Fancy Pants and his lovely wife Fleur are quite possibly Canterlot's most heroic duet. Together they conquered countless events, faced hordes of snobbish socialites, and emerged victorious from the most dire of faux pas. May their bravery and finesse be forever remembered on parties to come!
There is a missing element in their perfect life, though: the joy of having a child and becoming a family. When conventional methods fail, will the couple muster enough courage to seek out the alternative, or will they stay a duet forever?
Enter Chestnut—a daring filly from beyond Equestria, out of their social stratum, and definitely exceeding their boldest expectations.
For better or worse.
Chapters (10)
Hello and welcome to Of Lilies and Chestnuts!
I hope that you'll find reading it worthwhile - it's my first attempt in writing a [Slice of Life] story and I'd love to know if I'm doing it right. That said, criticism is encouraged, of course - don't hesitate to tell me what you think!
The reasons behind this project are twofold: it originated around EQD Batpony Writeoff (but I didn't make it on time to enter) and I really wanted to present Fleur as somepony more than just a plain trophy wife, with actual internal struggle and character. So whether you're tired of this trope as well, want to adopt a batpony with Fleur and Fancy Pants or just want to read something heartwarming and different - this story is for you. Enjoy!
Eyup, perfect match
I like you portrayal of Fleur and Fancy. Good ponies, but tainted with bigotry of upper class.
Upvote and observing!
Well this displays a lot of potential, now we just haveta hope that the writer digs deep. Could do with a liyttle more depth on fleurs objections, logical or not, right now she's a good base but needs a lotta character buildup to form a relationship.
I wonder what little chestnut will put up with.
And what things will they hear in their own social circle.
Interesting story.
Yay, a thestral, one of the six canon pony races (seven if you count alicorn)
I think I like Nutsie already.
Okay, I'm watching this. Chestnut sold it for me. Go Nutsie!
I really like the idea of this story and I hope that it updates soon.
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I sense many feels inbound...
Thank you all for commenting and the utmost positive feedback, I hope you'll stick around
for the next couple of decadesfor the time it will take to write and publish!3564752
No sooner than next week, I suppose, but I'll do my best to deliver more!
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Yay, it seems that Chestnut is grabbing all the attention! Anyone for T-shirts with her or something? Go Nutsie!
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I love the word thestrals for describing batponies - so elegant! Not using it yet in-story for a reason... Noctrals does make sense, too, but thestrals sounds just right in my opinion.
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Don't worry - Fleur will learn a lot in this one!
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That's exactly how I'm thinking of them! The question is, will they survive in this wicked system?
good over all feel of Fleur!
with what little is shown in the show and how MUCH is shown in fannon I think she'd be a wonderful mother at the very least
Nutsie will be a PERFECT match for them
Nutsie what a nickname.
HNNNNNNNNGH
Why must BatPony Foals be so damn adorable? It's hard on my Feels....
Orphanarium... are there any purple haired cyclops ponies up for adoption?
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There was one, but she graduated, joined the Royal Guard, then quit and became a successful airship captain for Equestria and beyond. Shipping business iirc. At least that's what I heard.
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Doctor Hugs wanted me to tell you that your cognitive senses are operating efficiently. Thanks for dropping by!
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It's a shame that we only see Fleur once in the entire series! Perhaps it's that slim model which doesn't make her a good choice for a background pony, but I could never picture Canterlot without her strolling around.
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"Changelings aren't ponies, silly!"), so I guess he meant... that's right, seaponies! Shoop-bee-doo!
My first thought was Changelings (
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HNNNGH
The answer is simple: everything on the Internet is cuter the younger it is... well, to a certain point, of course.
That came out wrong.
I don't know if I've ever read a story involving Fancy Pants and Fleur, so this will be my first foray into that.
This is also only the second time I've read something dealing with batponies - the other one being written by RealityCheck.
Needless to say, ye have captured my interest. I don't think there were many glaring grammar errors or anything like that, or I would have remembered them from when I read this.
I'm also not one to comment on the story itself, since I believe that to be the writer's domain rather than the reader's, unless it's something horrifyingly obvious. It's also waaaay too early to making those critiques, imo.
Continue writing, good sir. I like it so far.
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Changeling
An interesting premise. Too bad the story's short, so I'll wait for next chapters before doing any kind of review. But for now, thumbs up!
Very nice start, I've always liked Fluer stories. Wish I could write like you.
I guess you could say Fleur wants a MODEL family!
...I'll escort myself out...
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You. I like you. I urge you to stay, funny person!
I love this as it is kinda like a concept I am working on right now. Can't wait to see more.
Itsa great stpry so far. I likeit becuase it goes depper into the characters than we see in the show. Its a cool story so far.
MOREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
The filly made me d'awww. Seriously, that's some distilled adorable right there! Story looks and reads great, definitly gonna track this; all I need is a birdwatchers kit.
Nicely done, i'll send word to the president post-haste!
Another one for the favorites pile!
3568595 But seaponies aren't canon.....
YET...
OK, I love bat ponies so this is a definite fav!
On the whole, so fare so good. I don't normally read Fancy Pants and Fleur stories, but you have captured them perfectly. I wonder what kind of bonding Fleur will try and how it will go wrong.
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Thank you, the approval of yours is greatly appreciated. Out of curiosity, in what way is your project similar? Via theme, characters, or...?
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This is fair, I guess - thank you for your trust, I'll do my best not to disappoint!
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I'm not really a standard to meet, and from what I see you're writing got better in Echoes of Eternity. Keep it up!
It's flattering!
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THERE WILL BE MOREEEE!
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Anyway, glad that you liked it!
Don't do that! This distilled adorable, as you put it, is so pure it's probably illegal is some states and/or countries.
This story is really well done. I always like seeing background characters get used in stories, especially Fancy Pants and Fleur, two of the mot interesting.
Its also nice to see the orphan story being played again without it being done with Scootaloo.
I am very interested to see this continue.
Nice story, though, probably due to my job, this line set off an alarm:
If it's genetic infertility, how could Fleur be born? Or anyone in her family? (I did some research, male infertility can actually be hereditary, but it'd be difficult with female infertility...)
Unless she has triple X syndrome - usually the only symptom is being taller than average, but infertility can also happen (along with various other symptoms).
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Now that's interesting! I had a brief affair with biology and general genetics in high school, but didn't get really into it. From what I see now, trisomy X would be an interesting take on Fleur - it's somewhat rare enough (1:1000 occurrences in Equestria sounds different than 1:1000 in real world given the population) and would explain why is Fleur the only unicorn in the whole series with that 'superfemale' character model.
I won't lie, I haven't done any extensive research when I came up with this idea, so I tip my hat to you and your biotechnology/neurobiology expertise!
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Yeah, her character model was the reason I thought about triple X.
And I've read chapter 1 now, I love Nutsie
Why I like this story you ask. Hmmmmm. Lets do a list, lists are good. So in no particular order:
#1 It has Fancy Pants. As my alias might clue you in on, I'm a fan of him. Additionally Fluer, both by association and via common fandom portrayal, is ranked rather high on my favorite secondary characters list.
#2 Batponies/Nocturnes/Whatever-you-want to call them are cool.
#3 Cute foal is cute
#4 You can write well.
3573178
Could have been a mutation that happened to her genes but wasn't present in her mother's. Or its a multigene thing and neither of her parents had all of them. Or its a condition with only a chance of manifesting. So yeah there are some other possibilities and ponys might have genetic ailments we humans dont. Still, your question does raise a good point and the triple x thing is really interesting and makes a lot of sense.
I like the idea of what Fleur dream child and love how you made Fluer and Fancy
I do believe moar is required.
Oh Dear indeed
Loving this story, I can't wait to see what happens next. I can't say much more than that, the story's great the characters are well portrayed thus far and it's off to a good start, keep going
My only complaint was that I thought they would be less judgemental as to what the child they would adopt would be (although given that they're both unicorns a unicorn would be logical so I can see their side of that issue) I also thought Fleur was being a bit more of a stuck up mare this chapter, rather than the Samaritan, the 'everything good that the Canterlot Elite isn't' that she's usually portrayed as, but then she has just received some devastating news, so her nerves would be understandably frayed.
So Keep it up, I eagerly await more.
Update soon.
Honora Imperator
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I wouldn't want to spoil the fun for you, so I'll just say that this judgmental side is going to be an important thing in the upcoming chapter(s).
(also, in response to your PM - it feels only natural to take time with people who took time to read something mine, it's the least I can do!)
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And I don't normally write stories about Fleur or Fancy, so I'm glad you liked my take on them!
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Not in the show, but I think there's a storybook Under the Sparkling Sea involving G4 characters, seaponies and mermares. I wonder if we'll see them in MLP:FiM? I bet the writers could make them pretty badass.
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Tell me about it! If there's any trope about Scoots that I don't particularly like it would be the orphan theme. That, or learn-2-fly stuff. Anyway, thanks for dropping by!
3574729
That's a nice and clear list - I'll do my best so you could add more reasons to it. Glad that you enjoyed it!
A strong start and a nice, original premise using ponies you don't see so often...
Eagerly awaiting the next chapter!
It's a lovely story
And it will be a true excitement to see how things turn out for our heros, my only complaint... wheres the next chapter, and the next and next
A very good start to a pretty cute story. I'll be back for more.
Your adorable cover art caught my attention, but your story caught my curiosity
I guess I'll be favoriting this to see how it goes
I find this story idea intriguing. I can't wait to see where it goes!
I'm surprised to see someone taking on the character of Fleur. Its a new idea, and i must admit i am intrigued. She did strike me as a bit shallow during 'Sweet and Elite'. And I do like batponies... so, I am very interested in this story. keep up the good work!
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I recently discovered that I enjoy creating stories not focused on the Main 6. And you're right, there's very little positives to say about Fleur basing on Sweet and Elite, so choosing her and Fancy seemed logical.
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Thank you! By the way, I love your current avatar. Potoo birds for the win!
3580302
*hands you a glass of wine so you can keep reenacting the scene*
3578629
That's a serious complaint, so I'm going to address it right now! The next chapter is on my desktop, almost ready for tomorrow's upload. I'm totally just saying that to hype you up.
This certainly seems interesting, I'll have to watch and see where it goes.
A subtle Futurama reference perhaps?
Very interesting...
When I was approving this, I enjoyed it a ton. Going to read more of it later.
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or WH40K reference