//------------------------------//
// The Sick Side of Chaos 
// Story: The Mystery of a New World 
// by Fanthrose 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 49

“I WILL FUCKING END YOUR FUCKING LIFE YOU FUCKING FUCK!!!!!!!” shouted AJ at the top of hi...her lungs.

“W-would you just calm down?!” begged Ditzy as he tried with all his might to pull AJ away from the draconequus.  Once all the chaos in the room started, and the two of them had their genders swapped...again, one of the things he noticed about AJ before she began raging towards Discord was the pregnant belly she was sporting.  He had no idea if that means what he thinks that means, but he wasn’t going to take the chance.  If AJ really was now carrying their baby, he wasn’t going to let anything happen to her.  “Could I get a little help over here?!”

“Ah’m commin’!  Mmmoooooooove...!”  Applejack smacked her hooves over her mouth after the moo came out.  She looked between her snout and Ditzy for a second with wide eyes; her face flushed red.  She noticed Ditzy giving her a questioning look.    “Ah’mma kill Discord mahself once this is all over.”

With Applejack’s help, the two of them were able to pull the raging mare to the opposite side of the room.  The two foals remained where they sat.  They were both too stunned by what just happened to them to realise what was going on.  Luckily there was a couple guards by them that got off easy and agreed to watch over them.

As the two of them tried calming down AJ, Twilight continued to take the scene in.  She didn’t know exactly what was going on here, just that Discord was most certainly at fault here.  “T-Twilight, are you okay?”

“Huh?”  Twilight turned her head to look at Princess Celestia who was now standing next to her. She was staring back with a look of concern on her face.  Getting a better look at her teacher, she could see the embarrassment that was clear on her face.  She wasn’t even trying to hide it.  Not surprising since she had nothing to cover her pink body now.  “Princess, w-what happened?”

“Don’t worry about that right now.”  Celestia brushed a hoof through Twilight’s mane.  When she pulled it back, her brows furrowed slightly at the blood staining her hoof.  “You should just worry about that wound on your head.  Private Sea Swirl.”

“M-m-ma’am.” answered a disoriented guard just behind Twilight.  He looked as if he was about to blow chunks all over the floor.  The blast of Discord’s magic must have messed with his equilibrium.

“If you’re feeling okay, could you please go to the infirmary and let them know we need a wheelchair for Twilight?”

“Permission to vomit first please,” asked Sea Swirl who looked as if he would hurl regardless of her answer.

“Granted.”  Celestia turned her attention back to Twilight as Sea Swirl began upchucking onto the floor.  The place was a mess right now anyway.  A puddle of vomit wasn’t going to do much harm.

Luna gazed around the room at all the chaos Discord had caused before fixing a glare on him.  She stomped over to him and poked him in the chest.  “[Horse noises!]”  With wide eyes, she slammed her hooves over her mouth; looking between her muzzle and Discord.

“Egscuse be?” questioned Discord before blowing his nose into a hankie.

Luna removed her hooves and cleared her throat.  “[More horse noises.]”  She covered her mouth again.  “[Even more horse noises!]”  She had a horrified look on her face before she began flailing her hooves around in a blind panic.  “]Panicked horse noises!]”

“I hodestly cad uderstad you,” Discord said before sniffling.

“RrrrrrrrRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!” roared AJ from across the room; drawing Celestia’s attention away from Twilight.  Even with Applejack’s help, they were still having a bit of trouble holding her back.  She wouldn’t stop fighting until she was able to exact revenge on Discord.

“Am Ah goin ta have ta find somethin’ ta tie you down?!” Applejack asked as she held AJ back with more force.

“You have to calm down!” begged Ditzy.  “You’re going to hurt yourself!”

“The only one going to get hurt is that chimera freak!”  With one lucky swing, AJ managed to catch Applejack hard in the chest, knocking the wind out of her.  With one ‘anchor’ gone, she turned all her attention to the stallion holding her back.  Using all her strength, she shook off Ditzy and tackled him out of the way before bolting over to Discord.

Not even noticing AJ charging him, Discord felt another sneeze coming on.  “Ah, aaah, aaaH CHOO!!!”  This sneeze didn’t send out another bolt of magic.  No, this time, something else went flying.

AJ had to put on the breaks when she saw something flying at her.  It landed on the floor and bounced a couple times before sliding to a halt.  It took a moment for it to register in AJ’s head just what it was.  Her eyes slowly widened.  Discord’s head sniffled before speaking.  “Sorry.  I didn’t tink dis cold was sometink to lose my head over.”  AJ let out a terrified shriek before her eyes rolled back into her head.  Discord’s body walked over just as AJ’s body flopped down onto the floor.  He picked up his head and wiped his nose before replacing it.  As he twisted his head back on, he noticed the glare Applejack was giving him as she and Ditzy came to help the mare.  “Whah?  I said sorry.”

Celestia let out a sigh before turning back to Sea Swirl who was looking much better than before now that he got it out of his system.  “Make that one wheelchair and a gurney.”

“Ma’am.”  With a salute, Sea Swirl headed towards the door.


********************


“Owwww,” moaned Twilight as one of the castles nurses tended to her head.

“I’m sorry dear.  Give me a minute more and I’ll be done.”

Twilight winced as the nurse began wrapping her head with a sterile bandage.  “The princess said I was hit in the head by a brick.  It sure feels like it.”

“The debri I pulled from that wound of yours will attest to that.”  The nurse took one last look at the bandage to make sure it wasn’t too tight before smiling.  “And done.  I’d advise you to stay here and rest for the night.  You may not think it’s too bad, but a concussion is nothing to sneeze at.”

Twilight let out a small sigh before nodding her head.  She immediately regretted the action as her head began to throb.  With help from the nurse, she lie down on the bed.  “Thanks.”

“Mmhm.  If you need anything, just hit this button,” the nurse said as she pointed at a button next to the bed.  “I’ll be back later with some dinner.  For now, try to get some rest.”

Twilight watched as the nurse walked past the curtain; closing it behind her.  She let out a sigh as she looked around her ‘room.’  It was just a small, curtained off section of the infirmary.  She could hear some of the other ponies that occupied other beds in the big room.  Some sleeping, others talking to their nurse.  She couldn’t tell just how many of the beds were filled yet, but after today, she knew they would probably all be filled by the end of the day.

As much as she wanted to get back and try to help out, she knew the nurse was right.  She would need all the rest she could get.  Getting comfortable, she let her lids droop.

“Hey, ya awake sugarcube?”

Twilight opened her eyes to see Applejack’s smiling, cow-like face staring at her from the curtain.  “Hey Applejack.  I was just about to take a nap, actually.”

Applejack bit her lip.  “Sorry, Twi.  Just wanted ta know if you were okay.  That looked like it hurt somethin’ fierce.”

“That’s...putting it mildly,” Twilight said as she rubbed the bandages.  “The nurse said it’s nothing to worry about.  No bleeding in the brain or anything.  Just a concussion.  Nothing worse.”

Applejack’s smile seemed to get more genuine.  “Finally, some good news.”  She noticed the look Twilight was giving her.  “Not that you gettin’ a brick ta th’ head is good, or anythin’.  Just that it’s not worse.”  She had a sheepish smile on her face.

“It’s okay, Applejack,” Twilight said with a giggle.

Applejack let out a sigh.  “Well, Ah should probably be gettin’ back ta th’ throne room.  They’ll need some help ta clean everythin’ up.”

“Wait, before you go, how’s AJ?  I…I remember him be…”  She had to stop as a yawn escaped from her mouth.  “Being taken out on a stretcher.”

Applejack blinked before looking towards the door of the infirmary.  “Well...Ah don’t really know.  They took’im...her...screw it, i’mmooooo…”  Her face grew hot as she once again let out a moo.  She cleared her throat before continuing.  “I’mma just say she, inta a room just down th’ hall ta do a proper examination.  At least, that’s what Ah was told.  Must be ta make sure th’ foal’s okay after everythin’ that happened in there.  Probably a good idea,” she said with a shrug.  “Gotta make sure everythin’s alright after the switch.  What do ya think?”  Applejack waited for an answer she wasn’t getting.  “Twi?”

When Applejack looked back, she saw why she wasn’t getting her answer.  At some point, Twilight had fallen asleep.  “Well, guess that’s mah cue ta leave,” she said with a soft chuckle.  “Sleep tight sugarcube.”  She closed the curtain and headed back for the door.


********************


As Applejack left the infirmary, she noticed Ditzy sitting outside the room AJ was in.  It looked like he was mumbling something with a shocked look on his face.  She walked up to the stallion and waved her hoof in front of his face.  “What’s got ya all flabbergasted all of a sudden?”

Ditzy turned to look at Applejack.  He turned to look at the door before letting out a slight stressed whine.  “I-it’s nothing.  Nothing at all.  Not a single thing wrong.  AJ’s just sleeping.  Everythings fine.  She’s fine.  I’m fine.  The...”  He quickly cut himself off before he could finish and slumped back against the wall.

“The…”  Applejack tried to coax the rest of his thoughts out.  “Come on now, th’ sooner ya get it out, th’ sooner ya can just relax.”

“Twins.  Twins!  Applejack...we’re going to have...twins.”  The more Ditzy said the word, the more panic filled his features.

“Twins?”  Applejack let that sink in for a moment before her mouth curved into a smile.  “Ah knew it!”

With a mix of confusion and a hint of anger, Ditzy stared Applejack down.  “You knew?”

“Well, it was mmooooore of a hunch, rea…”  Before she knew what happened, Applejack was suddenly being held up against the wall by her shoulders.  “What in tarnation?!”

“You knew about the twins, and you never bothered to say anything about it?!”

“Would ya get offa me?!”  Applejack easily pushed the stallion off of her.  Her body may look different, but she was still the strong, stalwart pony everypony knew she was.  “This udder’s enough of a burden without you puttin’ it on display fer everypony ta see.”

“Why didn’t you tell me before?!” Demanded Ditzy as Applejack readjusted her udder so it wouldn't get in the way.

“Because Ah wasn’t completely sure mah self,” she said calmly.  “And Ah didn’t want ta alarm you if Ah was wrong.  Besides, shouldn’t th’ doctor’s have noticed it by now?  There’s a reason ya go fer regular checkups.”

“I...haven’t...been going to the checkups,” Ditzy said as he backed down slightly; a hint of guilt in his voice.

“And why not?”

“Because...I don’t like going to the doctor.  I’ve never felt comfortable getting poked, prodded, and otherwise examined like that.  Really the only reason I went when I was pregnant with Dinky was because Carrot’s parents made me go.”

“And they’re smart fer makin’ you go.”

Ditzy let out a sigh.  “I know.  Believe it or not I was planning on going while AJ was gone.  He made me promise him I would, and made Carrot promise to make me if I didn’t go before he left.”

“Aaaand?”

“I-I-I haven’t made the appointment yet.  But hey, this check up proves that everything’s alright.  No need for me to go to the doctors office anymore, right?”

“Do Ah even need ta say it?”

“...No.”

Applejack smiled as she placed a hoof on his shoulder.  “Good g...boy.  Ah’m goin’ ta go see if Ah can do more ta help.  Try ta relax fer once.”  She pat his shoulder a couple times before continuing her way down the hall. 


********************


“For the hundredth time, I said I’m fine!” complained AJ as Ditzy continued to fret over her.  After being woken up by one of the nurses checking up on her, AJ was allowed to leave the confines of the private room.  Ditzy, who had been waiting outside the room the entire time, was overjoyed to see AJ up and about again, and, much to her chagrin, refused to give her even an inch.

“I know.  That doesn’t mean I can’t worry about you,” Ditzy said as the two of them were lead to the visitor’s quarters  by one of the guards.  “When we get to the room, is there anything I’ll be able to get you?”

AJ grumbled to herself for a few seconds before turning to the stallion.  “There are only four things I want right now.  Something smothered in copious amounts of chocolate, a giant pickle, my Knighty so that I can hug him, and a dark hole I can crawl into and cry.”

“But I thought you hated pickles?”

“Don’t make me show you just how soft and vulnerable those testicals of yours truly are,” growled AJ.

Ditzy stopped in his tracks for a moment and thought. Not being a regular owner of testicals, he didn’t know the true terror of that threat.  The guard leading them, on the other hoof, shuddered at the mere thought.  He knew that balls hurt when struck, just not to what extreme.  “Uhh, okay.”

“And that pickle better not be the thing that’s covered in chocolate.  That would just be disgusting.”

“Ugh, who would put chocolate on a pickle?” Ditzy asked with disgust in his voice.

“Barbarians,” agreed AJ.

“This is your room,” the guard said as he stood to the side of the door.

AJ let out a relieved sigh.  She could finally relax with her precious Knighty and try to take her mind off of things.  “It may be a bit fancy, but I’m sure I’ll find a way to make a dark hole out of it.”

“Right!  You go relax, and I’ll go get Knight Wind.”

“Mmmmm I bet he’ll be like a teddy bear,” AJ moaned as she slunk into the room.


********************


Knight could only stare in awe at what was in front of him.  He had already been through so much today.  Having his coat and mane colors swapped with Dinky was already a shock to the system.  Seeing that his mother figure was now a stallion was another.  But this...he just didn’t know what to think anymore as his daddy wandered around the room, tearing the sheets off the bed so they could be rearranged into a blanket cave, in the body of a mare.  “D-daddy?”

AJ’s ears twitched before she turned her head.  A smile crossed her features as she moved towards the foal.  “Ooooh my little Knighty.”

“Is that what daddy looks like as a girl?!” Dinky asked with a smile on her face.  She recovered from the shock of Discords magic quicker than Knight did.  She’s also seen her mom as a stallion before, so it wasn’t as big of a shock as it probably should have been.

“Yes...Dinky.  That’s what daddy looks like as a girl.”

“She’s really pretty!  Can we play dress up?”

“Not now Dinky.  She’s not really in the mood for play time right now.”  He watched as AJ swooped in and hugged Knight’s stunned body to her chest.

“Ooh, you’re as soft and warm as I knew you would be.”

“Be careful with him,” Ditzy said with concern in his voice.  “I don’t think he’s taking any of this very well at all.”

“It’s okay my little Knight.  We can just keep each other company until all this bull shit passes.”  AJ blinked when she felt Knight try to push away from her.  “Knight?”

“Y-y-you’re not my daddy.  Daddy’s a boy!”

AJ looked appalled at what Knight said.  “W-what?!  I may have a different body, but I’m still the same pony.  I just have enough hormones to drive a bull elephant bat squeak crazy right now.”

“Daddy isn’t fat.”

AJ suddenly felt the intense urge to hurt something, but was thankfully able to bury those feelings deep down.  “O-okay, what can I do to prove I am who I say I am?”

“Tell me something only daddy would know!”

“Your favorite cartoons are Adventure time and Spongebob.”

“That’s not good enough!  Everypony should like those cartoons!”

“You feed all the spinach you’re supposed to eat to Winona.”

“N-n-no I don’t!” Knight answered, his face that of a deer caught in the headlights.

“A few weeks ago you had a nightmare where the world was taken over by evil bunnies that forced you to eat nothing but spinach for the rest of your life, and that’s why you’re now afraid of Mr.Bun Bun.”

Knight gasped as he stared at AJ with a horrified look.  “You weren’t supposed to tell anypony!” he shouted as he tried to shut AJ up.

“So you finally admit I’m your daddy?” AJ asked with a smile.

“He’s afraid of Mr.Bun Bun?” questioned Ditzy with a smirk on his face.

“You don’t like spinach?” asked Dinky.  She loved the stuff, so she couldn’t understand how Knight could hate it.

AJ easily brushed off AJ’s Knight’s attempts to quiet her.  “Now that we all understand everything, kinda, why don’t you help me build a dark hole the two of us can crawl into and cry together.  Sounds fun, doesn’t it?”

“Will it be like a pillow fort?”

“Sorta, yea.”

Knight was suddenly much more excited.  “Yaaay!  Pillow fort!”  He leapt from AJ’s hold and ran towards the bed.

Dinky was about to join in on the fun, but was stopped when Ditzy blocked her path with a leg.  She looked up at Ditzy with a disappointed look.  “Awww, why can’t I join?”

“Because she made it very clear earlier on what she wanted, and it didn’t involve either of us.  Come on, let’s go get something to eat, and if there’s nothing we fun we can do around here, maybe they’ll let us go visit grandma and grandpa’s house.”

“Really?”

“Really.”  He turned to AJ who, along with Knight, had just finished tearing the bed apart.  “We’ll be leaving now.  I’ll bring your chocolate covered...whatever they decide to make, and you’re pickle in a little bit.”

“Could you bring Knight some oranges?” AJ asked without looking.  “He’ll probably want something to eat when we’re done.”

“Sure.”

After setting a pillow to the side, AJ turned to give Ditzy a kiss goodbye.  “Thanks, I lo…” Before she made it even half way, a pillow collided with the side of her head.

“Oops.  Uh, Winona did it!” shouted Knight as he did every time he did something wrong.

AJ had an unamused look on his face as he looked at Ditzy.  “I’ll see you later.  I have to deal with a certain little colt who needs to be taught a lesson.”  She quickly walked up, gave Ditzy a quick kiss, and shooed both he and Dinky out the door before closing it.

“Is Knight going to be okay?” asked Dinky as the two of them just stared at the closed door.

Ditzy waited a moment before the air became filled with a cacophony of horrific squeals of laughter as AJ ‘taught Knight a lesson.’  “Something tells me he’ll be just fine.  Come on, let’s go.”


********************


“Do you think we should start running?” Amethyst asked as she and Nimbos continued to watch the castle.

“I don’t know, it looks like whatever’s going on started to slow down,” Nimbos said as he put a hoof on his wife’s shoulder.  “Still, it might be a good idea to start making an emergency bag.”

“Good idea.  Do we still have those cans of peaches and cream?  What about that canned pineapple and mixed fruit?”

“We should,” Nimbos said with a hoof to his chin.  “Just pack what you can, I’ll go pack some blankets and such.”  With the plan in their minds, they both turned to head back inside.

“Grandma, grandpa!”

Both Nimbos and and Amethyst were shocked when they saw a light cream filly with a burgundy mane rushing towards them with a bright smile on her face.  She stopped in front of them and looked up between the two of them for acknowledgement.  They both looked at each other in confusion before looking back at the filly.  “I’m sorry sweetie, I think you have the wrong ponies,” Amethyst said with smile on her face.

“If you like, we could help you find your parents,” Nimbos added as he bent down to be more on her level.

Dinky blinked stood there and blinked for a second before turning her head and pointing behind her.  “But mommy’s right there.”

Both ponies looked behind the little filly to see a greyish blue pegasus stallion with a blond mane walking up to them.  He smiled and waved once he caught up with the little filly.  “Hey mom.  Hey dad.”

Both of them looked between the two ponies before them with complete confusion.  It wasn’t until Amethyst took a better look at the stallion that it began to dawn on her.  “...Ditzy?”

“Ditzy?” Nimbos asked as he looked between his wife and their so called daughter.  “That’s not Ditzy.  Ditzy’s a mare.”

“And that’s why I was kinda apprehensive about coming today,” Ditzy said with a sigh.  “Look, what can I do to prove I am who I say I am?”

“Prove you’re…uhh.”  Nimbos thought to himself for a moment.  What could they ask or have this stallion do to prove he is their daughter.

“I have a question for you,” Amethyst said’ interrupting Nimbos’ train of thought.  All attention was now on Amethyst.  “When, and where were we when we first met AJ, and how did we react?”

“When you met AJ?” Ditzy asked under his breath before he started racking his head for the answers.  “Well, it was...early September?  Maybe the second or third I think it was.  We were at Star and Maxie’s house, the two of you came over for lunch, and AJ randomly found the house with Shadow Breeze’s help. Oh, and you absolutely hated his guts when you first met him.”

“I think ‘hated his guts’ is a bit much,” Nimbos said with a nervous chuckle.  He cleared his throat.  “So, why exactly are you a stallion now?  And what happened to your unborn foal?”

“And what happened to Dinky’s coat?  It was the most lovely shade of purple.”  Dinky’s face shown with pride and glee over the compliment given about her original coat color.

Ditzy let out a sigh.  “That’s...going to take a bit of time to explain.”

“Well, I don’t think we’re in danger at the moment, we have the time,” Nimbos said before opening the door for the other three ponies.  “I’ll start some coffee for us all.  And some grape juice for little Dinky,” he said with a smile to the foal.


********************


“Anypony home?” Celestia asked as she poked her head into AJ’s room.  With her sister taking over for the night, Celestia decided to use her downtime to make sure everypony’s doing okay.  It’s not like there would be anything political going on that night, but somepony needed to watch over things.  After making sure all the ponies that were sent to the infirmary were okay, she took a stroll to the visitor's quarters next.  Her eyes widened slightly when she noticed the fort that AJ and Knight made out of the bed; complete with a very crudely drawn ‘NOW GURLZ ALOUWED’ sign that was stuck to the the side of the bed.  “Well, looks like you’ve been busy.”

“I thought I asked to not be bothered,” came AJ’s voice from inside the fort.

“I apologise for the intrusion.  I just wanted to make sure you were doing alright.”

Celestia could hear a bit of shuffling from inside the fort before AJ’s head popped out from the sheets.  As the two of them just looked at each other, Celestia noticed the slightly red and puffy eyes behind her glasses.  AJ raised a brow as he tried to figure out who the bald pony in a frilly dress was.  “Who the hell are you?”

Celestia laughed to herself for a moment before regaining her composure.  “I guess my new appearance is having that effect on ponies today.  It’s me, Princess Celestia.”

“Oh right.  You’re all bald now.  Forgot about that.”

“Are you alright?  It looks like you’ve been crying.”

“This was my dark cave to cry in.  What else would I be doing in a dark cave to cry in?”

“Was?”

“I stopped crying a couple hours ago.  Now it’s my dark cave of contemplation.”

“And the sign?” questioned Celestia as she motioned to it.

“Knight’s Idea.”  AJ thought about it for a second.  “Don’t try to explain the irony of the situation to him right now.  I think he’s too young to understand.”

“What’s Knight doing right now anyway?  He’s been awfully quiet.”

“Sleeping.  Which is exactly what I should probably be doing.  Emphasis on probably.”

“Well, I don’t think anypony would blame you if you stayed up a bit late.  I’m sure you have a lot to think of right now.  Though I would suggest you try to get some sleep.  Maybe you’ll feel better after a good nights sleep.”

“Doubt it.  If you knew how I felt right now, you’d understand.”

Celestia giggled.  “It’s just the sudden influx of hormones that has you feeling like this.  Once you calm down, everything will be much better.  And if a good nights sleep doesn’t help, maybe a few ponies waiting over you horn and hoof at my personal spa would help.”

AJ seemed to perk up at that.  “Spa?  I could spend the day at the spa?”

“Of course.  But you have to be good and get some sleep.  And no more outbursts like in the throne room.  Hormones or no, I won’t tolerate it.”

AJ shrunk back as her ears lay back on her head.  “I...guess I did go a little overboard back there, didn’t I?”

“To say the least,” Celestia said with a smile.  “Have a good night.”  With a slight bow of the head, Celestia turned and left the room.


********************


Ditzy had a smile on his face as he walked through the castle with an unicorn guard escort.  Getting away from everything and talking things through with his parents was surprisingly therapeutic.  Both he and his parents thought it would be best for Dinky to stay with them until everything was over and done with.  Not only for her safety, but so she wouldn’t get in the way.

When the two of them turned down the hall before the visitors quarters, one of the castle maids came up to the guard.  “Ah’m sorry ta bother ya, but you wouldn't happen ta be Tide Turner, would ya?”

“I am,” the guard said with a raised brow.  He had never seen this cow like maid roaming the castle.  “And you are?”

“Applejack sir.  Ah’m just doin’ what Ah can ta help around th’ castle, an’ they just happened ta need some extra maids ta replace th’ injured until they can return ta duty.”

“Hmm, and what do you need me for?”

“One of th’ guards holdin’ the barrier 'round Discord is gettin’ a mite exhausted.  They needed ya ta take over fer’im.”

Tide Turner nodded his head.  “They’re holding him in Princess Celestia’s room, right?”

“That’s right.”

“I’ll go right away.  Could you lead him to his room please?”

“Ah sure can.”  Applejack smiled at the guard as he passed her by to fulfill his duty.  As soon as he was out of sight, Applejack’s expression turned sour as she turned to Ditzy.  “If ya tell anypony about th’ uniform Ah swear ah’ll smack you.”

“I wouldn't dream of it,” Ditzy said as he attempted to hide his snickers.  He backed off slightly when Applejack glared at him.  “So, uh...sorry I kinda bailed yesterday.  I wanted to make sure my parents were okay.”

“Ya have nothin’ ta be sorry about,” Applejack said as she motioned for Ditzy to follow her.  “Not really much ya could be doin’ around here anyway.  Unless ya wanted ta be fitted fer a suit an’ wait on ponies fer a few days.”

“I’d...rather not, thanks.  So, how’s AJ doing?  I’m kinda worried about her.”

“Last time Ah saw’er she was bein’ lead to th’ castle spa, an’ that was ‘bout two hours ago.”

“The spa?  I didn’t even know the castle had a spa.”

“Neither did Ah.  Ah guess even th’ princess needs her own private resort ta relax in every now an’ then.”

“Makes sense I guess.  Hey, I noticed you haven’t been going 'moo' anymore.”

“Had a day ta work on hidin’ it,” Applejack said with a proud smile.  “Easier than Ah thought.”  After a few seconds, the two of them turned down another hall to the visitor's quarters.  “Ah assume yer stayin’ in th’ same room as AJ, so it should be th’ second door on th’ right,” Applejack said with a smile as she stopped in front of the door.  “Anythin’ Ah can get ya before Ah go get another assignment?”

“Other than some water, no.  You probably have a lot on your plate already.”

“There should be a jug in there already unless AJ got back an’ drank it all.”

“Oh, alright then.  I’ll see you later.”  With a smile, Ditzy opened the door while waving bye to Applejack.  As he turned into the room, he called for AJ.  “AJ, you in heeEEE!”  Before he could finish, he was literally dragged into the room by an icy blue aura.

“Thank Celestia you’re FINALLY here,” AJ said as she sat up on the bed; an anxious look on her face..

Ditzy had to regain his composure before turning to the mare.  “Well hello to you too.”  He got a better look at AJ.  “You know, for somepony who just got back from the spa, you look awfully stressed out about something.  And where’s Knight?”

“The spa ponies are looking after him.  They fell in love with him, so I figured why the hell not.”

“Is there a reason you needed them to look after him?  Why couldn’t you do it?”

“Because…”  She let out a whine as she turned away in embarrassment.

Ditzy walked up next to the bed and brushed some hair from her face.  “Because…?”  After getting close to her, he began to smell a faint scent that, while he couldn't place, was not a scent he found disagreeable.  He watched as AJ looked around the room as if to make sure nopony was listening in, despite them being the only ones in the room, before leaning in close and whispering in his ear.  Ditzy immediately felt his face begin to heat up.  “O-oh.  That’s why.”  His face grew even hotter when he realised just what that mysterious scent was.  The two of them just sat there for a few seconds in awkward silence.  “Did you try...didling yourself?”

AJ’s face grew even hotter as she glanced at the stallion.  “M-m-maybe.”  She just sat there for a moment.  “It wouldn’t help.  It just wasn’t enough.  Ditzy, what should I do?  I-I-I’ve never felt this horny in my entire life?”

“If you’re hooves won’t work, do you have any toys?”

AJ just took a moment to stare at Ditzy with a look that said she had just been asked the stupidest question in the world.  “Oh yes.  I totally brought some sex toys with me on this trip because I totally knew something like this would happen.”

“Ah, right.  That...really was a stupid question, wasn’t it?  Sorry, but I really don’t know what you could do about it then.”

AJ let out a sigh.  “What did you usually do if you had this problem?” she asked assuming Ditzy went through this problem while she’s been pregnant.

“Use...some toys?” Ditzy said with a sheepish smile.

AJ threw her hooves up to her forehead, letting out a frustrated groan as she did, before spinning around and flopping down onto her belly; face buried in the pillow.  “Hhuck wy lihh,”

Ditzy sighed internally as he watched AJ sulk into her pillow.  He just didn’t know what to do.  There is one thing he forgot about though.  The faint scent he smelled before, it was still lingering in the air.  The longer he sat there, the more his mind was being unknowingly clouded.  He slowly started looking down AJ’s body.  Taking in all her curves, and zeroing in on her flanks.  He swallowed a lump in his throat as he kept staring at the rump in front of him.  His eyes went wide as AJ let out a sigh, flicking her tail as she did, and revealing to Ditzy the treasures that lie behind.  “Hey.  I, uhh...I know something we may be able to try.”

AJ rolled her eyes as she lifted her head.  “Oh yea?  And just what would tha…”  She froze as she felt Ditzy grope her rump.  She whipped her head around to stare at the stallion.  He was standing next to the bed, one foreleg on the bed, the other fondling her backside  “A-a-a-are you crazy?  W-w-w-we can’t do this!  I-I-I’m supposed to be the stallion and you’re supposed to be the mare!  It’s not right...is it?”

“If you want me to stop, just let me know,” Ditzy said as he slowly inched his hoof closer to the treasure.

AJ’s mind was rushing at a million miles an hour.  As she continued to stare at the stallion, she noticed his little buddy beginning to poke out of its sheath.  A shiver radiated through her body as she looked back into his eyes.  “I-I-I’m scared.”

Ditzy removed his hoof from AJ’s rump and caressed her cheek.  “So am I.”  He pulled AJ into a kiss.  The kiss was happily returned as the mare shifted her body so she was on her side.  She wrapped her forelegs around his neck and began pulling him onto the bed with her.  He didn’t need to be told twice, and crawled up immediately.


********************


“Are you sure there isn’t anything you need me to do?” Twilight asked as she and Luna walked through the halls.

With a calm look on Luna’s face, she started writing on the small marker board she started carrying around to be able to communicate with other ponies.  She showed it to Twilight with the words ‘You’re injured.  Get better.’ written on it.

Twilight let out a sigh.  “I know I know, but the nurse said it wasn’t anything to worry about.  I’m not showing any signs of getting any worse, so I feel like I should be doing something.”

Luna let out a quiet whinny while cleaning off the board to write something else on it.  ‘Celestia’s orders.  Nothing I can do,’ was written on it.  Twilight groaned in protest while Luna cleared off the board again and began writing something else.  ‘Tia wants you 100%.’

“I know.”  The more Twilight thought about it, the more a smile grew on her face.  “It reminds me of when I was just a little filly still learning magic from Princess Celestia.  If I got sick, she would always make sure I took it easy even if I wanted to spend all that down time studying.”

‘Good memories,’ was written on the board when Twilight looked over at Luna who was staring at her with a smile.

“She did the same for you?”

Luna nodded as she wrote something new on the board.  ‘When we were still young.’

Twilight giggled at the thought of a sick little filly Luna attempting to be rowdy and a filly Celestia keeping her in check.  “Hey, do you think we could make a pit stop at AJ’s room?  I wasn’t able to talk to her yesterday after everything happened.”

Luna thought about it for a moment before putting something onto the board.  ‘Out of the way, but sure.’

It took the two of them a little bit, but they eventually made it to AJ’s room.  With a smile, Twilight knocked on the door.  “AJ?”  After a few seconds she knocked again.  “Ditzy, are you in there?”  She turned to Luna who shrugged her shoulders.

Luna grabbed the knob in her magic and opened the door before poking her head in.  It didn’t take her long to retract her head with a grin on her face.  She pulled the marker board out again and started writing.  ‘They’re sleeping.’

“Sleeping?”  It was Twilight’s turn to look in.  Sure enough, Ditzy and AJ were both under the covers snoozing away with smiles on their faces.  As quietly as she could, she pulled out and closed the door.  “I guess I’ll talk to her later.”  Luna nodded with a smile before continuing to their initial destination.


********************


“What, exactly, are we doing here?” AJ asked as she looked around the room.  She, Knight, Ditzy and Applejack were all called to the throne room.  When they got there, Twilight was already there.  Despite what Luna had told her the previous day, she refused to just sit there.  She couldn’t sit by and do nothing while there was still something she could do.  Even if it was just something as simple as being a messenger for the princess.

“It’s nothing bad I assure you,” Celestia said as she sat on her throne.  Luna was already sitting in hers; her marker board at the ready in case she needed it.  “It’s just news on Discord’s condition, and your subsequent trip to your world.”

“Is he finally feelin’ better so Ah can finally go back ta bein’ a pony?” Applejack asked with hope in her voice.  She was still annoyed at being turned into a cow.  The udder kept getting in the way, and was beginning to get uncomfortable.

Luna shook her head as she started writing something on the marker board.  She levitated it down to the four of them so they could see it.  ‘Discord’s still sick.’  To say Applejack was annoyed would be an understatement.

“He is still sick, but according to the nurses that looked him over, he should be better within the next couple of days, so don’t fret.  It won’t be too much longer before you’ll be back to your old selves.”

“So that means it won’t be too much longer before we start preparations?” AJ asked with an apprehensive look on her face.  There were still a lot of details she hadn’t been able to think through.

“That’s right.  I’m so excited,” Twilight said as her wings furled out and fluttered happily.  “I can’t wait to take all the notes I can about this new experience.”

“I just can’t wait until things finally go back to normal,” Ditzy said relieved that things would soon be returning to how they should be.

“Yea!” added Knight.

“Don’t get too excited just yet,” Celestia said with a giggle.  “You have to remember that Discord is the only draconequus we know of, and therefore very little is truly known about them.”  Luna let out a whinny as she quickly wrote something down; showing it to Celestia.  “Yes, that’s true.  We have learned a bit since Fluttershy helped reform him, but not enough to know how his body handles sickness.”

“Sooo what you’re trying to say is that the two to three days thing was just an educated guess based on what we know about ponies?” asked AJ.  Princess Luna smiled and nodded at the question.

“An’ that it could take four, five, maybe even a week until we can go back ta normal?” added Applejack fearing that may be the case.

“That...could very well be the case, yes.  Though we are holding out hope it will be sooner.”

Luna looked over at her sister with a smirk as she wrote something down on her board; showing it to the crowd of ponies.  ‘She’s just embarrassed because she’s bald.’  She pulled it back and wrote something else on it.  ‘Did you see her little, pink tail?  Adorable.’

Celestia looked between the marker board and Luna, who had a grin on her face, and smiled.  “I’ll assume Luna’s making fun of me and hide her moonpies later.”

Luna’s expression turned to horror in an instant as she looked at her sister.  Luna loved her moonpies.  They were her favorite treat to snack on as she played games.  Those sweet little cakes were one of the more simpler pleasures in life.  “[Horrified horse noises!]”  In a very un-princess like manner, Luna scrambled off her throne and out the door to go protect her precious moonpies.

Celestia chuckled to herself before turning back to the group.  “However long it takes, we will continue to make preparations for the trip.  Be sure that we will be ready whenever you are.”

AJ let out a sigh.  “Thank you princess.”

Celestia looked at AJ with a raised eyebrow.  “For somepony who just spent some time at the spa yesterday, you seem awfully stressed out right now.  Is something wrong?”

“Nnnno.  Other than the obvious, nothing’s wrong.”

“We were just going to visit my parents today,” Ditzy added as he put a leg around AJ’s whithers.

“And my relationship with his parents have always been a bit...rocky, at best.” AJ said with her ears laid back.

“Oh?  I’m sorry to hear that.”

“It’s gotten better over the months since the whole abduction thing, but things are still a bit tense between us.”

“Today should be fine though,” Ditzy said with certainty in his voice.

“Why do you say that?” asked Celestia.

“They wouldn’t dare do anything to stress out AJ while she’s the one carrying our foals,” He said with a smirk.  “If anything, they’ll fawn over her to make sure she’s as comfortable as possible.”

“Wait, foals?” asked Twilight.  “As in plural?”

“Yea.  We’re having twins,” Ditzy said with a half smile.  His eye still slightly twitched at the thought.

“Yea.  Didn’t anypony tell you?” asked AJ.

“They just let me out of the infirmary yesterday afternoon.  I haven’t really had much time to learn about what’s been going on.”

“Ah yes, right.  Didn’t exactly come up last night either,” AJ said as she rubbed her neck.

“And it’s not like we’ll be around to talk much today, either.  Mom and dad will be waiting for us.”

“Then I shouldn’t hold you up any longer,” Celestia said with a smile.  With a bow, AJ and Ditzy turned and headed towards the door; Knight in tow.  “And Applejack…”

“Yes yer majesty?”

“Before you go back to your duties, I’d like to talk to you in private.  I may have a solution for your udder problem.”

Applejack’s face glowed with a smile.  “Ya do?  That would be great!”

Celestia turned to Twilight and gave a small nod, letting her know she was free from her duties.  “Alright.  I think I’ll go check on Princess Luna then.  Make sure she’s not doing anything too crazy.”

Applejack watched as Twilight left the room.  When it was just the two of them she looked back to Celestia with a smile on her face.  “Now, I understand you have dairy cows on your farm, is that correct?”

“Eeyup.  Daisy Jo an’ th’ gals live pretty darn well if Ah do say so mahself.”

“Then you should be familiar with with the concept of milking.”  Applejack’s smile immediately fell as Celestia looked down at her with a knowing look.  “Of course, I don’t expect you to just let anypony touch you in such an intimate manner without your consent, so whoever helps you with this task is up to you.  But I just know a good milking will make you feel much better.”

She swallowed a lump in her throat.  “Ah’m goin’ ta kill Discord.”


********************


“It’s official.  You’re mom’s trying to kill me,” AJ said as she and Ditzy walked down the street towards the castle.

“I told you they were probably going to fawn over you.  Dad even let you sit in his chair, and knowing dad, he probably spent much more money on it than was necessary.”

“But it was sooooooooo comfortable,” AJ said with a dopey smile on her face.  “And did you really expect me to turn down all that free chocolate your mom was showering me with?  And what about that fondue?  Was I just supposed to let it go uneaten?”

“Be careful with eating too much.  I learned that the hard way just how hard it can be to lose all that extra weight,”

AJ stopped dead in her tracks and started poking her belly; her face was one of contemplation.  “Meh, totally worth it.”  While Ditzy continued down the street, AJ turned back the way they had come from.  “Do you think Knight will be okay staying with your parents?”

“You’re worrying too much.  Mom and dad will make sure he’s safe.”

“It’s not that, you know how he gets if I’m away too long.”

“He’ll have Dinky there to play with.  He’ll be fine.”  As they walked up to the guards standing at the castle gate.  “Hello again sirs.”

The guards looked the two ponies over for a second before the one on the left used his magic to open the door for them.  As the two of them entered the castle foyer, one of the maids that were passing by noticed them and came up to them with a smile.  “Good evening sir and madam.  How may I help you?”

AJ smiled before speaking.  “Yea, would you be able to take us to your room?  We’re staying in the visitor’s quarters, room four.”

“Of course, right this way,” The maid said with a smile.  The closer they got to their room, the happier AJ got.  The two of them had a better day than she expected them to have, and she wanted to bookend it with a nice, hot bath.  “Here we are, room four.”  The maid stood to the side to let the two of them get to their room.  “Anything else I could help you with?”

“No thank you.”  with a small bow, the maid left the two of them.  With a smile, Ditzy reached for the door.

“PSSSST!”

Both AJ and Ditzy looked around when they heard the sound.  “You hear that?” asked AJ.

“Yea.  Where did it come from.”

“AJ, over here!” came a voice from across the hall.

AJ scanned the other side of the hall until she noticed door to room number five, the room kitty corner to theirs in the hall, was slightly open, and Applejack was looking at her from the crack.  “Uhh, I’ll be right back,” AJ said as she walked across the hall.  “Hey, what’s up?”

“Get in here.  It’s kinda private.”  Applejack stepped away from the door to let the pregnant mare in the room.  AJ closed the door once she was pass the threshold.  With AJ in the room, and the door closed, Applejack let out a deep sigh.  “Ah...need yer help.”

“You do?”  AJ asked in a somewhat surprised tone.  She wasn’t used to Applejack needing his help.  Usually it was the other way around.  “What’s wrong?”

Applejack looked around the room as her face seemed to grow hotter and hotter by the minute.  “Well...it’s been brought ta mah attention, that th’ reason this darned udder is so gosh, danged uncomfortable is because…”

AJ waited a moment for the mare to continue.  “Because…?”

“Because...Ah need ta be milked.”

“Milked?!” AJ asked in surprise.  “You actually need to be milked?  That’s a thing you need to have done to you?”

“Would you keep it down?!” Applejack said in a hushed tone.  “Ah was just as surprised as you are when Ah was first told.”

“Well why do you need my help?  Can’t you milk yourself?  I mean, you’re the one who taught me how to properly milk the girls back home.”

“Ah tried.  It’s...awkward ta do it mahself.  Not ta mention Ah couldn’t get it ta go in th’ bucket by mahself.”

“Right.  I suppose it would be a bit hard to do something like that alone,” AJ said the more she thought about it.  “Okay, if we’re going to do this, it would probably be easier to do this if you’re standing up.  Maybe hold yourself up on a table or something.  Make it easier to reach your udder.”

“Yea, yer right.”

With AJ’s help, the two of them moved one of the bedside tables to a more open part of the room.  “Right, I’m going to go wash my hooves first.  Don’t want you to get an infection.  Plus…”  She lifted her metal limb.  “...this thing is still cold from when we were outside, and it’ll probably be much more comfortable if it’s warmer.”

“Will that thin’ pinch?”

AJ blinked before looking at her limb.  “Whenever I ask the cows about pinching, they always say everything’s fine, so no worries.  Be right back.”

As AJ went into the bathroom to wash up, Applejack got the two buckets, she got two of them just in case of an emergency, and got up against the table like AJ suggested.  “Just keep tellin’ yerself you’ll feel better after this,” she said to herself.

“What was that?” asked AJ when as she came out of the bathroom.

“Nothin’.”

AJ shrugged her shoulders before positioning herself right next to Applejack.  She moved one of the buckets just in front of Applejack’s udder before letting out a sigh.  “Right, I know this is going to be just like milking a cow, but this still feels awkward.”

“Yer tellin’ me.”  Applejack watched as AJ started reaching for her udder.  “Before ya start, ya gotta promise me somethin’.”

“Hmm?”

“Please, don’t tell Rarity 'bout this.”

AJ stared at the orange cowpony with a raised brow.  “Okay?”

“Promise!”

“Okay, I promise!  But I think Rarity would understand that you just needed a little intimate help.  It’s not like we’re doing anything perverted in here or anything.”  With her right hoof, AJ reached out and gently gripped one of Applejack’s teats.  Applejack’s body shuddered at the contact as she let out a stifled moan causing AJ to freeze her actions.  She looked between her hoof and Applejack who’s face was bright red.  “Uhh.”

Applejack had to calm herself down before looking over at AJ.  “A-as Ah said, don’t tell Rarity.”


********************


After helping Applejack with her little problem, and both of them agreeing to never mention this again, AJ headed back to her room for a bath.  After getting cleaned up, with a little help from Ditzy, she decided now would be a good time to go see Celestia about the other little problem she had.  It didn’t take her long to track down a guard to get an escort to the princesses temporary quarters.  She was both annoyed and slightly surprised that Princess Celestia was currently staying on the far end of the hall she was currently staying in.  Thought the extra guards around the area should have made it a bit obvious.

“Princess, you have a visitor.”

“Send them in.”

The guard at the door opened the door for AJ to step through.  “Hello Princess,” She said with a bow.  Celestia was sitting at a desk on the side of the room.  Unlike the last time she had seen her, the princess was no longer wearing anything.  The dress she was wearing was hanging on a hook on the other side of the room.  Some important looking papers sat on top of the desk, and an inked quill floated to her side in her magic.  “Oh, I’m sorry.  Am I interrupting something?  I can always come back if you’d like?”

Celestia giggled to herself as she placed the quill back in the inkwell.  “Don’t worry. Just a few forms I’ve fallen behind on.  With everything that’s happened, I’ve been a bit too busy.”  She stood up from the chair and walked over to the mare.  “But don’t worry, I always have time for my subjects.  What do you need.”

“Umm, well, it’s kinda embarrassing, but I have have something I need to talk to you about.”

“Hmm?  Is something the matter?”

AJ nervously rubbed her leg.  “You know how I said in that letter that I was prepared for this trip?”  Celestia silently nodded.  “Well, it wasn’t until after I got your reply that I realised just how unprepared I really was.”

“What do you mean?  Do you need us to postpone the trip so you can go get something?”

“No, no, nothing like that.  It’s just that...I don’t know what I’m going to tell everyone.”

Celestia thought for a moment.  “Do you mean your friends and family?”

“Yea.  Questions like where I was, what I was doing, and what happened to me.  These are all things that will probably be asked, and I don’t know what to say.  If I tell the truth, they’d probably think I was just going crazy.”

“Why do you say that?”

“To you all this seems completely normal, but If I go to my world and say I was taken to a world full of technicolor, talking ponies that can fly and use magic, and was turned into one myself, I could only imagine the whiplash I’d get from how fast I’d be sent to the happy hotel.”

“Hmm, I guess in a world with no magic that does seem kind of farfetched,” Celestia said with a hoof to her chin.  “Come, let’s talk this through.  I’m sure we’ll come up with something.”  She lead AJ to a chair in the room so the two of them could talk.


****************************************