A Penny for your thought

by Damaged

18 - Stick in the mud

What had been a slow amble from the station earlier was now a gallop! Our hooves flew as we wove and darted around people. Stick cheated, flying over some ponies but winning really didn't matter. What was the best thing about it, nopony cursed at us, some laughed and pointed with hooves, most tried to get out of our way but everypony saw it for the good-natured fun it was.

Panting hard as I reached the station, I saw a Rainbow Dash-looking mare, leaning against the ticket booth. The changeling cutie mark on her flank gave Stick away and she flickered her shape back to normal and I bounded over. "You win, so you get a kiss!" I leaned in and got her cheek.

"Need to get you learning some spells, I hear some ponies can work actual shape changes on themselves." Stick accepted her prize and chittered softly. "Two tickets to the Crystal Empire please!" She addressed the ticket pony who looked a little surprised to see us.

"Two tickets. Back of train. You two have a good trip!"

I took mine from him and Stick moved in to walk side by side. "Train is boarding now, I checked. Doesn't leave for a little bit yet, lets grab you something to eat." I wondered if she could tell when I was hungry then it hit me. She always walked so close, touching, She probably felt my belly rumble.

"Alright, but only if my marefriend feeds it to me." I raised my snout and looked sideways at her from the bottom of one eye.

It was the darnedest thing. A hotdog vendor, selling boiled carrot-dogs, with a choice of extras. "Two please!" Stick bounced over and I was astounded at how happy she got to just take care of me. It made me blush a little. "What do you want on them?" I blinked, having gotten distracted.

"Uh, hayfries, onion and sour cream?" My eyes had caught his sign and the unicorn-vendor nodded, applying the requested condiments. The toppings were familiar but the carrot would be different.

"Here we are, little fillies." Stick and I both blushed and clopped a hoof each on the platform at the compliment given with the food.

"Thank you!" We said together, the two dogs in Stick's green magic, hovering to the side.

"Now, lets get our seats and I will see how messy I can make your face with these things."

We found the train and, moving down it found the last carriage mostly empty. Getting comfortable and even lifting free my bags, I knew that Stick was eager to play a little and, I couldn't help it, I wanted to as well.

"Now, open up." One of the dogs approached me and I obediently opened my mouth up, but not quite enough to fit the bun and the toppings. Some of the cream pressed to the dark fur at my nose and Stick tsked with a little chitter. Leaning in, she kissed and licked the little spot of white away. "There, now can you not be a messy little filly with the next bite?"

I blushed and tried to open my mouth as wide as I could. Stick, however, was adamant about making sure each mouthful made a little mess she had to 'clean'. The hot flush wasn't embarrassment, to be certain I barely noticed anypony else was there. It was just being this close, emotionally, to Stick or anyone, was a very new experience.

"Now that is an odd expression for you to have after I have filled your belly." Stick had, of course, noticed my introspection.

"You're my first." I blushed even worse at my poor choice of words. "Marefriend, I mean, I…" She giggled and kissed my nose.

Staring with wide eyes at her, at how she seemed to look at me with every intention of making me as happy as she possibly could, I knew there was one not so altruistic side to it. She was a changeling, if I wasn't happy she wasn't fed. But that was horribly superficial. I closed my eyes, I pictured an empty world, with nothing. "What are you…" Stick began to ask, sensing my sudden shift in emotion. Then I added Stick to the void. "Ohhh…" I leaned up, to where I remembered her lips were.

"Love you, Stick." I kissed my marefriend, keeping just that image in my head, even as one of her legs curled around my shoulder and held me close, letting us kiss more surely.

"Uh, ahem. Tickets." A blushing stallion was looking at us. The train was moving and we hadn't even noticed.

Stick produced her own out of what seemed to be thin air, I had to root around in my bag before I had mine out.

"Thanks." I said as he used a stamp to snip the corner off mine and hoof it back to me.

The gesture made the stallion grin. "Not a problem." He moved off down the car.

"You said it again. Keep saying it and I think I could possibly swoon for you." Stick had tucked her own stub away and turned back.

I didn't blush but the thought that her words inspired made me feel light as a feather. We both leaned a little, toward the window. With quiet nips and nuzzles we watched Canterlot fade along with the warm weather as green was replaced by some cliffs, mountains and rock faces.

The whistle of the train blew, startling not only us but the two other ponies in the carriage. At the front-end, the two earth ponies got up and moved on through to the next car in the train, leaving us alone. "What do you think is-" Stick started to ask as the train jolted, spilling us over to land sprawled on the floor.

We could hear something on the roof of the train and I knew something was up.

The howl of some creature tipped us off to them being canines of some sort, but in this magical realm that wasn't quite as useful as I would have hoped. There was another jolt and a sense of slowing down.

"They separated us from the train!" Stick had dashed to the front of the carriage just as one of the big diamond dogs came in the back.

"Arro, look what we 'ave 'ere!" His face fell as he squinted his eyes around. "Only two, w'ats dis?"

His club was swinging down for my head and even as I started to duck I knew I wouldn't be able to dodge it. My eyes fixed on Stick as she bared her fangs. My reaction was to flash as much magic as I could, clamping down so not a jot reached my horn.

Pain exploded and my vision flashed with stars. I staggered and started to fall down once more. The fight in front of me played out almost as jerky as stop motion animation. Stick's mouth opened and I think she called my name, but soon it grit back closed, fangs on display as green flame roared over her.

Talons extended from her hooves, her wings grew blades on each edge and her horn a jagged leading edge. I cried a moment, to see what she had done to herself as she charged the big canine. The club was dodged, barely, but claws and fangs descended on Stick only to find little purchase on her shell.

She was practically a moving ball of sharpness, fur and blood soon coated her but, though the beast had tried to bleed her in response I could see no ichor at all.

Stick was as suddenly at my side, the diamond dog hadn't even hit the floor than she was trying to lift me, her form leaving me with small scratches and cuts too. She chittered something most un-Stick-like and instead hefted me up with magic.

I smiled at her drunkenly.

"Oi, one of 'em killed da boss!" I found myself floating back down to a soft cushion as Stick moved for the open door. I saw more fire spread over her, spines growing around her back hooves and from the green lengths of her tail.

I tried to channel more energy for her but this out of it my magic felt like I was trying to squeeze honey through the eye of a needle. There were yelps, snarls and a few loud thumps as the battle was joined outside. The hissing and chittering was just as loud and, as sounds of struggle lessened, were thankfully more prevalent.

Stick staggered back in, there were some patches of green on her dark shell now, something had penetrated her shell.

We must have laid there for a few minutes, although it wasn't quite that easy to work out the passage of time. Stick had managed to flicker herself back to her less deadly-to-hug self and I managed to sit up and pull myself along the floor to her. "You… you okay?" My words slurred a little still and Stick leaned up and nosed me.

There was blood on her fangs.

The sound of hooves hitting the roof of the carriage startled us both and we looked up. "Only four of them?" A stallion's voice demanded.

"Four, all dead, torn up." Another replied. "Check in the car."

It wasn't Princess Celestia's wonderbolts, of course, but it was a group of militant-looking pegasi. "Two in here, both look injured." Hooves approached and a mare leaned down, inspecting Stick first. "One is a changeling, looks like they did most of the fighting. Other," they turned to me and peered in my eyes a moment, using their hoof in an odd way to pin my eyelids open, "concussion, head wound."

"Help Stick…" I turned to look at her, she was breathing but seemed out of it completely.

Another two pegasi came in, unfolding what looked like a stretcher. "That little thing did all that?" One stopped in shock, having obviously seen the three dogs outside and now witnessing the 'leader's wounds.

"She. She saved me." I winced and managed to get my hooves under me with sheer force of will alone. Walking over, one hoof in front of the other, I leaned down and ended up flopping beside her.

"Sorry to say, we don't know what to do for her. Never had any changelings that needed… a doctor." One of the ponies, a mark of a bandaged hoof on their flank, sounded upset at this deficiency.

"Can you stop this headache?" The leaned over me and nodded. "Do it then, I think I can help her." Nothing mattered, nothing in all Equestria. Nothing but Stick.

Rooting around in their oversized saddlebags, the doctor shrugged. "Normally another engine comes along and pushes any decoupled cars. Maybe a few hours?" He pulled out a needle and brought it to my flank. The prick helped me focus a little and after a warm flush there I started feeling much clearer of mind. "Safe to do magic?"

The medic rolled a hoof and I shrugged. Closing off that valve to my horn, I slowly started to feed magic out. But I quickly knew the problem. Fear was my primary emotion. I sat back, keeping the small flow going. I pushed the few aches still in my body away, pushed away the other ponies asking me what I was doing. Pushed out everything and then, at last, pulled Stick in. She smiled up at me, in my mind. She was whole and safe and perfect. My magic leaked, now, through the love I held for my marefriend. Of being fed by her, of relaxing in the spa with her cuddled close. Of the look in her eyes when I did just what I was doing now.

I felt a slight tug, then a pull. It was only on my magic right now but hooves grabbed me and I was in a tight grip. Fangs rubbed my throat and there was a guttural hiss.

She didn't bite, not at my neck, but the out-of-her-mind-with-hunger changeling bit at the core of me. Tears came from my eyes but this was Stick. My Stick. She didn't rip and tear like the other changeling had, she was very certainly in control of me as she fed though. She fed on my love of her, on how gentle she could be right up to how strong she was now. It was a heady mix and I smiled.

I kept slowly letting my magic flow, it wasn't as draining as having a changeling really feed, since it was supported by my magic, but as it went on and on I was aware of a lethargy that was setting in. "Stick… Stick please." When I tried to draw back from her she did press her fangs against my flesh. "Stick?"

The first prick of her fang breaking skin, of a trickle of blood that, when it touched her mouth, snapped her from the instinctive state. "Penny?" Her grip wasn't tight and controlling, it was supportive now and I smiled. My Stick was back.

"Are you… what…" the medic was quite confused, not really understanding what had happened. I grinned, not stopping my channeling. It was just like making light, really, but instead of light in my horn I made light in Stick. I giggled a little drunkenly. Maybe I should stop? I did.

"ToldyaI'dgetherback." My words fell together and I closed my eyes, just for a moment.

Author's Note:

I was writing away, having a good time. Then my playlist changed to Rollins Band. Henry told me that life was nothing without experience, then the train shuddered.

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Comments

[Daremo]

amble from - amble to
control me - control of me
*****
Sweet, that's the word that keeps coming to mind. The sweetness of first love, of trust given freely and rewarded in kind, of kindness and affection. Not even the life and death struggle dull the warm fuzzies. I like it!

[Damaged]

6851941 In regards to the first one, it was in reference to when they had just left the station and taken their time to walk through the city.

Thanks though, please don't stop reporting them :)

[Fresnor]

Well there's a wasted pun chance if they ever meet Maud now.

[Damaged]

6852263 Oh don't worry, there is a great one coming up ;)

[Fresnor]

6852297 Something about a silver penny?

[No one is home]

Stick - You dare touch my waifu? I am DEATH!

[Cursed Quill]

"Help stick…"

Stick

[Chrome Masquerade]

Talons extended from her hooves, her wings grew blades on each edge and her horn a jagged leading edge. I cried a moment, to see what she had done to herself as she charged the big canine. The club was dodged, barely, but claws and fangs descended on Stick only to find little purchase on her shell.

Temporary class change: Warrior