The Mundane Adventures Of Tic, Tac, And Toe (Short)
In a fit of childish joy, Bad Dude hopped onto his bed and immediately began to bounce up and down. Once the Bad Dude beside the bed noticed of Bad Dude’s fun activity, he soon climbed up to join him and started bouncing in a rhythm that closely matched his brother’s.
Meanwhile, the Bad Dude spread out on the carpeted floor with his head in a comic book rolled his eyes at the other two frolicking Bad Dudes. “We’re supposed to be keeping a low profile, remember?” he hissed at both of them, in a voice that was very, very different from any normal pony’s. In fact, it sounded closer to a series of harsh snaps and pops than actual words.
Of course, that was because all three Bad Dudes in the room were actually changelings in disguise—allowing the real Bad Dude all the time and space he needed to spring Tirek out of Tartarus alongside his group of likeminded villains.
Honestly, Tic, Tac, and Toe couldn’t have been happier with the task given to them.
Toe’s words did little to put a stop to Tic and Tac’s fun up on the bed. When Tic landed next to Tac, Tac was propelled upwards by the tiniest of degrees. When he landed again, he sent Tic upwards as high as he could; Tic was visibly laughing but no noise was coming out from his mouth.
Without turning to Toe, Tic told him earnestly, “But our pods aren’t this soft and springy! This is way more fun than dusting bookshelves! Admit it!”
Toe sighed on the carpet, then shoved the comic book away from him. He’d been hoping for at least one changeling character important to the plot… even a comedic side-character would’ve been enough, he thought.
Returning Bad Dude’s comic book to its shelf, Toe spotted an art book down below. As carefully as he could, he pried it out and spread the cover open. In his odd changeling voice, he gasped aloud.
“There are drawings of Queen Chrysalis in here!” Toe informed the other two, who immediately stopped bouncing on the bed to come join him. “And she’s not alone!”
Collectively, all three of them inhaled in surprise—which was relatively cute, as all three looked just like Bad Dude at the moment.
“Is that…” Tac began uneasily, “…is that Sombra next to the Queen?”
Tic grimaced. “Could be… but what’s he doing with his mouth so close to hers? Is he trying to extract love from her, you think?”
Toe turned to his brothers. “Should we warn the Queen about Bad Dude’s plans?”
Tac chuckled soundlessly. “Maybe it would be more merciful to warn Sombra, instead.”
All three of them laughed without noise, wiping small tears from their eyes. When they settled down, Tac waved a hoof in the air. “I only kid—I love our Queen.”
“Sweet Glaze? How are you feeling, honey? I thought I heard some noise up here.”
Bad Dude’s mother was outside the door.
At once, Tic, Tac, and Toe's eyes shot open and they scrambled around on the carpet. As Tic attempted to slide under the covers on the bed, Toe roughly pulled him away.
“You already had your turn!” he whispered to him fiercely. “I’m the only one that hasn’t had one yet!”
Sighing angrily, Tic scampered off the bed and joined Tac inside the closet, leaving the door open ajar so they could see inside the room. With both of them gone, Toe hurriedly climbed atop the bed and pulled the covers up to his neck, angling his head to the side on the bed’s extra-large pillow.
He shut his eyes the moment Bad Dude’s mother entered the room.
“Still sleeping?” she asked softly, stepping inside the room to sit on the edge of his bed. She laid the back of her hoof against his forehead. “Such a bad case of strep throat—good thing you came home right away from school and didn’t get any of your other classmates sick.”
Sluggishly, Toe opened his eyes and smiled up at her.
Bad Dude’s mother rubbed at his mane with her hoof. “You’re such a good boy, Sweet Glaze. I don’t think I tell you that enough. Given any thought about what you’d like for your birthday next week, hmm?”
Toe shook his head and pretended to yawn.
Bad Dude’s mother giggled. “What a silly thing to do—asking someone with strep throat a whole bunch of questions… I mean—” She cut her sentence short as she spotted something in the room. She stared in the direction of Bad Dude’s study desk pressed against the wall. “Since when did you have a Crystal Empire snow globe, sweetie? Did one of your classmates get it for you?”
Toe gave a shrug and wrapped his hooves around the leg lightly ruffling his mane. Even from the simple touch, he could taste the nourishing love between Bad Dude’s mother and her son.
“Oh…” Bad Dude’s mother’s voice softened. “And another Sombra toy… didn’t we just go over you playing villains and heroes, Sweet Glaze?”
In response, Toe pulled on her hoof while extending his lower lip. He whimpered as best he could like any normal pony.
Bad Dude’s mother sighed. “Here I go asking questions again. You finish the soup I brought you?” Taking a quick glance at Bad Dude’s bedside table, she must’ve noted that not a single ounce of soup had been removed from the bowl. Changeling’s digestive systems weren’t created for normal food… or not much of it, at least. “Not hungry?”
Toe shook his head against his pillow, before pointing to the large poster tacked above the bed—one of a giant cruller on a plate. Bad Dude hadn’t had been joking when he said it was his favorite donut in the whole, wide world.
Bad Dude’s mother raised a brow. “You want a cruller? Now?”
Toe nodded eagerly. He could still remember how sweet and delicious that nibble of pastry was all those long weeks ago when Bad Dude visited Chrysalis’ hive. Even just looking at the poster above him made him lick at his lips.
Bad Dude’s mother shook her head. “I don’t think so, Sweet Glaze. Not when you’re sick like this.” She thought about that for a moment. “Okay, a few spoonfuls of soup and then I’ll think about it. All right? Sound fair?”
First furrowing his brows, Toe eventually agreed, carefully using his hooves to bring the bowl of soup up to his lips. Slurping up as little of the broth into his mouth as possible, he kept it there without swallowing.
“There’s a good colt,” Bad Dude’s mother told him warmly, scooping him up with her hooves for a hug while rubbing at his back.
Toe’s eyes nearly rolled into the back of his head; it was such sweet ecstasy—the love he tasted at that moment was sweeter than even a whole bowl of strawberries dipped in sugar. As he nuzzled into her neck, he found Tic and Tac glaring at him miserably from the confines of the closet. He stuck out his tongue at them as they continued to fume. They already had their turns.
When Bad Dude’s mother released him, Toe held out his hooves to her in a pleading gesture.
Bad Dude’s mother laughed gently. “Aren’t you just the most affectionate little guy today? Fine, one last kiss and then you better get your rest.”
Before departing the room, she gave him a quick peck on the forehead and pulled his blankets up to his neck. Then she snapped the door shut behind her before trotting back down the hall.
Tic and Tac exited the closet soon after.
“Now what?” Tac asked annoyingly.
Without pause, Toe spit out the bit of soup in his mouth before pointing to the poster of the giant cruller above the bed.
***
One colt sneaking around was hard enough—sneaking around as three identical colts that weren’t supposed to be out of bed proved to be even harder.
“Do you even know where you’re going?” Tic spoke, as they travelled single-file down the hallway outside Bad Dude’s room.
Toe whirled around with a frown. “No, but do you?”
Tic’s silence said enough.
Although all three of them had been inside Bad Dude’s bedroom before (when he wanted to show them some of his toys or interesting random doodads), they’d never ventured any further than that. Outside of Bad Dude’s room was a hallway that led to a downwards staircase. From what they could see, one side of the downstairs area was a type of living and dining room, while the other side opened up into a small functioning bakery and café.
Toe lifted his nose into the air, smelling the robust scent of ground coffee beans and the lighter aroma of sugary and greasy batches of dough. It was clear what direction they had to go—towards the small bakery to the left.
Turning his head, Toe gave a signal to the other two to stay behind while he sneaked down the stairs. By the midway point, he hitched in a breath as Bad Dude’s father—Donut Joe—trotted out from the bakery and sailed into the kitchen on the other side of the stairs, giving a yawn while rubbing at his eyes. He must not have noticed Toe in the slightest, because all three of them could hear him grabbing something from a cabinet.
Toe looked up the stairs again. There’d be no better time than now.
“Let’s move!” he exclaimed, before the three Bad Dude copies scuttled down the stairs before hurrying into the bakery.
Upon entering the open, sunny bakery storefront, they first took notice of the glass display case ahead—perfect so as not to be seen from the costumers on the other side. Next, their greedy, little eyes were directed to what lay inside the display case.
Toe’s mouth flopped open and a drop of saliva fell to the floor.
On serving trays inside were stacks of donuts and pastries of all types, sizes, and designs: apple fritters, wagon wheels, honey dips, chocolate covered rings, long johns, jam filled delights, glazed twists, vanilla donuts with sprinkles, maple bars, parasprite dough balls, coconut topped snowballs, Ursa Minor bear paws… and, of course, a whole mound of fresh, glazed-covered crullers.
With jittery hooves, Toe carefully slid open the door to the display case, reaching up to get a good grip on the tray he’d spotted the crullers on. Yet it soon became clear he was just too short for the job—or Bad Dude was, anyways.
“Quick! Give me a boost!” he asked the other two, who immediately hurried on over to lift him up.
Slowly and painfully, Toe managed to wiggle the tray enough to slide it towards him. Any moment now and he’d be able to grab at them… devour them whole and lick the sugary residue off his hooves… any second now—
“Sweet Glaze?”
Tic and Tac dropped Toe to the floor the moment Donut Joe reentered the bakery. Balanced on one hoof was a cup of coffee he must’ve brought back with him from the kitchen.
All three copies of Bad Dude stared at him as he set down his coffee and blinked a few times, seemingly trying to bring the sight in front of him into focus. When that didn’t seem to do the trick, he instead closed his eyes and rubbed a hoof into each eye socket.
As he opened his eyes again, Donut Joe exhaled in relief. “That was weird! For a moment there, I thought I was almost seeing three of you, Sweet Glaze. Maybe my shop’s coffee is too weak…”
Toe, hidden behind an open bag of flour on the floor, tried his best to remain out of sight. Across the bakery, he could see Tic attempting to do the same, curled up into a ball and tucked away in the bottom part of a shelf full of ingredients bins.
Only Tac remained out in the open—his cheeks burning a bright crimson color.
Donut Joe knelt down to him and placed a hoof on his shoulder. “You snuck out of bed to come get a donut, didn’t you?”
Tac nodded faintly.
“Did your mother say it was okay?”
Tac nodded again, but with less enthusiasm.
Donut Joe chuckled. “Well, whether or not she did, you came quite a long way to get one… so here you go. I know they’re your favorite.” He grabbed a fresh cruller from the open case and hoofed it over to him.
Tac grabbed it with a silent gasp and wrapped himself around Donut Joe’s middle.
Donut Joe patted his head. “It’s all good, sport. You eat your donut, then get back to bed. It makes a stallion proud when his son loves his donuts as much as he does, didn’t you know?”
Tac left the bakery and waited by the foot of the stairs for the other two. Eventually, they managed to slip away when Donut Joe got into a heated argument with a customer about if pie or cake was the greatest dessert of them all. As Donut Joe exclaimed: “That should be easy!”
Shutting Bad Dude’s bedroom door behind them, Toe unveiled the best surprise of all—another two crullers to add to Tac’s lone one, meaning all three of them got one to call their own.
For a moment, they each held the golden donuts above their heads before clinking them together like glasses of champagne. Eight seconds later, all three donuts had been wholly consumed.
Fourteen hours later, Tic, Tac, and Toe were still in bed inside Discord’s flying fortress, all with the worst stomach aches of their lives.
Still, completely worth it.
Something a little different this time around; after two large chapters, a short one sounded nice.
If I ever do this again (short, one-shot like chapters), I'll label it with a "(Short)" so you can skip it if you wish. I doubt they'll have much impact on the larger story.
Hope to have the next regular chapter out soon! 
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The president has been kidnapped by ninjas.
Are you a bad enough dude to rescue him?
Oh dear, Bad Dude's adorableness is contagious, it seems to have affected Tic, Tac, & Toe, and now my heart feels like, HHHHNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGG
Oh god, that was adorable!
More Tic Tac Toe goodness!
Best Lings.
Best Donuts
Best Story
lol
A wonderful side story--looking forward to the Future Adventures of Tic, Tac, and Toe!
Me thinks they'll eventually have to impersonate Bad Dude at school so he can do some truly evil deeds and still have an alibi.
i must not give in to the adorable....hnnnngggg too cute
Bad Dude is adorable!
Does anyone else think they are a changeling version of the former cutiemark crusaders but in being adorable as bad dude?
6904945 The male and changeling versions of the CMC. I can dig it.
I would love to see shorts like this again! I have to really think to find bad things to say about this story. Also, am I the only one who thinks Tirek will betray the group?
6904963 Instead of cutiemarks they seek to be adorable and get crullers, though it would be funny if they ask their queen to adopt Bad Dude. XD
Bad Dude needs to have full body pictures of himself in every cute poise with every cute line of dialogue and every cute look when he's older. Changelings are going to be the best army ever!
6904727 Tell me where to go, sir.
6904981 Yes.
But did you decide which Heroes organization name to use?
Awwwww *huggles Tic,Tac, and Toe* cutest little changelings ever! I loved this little short. Always nice when we get to see the POV of some side characters.
Wonder what their mother had to say about their eating habits
That was really nice.
Now I just want a cruller.
6904852 Truly evil deeds... like PLAYING HOOKY?
Than which no crime could be viler!
6905057 he'll need to be prepared for cardio arrest then
I see Bad Dude having to give lessons on how to be him. Unfortunately I can see Discord having him do it in a grizzled veteran persona. A bit like this:
EDIT: Speaking as a horsey person, can horses get Strep Throat? I think the closest thing that they can get is Strangles.
I have no problems with these shorts. While I will like more Tic Tac Toe stories this will also be great opportunity to have short stories centered the villains while Bad Dude is not with them. What wacky things go on with four major villains in a flying fortress while their leader is at school or home?
It's nice to see what the three changelings were doing in the story. I was like, "I wonder what the changelings are up to?" when one of the previous chapters mentioned about how Tic, Tac, and Toe were taking Bad Dude's spot for a while.
Uh oh
Yay, backstory!
6907364
I guess so, eh?
6906528 I thought it only made sense for Donut Joe to be the father of the donut obsessed child.
6906137 Originally I was going to cut back and forth between the two stories (Tartarus and this), but thought that would only detract from the main story line. So... you get this instead.
6906094 Yeah, you could have shorts from all POVs, really. Even the good guys if this story goes on long enough.
6906008 I hope Strangles in a real ailment and not just "strangling" sick horses or something.
6905940 I want a lot of donuts after this chapter. Thankfully there's a Tim Hortons only sixty seconds from my house.
6905900 Thank you!
6905843 "You all deserve to get sick! Eating a whole donut each!"
6905819 Thanks!
Glad you liked something a little different than the norm.
6905764 Nope. That'll be a last minute-type decision.
6905151
6904981 Thank you!
But why would you want to find things wrong with the story to begin with? 
6904945 I never thought about it that way, but that is completely true.
6904912 Resistance is futile. Give in to the HNNNNNGGGG!
6904852 Having a solid alibi is always a great thing to have.
6904816 You're mad there was no Sombra in this chapter, aren't you?
6904784 I don't know, man. Apple fritters are pretty good, too.
6904765 Thanks for saying so!
6907498 'cause I have a sibling who hates it, and he keeps badmouthing it, so at one point I asked him: "Tell me ONE thing that makes this story unreadable." And he couldn't even come up with anything to prove his point. That just got me thinking, is all.
6907477
It's somewhere between tonsillitis and glandular fever, only much more unpleasant.
Imagine a fever, lymph nodes which have swollen so much that in the worst cases they can actually asphixiate the horse, and huge supporating pustules around the top of the neck.
They never mention that when you watch The Horse Of The Year Show (tiny sentient disproportionately built division) do they? Being a horsey person can be fun.
6907656 I'll make sure to include all those details next chapter... to the joy of no one.
Just kidding. Thanks for the info! ("The more you know" clip here.)
6907579 Then tell him to stop reading it or stop talking about it with him.
Do I need to create a character based on him or something? 
6907813 Oh no, he quit reading at the Fortress chapter! He hasn't even been reading it recently and he still badmouths it...He's kind of a brat.
As if! These three are just as cute as Bad Dude, it would be a crime to skip their moment in the spotlight.
It seems like changelings would make the perfect pet. They're obedient, affectionate, low maintenance (if they don't eat, then they don't need a litter box either) and highly customizable. Maybe you could even teach them to use a fierce-looking disguise to scare away burglars.
I love this, but now the changeling trio need their own spinoff
6907498 See, you'd could wait until the last minute or you could choose Villainy Interdiction Loving Equines.
6907507 there was one in the book.
6907507 and the picture seems kinda tame ( the one of BDs drawings).
a little...
6907364 *calls from the void* Stop putting these things in my house!!!
6908131 If someone wants to write it, they can go right ahead.
I can imagine the three of them running around town disguised as other ponies, always in the search of more love. Something between a Looney Tunes cartoon and a Three Stooges routine. 
(Toe is Moe, btw.)
Aw! That was so cute! Seems like Bad Dude's adorableness has infected the changeling trio as well.
Donut Joe is Bad Dude's dad? I knew it!
I much prefer Apple Fritters, but Crullers aren't bad either.
*huggles the three lings* So cute!
I love CHangelings, they're so cute~
Nicely done!
6909427
Sign me up to watch for this!