Twilight And The Chip
“But where are you going? I can’t help if you won’t tell me!” yelled Sweet Strokes, trying to keep up with a particularly panicked Redberry.
”I'm late! I'm late!” the stallion kept chanting, trotting frantically through the sleepy crowd moseying along. “It’s a very important date! I’m meeting a friend I haven’t seen in ages!”
“Date? But where?” repeated the breathless mare. The news slightly shook her, but it was expected that such a stallion would already be taken. I should quit while I’m ahead, she sighed to herself, catching up to Redberry on a crossroad. “I know this part of Canterlot like the back of my wings. If you’re really late just tell me where you’re going and we’ll take a short-cut!”
“Uhh, uhh,” stuttered Chip, his eyes darting around, looking for landmarks. He knew he remembered the map right, but for some reason he couldn’t focus and felt an urgent need to simply keep running until he eventually found the place. “It’s the ‘True Brew Café’. And I’ll be late,” he moaned.
The cafe was actually quite close from what Sweet Strokes could remember. It wasn’t really a place she could afford normally, but she had plenty of customers invite her for a strong black before they got down to business.
She could let him stay there and run around a little bit. He’d eventually give up and then she could cheer him up a bit, spend a nice afternoon...
Or, you know, you could act like a normal pony being and not a bitch for once. I mean, he looks like he’s going to cry if he doesn’t make it. Is that how Sweet Strokes shows gratitude? she scolded herself, coming in closer to Redberry and tapping him with a wing. After all, he did say ‘friend’, not ‘marefriend’. Everything is fair game as long as there’s no ring on it.
“Actually, Redberry, it’s quite close,” she said in a soothing voice. She couldn’t help but return the smile his face suddenly burst into. “It’s down that waaaaayy,” she managed, being swept off her hooves by the stallion diving under her and running down the road. She tried to protest, flailing around on his back, but it seemed that Redberry Express stopped for nopony.
* * *
Twlight was nervously twisting the coffee cup on its saucer, subconsciously trying to align it with the utensils she already positioned around her little brunch set. She still didn’t touch the delicious smelling apple pie, her stomach in a knot from the tension. It was nearing one in the afternoon, and she wasn’t even certain she’d recognise the stallion Chip was disguised as. She carefully regarded every customer coming in and out, like a hawk looking for prey. Or a really nervous filly that agreed to meet in an informal, almost date-like manner with an old fiend she had mixed feelings for.
For a second she thought she saw him, but the red-coated stallion that burst through the door was...carrying a pegasus on his back? He looked around frantically and stopped on her. She could see his eyes go wide and…it was him. Something told her that was Chip. What did he do to the other pony though?
Twilight carefully observed the changeling as he casually strolled to the counter where the barista, a friendly and well mannered unicorn by the name of Frothy Brew, was preparing a drink for another patron. The two exchanged some words, Chip obviously struggling to choose something, judging by his head cocking back and forth and Frothy’s smile slowly fading in favor of a slight frown.
Finally, the mare, as Twilight noticed with slight concern, helped him by saying something, the barista sighing and giving a thankful smile. She was quite good looking, even with the mess her mane was in. What struck the librarian as both odd an irritating was the way she glanced at Chip from time to time, as if she was expecting something of him. Who was she anyway? The changeling never mentioned a mare in his letters, unless he was keeping her a secret. But why? As far as she knew, with her source being her BBBFF who had no choice but to yield to her constant nagging, there were hardly any mares in the current batch of recruits, and Chip wasn’t allowed to roam Canterlot up till yesterday…
Her musings were interrupted by the shapeshifter finally getting his drink and turning around, shamelessly looking at Twilight with a smiling face. The pegasus followed him with a cup of her own and a piece of what looked like cherry pie.
“Is this seat free?” asked the stallion, sitting his rump across Twilight without bothering to wait for an answer. “Hello. I’m Redberry and this is Sweet Strokes,” he blurted out. “How are you today?”
* * *
Chip tried his hardest to follow the scenario Shining Armor told him to play out. He was to ask nicely to sit with Twilight and pretend they didn’t know each other, just exchanging a few pleasantries two strangers would in a nice cafe.
It was impossible. His heart was racing and he felt joy like none other just at the mere sight of Twilight. She looked just as he had remembered her - a purple unicorn with a streaked, nicely groomed mane and tail. She wafted of so many emotions he felt overwhelmed, unable to contain his excitement. He just wanted to drop the disguise and hug the mare, even if it meant shoving the table aside and making others stare.
“Uhh, hiii,” finally replied Twilight, grinning sheepishly. “I-I’m Twilight Sparkle. Yes, uh, um, I’m fine. And how are you? I see you’re enjoying a...nice day with your...heh.”
“I’m good too, thank you for asking,” replied Chip, slightly bouncing in his seat. “Me and Sweet Strokes were just looking for a place to grab some late breakfast.” He turned to the pegasus, giving her a wide grin. “We rented a room in a hostel you see, and we stayed up all night having fun!”
The sudden change in mood at the table hit his senses like a wrecking ball. He sensed just a little bit of tension and insecurity under the blanket of happiness before, but now it felt like a torrent of dread, anger and confusion suddenly erupted from Twilight. Sweet on the other hand wafted of embarrassment and pride, tinted with a healthy dose of joy.
“Uh, heh, yeah, that’s, uh...” mumbled Twilight, shifting on her hooves.
“You alright?” asked Chip, reaching out with a hoof. She backed away slightly.
“Y-Yeah. Sorry.”
* * *
The rest of the ‘date’ was rather short and silent. Chip tried hooking Twilight with a conversation starter, but for some reason the mare just backed out of it every single time. She excused herself before she even finished her pie, leaving a trail of confusion and doubt in her wake.
“So, who was she anyway? You said you were friends, yet you both acted like you didn’t know each other,” asked Sweet Strokes, eying the stallion curiously.
“Uh. Um.” He didn’t think this through. Taking Sweet meant that there was another witness to the meeting, a pony who could shoot down the ‘we never met before, he’s a stranger’ safety net woven for Twilight’s sake. “I don’t know her?” tried Chip.
Sweet raised an eyebrow. She wanted to call the stallion out on his weird behavior, but decided to not press any further. There were things that some ponies didn’t feel the need to talk about.
“Sorry. Think I should go now,” said Redberry, picking himself up and starting to leave.
“What about me?” asked Sweet, reaching out a wing to him.
“Oh. Um. What about you?”
Funny, really. What had she been hoping to achieve? She met a client who was nice to her for a night. She refused to take any money from him, her stupid conscience telling her that it would be wrong to have the sweetheart pay her sixty bits for him massaging her and listening to her ramblings. She should have called it a good day and kept looking for other clients to fill her empty wallet.
And now she wound up being the mare who was supposed to have his friend be jealous over. Granted, she did follow him willingly, she sat her stupid ass and let him do the talking. She wanted to gauge the competition, see if she had a shot at the stallion who seemed like a really good catch, all things considered.
Turned out the colt was only nice as long as he needed her. It was nothing new, really. She knew the scenario by heart, she went through the routine a hundred times. Granted, this particular play was very elaborate, fresh, authentic. The stallion would get top score for the acting. And she’d just clap her hooves, slowly, biting back all the hurt.
“Nevermind, sorry. Thanks for the coffee and pie. Bye,” she finally said, standing up and moving past the stallion, careful as to not even brush against him. It took all her self-control to keep a steady pace and not turn around and look at him one last time.
* * *
Twilight kept strolling around Canterlot. Her head was a mess, and she didn’t like it.
“Chip was undercover,” she muttered to herself, “he was playing. He crafted an elaborate and believable story. He had an alibi by spending a night with...”
Did he really spend a night with her? Maybe she was an actress? She looked too well groomed to be a...an escort. If that was the case, why in Tartarus did Twilight feel so hurt?!
“Does he even understand what it means? Can changelings really have...”
She felt sick and her legs began to wobble, so much in fact that she had to sit on a nearby bench and breathe deeply.
“Just a ruse. It wasn’t true. We are friends, he’d tell me if...if...”
Would he? He was a changeling. Their race was deceptive, born masters of cloak and dagger. But was Chip like that?
“No. He’s a good friend. He was just trying too hard. And...and...”
Why did it hurt? It was illogical to react like this. She was looking forward to the meeting so much she rehearsed every single topic she wanted to talk about, arranging them by how important and inconspicuous they were.
“He showed up, he talked to me. And I got hung up on a perfectly reasonable alibi?”
She lost the opportunity to get together with a friend she really liked. She had several dreams about the moment they’d finally meet again, and now that it happened, she let something insignificant like that ruin it for her?
“He’s childish, Twilight. He doesn’t think like a pony. He doesn’t understand. He wasn’t being mean or inconsiderate. He was just being...himself.”
Twilight was an idiot. She couldn’t ask him straight up who she was, that would break his cover. But she trusted him, at least she should have. He never betrayed her. He came close, very close, and never took a step back. It was she and her stupid emotions that got in the way!
“I have to go back!” she gasped, jumping back on all fours and trotting as fast as she could towards the True Brew Café.
* * *
Chip sat at his table, unable to understand what just happened.
The mares just left him at the cafe, both apparently hurt. What did he do now?
“You okay there, sir?”
The changeling shook himself and looked at a lightly-pink coated unicorn staring at him. She wore an apron just like the barista, smiling at Chip.
“Huh? Yeah,” muttered the changeling, observing as she cleaned up his table of Twilight’s coffee and pie.
“Your friends seemed pretty upset. Something happen?” she inquired, levitating over a cloth rag.
“Beats me. I don’t understand mares.”
The unicorn offered a small smile and nod, finishing her cleaning and trotting towards another table.
“Talking to Butterscotch was a lot easier,” grumbled Chip, suspiciously sniffing the now cold black brew in front of him.
* * *
Sweet Strokes just wanted to go back to her part of town and carry on with her life. Still, she lingered in the side alley near the cafe, biting her lip.
“So yeah, a stallion comes up, sweeps you off your feet, literally, and now you want more?” she hissed to herself, angrily bucking at the wall she was leaning against. “Sugar, how long have you been living this life now? You ain’t a filly no more, no knight in shining armor gonna stroll down your lane and help you get back up on your hooves. You wanna get somewhere, you gotta work for it. Save up money and move out, look for a proper job.”
She looked back at her cutie mark, a small blue bath-towel. She was always good with her hooves, and the courses she partook in while in Canterlot were really something she enjoyed. She was a natural when it came to hitting just the right spots, loosening up cramps and drawing out pleasured groans from customers. The teachers said she was a natural and that her name fit her well, that she’d have a bright future in the spa industry.
Cruel fate decided to give her name a different meaning. She wanted too much too fast, taking up loans from wherever she could to have her own business. Maybe it would have worked, she could have been a happy massagist, have a husband and kids like any normal mare and enjoy her life. Instead, she was left with a failed start-up, tons of bits to pay off to shady characters and trust broken by the pony she hired to handle her finances. The guards never caught him and she was added to the already long list of conned mares. He took not only her small fortune, but also all her dreams.
Canterlot wasn’t exactly a city in which you could trip up like that. You either fended for yourself or...well, you did what she did now - choke back tears while leaning against a wall, scolding yourself for letting old dreams get to you.
“You know what?” she said to herself, wiping her face with a forehoof. “You should go back. You should tell that colt what you think of his mother and demand an apology for playing you like that. You’re a strong mare. You put up with enough shit as it is. You can’t have just any stallion waltzing in and tricking you with feigned innocence and chivalry You go back there, tell him what a bag of cerberus dung he is and make him explain everything to that other mare. Make him apologize his mouth off.”
With her ears pinned to the back of her head, she boldly strutted around the corner, noticing the purple unicorn from before trotting over, out of breath.
“Perfect,” she snickered, smiling.
* * *
Chip decided that he wasn’t at fault. He analized every single thing he said - all of it was true, and very conveniently so. He didn’t use harsh words, he was respectful and very careful to not do or say anything that would embarrass a pony.
“What happened then?” he sighed, picking himself up and dragging his feet towards the exit. Lucky for him, he decided to glance through the wide side window, where a pair of mares he apparently offended were talking.
Urgently, the stallion exited the cafe, ignoring the unicorn waitress who was asking him something.
“So nothing happened?” he heard Twilight say.
“No. We just spent the night talking and...massaging each other. I swear. If I’d known he had a marefriend, I wouldn’t even touch him with a ten foot pole,” said Sweet, puffing out her chest and stomping a hind hoof for emphasis.
“M-Marefriend?” stuttered Twilight, blushing slightly. “B-But I-I d-d-don’t even k-know him!”
“Oh jeez, just stop it with the charades already, okay? I can tell by the way you looked at him and me,” irritably huffed Strokes. “Seriously, if there’s anypony you wanna be mad at-”
Sweet paused, noticing Redberry shuffle closer with a small grin.
The shapeshifter stopped as another emotional bomb-shell struck him, this time hurt anger flung his way.
“-it is that trash!” finished Strokes.
The last thing Chip saw was Sweet nimbly whipping her hind hooves around and rearing up for a buck. He could dodge it, flex his way out of it. Still, he remembered that violence was one of the many keys that ponies used to unlock their frustrations and let all the bad blood flow out. It didn’t feel right to hit a mare, so he’d just take it like a real stallion, straight to the face.
He heard a shattering sound right before his consciousness decided it would be better off taking a break.
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4883004
Yay, thank you heretic scum
Yep, that turned out just about how I was expecting it to. Good to see that Chip is still in to form.
4884274
Honesty to a fault causes health hazards.
I'll roll a d20 for damage at home
That looked like it hurt.
4884277
Only a d20? I guess he's just lucky that Sweet didn't take Improved Unarmed Strike.
4884341
I was trying to be considerate to Chip
We can just go with a d100 then and have him lose an eye, for example
damn
Did his disguise just break? I wonder if Twilight knows any memory wipe spells.
4884352
Hmmmm........as awesome as eye patches are, I think Chip is better off without one. He looks badass enough already
4884412
Knowing him, he'd stick something in the socket for shits n giggles anyway
Chip with magic 8 ball
aharon.varady.net/omphalos/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/hugh-drone1.jpg
4884562
You win my internet. Take it
I sincerely hope he goes back to talk to Sweet Strokes.:(
Hmmm.... bet when he wakes up, he speaks with Twilight about what happened, and she helps him realize that he seemed to infer to Sweet Strokes that he was just tossing her away, like trash. Using her, then throwing her away.... reminding him of how his mother did to the other Changelings, and horrified at the resemblance, he feels conflicted about wanting to correct his mistake and going to appologize. Realizing how conflicted he is, Twilight lets him go.
Then, in trying to fix it, he accidentally lets slip: "I'm sorry. I'm just not used to interacting with ponies." ... and she notices he doesn't say 'other' ponies. And his guilt is enough that he decides: "C-Can.... can you keep a secret?" One private meeting later, and she learns just why he is not used to ponies. She wanted something beyond the life that she's been forced into... welp, she certainly asked for it, and now, she'll wish she hadn't, eh? Despite the potential meeting with Chip. XD
At least, that's a scenario I thought up after this chapter.^_^ What can I say? Your great fic greatly inspires my imagination.^_^
4884680
You have no idea how honored I feel 
4884653
You liking it is a treat in itself, but actually inspiring?
Thank you
4884714 Just being honest. I just sincerely hope that Sweet Strokes not only gets appologized to soon, but that she gets more involved as well. The more you show of her, the more feels are felt, it seems.^_^
Well, whatever happens next... "Chip, you got some splanin to do!"
Also, I think that Chip is goin to wake up to see Twilight standing horrified over a sizzling crater that was once Sweet Strokes.
LITERALLY saw this in my updates thing. Went, "Yay! " Saw the title. Facedesked. PLEASE tell me you didn't name it after Beauty and the Beast.
Frothy Brew. ... I wonder if anyone's going to confess anything here...
but now it?
sat ON her stupid ass... no offense. (none taken)
*notes the author's note*
.. Ah, so you DO know of that miniseries. Quite a fun story world he's crafted. :D
4885017
Don't judge me, I'm having a Disney week apparently
Also thanks for pointing out the error!
4884825
Twily twily, what did we say about incinerating hookers, huh? This ain't GTA
4885141 JUDGING JUDGING JUDGING!
stream1.gifsoup.com/view/148207/horse-kick-o.gif
Damn, she got a good kick
4885243
This is more accurate:
media0.giphy.com/media/CatCCFZa6U8nK/giphy.gif
4885238
onelyfe.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/tumblr_lugga0VDrx1qmbewio1_500.jpg
4885256
i10.photobucket.com/albums/a104/raven_crow/kombat-kick_zps54fd307d.gif
Has someone been reading my psych evaluation again or something, this is weirdly familiar.
Also, with the double kick to the head, as a kid, my sister used a swing to double kick me at least 12 foot away, so a full on angry equine shouldve been able to buck him clen accross the cafe, the shattering sound being the glass window, or even the lapboard timber wall, to slow him down.
Inrteesting fact, the imact isnt what knocks me out, its the pseudo epileptic fit in trying to work out mentally just what the hell is occuring. As in not so much antitank round, but Apollo 11 landing computer.
I wont go to the worst case scenario, but the bst case here would be both females trying to comfort each other, then properly comforting each other, then Twilight taking notes while Sweet shows what she Actually did with Chip, then what she Wanted to do with Chip. And then, having missed everything, Chip wakes up to see two Very happy female freinds?
4885314
Writing stories doesn't work like that (though it could). And if you know how Wing Dancer writes, he prefers tension and cliff-hangers.
This would be my face if you got it right though >
4885331
I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ELSE
EDIT:
4885331
Ok, tension and cliff hanger? Sweet shows Twilight what she Wanted to do with Chip, but juuust before she finishes, Chip wakes up, and both females are playing Old Maid in the corner, totally innocently.
4883076 You can't BREAK the laws of physics, but you can CHEAT...
It's all about the distrubution of forces. But you have half the answer. It is about 'pulling' the punches, but doing so the split second of impact. In that way, the full force of the blow is focused just ahead of the fist, preventing damage to the hand while maximizing the impact to the target.
It is NOT easy. The first time I trained with the full technique (punching through 2-inch thick ice), I shattered my left pinkie knuckle into 6 pieces when my fist tilted slightly before impact. It took over 6 months to heal and I could only train with my right hand for a year; this has led to the current condition where the right hand bones are significantly harder than the left.
This brings up the second-most important part of the training: building up bone density (which my physiology excels in due to a genetic quirk of calcium absorption and skeletal deposition). My fingerbones have been built up through nearly 20 years of training. They can take blows that would turn untrained hands to mush.
Boxers do much the same thing, as do all martial artists. Any of them can strike a blow with vastly greater force than an untrained person and take less damage than the untrained individual would from their much weaker strike.
4885352
lol, that song seems to fit perfectly how every. single. chapter. has a cliff-hanger that I almost can't stand. ;D
4885357
Uh... I'm very unsure how that would work out with Sweet being as angry as she is...
4885400
4885402
Wait wait! Calm down! That doesn't mean I hate it... or you. I love the story... I just... have issues with things not resolving. But that is what makes a good story. A hook. And yours are triple pronged and covered in oils from poison ivy.
Probably why I'm horrible at writing. I can't leave a cliff-hanger worth a rotten pizza, even if my life depended on it. Everything I write resolves!
4885417
Too late. My heart has been torn out and shredded to pieces.
There is only one thing left now...
(I CAN'T RESOLVE ANYTHIIIINGGGG
)
4885427
I promise not to break anything! 
I read that in Rarity's voice. XD
Wait, I've got a plan. We trade places for a day. You give my story a cliff-hanger, I resolve something in yours.
4885437
... 
Oh my...
OH MY!
YESS, SURE, YEA!
I CAN'T PROMISE ANYTHING BACK THOUGHHHH
4885452
Whatever, my stories aren't doing all that well yet.
WHOO!!
We're joking right? I feel like I would screw everything up forever in an unrepairable manner.
4885463
Oh, nononono, this is srs. Just show me which story I can have a knack at. And if anything, we can just post them as alternative/collab eps that may or may not contribute to the original story
4885468
Oh... cool then! Uh... Lessee... Try to take a whack at the next chapter of Little Butterfly. You can PM it to me. I'll take a whack at the next chapter for this and see what I can get you. Deal?
4885476
*eagerly shakes your hand/hoof/talon/claw/ethereal appendage*
4885499
*pulls away awkwardly* Uh... did you mean to grab my horn?
On it. It is gonna be... well, sad for Sweet Strokes, Annoying for Twilight, and confusing for Chip.
4885505
Grabbing your horn would be weirdly sexual
Unless you're down with that, in which case I'll be all over it
4885515
Uh... Let's just stick with 'it's a deal'.
Shining Armor couldn't knock him out...
...dat mare...someone put a uniform on her!
I guess Sweet Strokes rolled a nat 20 and confirmed the crit as well (I mean he was willingly flat-footing himself). Shortly followed by Chip finding himself at negative health from the non-lethal damage.
4885268
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4886679
fc02.deviantart.net/fs44/f/2009/162/6/a/Frollo_Objects_by_Arnumdrusk.jpg
4886749
Objection!
4886377
Whoa, nicely done!