"Mmmmm." Pipp yawned as the early morning sun drifted through her bedroom window, infusing the gilded palace room with a warm yellow glow. Stretching her delicate pink hooves in the air she rolled out of her equally pink satin sheets. It took a lot of rolling though, her bed was royal sized and with how short she was it took quite a few rolls.
Getting into some cozy slippers, just as cozy as her beautifully downy wings she shuffled over to her gold standing floor mirror over by the equally gold and ivory chest of drawers. Looking into the bottom half of the tall mirror she made a noise of exasperation while she combed her mane.
"Ugh, when will they replace this mirror with one that doesn't make me feel so short!" She understandably grumbled.
Pipp had always been a little on the short side. Little was one way to describe it. She felt absolutely shrimpy! She always struggled to reach her favorite cups from the top shelves. She couldn't even look her fans in the eye without craning her neck! Gah it was so infuriating! She would do anything to get a few precious inches and stand up to ponies on equal hoofing.
Setting her comb down she grabbed the preheated curling roll and set it in her gorgeous bangs to get her signature curl while plopping down on her lounging couch. While she waited for the curler to do its work she decided to check Ponybook for the latest meme trends in order to stay relevant as a content creator. Nothing mattered to her more than her career as the Idol Princess, pop star sensation and trend setter was a lot of work after all.
Swiping down through the list of the typical complaining about work and usual fights between who was best princess (Pipp won slightly more often of course) she saw some memes about the latest Pony Wars movie Episode 3 which made her blood boil. It was a scene from the climax of the movie where Pony Bon Baloney was standing on a hill fighting his student Mannequin Skytrotter and some joke about having the high ground.
"Yeah I bet having the high ground makes everything better huh! I wish I had the high ground just once in my life!" Pipp roared at her phone.
How dare they share that meme with her? It was clearly a thinly veiled short joke and her friends knew how sensitive she was about her height. She angrily downvoted the meme and kept swiping with violent motions. Seeing a clip of her being startled by a flying snake on the set of Snakes on a Blimp made her smile a little until she saw the hashtag, #PippSqueaks. That put her over the edge and with a scream of anger she threw the phone to the other side of the lounge where it bounced softly off the cushions and landed safely.
Pipp's anger quickly turned to sorrow as she sniffled and pouted on her lounge. Her reputation meant everything to her and here her friends were sharing short jokes on her and to top it off her fans had even started to call her smol, thinking it was cute or something. It was all too much! Something has to be done!
Determinedly pulling the curler out she threw it aside and stomped over to her mini fridge, there was something she could do here for her height. Well stomped is not the right word here, due to her height it was more of cutely plopped over to her mini fridge. When she got there she threw the door wide open and grabbed the only drink in there, milk.
After reading a few years ago that milk would help kickstart the mythical growth spurt Pipp decided back then that milk is the only thing she would drink when not in public. Struggling with her humongous Big Gulp 2 liter sized jug she balanced it on her arm (it was almost as long as her whole short arm) and slowly began chugging the entire thing.
This will definitely work! (chug)
I will not be short! (chug)
Growth spurt here I come! (chug)
No longer smol! (chug)
Stubby will not be my middle name! (chug)
Finishing her daily dose she tossed the jug aside for the maid to pick up later. Standing as tall as she could she stretched her arms wide, showing off her soft and fuzzy belly. Happily standing back down on the floor in the warm glow of the morning sun she closed her eyes and smiled for a second before popping those cute green lookers wide open.
"Ahhhh, drinking that good good always makes me feel better. Time for a new day Pipp!" She trilled, all perked up now and full of positive energy.
Trotting over to her lounge she picked up her phone and tucked away under her wing and started to spring to the large ornate door to her bedroom when her phone went off, sending vibrations throughout her entire compact body. Oooh.
"Ever since Hoofkia made vibrating notifications, they've never turned down the intensity. They really need to work on that" She mumbled as she pulled her phone out of her wing and checked the notification that would change her entire life.
It looked like the usual spam that usually gets deleted right away but before she could press that little red trash can the title caught her gorgeous emerald eyes. "Le ɡrō - The most sheik growth creme!"
"Growth creme?" Pipp muttered to herself in disbelief. Sure there's tons of weight loss cures, wing gloss thats a gazillion percent better than expensive name brands, even little blue wing enlarging pill scams but Pipp had never seen a growth ad before. Probably because of the bad start to her morning she decided to tap on the mail to open it.
Little dancing pegasus .pifs went up and down the sides of the mail while the headline declared boldly "Are you short? Do you hate being vertically challenged? Then what you need is this!" An image of a fancy hoofnail polish looking bottle was below it with the words "Le ɡrō" written on it in sparkly gold lettering.
"A little dash of this on your stubbly legs every day will have you growing as tall as you want as soon as you want! This is legit and has been approved by the ZHDPA for clinical use. Stop by our store in the Reclaw district, just follow your height and everything you've wanted will be yours!"
Pipp looked at the mail dubiously, this looked like all the scam mails everypony got, but this one wasn't asking for her wing card number or even asked for anything other than her belief in the outrageous sounding product.
"I wonder if Zipp has heard of the ZHDPA, if they're legit than this must be true?" Pipp wondered to herself.
Almost as if on cue there was a knock on her door
"Come in~" Pipp sang, with a quick glance in the mirror to make sure her royal cuteness was presentable she bounced over to the door.
"Morning lil sis" Zipp said as Pipp scowled at the name. Zipp didn't appear to have noticed though as she towered into the room, everytime Pipp saw her older sister she was reminded how freakishly taller her sister was. Zipp walked over to Pipp and showed the adorable younger sister her phone. Looking down at it she saw an unassuming grey unicorn with a brown mane and a weird green old phone looking thing as her cutie mark.
"You know how I'm looking into flight right?" Before Pipp could even nod Zipp continued talk, "Well I was looking around for anything historical cause you know how little there is of it but I found this really amazing historical fiction book, I know history isn't your thing but this is really awesome! The main character is so cool and strong I like her a lot!" Zipp gushed.
Pipp was taken aback a little bit by the outburst, Zipp never seemed this excited about anything before. She casually asked "What's her name?"
Zipp smiled at her younger sisters interest, "Its Little Pip, she's seriously the most awesome pony ever!"
Zipp may have continued talking but Pipp couldn't hear her anymore over the red haze that covered her vision. Of course its Little Pip! Why wouldn't it be Little Pip! That's the last straw! I will get taller even if it kills me! She thought with her mind in a haze of anger and determination.
Zipp trailed off gushing about the story once she saw the vacant blank stare of her sister. Slowly waving her hoof in front of Pipps face she said "Pipp?" When nothing happened Zipp just shrugged and walked out of the room, her sister did that every so often so Zipp decided she would just come back later.
Slowly blinking and coming back to reality Pipp looked around and noticed she was alone again. With a cute little angry stomp of her hoof she closed her bedroom door and opened her phone. Looking at the ad again she muttered under her breath "I'm done being 'cute and smol', I'm done getting 'angy' every time something height is mentioned, I'm tired of being this dang short when I'm a royal in Zephyr HEIGHTS!" Stomping her free hoof a few more times she decided that no matter what, she was going to find this creme and bathe in it if she has to!
Scanning the ad again she couldn't find an actual address or even a way to contact the Pegasi responsible for sending it, she even tried replying to the mail but just got a "Oops, something went wrong" message.
Snorting to herself in frustration she said "Guess I'll have to go searching for it then. At least I know it's somewhere in the Reclaw district and that I have to 'follow my height' whatever that means." She finished while making air hooves.
Her hatred of being short was a closely guarded secret though, only her best friends knew about it and she definitely wouldn't be able to sneak around looking for this without a crowd following the most popular pony in all of Zephyr Heights. It's disguise time! She thought excitedly.
Opening her makeover closet she quickly trotted past the rows of formal and fancy dresses and went to the back where her normal pony clothes were kept. Brimming with pride she fondly remembered when she managed to get a good deal on them at J.C Ponies. Just like one of the unwashed masses!
Throwing that on to hide her luxurious wings and a brown wig to make her getup complete she took the long walk (long with her short legs that is) back to her mirror to check and see if anything was missed. Doing a few twirls she noticed that her cutie mark was still visible but with a quick application of pink foundation it was good enough and so she clopped out of her bedroom, her golden horseshoes clanking on the floor but Pipp was so used to that she didn't even notice the noise.
Sneaking her way out of the castle was easy peasy, with all of her public events and concerts in it she knew how to make a quick and discrete escape. She knows all the ways. It also helped that after her superstar debut she made her mom give all the guards phones and allow them to use them while on shift. Things were peaceful so it was harmless and it gave her free promotion too from all the guards posting about #castlelife.
Clanking her way through the bustling streets of Zephyr Heights was smoother than starting a livestream. You've outdone yourself Pipp, you're on a roll! she thought to herself as she weaved through the throngs of pegasi without attracting a single second glance. Living high on her success and a spring in her step she made her way to Reclaw and started to look around for anything that might let her 'follow her height'.
After hours of searching she finally happened upon a blank wall in-between two apartments that had a very short archway leading into an alleyway, this archway was crazy short. Only foals or extraordinarily small ponies could fit through it.
"Eureka!" Pipp shouted, this must be it! Finally her days of being smol were over! Swiftly she scooted through the archway and trotted into the alleyway, her horseshoes clanking on the dark cobblestone. The alley was very musty and dark looking, mostly being blocked off from the light by the wall and the short archway. Squinting her eyes Pipp tried to make out any signs that might lead to the store with the coveted creme. She kept going deeper into the alley but nothing that looked like a store or even anything other than padlocked doors showed up.
"What have you gotten yourself into." Pipp mumbled to herself as she got more nervous by the wingbeat. This alley was dark and dank and full of sketch, Pipp did not like it in the slightest and the down on her wings was starting to stand up. That was a bad sign and sign that it was time for her to go. Turning around she went to trot out towards the small glimmering light from the archway and back into civilization when she stopped herself. Feeling a slight breeze on her face she ignored it with a heart full of determination. She didnt come this far just to get wet feet and go back!
"Oooh" She nervously said while dancing in place, trying to find her courage. She felt a few more breezes and heard some whooshing sounds this time but she ignored those too, she was a pony on a mission and she wouldn't let a little sketch stop her!
"I will not be short any more! I don't care what it ta-" She started to say when another whooshing sound, this time accompanied with a bag over her head cut her off.
"Arghmmfhhfmmmmfmm" She spluttered into the smelly bag. Many skinny hooves scooped her up and plopped her on what felt like a back. She struggled in vain but several more pairs of hooves held her in place while she was carried for a short while. Bouncing on their back Pipp realized one thing... that ad must have been a scam! All she could hear was heavy breathing as they bounced their way... somewhere.
"She sure smells nice." She heard somepony say. She felt breathing on her flank from the creeper and struggled a bit more, this time royally freaked out. The breathing stopped as they bounced their way down what felt like a flight of stairs and through a loud creaky door.
Coming to a stop she was pushed onto a cold stone floor. In full panic mode she thought she could faintly hear chanting through the bag. Desperately wondering what it was she felt a hoof on her neck that made her hairs stand on end and the bag was unceremoniously yanked off of her head.
"Gah!" She gasped semi fresh air before a hoof was put in her mouth to silence her.
After her eyes adjusted to the dim light it looked like she was in some sort of dungeon, the kind you'd see in a movie. Ponies in dark cloaks and hoods milled around the room, in the center of which stood a large ominous pink cauldron full of a bubbling white concoction illuminated by a spotlight. The quiet chanting was coming from a circle of ponies around the pot.
Wait pink? She thought about the cauldron before one of the ponies that had carried her into the room declared in an embarrassingly nasally voice. "I have brought the sacrifice!"
"Huh?" Pipp said without thinking, her eyes wide with confusion. "What do you mean by sacrifice?"
"Silence sacrifice!" Nasally said, "Even though you evaded capture brilliantly a few times, we eventually caught you for our sacred ritual!" He beamed brightly. Looking over at the tall pony she saw glasses and acne flashing in the spotlights glow from the middle of the room. He continued with a voice full of the kind of nasal elitism that only his kind could pull off... dweebs!
"She is the perfect shortness to complete the ancient potion of shrinking, finally we will be able to embrace our goddess from her height, the height of smol!" He yelled. The others joined in this time with a "Pipp Pipp Hooray!" as they all yelled in chorus.
Ok this was getting weirder by the second Pipp thought to herself, are they all superfans? As if to confirm it the lights brightened enough to see the walls around the dungeon and the cauldron better.
There were so many posters of Pipp they literally wallpapered the wall, seeing thousands of copies of her face made Pipp take the smallest of steps back. From every concert and every royal event her merch was everywhere. Illegal body pillows were glued together to make furniture, the cauldron was a limited edition pink Nightmare Night family sized trick or treat candy holding cauldron. This was all becoming too much for the popstar and she began to feel a little dizzy. Sitting down on her haunches she could only gape at all this with a blank look in her eyes.
The ponies surrounding the cheaply made cauldron made room on one side and began chanting again but louder this time. "Pipp Pipp Hooray, Pipp Pipp Hooray, Pipp Pipp Hooray."
Nasally shoved Pipp up on her hooves and towards the cheap decoration. "Quickly before it spoils, we must boil the sacrifice in the potion!" He said to the surrounding superfan cultists. With a nod they all surrounded Pipp, overpowering her with their horrific body odor. When was the last time any of these ponies took a shower?
"Wait no! Please don't do this, I'm not smol I'm not smol I'm not smol!' Pipp wailed, some of the cultists gave her a curious look as if they might have recognized her voice but Pipp was not about to reveal to these bunch of degenerates her real identity, then for sure she wouldn't make it out of here, she would be their slave or something weird!
The cultist on her other side lightly cuffed her on her head, "Silence! The sacrifice cannot be stopped, we shall achieve nirvana!" He croaked with the kind of voice that has only had one conversation per week... max. Croaky and Nasally kept pushing Pipp closer and closer to the concoction bubbling ominously in the middle of the room. As they got closer the cultists around it started chanting louder. Pipp's name and face were assaulting her senses, this was truly a virgins shrine and there was no denying that.
Struggling in vain she tried to break free but the normal height ponies just picked her up as her little legs flailed wildly in the air. Getting right up to the edge of the cauldron the potion's smell hit her right in the face, waves of hot milk smell went right up her nose.
"Is this milk?" Pipp asked incredulously, the weirdness of the potion being what she drank every day temporarily snapped her out of her fear.
"Fufufufu, you finally figured it out eh? You got some brains on ya" A new cultist mumbled. Pipp turned her head to look at this one, they looked like one of the chanters. Mumbly continued to talk while pushing his glasses back up his face like the true intellectual he was. "We figure that if we boil an insanely short pony like yourself in milk it would transfer your short genes into the milk. No one will miss a random shorty like you so no one will suspect us. Also since milk is the only known liquid to affect height we would be able to drink this later and become smol like our goddess Pipp! Kekeke!" Mumbly cackled. Geez this guy needs to quit watching Ponime Pipp thought as she rolled her eyes.
Lifting her up Nasally and Croaky brought her over the cauldron, her delicate hooves dangling just above the boiling liquid. Being this close to death reminded her of the danger she was in. "Ahhhhhhhhh" Pipp squeaked, her little hooves wildly swinging. One of her hooves got low enough and dipped into the milk and with a giant splash it flung the hot white stuff all over the dungeon, getting a lot of it on the pillows and posters. All over the room her face and body in the form of merch was coated with it.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO" Every cultist yelled, "Not our merch!" They wailed. A horrible shrieking noise like a thousand banshees filled the room, even Nasally and Croaky forgot about Pipp as they dropped her to flail about in desperation at their ruined possessions. With a flip Pipp managed to hit the edge of the cauldron and land on the floor instead of in the boiling milk. Without a moment of hesitation she bolted for the door, glancing behind her as she neared the exit she saw a particularly messy looking cultist, bedraggled hair and a gunky slimy appearance appeared to be laughing to himself creepily and doing something with his hoof under his cloak as he saw the splattered posters.
Gagging at the sight Pipp finally made it to the door and flung it wide open and dashed all the way up the short stairs and down the alley, only stopping to catch her breath when she got into the main street. Shuddering at the near death experience she could only stare at the normalcy of the street while mentally vowing again to never get within 20 feet of a degenerate ever again. That was way too much for her.
Numbly walking back to the castle she stopped by at a local police station and after verifying her identity she sicced the police on that dungeon of nightmares. At least all those crazy ponies will lose their stuff and maybe will even get a little jail time for it. One of the local jails though not one of the cushy castle ones. She didn't want a single one of them anywhere near the castle.
Getting back she took her disguise off near the front gate and silently carried it up to her bedroom. Still in a haze she mumbled half felt replies to the guards that waved at her as she walked. She had had enough for one day and even though her cute tummy was rumbling she didn't want to do anything but curl up in her huge bed and cry.
All that walking made her thirsty though so after putting her normy clothes away she habitually opened her mini fridge and reached for a glass of milk but her hoof froze right as it was about to grab her favorite drink. Visibly shaking she brought her hoof back to her floofy chest and stared at her fridge that was full of the stuff she was almost boiled alive in just a couple of hours ago. Just the thought of drinking it made her want to puke.
Tears welling up in her eyes she started to cry, "It's not fair! I don't want to get anywhere near milk ever again, how will I stop being smol now?" she wailed at her fridge. Like any good emotionally distraught adult wailing at your open fridge makes everything feel better.
"M-Maybe I should just embrace my shortness and just be happy with smol." She hiccuped cutely. "I don't want to continue to live like this, always hating myself and chasing down stupid fake remedies and getting angry over everything."
"That's a good way to look at things sis." Zipp said behind her. Pipp spun around with a gasp of surprise, she didn't hear the older sister walk into the room over her crying. Quickly turning around and closing the fridge Pipp turned back to her.
"Zipp, what are you doing here?" She said. Zipp gave a warm small smile and replied, "I noticed you were acting super janky when you came back home so I followed you. Another rough day?" The tears came back for Pipp and she just nodded in between sniffles and jumped toward her sister, giving her chest a big hug because that's as high as she could reach.
"Shh its ok its ok. It'll all get better soon" Zipp said while stroking Pipps mane. With an extra big sniffle Pipp let go and sat back down. Rubbing her face she nodded again at Zipp and attempted a cute little smile.
"Yeah I'll be ok, thanks for saying it's ok. I-I just need a good sleep and I'll be ok and back to my usual annoying self." Pipp squeaked. With a gentle nod Zipp left her room and closed the door behind her. Flopping on her bed Pipp dimmed the lights and checked her phone for the first time since being caught by those freaks. It had been so traumatizing this was the first time in years she had gone that long without checking her phone.
Closing dozens of dm's, friend requests and other junk that she didn't have time to look at right now she saw a cute video of her moms dog, Cloudpuff chasing its own tail. That cheered her up so she got comfy to go to bed and get some sleep. She needed to be ready to rehearse tomorrow for the royal event next month debuting her new song, Glowin' Up.
Right before she was going to put her phone down to get some sleep she saw a notification for a mail that looked really weird, the title said "Are your legs not as long as you'd like? Limb-ExtenZe is a new pill to make your legs longer!" Rolling her eyes she went to delete the obvious scam mail and get some sleep but her hoof stopped right before the delete button... hovering over it for a bit there was just one thought in her mind... What if this one was legit?