Wild Magic

by Detsella Morningdew

Chapter 13: A Second Opinion

...Okay then.

So my wonderful plan wasn't quite as broken as I expected.

It took a little more than four hours to test enough to confidently determine exactly how much stress affected magical growth, and an additional three once Twilight pointed out that magical improvement might not be uniform, due to diminishing returns.

When we finally determined the optimal strategy (with some equation solving from the helpful alicorn), I had a strategy that was almost as good as I was hoping for.

But, you know, significantly more annoying. It involved making as large a flame as possible until a very specific percentage of magic had been burned, then cutting it off until it recharged. It maximized the effectiveness of my regeneration as well as the effects of stressing my magic pool just enough to help.

Of course, the absolute optimal strategy would be for me to launch an actual fireball and burn something, before cutting it off, since that would drain my magic much more rapidly, but... well, it wasn't like I was about to start burning things in the middle of Ponyville.

I chomped down on another muffin, and let my tail go out once again. The other ponies in the street paid me surprisingly little attention, perhaps giving me a glance each time the light from my fire spread across the street, but definitely not the sort of reactions I would expect if someone at home just walked around periodically lighting a blowtorch.

It did a decent job of showing me where I needed to go, too. Annoyingly, my practice meant that I had to turn it off every four seconds, so my nice clear view of the street was interrupted periodically. Ponyville looked a lot different at night.

Perhaps it would have actually been easier had I not been using the light at all, as the nights in Equestria were always just a little bit brighter.

Maybe it was that the moon was so much bigger. Or perhaps that was just because I was a fox.

Or maybe it's just that everything seems bright after living in the Everfree for so long.

Still, my little experimentation session with Twilight took a lot longer than I expected, and I wasn't going to be able to get home at any sort of reasonable hour. And while I did not exactly have a schedule I needed to keep, I was tired.

But I didn't really feel comfortable asking Twilight for a place to stay again. She would say yes, of course. And I had already come to terms with the fact that I was going to repay her regardless, so it wasn't that different from my current plan, anyway.

It was more that, well... I liked sleeping outside. It was probably a stupid instinct thing, or maybe that now that it wasn't uncomfortable, I would have liked it anyway. But sleeping in a place that I made was something I didn't really appreciate until I woke up this morning and felt an odd sort of manic energy that I could only associate with the accomplishment.

So rather than stay with Twilight and practice my magic, I had decided that Fluttershy's cottage was my next stop. I only hoped that she was awake.

I wasn't exactly going to impose on her, either. But Rainbow Dash said that her cottage was built on public land, just like Rainbow didn't actually own her section of sky. And it was always nice to ask if Fluttershy was fine with having him be an occasional neighbour.

I didn't think she would object, but it was polite.

---

She did not object. In fact, she seemed positively delighted, even despite the late hour. I had probably woken her up. Really, I should think before doing these things. Still, she insisted on making sure I was comfortable, and that I knew that I could settle wherever I wanted.

I didn't make this little burrow too fancy, either. Just a hole in the ground. Fluttershy did look at me a little strangely, though.

"Do you have a mate?"

I stopped digging. "What?"

She blushed. "I mean, that's what it usually means when you dig a den."

I looked up out of the hole. "Wait, really? Where would I sleep, then?"

Fluttershy did an odd sort of shrug. "Anywhere?" She suddenly shook her head. "Oh, silly me! I forgot you don't really know much about being a fox. Have you ever felt really hot or cold? Have you felt uncomfortable when you lay down?"

"...I guess not?"

"I haven't really met many foxes before, but I've read a lot about all sorts of animals. Unless they are protecting family, most foxes just sleep anywhere out of the open. Still, I don't mind it if you make this place your little patch of safety when you visit Ponyville."

My ears perked up at that, as something I wanted to ask her re-emerged in my brain. "So have you met other foxes?"

"Um, well... not for very long."

"Did you... um... notice anything different about them?"

Her attention snapped to me, and she seemed very awake now. "Wait, you found more foxes like you in Whitetail Woods? I thought sacred foxes were extinct before you came here."

So she didn't notice.

"No, they were normal foxes. But Fluttershy? Kitsune, or 'sacred foxes'... They aren't so different from normal foxes. You understand animals, right, Fluttershy?"

"Of course. That is my special talent."

"Those animals... they aren't quite as coherent as a pony, are they?"

She frowned. "I guess not. They are still intelligent, though. I thought you understood-"

I raised a paw. "That's not what I meant. I was just setting something up. Foxes... well, they are just as intelligent as I am. As ponies are. They just speak... fox."

She gasped quietly. "Really?"

"From what I can understand, they just don't have enough magic to change how their vocal chords work. Not enough to speak like ponies."

"Strange. Of course, I know that some of my animal friends are more intelligent than others, but... Of course, every creature deserves the same amount of care, but I never considered that there were..." She shook her head. "I'm sorry, this is all a little strange. No one has come to me with anything but requests for shelter or food. But if there are creatures that are just like ponies..."

"Fluttershy! Don't worry about it. It wasn't really that important. I was just curious."

"But it is important! I care about all my animal friends, but I can convince a lot more ponies to save an endangered species if they really are on the same level. If the only difference is a lack of magic... ponies accepted griffons just fine."

"But without a translator-"

Fluttershy's suddenly piercing expression stopped me from continuing.

"Ryan. I am their translator. I always am the one ponies to go to when ponies have problems with animals here in Ponyville." She sighed. "And as much as ponies call on me because it's often easier than 'dealing' with them the normal way... a few of them have started to see things my way, just a little. If ponies started to understand that there was an entire species under their noses, perfectly intelligent, but unable to speak..."

She looked at Ryan significantly. "Well, I'm sure Princess Celestia or Luna wouldn't just sit around."

I opened my mouth, but wasn't really sure what I was supposed to say. I didn't think of it like that. Naomi would probably rather have an actual fox, but-

Fluttershy's face was hard. "Sacred foxes really had two duties, didn't they? Magic for protection, and speech for negotiation. Well, I can do one of those things. And even if the average pony doesn't quite see things the way I do, neither of the Princesses are going to let a species go extinct."

"I-"

She put a hoof on my back, and stroked it gently, giving me a gentle smile. "I understand that you feel like you need to do something about this. Trust me. I've never even heard of another pony like me, who could really understand animals the way I do. But you need to go home. You still have a family."

I looked down. "I can still help, right?"

"Of course. I haven't seen a fox since I moved next to the Everfree. I'm sure you can organize things better on that side of things. But please... generosity is a wonderful thing, but the worst thing you could do is give up yourself."

"...Thanks, Fluttershy."

I didn't fall asleep until it was almost midnight.

---

I suppose it was a blessing that I did not sleep very soundly.

I didn't hear his hooves. I didn't hear the slight shuffling, or the brush of his fur against fabric. I didn't feel the slight dust fall from the roof of my little den.

But the low light of his horn woke me up just as a hoof opened a pouch of my vest.

The vest I had neglected to take off before sleeping. I had been too tired.

But I was very glad that I did so. If I had left it just beside me, it would have been directly in the moonlight. He wouldn't have needed the flashlight.

Or perhaps it was worse. If I had taken it off, I might have used it as bedding, which would have made this very thing impossible.

Because he was opening a pocket.

The pocket that could mean my death if the object was stolen from it. That pocket.

I didn't really have time to really think about what I was doing. Fortunately, my instinctual reaction of snarling at the pony in front of me was exactly the correct thing to do. He stumbled back out of my hole, which meant I actually had an exit point. Another stupid design flaw with my den. What if it caved in, and I had no secondary air source?

But it didn't matter. The pony didn't seem like he was giving up quite yet. And so I ran.

I briefly thought of burning the bastard that basically tried to kill me, but I immediately recalled my previous experiences with trying to heat things. My magic wasn't going to be that useful for at least a couple months.

Of course, since it was primarily an illusion, it could have scared the bastard into backing off, but I still wasn't thinking that coherently.

Fortunately, Fluttershy didn't lock her door.

Unfortunately, Fluttershy didn't own a lock for her door.

But for some reason, the stallion chasing me seemed to lose his nerve, because he never even tried to open it. So my attempts at moving furniture to place in front of it were pointless.

Doubly fortunate, because those attempts were a complete failure. My body was definitely not suited for pushing stuff.

...I didn't fully calm down for at least three hours after that, though.

Fluttershy won't matter too much if I take a quick rest on her couch, will she?

Wait no. Trying not to die. No sleeping now.

But... maybe a quick nap..?

No.

Still, maybe I can just rest my head. While watching. Yes...

Comments

[PinkiePieFox]

[GlitchyFox]

theif, blackmailer or atemptid murderer?

[Vaalintine]

10302751
Until they catch them, qhy not treat it as all three? Its basically the equivalent of stripping a pony of their horn, wings, hooves, and cutie mark. So basically they have a murderer living in ponyville.

Also, anyone who expects hin to live as a wild fox or simply look after himself and "do his duty" after this is an asshat.

[Detsella Morningdew]

The plot thickens...

[Detsella Morningdew]

10302776
Yeah, perspectives are going to change a bit after this.

(Though as you can see, the thief isn't exactly that competent or even that brave right now.)

[KittyrinnAiko]

10302645
You wouldn't need to, but it doesn't preclude it either. Background for a character is just part of the spice that makes a story interesting and perhaps more relatable. A character's background will always affect who they are and how they react to a given situation.

[Epyrios]

That pony should be quite easy to catch.
Based on how unskilled the thief was he/she most likely didn't bother to disguise his/her scent. Many of Fluttershys animals could point him/her out to the guards and Ryan should be able to recognise him/her that way too.

[GlitchyFox]

10302780
you would think there would be some law in the arcives about this kinds stuff becasue as someone already said it would be like taking horns, wings or cutie marks from ponys.
i mean luna laredy said that the kitsune went into battle alongside her at one point as such you can imply that they lived along side at one point.
I am intrestid in where you go with how he grows and where the past kitsune went?
will his magic exersize accelerate his growth and are the kitsune gone or hidden from the world and why di the theif want his ball? so manny questions.
btw i remember somewhere there is a story of a kitsune outgrowing their ball but im unsure where i got it from
keep healthy

[TheGrog]

That was pretty fast. It's been, what, 2-3 days? I wonder if the Princesses let something leak and a noble hired somebody, or if it is a local grown problem. Although how a local pony would know what to take seems odd.

[umbreon1234]

Im half expecting thw thjef to have been blueblood.

[Crimson Twilight]

Most likely someone overheard something they shouldn’t have, and the thief probably knows almost nothing about what the orb actually was, and instead was probably promised a nice reward for it. They were likely also chosen as a scrape goat should they be captured, to throw off any suspicion.

Glad to see the story updated, though! Kitsune happens to be my favorite mythical creature.

[Vaalintine]

10317604
Its the ideaxthat he SHOULD at all in the first place that doesn't work. She's obsessed with him but knows nothing about him, and her desire for him ti stay runs in direct opposition to his own goal of returning home to his own life. Her coming up and latching onto him doesn't even begin ti create a reason for him to like her or be romantically attracted to her, or begin an arc where he becomes as such.

[orp]

10317831
I'd say slower introduction and more communication could help develop some of those reasons in a believable manner. Gradually bury those plot hooks deeper under MC's skin, so to speak. Whatever contradictions spawn from that, seem more like conflicts useful for the story on the whole.

[Detsella Morningdew]

10317604
10318172

Yeah, it's the issue with publishing things in the Fimfiction/Fanfiction style (one chapter at a time). I was not having a good period, and I only do a pass or two of basic editing.

When I go back to that chapter (and a few others), there would be a lot that I would like to change, possibly even enough to make an entire other chapter of expanding things that needed to be.

You probably can notice that the first few chapters are very well developed. That was because I write a good chunk of a story before even trying to publish to make sure I'm actually ready to commit to finishing it. I would do something like write the entire book before publishing, but I get too impatient to do that.

That chapter with Naomi? It probably includes all the events that I would like to happen, but not necessarily the proper development for it to appear natural. (And I'm sorry for that.) The more I plan, the smoother things go, and that entire secondary plot thread was added because I realized that my original outline was incredibly bare-bones, and created virtually no interesting conflict (a large problem).

If it becomes a bigger issue, I'll do some damage control, and rewrite a few chapters, but most likely, I will do a full edit after I finish; only because it makes it easier to foreshadow things if I actually know what I'm doing. (I do have a vague outline, but it is vague, not explicit in any sort of detail.) It's a big weakness to the sort of "seat of the pants" writing that I tend to do.

[orp]

10326445
Major rewrites get a bit of a bad rep in fanfiction because of how often the writers would take down the completed version and then give up on the rewrite a few chapters in (mostly due to losing interest). So I'd recommend leaving the old version of the story accessible in some form before committing to it.

By itself, of course, rewrites are one of the most important tools of the craft. Most published novels get through a number of rewrites before actually being published, and sometimes after, in new editions.

[Detsella Morningdew]

10326798
In this case, I don't think it will be too much of an issue, since I very much doubt that the core of the story will change that much compared to some rewrites I've seen.

Regardless, I do agree that some form of it should be available in the way it was published, and if I do rewrite parts, I will create an ebook of the original version for people to download should they want to do so (since republishing the same story is a no-no on this site).

[Wildfiretiremile]

Fox: check. I will be keeping a close eye on this, a very close eye.

[Detsella Morningdew]

10351119
I know, right? Still, even experienced ponies make blunders. Besides, the more used to something one is, the easier it is to forget that others might not have similar experiences.

[Detsella Morningdew]

10350886
Remember, when characters speak, they are not making statements based on the omniscient perspective. I just dated the story to a point in canon, nothing else. I know Twilight has a counterpart. But the characters at this point have no idea that Twilight's counterpart attends Crystal Prep.

Even when the "narrator" makes a statement, it is most likely skewed towards the knowledge of the character currently acting as the perspective. And even something as small as the sense of humor of that character is reflected there, even if they are not directly thinking the narration.

[3rror404]

This is an awesome story!! Keep up the amazing writing job!

[God of Calamity]

I hope the author eventually comes back to this story.

[3rror404]

This was a story I was really looking forward to being continued:(

[1993 first gen astro]

10362296
Has this been abandoned or are you having writers block?