.

That was the last straw. Button panicked and made a beeline for the door. He leaped over his mother where she sat on the futon, and tripped Role with one leg as he passed her by. Throwing the door open, he spotted the treeline and galloped as fast as he could for it. Behind him, he heard commotion, and Role's voice.

"Grey Space, get him before he reaches the trees!"

"On it."

Button Mash wasn't exactly an athletic colt, but he was running faster than he'd ever run in his life—faster than he even thought was possible. It hurt his chest, but it didn't matter. His body was acting on instinct, without even needing to think. He reached the treeline but heard hoofsteps behind him getting louder. Dodging around tree after tree, he raced for what seemed like a minute.

Then he hit a tree root with his hoof, and flew through the air end over end until his head cracked against a tree.

The pain was blinding. Button whined and reached up to his forehead, feeling a goose egg but no blood. He began to cry as he tried to stand and found himself unable, lying on his back, completely enervated. Grey Space ran up to him with a worried look on his face.

"Got him!" shouted Grey Space. "You okay?"

"I-I'll n-never be okay," sobbed Button Mash. "It's G-Game Over, isn't it?"

"Relax. Let me get a look at you," said Grey Space. Button felt himself calm down and the tears stopped. He sniffled and winced when Grey touched the bump on his head. "That's a bump alright, but I think you're gonna be fine. I need to check you for a concussion, though. How many sticks is this?" he asked, holding up three sticks.

"Three," said Button, dispassionately.

Grey breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. You're not dizzy or gonna throw up, are you?"

Button shook his head, then regretted it as the pain returned. "No... but I might throw up if I ever see my mom again," he said, and wondered why he wasn't still crying.

Role Reversal trotted up through the trees, carrying a first aid kit with her. "Oh wow. I took this as a just-in-case but he's hurt, isn't he?"

Grey Space cuddled Button up in his legs and kissed the bump. "Yeah. No concussion. I think he's hurt more mentally than physically."

Role pulled out a small tube of cream and opened it.

"No poison," begged Button.

"It's not poison, it'll stop the pain," said Role. "We're not going to poison you, okay?"

Role gently applied the cream to his forehead, and the pain subsided to a dull ache. "Th-thank you," said Button, out of reflex rather than sincerity.

"Now what?" said Grey Space. "We just force him to take it, I guess? Maybe rub the stick on all of his holes until he relaxes more?"

Role shook her head. Her face looked sad. "No, we don't need to force him, that would suck even more than this sucks. Button, I'm going to give you a choice. You like choices, right?"

Button nodded slowly.

"You don't have to drink the poison, but if you don't, you can't ever leave. That's the deal: if you want to leave Innocence, you have to fall in love with us."

"If I can't leave, I'll n-never get to see Sweetie Belle again," he said softly. "That's almost as bad."

"No, we can let Sweetie Belle visit as long as you don't tell her or her parents about the love poison or the hypnotizing," said Role Reversal.

"Hay. Show him the pill," said Grey Space.

Role nodded and smiled slightly. "Here," she said, pulling a pink-colored pill out of the first aid kit. "This is a concentrated form of the poison. If you take this and think about your mother, it'll be just like drinking the poison, except it only takes a split-second to do. Just swallow and it's all over."

"I don't want to take the poison."

"Your mom doesn't have a boyfriend, Button. She needs you to be the stallion of the house," whispered Grey Space. "It's time for you to accept some responsibility and grow up."

"Exactly. Your mom is so happy right now. Don't you want to be happy with her?" she asked. "I know you don't want to take the poison, but the pill makes the decision easier. Put it in your mouth, just to see what it's like. Then all you have to do is choose to swallow, or spit it out. Bam, less than one second, no thought involved. Let your gut decide what's right."

Button stared at the pill, then at Role Reversal, then back at the pill, taking tiny breaths through his nostrils.





Button Mash pulled Sweetie Belle into his room and shut and locked the door behind them.

"This place seems pretty normal to me. What's wrong?" asked Sweetie Belle. Button's room was a mess. A stick of incense was burning on his desk, which at least helped the smell.

"I know it's not obvious, but we're in danger right now," said Button Mash. "Fortunately I've had a lot of time to think about it, and I have a plan to fix everything."

Sweetie Belle's jaw tensed as she gritted her teeth for a moment. "Okay. I'm here to help you, Button. I'm just happy you're okay," she said, and hugged him. Then she sniffed at the air. "That incense is nice, but there's something about it..." she said.

"Yeah. It's got a weird name, but it's very calming."

"Button, that scent is really familiar. I know I've smelled it before, but I can't remember where. What's it called?"

"Insurance," said Button Mash, with a smile. "And hay, I got you this lipstick..."