“So what exactly is a ‘Jotun’?” Luna asked, sipping her tea. It had been several days since Eclipse’s rampage through Canterlot castle and without a place to stay, the princesses had taken up residence in Chryaslis’ hive, much to her displeasure.
“An ancient race of giants, the oldest race in the universe. They hailed from the realm known as Jotunheim, though I can’t imagine any of them survived Ragnarok,” Jason replied, sipping his own tea.
“And you say you're one of them?” she asked, sizing him up. “You don’t look like a giant to me. Certainly taller than most of my little ponies, but not a giant by any means.”
“They weren’t all giants,” Jason said shaking his head. “You know... you're taking this whole, ‘there was another world before yours’ thing awfully well.”
“Our oldest legends state that while Faust created the races we know, she did not create the world. She found it in a wild state, full of savage beauty but devoid of any true life.”
“She must have found it right after Ragnarok,” Jason said, nodding his head. He sighed, staring into his half empty cup.
“Why does it bother you so much Jason? You are still the man we have all come to respect,” she spoke softly.
“Ok... let me put it like this,” Jason said, pausing for a moment and trying to collect his thoughts. “Imagine if you spent the first twenty years of your life thinking you were a unicorn and then suddenly you found out you were an alicorn. That’s how I feel right now.”
“Hm. I suppose that is what Twilight must have gone through when she ascended,” Luna said finishing her tea.
“Wait, ascended?” Jason asked, raising his eyebrow.
“Of course, Twilight was born a unicorn and earned her wings and status only about a year before you arrived.”
“Huh,” Jason said, leaning back in his seat. “I did not know that.”
“‘Twas the same with Cadance, according to my sister at least, though she was born a pegasus,” Luna said, sighing a little. “I only wish I had been there to witness it.’
There was a knock at the door, cutting into their conversation.
“Hello!” Pinkie Pie shouted as she rushed in and tackle-hugged Jason, nearly giving him a heart attack.
“Gah!” he shouted, pushing the pink pony off of him. “Will you stop that!!!”
“But if I stop I wouldn’t be myself anymore... and if I wasn’t myself... I’d be Surprise!” Pinkie gasped, putting her hooves to her head in the classic Home Alone pose.
“What?” Jason asked, shaking his head. He glanced at Luna, who shrugged, looking as confused as he did.
“Well,” she said, getting his attention again. “Twilight told me how you were all in the dumps about not being a hu-mane, so I picked you some flowers so you can feel better!” She dug around in her mane for a moment, then pulled out a rather nice bouquet of flowers.
“Aw,” Jason said with a genuine smile. “Thanks Pinks.” He brought the flowers up to his face. “What’s with this blue one?” he asked as he picked it out of the bunch and lifted it to his face.
“Jason don’t!” Luna shouted, her eyes wide with recognition. Her gaze quickly fell to the floor as she realized she was too late.
“Hm?” Jason asked, the flower already at his nose, breathing in the pollen. “What?”
“Jason, that’s poison joke.”
“Poison what?”
“It’s a type of magical flower that causes harmless but frequently annoying transformations in whoever touches it,” Luna stated, “Discord may or may not have created them, he won’t actually answer the question.”
“Great...” Jason said, tossing the flower away in disgust. He leveled an angry gaze at the party pony, who was pronking in place with a manic grin on her face. “Pinkie, why would you do that!?”
“Oh you know, just causing some chaos,” she said with a smile in an oddly-pitched voice. As Jason and Luna watched, she stopped bouncing and her eyes turned yellow.
“Discord,” Luna said, giving him a glare.
“What? I’m sick of being a child,” Discord said as he appeared on Pinkie’s back. He looked rather adorable as a toddler, if not for the glare he was giving them.
“How is this going to help you at all?” Jason asked, crossing his arms.
“More chaos equals more growth,” he said, sticking his nose up. “Like I said, I’m sick of being stuck like this.”
“I’m sorry Jay,” Pinkie said with a pout, her ears drooping. “Dissy said he wanted to help me pick the flowers, he didn’t tell me about the Joke, honest.” She sniffled, almost on the verge of tears.
“Hey it’s ok, I’m not mad at you.” Jason kneeled down and gave her a hug.
“Yay~” she shouted, wrapping her arms around his neck as her smile returned. She pulled away still smiling. “I should get Dissy back to Fluttershy, she’ll get all worried if he’s not back before dark. Seeya Jay, bye Luna!” she gave a wave, trotting out of the room. Discord glared back at them, sticking his tongue out.
“Well this is just great,” Jason said with a sigh. “So, when is, this ‘joke’ going to happen?”
“You didn’t have a very large dose, so I would say probably while you're asleep.” Luna said, shaking her head.
“Well I may head to bed now then,” Jason said, getting to his feet. “It’s getting late and I don’t want Chrissy to bitch at me for blowing her off.” Jason walked over to the door. “Good night Luna.”
“Good night Jason,” she said, watching him go. Whatever he’d wake up to, it was going to be one Tartarus of a surprise. Not surprisingly, she didn’t pity him.
Chrysalis yawned as she came to, blinking away some sleep. She moved to pull Jason close to her, a pout forming on her muzzle as she did so. Something felt off... he felt... smaller. “Jason?” she asked. Pulling the covers back, she gasped at what she saw. “Jason wake up,” she said, nudging him.
“Go way...” he muttered, curling up.
“Jason, wake up,” she repeated with more emphasis, poking him in the side with her hoof.
“What?” he asked, looking up at her groggily. She frowned, debating if she should just let him sleep. “Hey... are you bigger?” he asked, blinking up at her.
“Not exactly...” she said, not sure what to tell him.
“My voice sounds weird...” he sat up, looking up at her.
“Ok... I’m going to show you a mirror ok? Don’t panic,” Chrysalis said, levitating a small hoof mirror over. “Look.” She held it out to him.
He looked into it, staring at it for a few moments before his eyes went wide. “HOLY FUCK! I’m a kid?!” he shouted, staring at his reflection. Staring back at him was a face he had last seen eleven years ago. His beard was gone, the scar from Trenderhoof’s sword was gone, along with several other scars.
“Now just calm down, ok?” Chrysalis cooed, stroking his hair gently.
“Will you stop that?!” he demanded, slapping her hoof away, “I am not a child!”
“Well you're acting like one,” she retorted, giving him a stern look.
“Sorry...” He took a deep breath to calm himself. “Ok... I’m good... I think...” Jason said, giving her the best smile he possibly could, given his situation. “Look... just take me to Twilight, please?” he asked, getting out of bed and glaring a little at his loss of height.
“Of course,” she said, getting out of bed. She gripped him up in her magic and placed him on her back, adjusting her wings a little to make sure he didn’t pin them down.
“This is weird...” he whined, holding onto her neck as she started to walk.
“Yes, I imagine it would be weird to suddenly find oneself reduced to a foal,” she agreed. Much to his comfort, the drones didn’t comment on his shrunken stature, most likely under orders from Chrysalis.
They walked in silence, enjoying the early morning air of the forest. Ever since they had moved into the castle, the regular patrol of changeling guards had kept the path between there and Ponyville clear of the usual hazards of the Everfree.
“You know,” Chrysalis said, getting his attention. “This is rather nice, you and me, just having a quiet walk through the forest. It’s even better now that you’re small enough to ride on my back,” she teased, causing him to blush.
“Shuddup,” he muttered, looking away, causing to her to giggle a little.
“You’re so easy to fluster,” she teased as they walked into Ponyville. She happily waved at some passing ponies. most returning the wave with a smile.
“Hurry up will ya?” he asked, noticing that some ponies were looking at him, whispering amongst themselves.
“Oh just relax, I won’t let anything happen to you little one,” she teased with a snicker, approaching the library. She knocked, starting to hum to herself.
“Oh, hi Chrysalis,” Spike said as he opened the door, yawning a little, “Twilight’s in the kitchen,” he said, letting them inside. “Wait... is that Jason?” he asked, looking at the shrunken Jotun with a raised eyebrow as he closed the door.
Jason’s face reddened a bit and he buried it in Chrysalis’ mane. “Um...yes,” he muttered.
“Good morning Chrysalis,” Twilight said as the empress walked into the kitchen, “What brings you here so early?”
“This,” Chrysalis said, placing Jason on the floor next to her.
“Um...” he started shyly, “Hi Twi...”
She stared at him for a few moments before her expression softened. She moved over to him, draping a wing across his back. “Let me guess, poison joke?”
“Yeah, courtesy of Discord,” Jason grumbled, looking at the floor.
“I know how that feels, whenever I get hit with it, my horn gets all floppy and I lose my magic,” Twilight said with a shudder.
“Please tell me you can change me back.” Jason pleaded, looking up at her.
“There is an antidote but Zecora is the only one who knows how to make it and she’s visiting family in her homeland.”
“So,” Jason started, sighing a little, “I’m stuck like this until she gets back, thats just fucking wonderful!”
“Now now,” Chrysalis chided, “Watch your language young colt or mama will have to wash your mouth out with soap.”
Jason just stared at her with a look of pure anger. “Keep that up and I’ll knock you into next week,” he warned.
“Are you threatening me?” she asked getting into his face, “I don’t think that would be wise.”
“Just because I’m a kid doesn’t mean I can’t use this,” he said, holding up his Omnitrix arm. An evil smirk spread across Chrysalis’ muzzle as she looked at the watch. With a quick bob of her head, she spit some goo at it, removing his ability to pop up the dial.
“Ha! I still got voice commands!” he said with a smirk.
Her smirk fell and she let out a snort, “You better watch yourself little colt,” she warned, poking his chest.
“Or what?” he asked, glaring up at her.
“Or this!” she shouted. With a sudden tackle, she pinned him down and started to blow raspberries on his stomach.
“You bitch!” he shouted between laughs, trying to get out from under her, though the empress gave no openings.
“Do you yield?” she asked, a predatory smirk on her muzzle.
“Gah! Why do you have to be so much bigger!” he shouted, trying to push her muzzle away.
“All you have to do is give up and I’ll release you,” she said in a sing-song voice as she continued to torment him.
Jason ran his mind through the forms at his disposal, trying to think of a good one. “Omnitrix! Ball Weevil!” he shouted. Shifting into a small yellow insectoid creature, he skittered away, moving as fast as his little legs would take him.
“Oh no you don’t!” Chrysalis said, whipping around, narrowing her eyes at him.
“Crap!” he said, looking back at her. He looked around, spotting an open window. “Omnitrix, Azrael!” He shifted into his thestral form, zipping out the window just as Chrysalis pounced, smacking her head on the floor.
“Ow...” she moaned, sitting up. She rubbed her head, gazing up at the window.
“Serves you right you know, for teasing him so much,” Twilight said as she stepped over to a bookshelf, pulling a book down.
“What are you doing?” Chrysalis asked, turning to her.
“Hoping to find the poison joke antidote, why don’t you come help?” she asked, not looking up from her book.
Chrysalis sighed as she got to her hooves, moving over to Twilight. She grabbed a book from the same area and opened it up, hoping she hadn’t teased Jason too much... nah.
“Oh god damn that is bright!” a young colt’s voice drifted into the library, which only made the mares work that much quicker.
“This was a stupid idea,” Jason said as he stumbled through the town, getting weird looks as he tried to shield his eyes with his wings. “Stupid Chrysalis...” he stopped, shaking his head, “I’m even thinking like a kid...” Continuing to stumble around nearly blindly, he moaned right before he tripped on a rock, tumbling head over hooves, only stopping when he collided with another pony.
“Oh my are you alright?” Fluttershy’s voice asked, full of concern as always.
“Fluttershy!” he shouted up at her, making the mare jump. “It’s me Jason!”
“Jason?” she asked, looking at him with a raised eyebrow, “Why are you a colt?”
“Poison joke...” he said, snorting a little, still trying to shield his eyes.
“Oh my,” she gasped. Lifting him up, she said, “I’ll take you back to my cottage and get you all fixed up don’t you worry.” She placed him on her back and headed toward her place.
“Why do I get the feeling this won’t end well...?” he asked as he buried his head in her mane to escape the sun. He sighed to himself as they walked, starting to drift off to sleep, “Damn kid body...” he muttered before dozing off.
---
Jason yawned as he came to, the sounds of various animals aiding in his awakening.
“Good afternoon sleepyhead,” Fluttershy said, seeing that he was awake, “Did you enjoy your nap?”
“I suppose,” he said with a yawn, running a hand through his hair.
“I’m glad,” she said, sitting on the couch next to him, draping a leathery wing across his back. “Are you hungry? I have some fish I could cook up.”
“No thanks Fluttershy, I’m fine,” he said, sighing as his stomach growled.
“Oh no, growing colts need their food. I’ll go cook some up for you, so you stay right here.” She fluttered off the couch and into the kitchen.
Knowing it was futile to argue with Fluttershy when she got like this, Jason set upon the task of getting the now hardened goo off the Omnitrix. “I really hate this stuff sometimes...” he muttered as he get a few chips off, though the dial was still unusable.
“Having trouble?” Discord asked, popping up from between the couch cushions.
“Screw off Discord,” Jason said with a glare, “This is your fault,”
“I suggest you hold off on the cursing.” Discord shook his head, “She’d probably wash your mouth out with soap,” he said making a gagging sound.
“I can swear if I want,” Jason said, crossing his arms, “I’m an adult,”
“Mentally, perhaps, but seeing you as a child has put it in her mind that you are one,” Discord said, reclining on the couch, “Seeing me as a child set off her motherly instincts, so I’m trying to get back to normal as soon possible so I can... uh... put a bun in the oven as it were...”
“I did not need that image Discord,” Jason said, shuddering a little.
“Well too bad,” he said, sticking his tongue out. “You’re stuck here until someone comes to get you, I don’t think Fluttershy would let you leave by yourself,”
“That’s just stupid,” Jason said, rolling his eyes. Ignoring the toddler, he looked back to the Omnitrix, chipping off more of the goo.
“Ok Jay, it’s all ready,” Fluttershy said as she came back from the kitchen, the tray balanced across her wings. She set it on the table, giving him a smile, “Careful, it’s still rather hot.”
“Um... thanks Fluttershy,” Jason said as he looked at the food then up at her.
“You’re welcome,” she replied, giving him a gentle nuzzle before moving off to tend to some animals. Jason just looked at the food before shrugging, starting to eat.
“Can I have some?” Discord asked, suddenly appearing in his lap.
“Ugh, fine,” he said, giving a small portion of his meal to the babe of chaos. Discord squealed with delight, and proceeded to stuff his little face.
“Heh, you're kinda cute,” Jason commented as he watched Discord eat.
“I am not cute, I am the lord of Chaos,” Discord said indignantly, huffing a little.
“More like toddler of chaos,” Jason teased... just before Nickelodeon slime was dumped all over him. Discord smirked, holding a bucket in his hands. “Oh you are so dead,” Jason said with a glare.
---
Fluttershy hummed as she moved downstairs. The children had been quiet for a while and she just had to check and make sure they were ok. “How is everypony-what in Faust’s name!?” she asked with a gasp as she reached her landing. Her living room was a mess, with various objects thrown about. Food was everywhere, all over the floor and all over the walls. At the center of the mess were Discord and Hodgepodge, who were in the middle of a snowball fight.
“Ahem!” she nearly shouted, getting both to stop and look at her. One glance at her eyes and both draconequui slunk off to opposite corners of the room, staying quiet. “Now you two stay in those corners until I’m done cleaning up,” she said, grabbing a broom. Angel watched, snickering at the two. Discord just grinned as he grew, now about the same age that Jason was currently.
“Fluttershy,” Twilight asked peeking into the cottage, “Sorry to bother you, but is Jason here?”
“Oh hello Twilight,” Fluttershy said, looking up from her cleaning. She gestured towards the corner where Jason was standing. “He’s here, he’s in time out for the moment.”
“Time out?” she asked, raising her eyebrow, “Why is he in ‘time out’ exactly?”
“He and Discord were fighting and made such a mess.” She gestured to the room around them.
“Um... ok... how about I take him off your hooves? I may have found a cure for him,” Twilight said, trotting over to him as the Omnitrix timed out.
“Well, I suppose...” she said with a pout, “Just make sure you put him right into time out.”
“Sure Fluttershy, I’ll do just that,” Twilight said with a nod, leading Jason out the door. Once they were out of range, Jason let out a sigh of relief.
“Thanks Twi, that was starting to get a little weird,” Jason said, giving a smile.
“It was no big deal Jason,” she said as they came up to the library. “Only thing is... the cure isn’t complete...”
“Seriously?” Jason asked with a sigh, groaning softly. “You told me you had one!”
“No,” she said, walking inside. “I said I may have found one,” she corrected, leading him to Chrysalis, who was quietly reading a book.
“Oh my little colt!” Chrysalis shouted dramatically, scooping Jason up, “Mama thought she lost you forever!”
“Put. Me. Down,” Jason said with a glare, not happy with her antics.
“Fine... you’re such a killjoy...” she snorted, placing him on the ground.
“Anyway,” Twilight cut in, “This is the recipe, though we’re missing an ingredient. I figured Grey Matter could come up with another ingredient we could use.”
“Nah, Grey Matter is more for tech stuff, but,” Jason said with a smirk, “I got something. Omnitrix, Brainstorm!” he commanded, shifting into a orange shelled, crab-like creature. “Now let’s look at zat recipe,” he said as the two parts of his exoskeleton opened up, revealing his brain.
“Jason!” Twilight recoiled in horror, unable to look away from the exposed organ, “Is that your brain!?”
“Yes. Now please, I need to focus,” he said as green electricity emitted from his brain. It moved forward, grasping the book and hovering it in front of his face. He looked it over before grabbing a few more books in his electrical grasp. He pored over them for a few minutes before letting out a “Eureka!” He replaced the books, a smirk on his face.
“Well?” Chrysalis asked, having watched the display with interest.
“It appears zat Death Root is an adequate substitute for Deep Mushroom,” he said, tapping his exoskeleton, “Brewed to a boil at precisely 212 degrees fahrenheit before adding it to the rest of the ingredients will do it,”
“You figured all that out in five minutes?” Twilight asked, rather dumbfounded.
“Of course, I do have ze superior intellect after all,” he said smugly, then tapped the Omnitrix, reverting to normal. He chuckled sheepishly at Twilight’s glare, “Sorry, Brainstorm’s ego is about as big as his IQ.”
“You’ll be happy to know, I dispatched some drones to get the Death Root,” Chrysalis spoke up, putting Jason on her back. “I’ll take him to the spa to wait,” she told Twilight before trotting out of the library.
“Thank goodness... I’ve had enough of this crap,” Jason said with a sigh of relief.
“All you have to do is boil the Death Root at 212 degrees, then add it to the rest of the ingredients,” Jason said as he got into the water, leaving his boxers on.
“Of course,” Aloe said, starting to pour some of the ingredients in.
Jason relaxed, letting out a sigh.
“I must say Jason, you made for a rather darling colt,” Rarity said from the pool next to him.
“Thanks Rarity, but I’d prefer to be an adult again,” he said, watching as Aloe carefully added the boiled Death Root. He took a deep breath and dunked his head under the water. A few seconds later, he popped up out of the water, an adult once again. “Thats the stuff,” he said, running a hand over his beard.
“‘Scuse me boss,” the drone that had brought the Death Root spoke up, “But I’ve just gotten a message from the hive, the princesses would like to speak to you.”
“Of course they do,” Jason said, getting out of the water, drying himself off. He pulled on some new clothes, getting ready to leave.
“Please allow me to help,” Rarity said, getting out of her bath. “I’ve been practicing my magic and this would be the perfect opportunity to test my teleportation!”
“Alright Rarity,” he said knowing better than to argue with her, “Give it a go.”
She smiled as she lit her horn and cast the spell. As her magic surrounded the both of them, she got a worried look on her face. “Um... Jason, is it supposed to do that?” she asked, pointing to the Omnitrix.
He looked down, seeing that it was starting to overload, “Aw fuck,” he managed to get out before it went critical, releasing an explosion of green energy. The explosion merged with Rarity’s magic, and they both vanished.