Unlucky seven

by Pinklestia

06 Silly

~~*Moondancer the Dream Weaver*~~

I awoke with a yawn and sat up and rubbed my eyes blearily. My ears were splayed backwards as I started to wake myself up. ‘Today I have an alarm to make,’ I reminded myself and then twisted my head from side to side. I heard a satisfying crack and groaned in pleasure. I then shrugged off my covers and stretched out like a cat.

You really tend to act like a cat lately.

‘Maybe the ponies of MLP have some kind of cat ancestry,’ I offered tiredly. I then started to shrug off a few of the things I was wearing.

What are you doing?

‘I won’t need my hoisting harness or... actually most of this stuff with what I’m doing today,’ I replied with a shrug. My brain didn’t comment so instead I started to remove my gear. Once it was all off, barring my bandanna, I started to sort out what I’d need in my head. ‘Definitely the butt-pouch, maybe a single medical pouch for some bandages,’ I considered with a hum.

I’d stick to that for now. Most of the other pouches are a bit on the small side... wait, keep both medical pouches and also that one Dual-mag-pouch for your flashlight. While we don’t have many bandages the medical pouch is large enough to carry at least a few things, unlike the compass pouches. We probably won’t need the knife either.

‘Yeah that works,’ I mused with a nod. That decided I started the, admittedly arduous task of removing the pouches from my pistol-belt. Even though the ALICE clips were a chore to remove with hooves, I somehow managed to do so. Once I had them removed I then reorganized them and nodded when I felt the configuration was right.

With that done I slipped to belt on and walked over to my other stuff. I shifted around and brought out my chains and ropes and dragged them outside. However as I was looking for more chains / rope I found my old Lunar Pendant and smiled. ‘Oh hey, I remember this,’ I thought to myself cheerfully. I then slipped it on to hang around my neck and nodded.

That’s kind of pointless... not to mention a bit heavy.

‘Yeah, but I like this thing, plus I dumped a lot of weight off of myself,’ I replied.

Point. Now how about we get back to that alarm system.

‘Yeah yeah I’m going,’ I replied with a roll of my eyes. I walked outside and looked over the chains and ropes and hummed. ‘Going to need a rock or sticks to elevate the rope,’ I mused and trotted about to find the needed rocks and sticks. I noised the rocks over and then started to set up the sticks in places I’d need them.

I hope we know what we’re doing here.

‘Me too,’ I admitted. I got back to work on the idea regardless. I moved rocks and sticks to places I’d need them and made a prototype first. The rope was tied in a slightly elevated semicircle in front of the entrance of my home. The chains were attached to it and pulled out away from it.

‘Seems right,’ I noted to myself. However my first test didn’t work like I’d hoped and a frown crossed my face. ‘Did I bring those bottles from home?’ I wondered for a moment. I seemed to recall thinking about it but wondered if my scatter-brained mind had actually remembered to pack them.

Hey, don’t blame me for you being scatterbrained!

‘You are my brain, you’d be the first one to be blamed,’ I deadpanned. My brain chose not to comment on that. So instead I rolled my eyes and sighed as I got back to work on my alarm system. It would only be for animals, but maybe a few humans would set it off so I could hide myself away.

Wouldn’t humans investigate after they found this?

‘Err... yeah, I suppose they would,’ I admitted with a grimace. ‘But it’s better to have this to warn me of danger, that way I won’t end up as food for a bear,’ I replied. I then tested my alarm again; yet again it didn’t make as much noise as I’d hoped. ‘What am I doing wrong?’ I wondered to myself.

Probably cause of how you have the rope set up.

‘How so?’ I questioned.

The semicircle is fine, but the rope isn’t being tugged when you have it half looped around those sticks and trees. You’ll need individual chains for each section that’s been tied or looped off. That way it’ll send vibrations to the chains and cause them to shake. You might also consider a weight on the chains so that they hang and truly rattle.

‘Oh, well that makes sense I suppose,’ I replied with a sigh. So I set to work yet again. This time I took a brief break and checked for anything else I could add to the alarms. I decided against bottles, even if I did have them, because anything of significant weight would smash ‘em. It might be useful, but it’d also be a waste of resources.

Least this isn’t a zombie apocalypse.

‘True,’ I replied. I then set about making the alterations to the alarm. It still didn’t seem to work right and I frowned deeply. ‘I’m really starting to hate this, what else am I doing to get this wrong?’ I wondered to myself with a deep frown.

At least this wasn’t a vital resource. Food, water, shelter, those are vital. This is mostly just for peace of mind to be honest. Bears don’t come this close to civilization without a reason and those berry bushes are far enough away that they wouldn’t come close to us. Even if they did I doubt they’d think you look particularly appetizing.

‘True,’ I admitted. Bears might be confused if they saw me. I also had a hunch my smell would be a bit weird to them. I have smelt a normal equine, thanks to being so close to horses, and I knew I didn’t smell the same. I actually couldn’t really place my smell, and I bet the animals nearby can’t either.

However I really wanted this to work for some reason.

So I stubbornly continued to try and make my makeshift alarm work. It was a slow going, not to mention frustrating, ordeal. I made dozens of modifications and even more changes to the original design before finally growling in frustration and sitting down with a scowl. I then let out a snort and started to paw at the ground angrily.

Okay so this is clearly a bust... why not start work on a wall?

‘Why?’ I growled.

Because if you have a wall you wont have to worry about the alarm. Plus we have all those rocks you cleared out from the cave to mess with, you could just have the chains knock against the wall instead of just rattling.

I blinked for a moment and then sighed as I set to work on a wall instead of fruitlessly continuing my effort on the alarm. There were indeed a lot of stray rocks around my cave. There were also the piles I’d made the day before yesterday. The same piles I’d planned on doing something with... but never actually got around to doing. ‘I am so scatter-brained today,’ I noted to myself with a deep frown.

I’ve noticed that too, think it has something to do with the forest or just us getting so used to our situation?

‘Probably the latter more than the former,’ I replied. My brain silently concurred while I set about moving rocks into a circle around the entrance of my cave. I would probably have to go out looking for more rocks at some point to make a big wall, but for now a small one would suit my purposes just fine.

This went on for quite a while actually. The rocks in the area were quite numerous though that made sense. ‘Stony Creek’ was actually an extremely apt name for where I lived. You’d hit rocks while digging, rocks lined the creek nearby, the rivers and streams, and rocks were just about everywhere. Finding them was so easy that I literally had no trouble at all making the wall up to my knees.

‘I wonder if I should make it taller,’ I considered. I’d left one large gap in the wall so I could walk in and out. If I had the time, or ability, I might’ve tried to make a door of some kind. But for now I didn’t have the time, the materials, or even the ability to make some kind of door.

What I did have was a mess of bones and a half working alarm system to try and finish. Strangely, I looked to the bones and tapped my chin as an idea started to form in my mind. ‘I wonder,’ I mused and began to gather the smallest of the bones. I then started to put them into the chains to hang like chimes.

It still didn’t work, but it was certainly creepy looking. ‘Now for those other bones,’ I decided and started to move them to key places. It would probably not scare anyone too bad, they were only dog bones, but it’d at least keep the bones out of the way. Once all of that was done I frowned and considered what I should do next.

What else do we need to do?

‘Get the alarm working,’ I replied with a frown. I typically wasn’t this stubborn, but I really want that thing working!

Not happening.

‘Then what do you think I should do?’ I questioned hotly.

Read a book, find some more rocks for the wall, heck; you could even collect more food or water. Be productive at the very least and stop it with that stupid alarm idea! It’s not working and we have no idea how to get it to work!

‘Fine,’ I grumbled. I then went to work on finding more rocks and getting them home. I also kept track of where the poison joke near my home was typically situated. Somehow the stuff had started to ‘gather’ for lack of a better term. Individual flowers seemed to be dying off. Meanwhile large clusters were growing in places. Hearts Desire was a bit more sporadic for the moment. As were other plants I’d never even seen before...

‘I need to start keeping a journal of what is going on, or at least note the changes to the environment,’ I decided to myself. I could probably use my tablet for that since it had a word processor I could use. It wouldn’t be the best but it’d at least give me the ability to keep track of what had changed on a day-to-day basis.

Regardless I set about the task of finding more rocks. I glanced up as the sky started to change and sighed internally. It was going to be dark soon. I tended to wake up at the very edge of daylight hours to get at least something done in the light of day. If I hadn’t I’d be out in the dark for hours on end unable to get anything of import accomplished.

Luckily I had at least enough time to collect a few more rocks. I got back home and started to set them on the wall before I finally went back into my cave and considered what I could do. Ultimately I decided that that journal idea was probably my best bet to get something constructive done. At least before the wee hours of the morning that is.

So I trotted over to my tablet and sat down on my front. I turned it on and opened up the word processor and then hummed in thought. I wondered how I should word it and if I should even bother with details. I’d also have to add things that happened before like my own odd change... I suppose that could work.

Although how would I word all this? I mean I would probably be the only one to ever read the thing and even then I only need the barest of facts. I’d only need enough facts to keep track of the changes and spot anything new. It’d also help me write sense I have to use a stylus and keyboard... due to lack of fingers.

So with that in mind I looked down at the tablet and used my stylus to write.

00--00

Day 1: Changed into a pony. Unicorn, mare, white fur, wavy red purple streaked mane / tail, blue eyes and a beauty mark on the cheek, with a Crescent moon / stars for a cutie-mark. Appear to be nocturnal rather than diurnal. Cause of transformation is as of yet unknown. Possibility of others being changed into ponies: as of yet unknown. Possibility of magic being involved with this change: highly likely. Evacuated my home to find temporary refuge in a nearby barn. Located small source of oats.

Day 2: Poison Joke first appeared. Unwilling to test how Poison Joke actually works or what it might do to me. Likelihood of magic that affected me affecting a much larger area is now quite significant. Unknown how this has occurred or what brought it about. Further study needed to identify where the local fauna have also been affected as I have. Sent message to sister and work to delay any potential problems. Likelihood of someone noticing I’m missing is hopefully quite low. Retrieved a few odds and ends for comfort.

Day 3: Hearts Desire first appeared. Unwilling to experiment with what this particular plant can do. Forest near home showcases unusual properties in the form of a ‘paranoia field’ around and within it. Field brings about senses of paranoia and outright fear while wandering around. Unknown if it was just myself or is an actual phenomenon, will have to observe others at a later date to determine. Found new domicile in the form of a cave in the woods. Cleared bones and rocks from new domicile.

Day 4: Located food source in the woods. I marked the trail to the food source with the ‘Operator Symbol’ from Marble Hornets. Felt that it would be the least suspicious thing I could do. Researched equine eating habits, unable to determine true differences between terrestrial and non-terrestrial equines aside from the physical.

Day 5: Built a wall around cave. Singular flowers of Poison Joke appear to be dying. Large clusters of the plant are sprouting out much more commonly. Hearts Desire appears to be unaffected. New plants appeared, unknown origin and species. Started work on this journal despite it being largely unnecessary.

00--00

With the writing done I saved it and let out a small sigh. I looked around for a moment and turned my tablet off. I stowed it away and then noticed my fur was starting to look a little ruddy and brown. ‘I really need a bath,’ I muse with a frown. I’m not vain, but I kind of want to keep my stuff clean.

Do that tomorrow when you can actually see.

‘Yeah, that sounds like a decent plan at least,’ I admit. So instead of doing something ‘productive’ I pull out my flashlight and get a book out to start reading. I also make a note to figure out how to start a fire with hooves. If for no other reason then so I can have a light source without having to worry about batteries.

Maybe you could make a fire pit in the morning.

‘And light it with what?’ I countered with a frown.

Just saying you could at least make preparations.

I sighed and eventually decided that wouldn’t be a completely pointless idea. However it was secondary to actually cleaning myself off. Despite what one might think muddy dirty fur feels really uncomfortable. Though I suppose part of that has to do with me being so out of place with this body.

So with that in mind I let out a breath, bundled myself up, and started to read. Once I felt tired I’d go to bed, and in the morning I’d actually wash myself off as best I could. Maybe I’d find something else to do tomorrow as well, like build that fire bit that my brain had suggested. Regardless, that was for later, for now I had other things to do...

---

~~*Twilight The Wish Granter*~~

*STATIC*

"This is the Rainbow Pony Show, with your friend the rainbow pony!" said a woman wearing a rainbow colored pony costume, but not the My Little Pony kind.

"Now remember kids, if you see a bunch of strange purple flowers, or even a single purple flower that looks weird, don't touch it and tell an adult. If you touch them you will get the polka dots disease!"

The screen showed a somewhat accurate and realistic drawing of Poison joke.

"Oh, are you sure those flowers are bad Rainbow Pony?" Asked a teen girl dressed like a clown "They look cute!"

"Yes! my friend the white pegasus told me."

"Hi kids" Said a woman dressed like a white pegasus to the audience.

*STATIC*

"-We are now about to interview one of the most stable persons affected by the Blue polka-dots disease." The camera showed a ten year old girl wearing over-sized men clothes and with her face and hands covered by the mentioned blue polka-dots.

"Hello Mister Smith, is true that before the disease, you used to be an adult man in his fifties?"

"Yes. The last thing I remember was picking up some weird purple flowers I have never seen before, I am a botanist you see, accidentally touching them and fainting. Then I woke up like this."

The girl then showed a wallet with a Driver ID, and an album of pictures of how she used to look like.

*STATIC*

"-recent discovery of an unusual new illness had baffled local healthcare professionals," a man in a suit stated. In his hands he held a set of papers as a picture saying 'polka-dot fever' popped up beside his head. "None of the victims shared any form of biological explanation for the sudden appearance of what could potentially be a devastating plague," the man continued. "Now I'll turn to our onsite reporter to give us a look at what is being done," the man stated as the scene shifted to the interior of a hospital.

"Thanks Bob," another well dressed man in a suit stated. He stood outside of a hospital with a microphone in hand. In the background an ambulance swerves into the area and a pair of paramedics rush out with a man with blue polka-dots across his skin. The man is screaming uncontrollably but aside from the dots, there is no other sign of discomfort or injury. The man in the suit quickly waves a hand towards the paramedics.

"The hospitals are baffled by this sudden inexplicable illness that appeared only in the passed week. Aside from sudden appearance of the illness, there has also been a rash of different symptoms with no clear defining features for where they come from or what has caused them. As of yet the only recurring symptom, oddly enough, are these strange blue polka-dots which have appeared on the victims skin," the man explained.

"Thankfully while the exact cause of the illness has yet to have been discovered, it has been confirmed that the victims are not contagious," the man continued...

*FADE TO BLACK*

And I turned off the Tv. I was tired of watching the news about this new disease that I was quite sure was caused by Poison Joke, was it because of my wish? Were those poor people sick because of me?

I read on the Internet that there was someone claiming that she became Firefly, and if that girl was lying, those pictures were very realistic. I sent her a private mensage, using a pen and my mouth to type using my computer keyboard took forever!

“Hey, look at me Twi, I can hold it with just my nose!” I turned around and saw a white pegasus with a yellow mane and three blue balloons as a cutie mark balancing a chair using just her nose,

I looked with annoyance at the white pest... dammit Surprise, you know to not annoy me when... wait...

“Surprise?” It can't be, sure I wished for it but...

“Hi, did you miss me Twilight?” The white pegasus switched balancing two chairs in her nose, one above the other. I admit that's kind of impressive.

“Surprise!” Before I know what I am doing I jump and tackle the pegasus, my friend, the prankster, hugging her. Surprise hugged me, while she somehow managed to get the chairs out the way.

“What are you doing here? I mean... how did you find me? Who were you before becoming a pony? Did you know-” She covers my mouth with a hoof and smiles.

“Now Twi, were would be the fun if I just told you everything? I can’t stay long, but, I will give you a clue, Friendship is Magic!”

“What kind of clue is that?” I asked confused, sure is the name of the new pony show, but what it has to do with anything?

“We are gonna watch the show silly! I got the first two seasons on DVD, sure there are more seasons after that, but then it starts to get boring.”

“Okay.” I just sat on the couch and let Surprise prepare things. I have been almost a week living as a pony, actually hiding in the house. Is not not my home, just a house near the beach my parents rented in an attempt to cheer me up. Now you might be wondering, how come I was able to hide the fact that I became a unicorn?

Thing is, I didn’t, we are in the middle of spring, so there aren't many people around here. I was supposed to have a maid to help me around, but I ended firing her before I became a pony. Can you blame me? I hate feeling helpless, and is not like my parents abandoned me, I kind of pushed them away. Before I was a pony I was a sixteen year old girl with emotional problems and who had recently got an accident that left her legs paralyzed, probably for life, can you blame me?

Oh, I had not figured telekinesis yet, but I figured the sticky hooves trick, granted I have just been eaten cereal and milk for five days, but is not like I dare to cook, since I am covered in fur and that makes me quite flammable.

"Okay Twilight, the popcorn will be ready in a few minutes." How the heck can she make popcorn using hooves? Magic? No, I am the unicorn, not her, I am the pony supposed to have magic! "So you want a soda?"

"Yes. So... uh...." I shifted my hooves nervously "Could you at least tell me if you blame me for.... all this?"

The white pegasus looked around, apparently confused "Blame you for what?"

"Becoming a pony."

Surprise looks at me and smiled "No, I don't, I love it!" The happiness and joy that radiates from her face makes me believe her. then her face turns serious "But not everypony might think the same, do you hate it... becoming a pony?"

"No, I am just scared about how my parents and friends will react, but... I can walk!" I jumped out the couch and trotted a bit "And I can use magic!" A few sparks shot out my horn... is the only thing I figured how to do. "Well... I just have to figure how to do magic, but I am a bookworm right? It should not be that hard!"

"Uh... wasn't this Twilight the story reading type of bookworm instead of the studying type?"

"Maybe, but I am still me, I will research, I will experiment, I will figure it out, after all, is magic, how could I not?"

"Cool! The popcorn is ready, let's watch the show!"

I have to admit, I ended liking the show a lot, it might have been made for little girls, but it was well done. Then after we watched the first two seasons, Surprise made me watch them again, this time making commentaries like it was Mystery Science Theater 3000. She even managed to get the voices right! Well, they sounded like female versions of the MST3K cast, but it was still funny.

Of course all that soda and popcorn and watching so much TV left me tired and with a headache. I felt asleep on the couch, and when I woke up, the white pegasus was gone and had left a sticky note on my forehead.

“Sorry Twi, had things to do. See ya later!” the note said. Then I heard noise in the kitchen, I went to look and it was a mess, Surprise was covered in flour and had chocolate smuggles in her face. I noticed my oven was on.

"What did you do? I mean, what are you doing?" And who leaves a goodbye note just to go to the kitchen?

"Oh I am baking a cake!" the pegasus said. They showed a piece of paper in my face.

Chocolate Cake Surprise!

Ingredients

For Cake:

1⁄4 lb black chocolate, melted

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

4 egg yolks

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 1⁄2 cups cake flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1⁄4 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup pecans, chopped

1 cup flaked coconut (optional)

4 egg whites

1 cup sugar

For White chocolate cover
14 ounces white chocolate
1⁄3 cup light corn syrup

For filling
That would be telling!

Melt black chocolate over hot, not boiling water.

Cool slightly and add vanilla.

Cream butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy.

Add black chocolate.

Add egg yolks, one at a time, mixing after each addition.

Sift dry ingredients together and add alternately with buttermilk.

Mix only enough to blend.

Whip egg whites and second cup of sugar to a soft peak.

Gently fold whipped egg whites into chocolate mixture.

Pour into your preferred cake mold.

Bake at 350~ for 40-45 minutes or until done.

Now for the surprise, hollow up the cake and fill it with your favorite cake filling,

I recommend it being something not usually expected in a white chocolate cake but still tasty

and edible.

Remember to add the filling BEFORE you put the cover on the cake or the surprise will be
ruined!

Now for the cover

Melt white chocolate in a double boiler.

Transfer white chocolate to a bowl and stir in syrup.

It will look like the syrup is separating from the mix, but cover it with saran wrap and let sit 24

hours.

After 24 hrs, it will be hard, but knead until smooth. You can put it briefly in the microwave to make it easier to get out of the bowl.

Sometimes lumps have formed, but if you keep kneading you can get these out. Knead a small portion at a time if it's more manageable. If it gets too soft, refrigerate briefly. Do not over work mixture as it becomes oily.

Using a rolling pin, roll out to approximately 1/8 inch thickness onto a nonstick paper like wax paper using powdered sugar or cornstarch to prevent sticking.

Once is ready spread between layers, on top and on sides of cake.

Sprinkle cake with sprinkles or with anything else that you like.

"Okay... weren't you leaving?" I said in annoyance, this mare was so random sometimes!

"I was, but then I decided to bake a cake, Oh I know, I can give you baking lessons!"

I was about to say no, but then, I was tired of just cereal and milk.

"Fine, whatever."

~~*Silly 'ol Surprise*~~

Hi! I used to be boring, but now I am not, my name is Surprise the pegasus prankster but you can call me 'Silly 'ol Surprise' if you want. Did you guys try my cake recipe? Since I woke up like a pony I been doing a lot of things! Sorry I can't tell you guys much but that would ruin the surprise! Now what I can tell... I know! My job as a human was super boring, just pushing a lot of dull buttons all day. Some days I felt really depressed, they had me taking pills so I was not. I... I know this might not be for everypony, but becoming a pony was awesome! Is like all my life all I could see was shades of grey, then all of sudden I saw my first rainbow!

Oh, I got wings, I can fly, just how cool is that? Is very common for humans to have dreams about flying and thanks to Shirley and Bob, those are my wings by the way, I can practically fly all day!

Now bye bye, time for me to keep doing mysterious things so it will be a big surprise later!

"Wait you guys are still here? Nope I don't have any more cake recipes! Shoo!"

Author's Note:

Story by Pinklestia with the collaboration of BreakDown

NOTICE: WE ARE STILL LOOKING FOR BETA READERS FOR THIS STORY!

Comments

[Conflicting views]

So so very interesting so far!

[ferret]

Moondancer is giving me a vibe like this thing.

I really hope Surprise knows what she—or he is doing. She gives me the impression of someone who thinks she's being all mysterious and secret planny, but in the end most of it is a front for a pony who's just as lost as anyone else. But... she can fly, so she really might be the key to getting everypony together, just because she can fly from one to the other quickly if she can find them.

Other weird plants from the pony's world:
Witch Weed - addictive herb that grants magic powers to Catrina (a weed that's created with a machine? oh G1 never change)
This Thing - whose sap is an ingredient to making The Smooze.
These... uh... things... that apparantly have the power to suck the lifeforce out of anything
There's the Moochick's mushrooms. Technically not plants, but eh, take what you can.

Really, not many unusual plants in the MLP show. More often strange creatures.

[Pinklestia]

6931040

Well, Surprise is a lot like Pinkie Pie, only focused on surprises and with a lot less reality warping. She basically abuses her talent to be a ninja. As long as she eventually surprises the target, she can be super sneaky.