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// To share an apple 
// Story: Short stories about ponies and whatnot 
// by shutaro 
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	The potion dripped into the little plastic cup. Three ounces of the concoction that would change his life. Thomas looked around the chamber a last time. The metal top of the table was uncomfortably cold against his naked backside, the hospital gown only covered the front.

“You can still go back, if you want,” the pure white stallion reminded him. “It is a free choice, nobody will judge you if you decide to quit, even now.”

The smile on the ponies muzzle seemed genuine to Thomas. His human assistant, however, was stealing a look at the clock, he noticed. Then a stomach rumbled. “Sorry doc Whitecoat, sorry Thomas. I missed breakfast today. I can’t wait till lunch.”

Two weeks ago Thomas would have simply ignored him or he might even have gotten a bit angry that his "conversion experience" was dimmed by this unprofessional assistant nurse. But now, with his life as a human coming to an end, he felt oddly serene. He smiled at the nurse. “I’ll try to make it quick Jules. I’ll share my first apple with you” he joked. He wiggled his toes, flexed his fingers one last time. “I still think I’m gonna miss those.”

“Yeah. You wouldn’t believe how many times I have heard that one. And I can assure you, you’ll get over it eventually. We all did,” the pony smiled again. He sat down and showed his forehooves. “These are not as flexible as a hand, but I can still juggle and that counts for something. And the wife loves the -” The doctor was interrupted by another loud rumbling stomach.

The nurse blushed. “Sorry.”

Thomas cleared his throat, “Yeah, let’s get on with it.” He grabbed the purple fluid and held the little cub to his eyes. “You know, the pictures don’t do it credit,” he said as he watched the swirls in it. He knew that those were caused by nano-machines and magic, but it didn’t make it any less beautiful. Then he noticed little patches of black on his fingers and on the tip of his nose.

 “Oh oh,” he heard the doctor say, “Point of no return, my friend. Now you’ll have to take the plunge before the magic burns your face of. Or worse.”

Whatever calmness Thomas had held before now dropped out the bottom. He went cross-eyed as he tried to watch the little black spot on his nose grow wider and wider. He had seen the images of magical burns on the news months before, black, charred flesh and bones were all that was left. He felt panic rising in his stomach, like a hot, red ball that was swirling faster and faster. His pulse raced. He would die here today, what had been a joke before now became a certainty.

Then two hooves clapped in front of his face. The smiling face of Dr. Whitecoat filled his visual field. “Calm down, please. You’re still in control, Thomas. We both know that you came here with the will to do it. You told me so the first day. You even tried to bribe me to get your shot earlier. Don’t chicken out on me now. Take a deep breath.”

Thomas did as he was told, a deep breath, a look around the room, a smile from Jules, a bit startled, but still a smile, the confident look of Whitecoat, one last glance into the mirror, then he swallowed the ooze.

“Ugh, tastes …” was the last thing he said, then the human Thomas dropped down on the table. His skin became a translucent white, the hair from dropped from his body and became small heaps of brown and black on the floor.

Whitecoat had seen the transformation hundreds of times now and he still marveled at it. The pinnacle of human engineering and the most advanced spell ever created working together, it was a wonder to behold.

When the process finally came to an end about thirty minutes later the human was gone. A bright yellow earthpony opened its blue eyes. “ … awful. Whoever decided on the taste of that stuff has never tasted it himself, I bet.”

Jules looked at a board. “Well that was a dud. No one bet on “complaining about the taste” for you. How are you feeling, Thomas?”

The yellow stallion already struggled to his hooves. “Quite -” he started to talk. “Wow, that voice so sounds strange.” He flexed his left foreleg, his right foreleg, then his tail. ”Wow!” He inhaled through his nose. “WOW, Jules. have you been working out in here? This place reeks!”

Whitecoat started to laugh. “I declare this conversion a success. Lets make a few final tests and then -”

Again a stomach rumbled, but this time it was Thomas’. “Uhm, Jules, I don’t know if I can still share my apple with you. I’m famished!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll get an apple too, then we can share and still have an apple each.”

And they did.