The Silver Stars

by David Silver

80 - To the Rescue

The world rapidly changed as they slipped through the here and there. Silver wobbled with nausea, struggling to get used to the sensation of such transportation. Twilight, on the other hoof, shrilly yelped and hopped back.

Silver focused on the object in front of her and cringed. Poor Minso had been victim of a cockatrice at a guess, seeing as she was a statue. "Crap! Uh... Well, we can undo this, right?"

Twilight looked around nervously. "It could still be around here. Wild cockatrices are no joke." Her horn glowed and she hefted up the statue of the human. "Let's get back."

Silver held up a hoof. "One moment. She brought a computer with her, and I don't see it in her hands."

Twilight looked around fearfully. "Make it fast."

Silver began to poke around the underbrush of the thick forest, looking around for the dropped laptop. She spied the black fabric of its case and rushed to it, putting a hoof on it just as a scaly bird's foot reached it. Silver locked up and looked away as quickly as she could, but she could feel an odd stiffness growing in her. "Twilight!"

Twilight put the statue between herself and the creature. "Close your eyes, Silver. That'll slow it down. Get back over here so we can get away..."

Silver snapped her eyes shut and grabbed for the case with her magic before scurrying back to Twilight, stumbling and falling in the darkness of her closed eyes. Twilight shrieked. "Silver! You're holding the cockatrice!"

With a powerful mental fling, she tossed the dangerous bird-reptile away. She dared open her eyes and grabbed the case this time, quickly rushing to Twilight's side. With a blinding flash of light, they were gone and away.

Silver crashed to the floor when she arrived at the castle, unable to hold herself up. Her lower legs had been turned to stone. She whimpered softly and tried to kick, but it was a largely futile effort. "Is this something Zecora can fix?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes, but I have the recipe myself." She set the statue of Minso down beside Silver. "So you two hang out here while I go prepare it. Don't go anywhere."

Silver scowled at Twilight. "Not much choice on that one, sparklebutt."

Twilight rolled her eyes and trotted off, leaving the room to silence. Silver let her magic flow through her body and felt for where the flesh turned to stone. Curiously, she could feel her magic still sluggishly churning through the calcified flesh. The petrification hadn't removed her lower legs from her entirely. Did that mean? "Minso, if you can hear me, we're going to fix you. Sorry for all of this. Equestria will get better, I promise."

Twilight eventually returned with a small pot filled with a goopy green liquid. She dipped a brush into it and began painting Silver's legs. Once it dried and cracked, it fell away to reveal brown fur and living hooves. Silver struggled upright and smiled. "Worked great. Please do Minso. I think she can hear us in there, and being frozen like that has to be horrible."

Twilight made a face. "I've been there once. It's terrible." She turned to the Minso statue and began painting her patiently, getting every bit of stone covered in the green goop. "Hold on. This will get you all fixed in no time at all."

While she worked, Silver asked curiously. "Why did you teleport so suddenly? I thought we were just finding her at first."

Twilight tilted her head a little. "Well, I can only teleport to exact places, and we had her exact place. It's hard to memorize a new specific place, so I wanted to do it while it was in front of me, rather than having to find her again after we prepared." She ruffled her wings a little. "It worked out... mostly. You feel alright?"

Silver smiled gently. "A little stiff, but that's wearing off already. You did good, Twilight, thank you."

The goop settled, then began to crack and flake off. Minso gave a sharp gasp of new breath and her arms burst free of the green shell. "Thank god!" She brushed herself free of flakes as she looked around curiously. "Twilight Sparkle? Silver Stars?" They both nodded at her, smiling. "I didn't expect the first creature I saw in Equestria to be a cockatrice. Thank you for helping me." She reached out to give pettings, which Silver accepted and Twilight shied away from.

Twilight pointed at Minso. "So you helped Silver in the human world? Minso was it?"

Minso nodded. "The one and only in this world I imagine. A pleasure to meet you. So, you really are Princess Twilight Sparkle?"

Silver extended a wing towards Twilight. "Twilight works."

Twilight nodded in agreement. "Welcome to Equestria. So, Silver, you mentioned you had an idea for her?"

Silver paused a moment before clopping her hooves. "Yes! She's a secretary, and a fine one by her description. She has no ties to local politics. I bet Celestia or Luna would be ecstatic to have her."

Twilight shook her head. "Celestia has a secretary she trusts completely."

Silver raised a hoof. "Then Luna it is."

Minso frowned a little. "Do I get a say in this?"

Silver looked towards Minso and shrank a little. "Sorry. I'm getting ahead of myself. I don't want to push you anywhere you don't want to go."

Minso nodded softly. "I wanted to get away from a dead-end secretary job, not find a new one."

Silver gestured vaguely towards Canterlot. "Working for Luna would hardly be the same, would it? Anyway, just an idea. You do not have to follow any advice from me. I'm just glad you're not a statue."

A gasp came from the door. Tumble stood there, gaping at Minso a moment. Twilight gestured for Tumble to come closer. "She doesn't bite. Rough Tumble, meet Minso. Minso, Rough Tumble. Minso is a guest of mine until she decides where she wants to be. Rough Tumble is Silver Star's guard."

Minso nodded at Tumble. "A pleasure, though where were you when Silver Stars was lost on Earth?"

Tumble looked confused. "Uh..."

Silver waved a hoof dismissively. "He didn't know I went and he couldn't have followed. That was a personal journey. Well, you heard Twilight, you're a guest of the castle for now. Do you need any help?"

Minso looked thoughtful before she spied her laptop bag sitting on the map. She moved over to pluck it up. "Thanks for saving this. So, this is Ponyville, yes?"

Twilight nodded. "We're just outside of it. I'll arrange for a small house for you as soon as I can, but you'll need to earn your own bits."

Minso looked to Silver. "Not even Equestria."

Silver perked an ear. "Everyone has to earn a living, even in fantasy worlds. I've done quite a bit of work to get where I am. There's nothing wrong with a little work, but you'll be appreciated here, promise."

Tumble sat down close to Silver. "Fantasy world?"

Twilight answered, "In their world, ours is a made up world, a story." This didn't seem to really answer much for Tumble. "Why don't you take the day to familiarize yourself with things?" Twilight gestured outside. "Just explore, but stay inside Ponyville. I think you've had enough of forests for one day, right?"

"Right." Minso seemed to accept this plan, and moved to depart, soon off to explore Ponyville.

Twilight turned to Silver. "Well, there, your newest female is safe."

Silver bristled at the tone and wording. "She is not mine! I don't even know her, and I'm not interested in her. I tried to have her sent far away." Her ears fell a little. "Do you really trust me that little?"

Twilight let out a soft sigh. "I suppose I am being unfair. I hope she finds something she likes in Ponyville. My castle isn't supposed to be a hotel for lost humans." She reached out and gently poked Silver in the ribs. "Be they two or four-legged. I think two's my reasonable capacity. This reminds me, I really should get back to that..." she moved to wander off, a project clearly in her head.

Silver looked to Tumble when Twilight departed. "How are you feeling?"

Tumble flashed a smile. "No better or worse than this morning."

Silver tapped her chin. "It occurs to me that, despite everything, we never did..." she rolled a hoof. "That. You know... What you wanted to do the first time and I freaked out."

Tumble shuffled awkwardly. "Oh, oh yeah... I guess not."

Silver nodded slowly. "I'm sorry about that. I wasn't ready for it, and I handled it badly. I feel better about things now. Do you want to try again?"

Tumble went red and started to stammer unintelligibly at first before he shook his head. "No."

"No?" Silver tilted her head. "Really?"

Tumble slowly nodded. "No... I... I was wrong. I thought I was attracted to you, the inside you, and I am! But... not that way. You're not..." He shuffled a little more. "You're not... My type."

Silver was about to give him a speech rather similar to what she gave Twilight, but Tumble proceeded right along. "I'm just not that way. I need a stallion's company. I think I found it... Fast makes me feel... so good. Even when he's throwing me around in practice, my heart flutters with his every touch. He... It's so hard to explain. He's kind, and so warm, and... I think I love him. Do you hate me?"

Silver shook her head quickly. "No! Tumble, no... I don't hate you. I... That's great. If Fast wants you back, you should be happy."

Tumble shrank a little. "But I'm supposed to be your guard, not his."

Silver rolled her eyes. "You don't have to rut me to guard me. We're still friends, right?"

Tumble smiled quickly. "Always!"

"Then there is no problem there." Silver reached forward and gently poked Tumble in the chest. "You like stallions, and that's fine. I could, at best, be half a stallion."

Tumble looked confused a moment. "What?"

Silver decided to leave that box closed. "Nevermind. Tell Fast how you feel. He appreciates being up front about things. If he likes you, he'll tell you, and then, uh, I imagine you'll have a good time."

Tumble flushed darkly at the implications. "I'll, uh, do that. Thank you... for understanding. You are a pretty mare, but I'm just... not as open as you are." He sat back. "He makes me feel so good being a guy too. I... feel at home in my body around him."

Silver leaned forward. "You can tell me anything, Tumble. I can... see this is not easy for you to talk about. I'm not here to judge you. You're my friend, and you've more than earned the right to come out to me."

Tumble smiled at that. "Thank you. He makes me feel more like a stallion. Before... I tried to be a mare, to... I think... attract other stallions. He wants me to be me and I feel so alive around him." He pawed at the ground softly with his hooves. "He's the stallion of your herd, isn't he? Why are you letting me... think about courting him?"

Silver shrugged. "Actually less weird than you courting me. There are rituals for borrowing stallions, and you have my permission so long as he wants to be borrowed by you, which I imagine he won't mind at all. I don't think anypony in our herd will begrudge you, as long as you return him."

Fast's voice called out from in front of the castle, "Is Rough Tumble in there? Time for some practice!"

Tumble looked towards the front, then back at Silver. "Gotta go! Thanks again." And off he went, dashing out to Fast's rough but caring embrace.

Author's Note:

Minso is rescued, and Tumble comes out of the closet, take, uh, 10 or so.

Secretaries are natural predators of typos.

Comments

[drone_r0m-3]

I'm liking this new, assertive, Silver. Also, way to go Tumble. Go get your man... err stallion.

[Hard Cider]

roll for initiative!!

[RuneStone]

maybe the typos can be turn to stone by the cockatrice

[Alzrius]

She spied the black fabric of its case and rushed to it, putting a hoof on it just as a scaley bird's foot reached it.

Just as a "scaly" bird's foot reached it.

"I wanted to get away from a dead end secretary job, not find a new one."

A "dead-end" secretary job.

Silver was about to give him a speech rather similar to what he gave Twilight, but Tumble proceeded right along.

A speech rather similar to what "she" gave Twilight.

[David Silver]

5943549 We've turned the typos to stone and ground them to dust.

[Seeking Dusk]

5943520 No, we don't want that. Then they would be set in stone and we'd have to make the cure to get rid of them.

[Istaran]

I am thinking Minso should interview for the job of managing Tumble's trucking company, especially since as a human trucking companies are a very normal thing to her, while other ponies would find them alien. Even if she lacks specific familiarity she should have some cultural osmosis that gives her a good starting point for understanding what is needed. And her secretarial skills should help her be organized. She would need to grow other skills, but sounds like she would want that kind of challenge.

[RuneStone]

5943580 We can use Fluttershy to use the Stare on the typos that will fix them.

[Alzrius]

5943564 To say that I'm disappointed over Tumble and Silver breaking up - if you can call it that - is an understatement. It really feels like, after waiting a very long time for that particular plot thread to be picked up again, we were given a bait-and-switch with how it would resolve. Like "well, we're finally going to put Silver and Tumble together...but not that way. Suckers!" I was ready to be rather upset about this...

...except that I can't, because as much as I don't care for this particular resolution, I can't escape the fact that this particular turn of events is completely true to the characters.

Simply put, for as much as Tumble protested that he was "a Silver cuddler" so recently, the fact is that Tumble is gay. Not a heterosexual mare trapped in a stallion's body, but a homosexual stallion; that he wouldn't be attracted to a now-female Silver is completely understandable. Even Tumble's very recent attempts to be with Silver in that way make sense - Tumble was very forthright about the fact that he's both lonely and trying to find himself. That he would fling himself at pony that he's been carrying a torch for for so long is entirely plausible. Moreover, we've seen him try to adopt a feminine identity (though most of that was "off-camera") in order to try and contextualize his attraction to other stallions in the guise of what Equestria finds acceptable. Neither worked, because whether he likes it or not, that's not who Tumble is.

The truth is, any chance of Silver and Tumble being together ended when Silver accepted that she was a mare. That's sad that it sinks that ship, but it's entirely true to the characters.

There is an addendum here, however, in that Silver can "equip" herself as a stallion if she feels like it. Why she felt the need to keep that a secret from Tumble I don't know, but it made me grit my teeth. So Silver is willing to push a transgressive gender identity on Twilight, but not willing to let Tumble know that there's a way she can possibly appeal to him? I understand her line of thinking here, I really do; it was doubtlessly something along the lines of "he seems to know what he wants, and is happy with it. I don't want to throw a monkey wrench in that." However, line of thinking is patronizing, rather than kind, and is immature on Silver's part - just give Tumble all of the relevant information and let him make the choice. It's not like this herd is in a position to criticize someone falling in love with more than one pony at a time, and sleeping around accordingly.

(Ironically, I doubt that Silver's having stallion parts would do very much for Tumble, all things considered. Tumble is attracted to masculinity, which is more than just a set of genitals - even with those, Silver still looks, and probably acts, like a mare, which might make her good for a fling with Tumble, but isn't going to be all that he wants.)

Having said all of that, I am glad that Tumble's still going to be around, and in all honesty I think that Fast will be good for him. So long as Fast wants to stay male, they're a good match physically, and Fast's relentless optimism and fun-loving spirit are sure to be a balm to Tumble's troubled soul. I do worry that Fast won't come to love Tumble the way that Tumble is clearly falling for him, but on the other hand, Tumble has a lot of pent-up love to give, and it's probably going to come out as a flood of euphoria that he's finally found somepony that he can have a healthy relationship with before he calms down. Luckily, Fast is the sort that can keep up with - and indeed, revel in - that much love being directed at them.

Turning to the other characters showcased in this chapter, I'd say that Minso is in for a rude awakening, but in all honesty it already seems to be happening. Between her petrification and now her moving from her boring old secretary job into...another boring secretary job, she's experiencing firsthand the problem with living in a fantasy world: that the fantasy doesn't hold up to the realities of living. That is, the time between every weekly episode, between every adventure they have, and even between montage scenes, is the tedious, mundane, and sometimes harsh aspects of real life - working a job, managing finances, being bored, etc. That's leaving aside issues of living in a world that doesn't seem to have things like public aid programs or due process. Hopefully she'll find a job quickly.

As for Twilight, I was surprised by the way she snapped at Silver. She honestly seemed jealous, but the emotion is so out of left field that I'm wondering if that's what it really was - that crack about her castle (and the possessive "my" she used was notable) not being a hotel for humans seems to imply that she's getting fed up with dealing with all of the baggage that Silver is carrying. That's understandable - even more than usual, Twilight's life has been one of constant change since Silver showed up, and from the beginning Twilight has made it clear that the attendant chaos isn't something she enjoys, even if she does love Silver and the others. Presumably the potential of another romantic suitor was more than she could stomach, even if it was illusory. For her sake, I hope things settle down soon.

After all, it probably won't be much longer before she has to face the issue of the alicorn sisters joining her herd...and a certain white-furred alicorn in particular.

[David Silver]

5943735 Twilight's feeling a little overwhelmed, it's true, and now that she has feelings for Silver, she kind of wants Silver to stop being a source of additional crazy. She can produce crazy all on her own, thank you all very much. Twilight is an introvert, and she's feeling the effects of being in constant presence of others. A little recharge time would be nice.

Tumble is Tumble. Unlike Silver, he's not giving up bits of his identity to find what he wants. Fast is much closer to what he truly desires, and Silver... isn't. Even if Silver did sprout extras, she'd still be a 'she'. Silver knows that, that's why she didn't bring it up. That's why Silver was OK with Twilight on top before Fast. Twilight was a mare, even with the extra bits. Fast was a full male, and it's not the same.

Even bringing up the halfie option felt cheap to Silver. Tumble wants a stallion, so he should get one, and he already found one even! This is reason to be happy, not to bring up confusing and inferior options. Silver is genuinely happy for Tumble, and will gladly continue to serve as his princess, even if there is no hot sweaty parts involved.

Minso, poor Minso. If you were hoping to be carried along on a wild adventure, you've run into the wrong princess to start. Silver isn't up for subjecting anyone else to what she went through, even if Minso thinks it'd be fun at first. Hopefully she'll find her place without going down such a rough path.

[Istaran]

5943776
Well
Technically Fast Change is also a mare with stallion bits. On the other hand, she has a lot of experience with a fluid gender identity, and is practically a changeling in that sense at least. So I certainly get that Fast is more Stallion than Silver right now.

[Alzrius]

5943820 Calling it a technicality is too small. Silver is a mare in every sense - her build, her scent, and probably even her mannerisms. Fast Change is implied to be able to change all of those things, slipping into a masculine gender completely, in terms of both physicality and personality. That's a lot more than just giving herself stallion bits, which is all Silver can offer.

[David Silver]

5943820
5943834 Fast Change has been a changeling queen before. She/He can be whatever She/He desires, which includes the subtle little bits. They trigger Tumble's needs in a way that Silver couldn't hope to do.

[Istaran]

5943834
It seems weird to me that someone who lived 30 years as a male couldn't manage to slip back to a male personality, but maybe you're right. The other aspects seem like Silver could learn from Fast if she tried, though I can see her lacking the motivation to bother.

The part that is a 'technicality' is Fast's literal identity as a mare. She is a mare, and at no point goes through the sort of deep, fundamental rewriting that Silver went through to switch genders. It was mentioned in a much earlier chapter that she basically just closes off the entryway but still has a womb deep inside and so forth. (Since wombs are apparently Serious Business in Silververse ponyland in a way that other body parts simply are not.)

But it is just a technicality, and one that won't effect Tumble if he isn't told about it, and might not even if he is (once he's had time to process it). Fast is attractive to him, exactly the way (s)he is, regardless of weird internal technicalities.

[David Silver]

5943898 Couldn't, or didn't? Why even start going through all that if Tumble found somepony he likes who enjoys that kind of attention? Silver doesn't need to be the center of everyone's attention, and that's a good thing.

[Istaran]

5943989
Well obviously Silver didn't, and as I think we all agree she is not currently motivated to do so.

Alzrius seemed to be implying that Silver couldn't adopt a masculine personality/mannerisms and such if she wanted to. I disagree with that: I think Silver has to work at being feminine, and is motivated to make that effort. She has current hormones and social pressure working against 30 years as a human and her formative experiences as a pony, and the need to actively learn how to be a mare. But we see her making that effort and making progress chapter after chapter.

If, as a random example, she was in some sticky bind where she needed to play a convincing stallion to get past someone and had a bit of help with the magic to look the part, she should succeed with very little difficulty. But without some sitcom-esque scenario forcing it on her, she lacks the desire to do so.

The scent and some of the other subtle cues would require magic for Silver to change, though, and as you say.. why go through that effort when she has all the mates she wants (pending Luna joining) and she's happy to let Fast meet his needs instead.

[harts fire]

Rough Tumble tell Silver no , this is good as it shows he is being true to his / him self.
now how will fast react when Rough Tumble tell him how he feels?
Minso is free from stone now what?
good chapter good story builder.
Harts Fire

[AuthorGenesis]

Secretaries are natural enemies of typos.

Er, wouldn't editors and grammarists be the real enemy of typos? Or at least arch-enemy/ arch-nemesis?

[David Silver]

6754975 Note that I didn't say arch or 'real' enemy. I said natural. A creature has many natural enemies.

[Cursed Quill]

need to earn your own bits"

bits."

[Luckyfanisaac]

Secretaries are natural predators of typos.

No I think Stenographers are.