• Published 15th Oct 2012
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Taboo - Hooves Like Jagger



When a peculiar foal is abandoned in the Everfree, Rainbow Dash takes it under her wing.

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Chapter 11

11

“Aaaauwgh… close the blinds!” Rainbow Dash pulled the sheets over her head and curled up into a ball on the bed. She tucked the blanket in around her, forming a perfect little cocoon to shield out the light. Thunderhead wasn’t exactly enjoying the sudden reintroduction of sunlight, but the clock was clearly indicating that they had slept well past noon. Despite how groggy and disoriented he felt, there wasn’t an ounce of regret in his mind about how he had spent last night.

“Dash, we gotta eat, bathe, and get outside a bit.”

“I disagree,” Rainbow Dash said, poking her head out of her ball.

“On what grounds?”

“There isn’t any reason to do any of those things,” she said before withdrawing back into her ball. “There’s nothing to do outside and there’s no point in bathing since we’re just going to get dirty again.”

“What about eating?”

“Hmm, I know what we could eat,” she replied, slowly rising from her curled up position. She grinned devilishly at Thunderhead, biting her bottom lip. Thunderhead managed to swallow the giddy feeling in his gut, even though he really, really, really didn’t want to.

“We can’t just spend our whole Honeymoon cooped up in here.” Even as he said it, he found himself hoping Rainbow Dash would disagree with him.

“We haven’t even tried yet,” Rainbow Dash said, hopping off the bed and crossing towards her lover. He stood on stiff legs as she rubbed up against him, still abundant in the fragrances of mingled sweat and lovemaking. As of last night, he was no longer the one in control. He put up a good front, but it wouldn’t take much from Rainbow Dash to get him to submit. Even now she was just toying with him, flicking him with her tail and breathing against his neck.

“Gaah! We have to at least eat something!” he shouted with involuntary force as he marched away from her. Of course, retreat as he might Rainbow Dash followed right behind as she slid in under his wing. She put her warm body against his and hummed deeply. He knew this was all going to culminate in sex one way or another, but his pride forced him to put up an earnest fight first.

“… Alright, we can eat,” Rainbow Dash said, suddenly separating from Thunderhead. A cold chill ran up his spine, sensing this conversation wasn’t over. Rainbow Dash walked slowly, each step seeming to rock her hips hypnotically in front of Thunderhead. He felt like he was losing his mind as she gave him a sultry look from over her shoulder. “Would you go get some food while I sleep a little more?”

“S-sure.” Something still wasn’t quite right. Her gaze was holding, and he found himself drawn in by her guilty smile.

“But I’m going to need something to help me get back to sleep,” she said, not even trying to hide her attempt at seduction. She wiggled her rear end right at him. “How about it?”

Like a trained animal, Thunderhead heeded the call with admirable ferocity. He knew the feeling of having earned it was just an illusion, but the real crime would’ve been turning her down. Besides, both parties knew that once this week was over they would be living with a child. This was their one chance to satiate their physical desires before practicing restraint became an absolute necessity. As the newlyweds laughed and rolled about on the bed, Rainbow Dash laughed as she said what had almost become her battlecry since last night.

“Why didn’t we do this from the start?”


Taboo sat dejectedly on her rump and stared out the window. It was only the first day of her parent’s honeymoon, but she already felt like it was an eternity. She was bored right out of her mind, but perhaps that was understandable. There wasn’t all that much for her to do at her grandparent’s house.

Palette was not unsympathetic to Taboo’s plight; however, she was powerless to do much. It didn’t help that Taboo was unwilling to do anything but pout. There was a remote possibility that she’d get over it after a day or two, but that didn’t remedy the fact that today was going to waste. Palette was at a loss, and additionally she didn’t have Birdie to back her up today. It would take something close to a miracle to liven things up.

*knock knock*

“I wonder who that could be,” Palette said, wandering over to the door. She hoped it wasn’t Rainbow Dash and Thunderhead back already. Maybe it was the neighbors looking for their hawk again. Palette opened the door.

“CONGRATULATIONS SUBJECTS ON YOUR SUCCESSFUL NUPTIALS!”

Palette was almost blown away by the mere force of her visitor’s voice. In fact, she found she had somehow slid back a few feet from just being in front of the mare while she greeted her. As for the identity of the pony on her doorstep, it only took Palette a few seconds to recognize her.

“P-p-p-p-princess-”

“YES. TIS I, PRINCESS-”

“Cadence?”

“CADEN-huh? No, no I’m Luna.” Luna made a note to get out to Cloudsdale more often in the future. She also noticed that the pony she was talking to wasn’t actually Rainbow Dash, but rather the mare who was a strong candidate to be her mother. It did make sense, considering this was Rainbow Dash’s childhood residence. “Um… is your daughter here?”

“No, she’s on her honeymoon,” Palette said, still confused about which princess was at her house and why. “Don’t you know? She got married yesterday.”

“Yes, I realize this,” Luna said with a regretful sigh. “I had conditioned my sleep cycle so I could attend the ceremony and then shift seamlessly back into being a creature of the night, but my calculations were just a little off.”

“Like a day off?”

“No, I still intended to do my job that day.” Luna cleared her throat, realizing that the issue was currently something different. “I could not find a trace of Rainbow Dash in Ponyville, so I assumed she might have come here. I suppose I was wrong again, unfortunately. And now it seems that Rainbow Dash and Thunderhead are on their Honeymoon, and I dare not go to disturb them during that. Rather, I am afraid of what I might witness.

“Anyway, I just wanted to give my congratulations to the couple. Their relationship has been something like my soap opera for the past year or so. I suppose I will have to find entertainment elsewhere for the time being. Nothing quite so interesting goes on domestically, much to my misfortune.”

“Oh… well… I’ll tell Rainbow Dash you stopped by,” Palette said. “Is that all?”

“Yes, that is all I have to convey.”

“Okay, I’ll just let her kno-”

“WAIT!” Luna shouted all of a sudden, actually knocking Palette onto her back this time. “There is actually something else I feel I should mention at this juncture.”

“… And what would that be?” Palette remained on the floor for the time being.

“It is something concerning…” Luna stopped mid-sentence. She perked up, noticing somepony else in the house watching the door from afar. The curious set of eyes poking around the corner could’ve only belonged to one pony. Palette got up and noticed what had caught Luna’s attention.

“Taboo, won’t you come say hello to Princess Luna?” Palette asked, but Taboo only shrunk from the Princess’s gaze. Luna managed her most earnest smile, lowering herself closer to Taboo’s level. Without moving towards her, she extended a hoof in friendship.

“GREETINGS YOUNG TABOO.” Luna’s shouting caused Taboo to pin back her ears back and disappear behind the corner. Luna cursed her inability to lower her voice when she got excited. She wanted so badly to be better with children. “I suppose I should get going.”

“But what about the other message for Rainbow Dash?” Palette asked, but Luna was already preparing to depart. “I’ll make sure to tell her you came by.”

“Nay, my good citizen. Perhaps it is better I deliver this news in person,” Luna replied. “I shall wait until the appropriate opportunity, but thank you for your hospitality. I really must be going now.” Without another word, Luna spread her wings and flew off in the direction of Canterlot. Palette shut the door behind her, not wanting to let any more of the cold air outside into the house. She went back into the kitchen where Taboo had retreated. She was still there, staring vacantly out the back window.

“You know, you won’t be able to pout forever,” Palette said, taking a stricter tone than before. “You shouldn’t be rude to our guest just because you’re in a bad mood.”

“She was noisy,” Taboo said. She pinned her ears down again and donked her head into the window. “I don’t like noisy ponies.”

“That’s no reason to be rude,” Palette said. “And I’m sure by tomorrow you’ll feel up to having some fun. We get to go to the doctor so you can get a checkup. You’ve never done that before, have you?”

“No.” Taboo didn’t exactly understand why she had to go to the doctor at all, but her mommy had insisted on it. At the very least, she could put up with it for one day so long as mommy didn’t expect her to do it again.


“Thanks again for seeing Taboo,” Palette said. Gale didn’t say anything in response. She just wordlessly began her examination of Taboo. Her extremely deliberate nature was slightly unsettling to Palette. Gale was so on top of things she even scheduled the appointment at a time that they wouldn’t run into very many other ponies. Palette had been nervous about taking Taboo in to public, knowing that the citizens of Cloudsdale had no doubt never seen a pony like Taboo; however, at least in her preliminary examination Gale did not seem all that surprised about Taboo.

“Her size and weight are very average for a filly her age,” she said, marking her observations on her chart. “Her wingspan is a bit on the larger size. This is not an uncommon sign for stronger fliers.” Gale was obviously practicing a small amount of tact in her observations. She was sensitive to Taboo’s situation, as the filly was not capable of fully grasping the depth of her difference. Gale exchanged a look with Palette, letting her know that this issue of wingspan was not something quite so simple.

“Ah, well, her mother was able to fly from a very young age,” Palette said, playing alone with the charade. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Taboo started hovering around soon.”

“Really, you think I could?” Taboo said, her wings flapping in anticipation.

“With some practice, any pegasi could get airborne,” Gale said to her. “It is more of a matter of trial and error than it is physicality.” Gale continued her examination of Taboo. She checked her throat, her reflexes, had her take an eye test, and tested her blood pressure. Everything went predictably until she tried looking in Taboo’s ears. The filly wouldn’t stop flicking them once Gale almost got close enough to see. It was a bit of a struggle, but she finally got Taboo to comply.

“Sorry, but it tickled,” Taboo said, her ears still involuntarily flicking from having the doctor’s light in them.

“It is a bit preemptive, but I’d like to test something. Please wait for a moment,” Gale said, leaving the room with a sudden turn. She returned about two minutes later with an odd apparatus that Taboo had never before seen in her life. Before she could ask any questions of her own, Gale suddenly put earphones over the filly’s ears . “We’re going to do a hearing test.”

“I hope we’re covered for that,” Palette mumbled to herself.

“Taboo, please raise the hoof on the side you hear the sound, okay?” Gale asked, getting a nod from Taboo. Without waiting a moment, Gale started the test. Taboo suddenly startled, shooting her right hoof into the air. Gale looked down at the machine, wondering if she had left it turned on high accidentally. She was surprised to find the volume was only three quarters of the way up. She reduced it to halfway up and played the sound, getting Taboo to raise her right hoof again. The forty percent got a left hoof right away again. Taboo raised her right again at thirty without a missing a beat. The filly just stared absently at the ceiling, hitting the sounds right on cue at twenty five, twenty, fifteen, and ten percent. Finally at five percent, it took Taboo a second to respond; however, the sound should’ve been practically inaudible to a normal pony. The machine didn’t even have that setting for testing purposes, which left Gale looking shocked for the first time.

“Is it over?” Taboo asked when no more sounds came for a little while.

“… Hmm, ah, yes, you did well,” Gale said, doing well to cloak her astonishment. She pushed the hearing test to the side and decided to push on. She put on her stethoscope and put the cold metal against Taboo’s chest. She held it there, silently listening. She waited and waited, until she took the stethoscope off her head. “… Excuse me for a moment.” Gale left again, this time returning rather quickly with a new stethoscope. She put it to Taboo’s chest again and listened once more. Once again, she sat listening for a while without saying a word.

“Is… everything alright?” Palette had to ask.

“Yes, everything is alright,” Gale said, snapping back into doctor mode. She instructed Taboo to take some deep breaths. She listened to the air go in and out of her lungs. Gale could clearly hear her breathing, especially due to the absence of a very particular sound. “Very good. Taboo, I need you to do something for me.”

“What is it?”

“Pee in this cup,” Gale said, placing a sample cup before Taboo.

“Right here?” Taboo asked. “Right now?”

“Your grandmother and I will wait in the hall for you to finish. We will be right back,” Gale said, motioning for Palette to follow her. The older mare complied, following the doctor out of the room, down the hall, down the stairs, and out onto a balcony.

“Um… did we really need to go so far?”

“I don’t want Taboo to hear what we are about to discuss,” Gale said, a bit of worry sneaking into her voice. “I suspected I would find some interesting quirks, but this is unprecedented. At full extension, her wings are twice the average length of a pony her age. Of course, the anatomy of her wings is fundamentally different as well. You would hardly notice the difference if she kept her wings folded most of the time.

“Her hearing is astoundingly acute. I find it surprising that our normal speaking voices don’t upset her. Her ears would probably be even more fascinating than her wings if we could get a closer look at them, both helping her pick up nearly inaudible noises and filtering noise that might be offensively loud. I never conceived of anything like it.

“However, this a bit of distressing information too: I couldn’t hear her heartbeat.”

“She has no heartbeat?” Palette nearly fell over, but Gale caught her with admirable speed.

“No, she must have a beating heart in there somewhere,” Gale said, clarifying her point. “Her blood pressure is normal, which is proof that there is a heart working somewhere. The problem is that I can’t figure out why I wouldn’t be able to hear it with a stethoscope.”

“Is there a way to see what’s going on?” Palette asked, but Gale shook her head.

“Perhaps it would be best not to worry Taboo at this point.” Gale could do some invasive testing to get to the truth, but something about experimenting on Taboo didn’t sit well with her. “For now, I can guarantee she is healthy enough for the average pegasi. As far as I can tell, she only has one notable shortcoming.”

“Which would be?”

“I suspect her eyesight is not as sharp as the average pony’s.” Gale went on to explain. “Right now it probably isn’t so bad that it will bother her, but she struggled just a bit with the eye test. She might start needing glasses at a young age.”

“What does all this mean?” Palette found herself feeling a bit scared. She had come to accept that her granddaughter was different from other ponies a long time ago, but faced with the hard facts of the differences was something very different. That wasn’t to say she was scared of Taboo, but rather she was anxious about something else entirely. “If Taboo is this different, she’s going to notice soon.”

“I don’t have all the answers, unfortunately.” Gale put a hoof to her chin, pondering the subject a little. “If I may speak purely as an academic, Taboo’s family of pegasi probably developed in an extremely different climate from ours. Relying on hearing instead of sight indicates a dark environment, and a dark environment could also explain the long, thin wings favorable for flying based on a sensitivity to the air rather than sight. It is still merely conjecture, but perhaps also needing to rely on their hearing they developed quiet heartbeats so as to eliminate as much sound as possible.”

“So you do think there are others like her out there?” Palette asked, not sure what to believe herself.

“It isn’t impossible; however, I can’t say I know where they would reside.” Gale gave it a moment more of thought before starting to lead Palette back to the examination room. “Perhaps underground?”

“If they live underground, why have wings?”

“Perhaps flying is conducive to living in large, high caverns? Forgive me, but this is not my area of expertise.”

All Gale could really do was guess, as educated as she was. Palette wasn’t any more sure than she was on any topic. All they could do was continue the checkup, but of course when they returned to the room Taboo had yet to pee in the cup.


Today Taboo was alone in her grandparent’s house. Her grandma had gone to the store and her grandpa had to go to work again today, so for at least an hour or so Taboo had the house to herself. After yesterday, there was only one thing on her mind: flying. She hadn’t really given it all that much thought since she just always flew on her mommy’s back. Taboo had thought it was too early to fly, but the doctor had said otherwise.

Taboo stood in the middle of the den. She extended both wings out to her sides. She took a deep breath in. She began flapping them madly as hard as she could and as fast as she could manage. After twenty seconds of basically flailing her wings about, she stopped and began panting. There hadn’t even been the slightest sensation of liftoff.

Taboo caught her breath and tried again. This time focusing a little more and being deliberate with her flapping. She finally got into something of a rhythm, but it was on the slow side. Frustrated, she tried just beating her wings in a frenzy again. She lasted ten seconds this time before collapsing on the floor. It turned out that flying was just as hard as she anticipated.

After three or more unsuccessful bouts of violent wing beating, she decided that she was doing something wrong. She hunkered down and gave it a good long think. She tried to picture how her mother did it so easily, but it just looked like random wing flapping to Taboo. The only trick to it seemed to be trying as hard as possible.

Then Taboo had an idea. She realized she had been trying to lift off the ground using her wings, but she could already leave the ground by simply jumping. Enticed by her new idea, she began frantically jumping up and down and madly beating her wings once she was off the ground. Of course, this didn’t do anything either. This didn’t stop her from trying a few more times. Frustrated, Taboo bounded into the air one last time and gave her wings one, hard beat.

There was a brief moment of weightlessness.

Taboo landed on the ground just like every other time, but she swore she felt herself get a moment of hang time. She kept jumping and flapping her wings once, attempting to recreate that magical moment. It took many, many attempts, but she managed to emulate it a second time. After the second time, she got it a third time after a couple failed attempts. She got a fourth success soon after, with five and six following right behind.

She found the secret was to make sure she had her wings fully extended while she was flapping them. If she pulled them into herself, she would fall to the ground like normal. She also need to keep them as flat as possible as pointing them forwards or backwards wouldn’t lift her straight up like she needed.

With her newfound ability to get just the tiniest bit airborne, she moved onto the next logical step: flapping her wings more than once. Unfortunately, she found this much more difficult than she anticipated. The brief lift she got from the first flap only got her a brief moment more in the air, meaning she had to be super fast on the second flap. It was hard work to lift her extended wing back into the air that fast, so she always hit the ground before she could get the second beat in.

In a stroke of what felt like pure genius to Taboo, she realized if it was hard to pull her extended wings up she could try bringing her wings up while they were folded. She practiced the little maneuver on the ground: bringing her extended wings down, folding them in, extending them upwards, and then beating them back down. When she felt she had the motions down on the ground, she tried emulating them in the air.

Being airborne made her a little sloppy, so she didn’t even come close to doing it on her first try. She switched off going through the motions on the ground and trying them in the air. Bit by bit she started to get it. She got closer and closer, bridging the gap she needed to as she gained the confidence to move faster.

At least, a second wingbeat pushed her free of gravity for another magical moment in the air. Elated, Taboo practiced her one-two flaps. She had nothing but enthusiasm and time, so her endeavor proved fruitful quickly. With a running start, she could even wing her way a bit down the hallway. It was exhilarating to be able to be able to get off the ground like that, but it wasn’t enough yet.

Taboo figured if she could get two flaps in, she could get three. She gave it a few tries, getting the third flap to lift her quickly since she’d figured out the basics now. Three wasn’t enough though, but it became clear to Taboo after a few more times that she wasn’t getting enough height for each of her wingbeats to keep her up for more than three.

In another stroke of genius, she decided to hop up on the coffee table to get some extra height. By jumping off it towards the ground, she have that much more height instantly. She jumped off the table over and over, flapping her wings in her careful ballet until she touched down. She wasn’t gaining any positive altitude over all, but she was having fun regardless.

As much as she was enjoying herself, all the work was making her a bit tired. She decided to take a break, adjourning to the kitchen for some refreshing juice and a cookie. Taboo felt like she had earned it today, learning to take to the skies practically all by herself. She rested for a good while, restoring the energy in her wings and limbs. Refreshed, she decided she should hurry back to the grindstone so she could show grandma what she could do once she came back.

As usual, Taboo took a leap off the table and began beating the air with all she had; however, she had a little more in her rested wings than before. When she felt herself move upwards with previously unknown velocity, she landed hard after just one flap of her wings due to her surprise. She realized she had actually gotten a deal of additional height out of that jump.

Absolutely elated, Taboo hopped back onto the table and prepared to jump off again. She readied herself for the experience this time, taking a deep breath as she jumped again. She instantly began flapping her wings with practiced strokes, and this time she stayed suspended in place over the ground. Taboo was absolutely beside herself with excitement as she stayed put with each consecutive wingbeat. She thought to herself that she was actually doing it, she was truly flying.

It then struck her as she hung over the ground that true flying actually involved a bit more upwards movement. Resolved to get as far as she could, Taboo doubled her effort to flap her wings. She felt herself start to lift, departing from her suspension as if drawn upwards by a rope and pulley. The higher she got, the more her excited wings propelled her upwards. She watched the floor of the house move away from her as he got higher and higher and higher and-

*bonk*

Taboo’s upwards journey came to an unanticipated end as she collided with the ceiling. Thrown off by the sudden obstruction and subsequent reintroduction of gravity, Taboo found herself going down. Panicked, she closed her eyes and curled up into ball as the coffee table approached quickly from below.


“Taboo, I’m back!” Palette flew into the house, bags of groceries secured to her sides. She moved right into the kitchen and put her things on the counter. She began unpacking, absently humming to herself. “Taboo? You around?”

“Y-yes! I’m here,” Taboo said from the den. Palette looked up briefly to see Taboo sitting in the middle of the den. She looked down at her groceries again for a moment, but then stopped what she was doing. She looked back at the den.

“Taboo, what happened to the coffee table?”

Taboo looked back at the coffee table. There was a nice sized hole in it, as if somepony had stepped clean through it. Taboo continued staring at it for a second, but looked back at Palette after a few seconds. Her only reply was to shrug.

“… Oh… okay.” Palette knew Taboo was responsible. The only evidence was that Taboo had been the only one around to commit the crime, but other than that Palette couldn’t prove it. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how Taboo could’ve done it. Despite the clear guilt written all over Taboo’s face, there was no decisive evidence about. Palette had only one thing to say. “We need to get out of the house tomorrow…”


It was a snowy afternoon in Ponyville, the town covered in a blanket of fresh snow as big, wet snowflakes danced down to the ground. It was a beautiful sight if a pony was warm and comfortable inside, but not the kind of weather anypony wanted to be outside in. Even so Pokey Pierce, Time Turner, and Big Macintosh stood outside of Carousel Boutique in scarves and hats sipping on warm cider. Inside the boutique, their wives hardly even noticed their absence which was a big relief to both Turner and Big Macintosh. Being new fathers was tougher in practice than in theory, so they were glad to finally have a quiet moment to just celebrate. Of course, there was a celebration of sorts on the inside of the boutique as well. Despite the quiet snowscape outside, the little shop buzzed like a beehive in the grips of spring.

“Isn’t she juuuuuuust the cutest?” Poison Apple doted over her newborn granddaughter, who stared up at her grandmother with reserved curiosity. “Our little Applerose! Ain’t she just the cutest most itty-bitty thang you ever saw?”

“Yes, yes, Poison, she’s precious,” Palette said, cradling the sleeping Willow in her own hooves. She was amazed the foal could be so peaceful with this eccentric mare practically yelling about Applerose every other second. Palette had already paid her congratulations to Roseluck, but for some reason she had to keep congratulating Poison as if she had achieved something.

“I gotta say, my little Junior sure can pick ‘em!” Poison said with a proud grin permanently glued to her face. “He picked a cute little wife so he could have adorable little foals like I always wanted. He’s such a mama’s boy! I mean, look! His first foal looks just like me!” Even if the foal sported a red coat like her grandmother, most everpony agreed she took more after her immediate parents. Applerose’s green eyes and orange mane carried not resemblance to the Apple matriarch holding her.

“Well, I’ll bet you’re all relieved that she’s here with you now,” Palette said. “You’re officially part of the mares who have ‘been there once.’”

“Been where once?” Taboo asked, looking up from Willow, but her query went unanswered as Poison took control of the conversation once again.

“Hah! I’ve been there as many times as everypony else in the room combined!” Poison boasted. The other mares in the room checked her math, finding she was right on the money. “I hope y’all are ready for round two!”

“I think we’ll be waiting for a while,” Roseluck said, dashing Poison’s hopes of getting her second grandfoal within the next year. “One is more than enough for now.”

“Well shucks! I want to see more foals around here!” Poison looked absolutely serious. “I guess it’s up to you, Jackie!”

“I ain’t married, Ma,” Applejack said to her mother, but Poison didn’t even flinch before responding.

“Well that ain’t absolutely necessary, is it?”

“M-ma!” Applejack stood up with a start, blushing profusely. “There are children here!”

“Your niece and Fluttershy’s foal can’t understand what we’re saying,” Poison said to assure her. “And Taboo’s folks weren’t married before she came along.”

“Yeah, but they did get married!” Taboo interjected, reminding everypony of recent events.

“That’s right, so don’t get hung up on the order of things, Jackie!” Poison returned Applerose to her mother so she could confront her own daughter up close and personal. “Just don’t tell your father I told you that because he’s a bit of a stickler for the rules… even if that does make him a bit of a hypocrite. Nothin’ like a little bit of motivation to get a stallion to the altar, ya know? Remember that colt you had a crush on in school? Oh, what was his name?”

“M-m-ma!?”

“Oh? Applejack had a schoolyard crush?” Rarity said, much more interested in this topic now. “Do tell Mrs. Apple. Do tell.”

“Oh no! You do not want to go down this road, Rarity,” Applejack said, glaring right at the unicorn. “I will turn this mare on you if I have to.”

“Please, you’ve got nothing.” Rarity stuck up her nose and grinned.

“Hey Ma, Rarity’s thinkin’ about havin’ a foal too.”

“Is that true?” Poison was on Rarity faster than she could say “whoops.”

“Huh? What?” Rarity suddenly found different parts of her body being ogled and handled by the older mare, who was surprisingly strong for somepony of her stature and age. “Oh, wait! Ouch! Don’t do that! What are yo-*giggle*-ack! Hehe, that tickles! Stop! *snicker* Stop!”

“Hon, you are so very skinny.”

“Oh, why thank you!” Rarity missed the part where Poison wasn’t paying her a compliment.

“I used to have a girlish figure like that too before I had Junior,” Poison said, painting a picture that Rarity found somewhat distressing as she regarded her own slim frame. “Yeah, imagine pushing that fella out of those tiny hips! But don’t worry, you’ve got the kind of body that’ll fatten right up to get that foal out!”

Rarity stood as rigid as a board. A single hair jumped out of place in her mane as her eye twitched twice.

“My body was never quite the same after Junior. Whoo, and I sure did try everything to get it back! It didn’t help when I had to pop Jackie out too. It was even more of a struggle to maintain a nice body after that, but after quite some time I came close. Then I had Applebloom and gave up! I shoulda figured that trying to restore my body to pre-pregnancy shape would just lead to another pregnancy. It’s a vicious cycle, it is!”

“Well then… I guess there’s only one thing to do,” Rarity said with a kinda-sorta smile on her face and a crazed look in her eyes. “No foals for me.”

“Well, shucks! Somepony has to have a foal,” Poison said, determined to get her way. “How about you, Fluttershy?”

Unfortunately, Fluttershy had already taken a cue off of her foal and nodded off for a little nap. She had been doing a lot of that recently, tired from giving birth for the first time in her life.

“… Well, I guess she already made her contribution to the cause.” Poison moved onto the next candidate. “How about it, Princess Twilight?”

“… Um… I’m still adjusting to being an aunt,” Twilight said. “There is no way I’m ready to be a parent. Besides, I’m in the same camp as Applejack: I’ve got nopony to make a foal with. I just don’t have the time for that kind of thing right now.” Everypony was surprised at how composed Twilight had managed to answer that question and how reasonable her response sounded.

“Oh… uh, okay.” Poison sat back down, having suffered a total defeat.

“Hey, what about me?” Pinkie Pie threw her hat into the ring. “I’ve got somepony and I love kids!”

“But Hon, you are a kid,” Poison said, her wisdom ringing true with everypony else. Pinkie Pie tried to fight her on that, but she couldn’t think of one thing she could say in her own defense; however, gave Poison a look to convey that this battle wasn’t over yet. Poison didn’t notice. “Well, at least there’s one pony I can count on.”

“You don’t mean my daughter, do you?” Palette asked, getting a knowing nod from Poison. “Well… I suppose you’re right.”

“Mommy is gonna have a foal?” Taboo asked, jumping up all of a sudden. “Really?”

“Maybe,” Palette said, smiling down at Taboo. “That’s up to her and daddy.”

“Does that mean I’m going to have a little sister?” Taboo began bounding up and down excitedly, her wings fluttering gently out of habit and excitement. She had not yet up until this point realized that her parents were capable of having another child. It kind of made her wonder why she didn’t have a sibling already.

“Again, that’s up to them.” Palette had told a little lie. She knew for sure that her daughter was going to go and get herself pregnant. She chalked it up to a mother’s intuition, but she couldn’t imagine it going down any other way.

She found it odd that she was thinking that way, considering that it wasn’t all that long ago that Rainbow Dash had sworn off ever having kids of her own. Palette had only been holding onto hope that her daughter might start changing her mind on the day she suddenly showed up with Taboo in tow. Palette had just been satisfied to have Taboo be her granddaughter, but it only took a couple of time seeing her daughter with Thunderhead to make it clear that the two were destined to have at least one more kid.

Palette had also done the same math that, unknown to her, Rainbow Dash had also done. She good feeling her daughter had figured it out too, and there was no way the daughter she raised would pass up such a picture perfect window of opportunity. If she also knew anything about her daughter, there was also another thing she could say for sure.

“Also, mommy might want to get you a little brother,” Palette said.

“A little brother?” Taboo scrunched up her face and furrowed her brow. “Why? Why would she do that?” The thought of getting a male sibling seemed to deeply offend Taboo.

“Oh, you’ll just have to ask mommy when she gets back.”

“But-”

“Shhshhshh.” Palette hushed her granddaughter. “Careful, or you’ll wake little Willow here.”


“Well, that was delicious,” Birdie said, sitting back in his chair. “It was worth coming all the way out to Ponyville just for that!”

“Oh, thank you,” Fluttershy said, blushing a bit. “B-but I’ve got a lot of experience cooking, so it’s really not a very big deal.”

“I’ll bet it’s better than anything my daughter can do,” Palette said, equally satisfied with the meal. It was still snowing outside in the dark, but the inside of Fluttershy and Turner’s cottage was nice and cozy. It helped that there were plenty of warm bodies around to keep things toasty. “And as much as we love Thunderhead, he doesn’t seem like the cooking type either. Don’t you think, Taboo?”

“I like mommy’s cooking!” Taboo defended her mother, but then turned to her empty plate and scrunched up her face a little. “… But auntie Fluttershy’s is better.”

“Now that dinner is out of the way, how’s about a little drink?” Birdie asked, giving Turner a knowing look. “If you share a little of that Sweet Apple Acres cider with me I’ll impart a little fatherly wisdom on you.”

“Uh… well.” Turner scratched his head and looked towards his wife.

“It’s okay, I can handle things here,” she said, giving him a smile and a nod. “I’m feeling much better today, especially after my nap today. I can take care of Willow if she wakes up.”

With license to leave, Birdie and Turner went to have their drink while Palette and Fluttershy cleaned up. With Taboo playing with some mice on the floor, Palette suddenly felt a lot more domestic than she cared too with the stallions out relaxing while she and Fluttershy worked; however, Fluttershy seemed absolutely thrilled to be washing dishes. Considering how sedentary she’d been before, perhaps getting to do anything felt like an adventure.

“I’ve got to say, Fluttershy, you’ve come a long way since you left Cloudsdale,” Palette said, taking a dish from Fluttershy to dry. “You’ve really got a nice thing going here in Ponyville.”

Fluttershy didn’t answer, at least not audibly. She just beamed and blushed, her wings flitting a bit behind her. She never imagined being quite so set either, and sometimes she didn’t think it was all real. It was hard to refute the hard evidence that she had started her own family, something she wouldn’t want to awaken from if it was a dream anyway.

“You were always so reserved as a kid, the yin to Dashie’s yang I guess. I just wanted to say I’m proud of how far you’ve come.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Palette,” Fluttershy said, blushing and smiling all the while. “I’m glad we could spend this time together, especially now with Willow having arrived. I’m still a little lost on what to do.”

“Well, you’ve been doing a good job so far.” Palette patted Fluttershy on the back with her wing. “But honestly, Willow is an awfully quiet foal. I know Rainbow Dash was constantly crying and fussing when she was a newborn. It felt like she hardly ever slept for a solid hour, but I’ve hardly heard a peep out of Willow since I got here. She sleeps, eats, and fusses to be held. She must take after her mother.”

“Oh, well, I’m sure she’ll be more trouble later!” Fluttershy said as if she had to apologize for Willow’s good behavior. “She’ll probably grow up to be a troublesome child! … N-not that I want her to, it’s just, I just-”

“See, there’s the Fluttershy I know.” Palette laughed a little, glad to see that overall nothing had changed; however, that thought made her a bit sad. She put a hoof around Fluttershy and drew her close. “Willow’s parents are good ponies. I’m sure she’ll grow up to be confident and strong.”

Fluttershy’s initial reaction was mixed. She smiled, but then immediately grimaced as tears started welling up in her eyes. She tried her hardest to smile and thank Palette, but her throat burned as it became impossible to not cry. That’s how Palette ended up comforting a bawling Fluttershy in the kitchen when Taboo wandered in out of curiosity. She watched Fluttershy cry freely while her grandmother patted her on the back, hushing her and cradling her all the while.

“Grandma?” Taboo finally got up the courage to enter the scene. “Is Fluttershy alright.”

“Y-yes, I’m okay.” Fluttershy managed to speak up before Palette did. She smiled at Taboo, tears still shining in the corners of her eyes. She even laughed a little, which struck Taboo as a little odd. “You know, Taboo… your grandma is kind of like a mother to me.”

Taboo didn’t exactly understand, but Fluttershy didn’t give her time to ponder it.

“Taboo, you love your mommy and daddy, right?” she asked out of the blue.

“Yeah!” Taboo said without hesitation. The answer was pretty clear for someone as naïve and young as her, something Fluttershy picked up on even as she smiled gently at the young pony. “They’re the best!”

“Good… that’s very good.” Fluttershy sniffled a little. “Always remember how much you love them right now, alright? Hold on to that love.”

Taboo understood even less what Fluttershy was talking about, but Palette heard what she was saying loud and clear. A bit of unwarranted darkness fell over her face, considering the future for a brief moment. She had gotten a sobering reminder of what would inevitably happen one day just this week.

“Oh, listen to me babbling,” Fluttershy said, wiping her eyes and standing up. “I’d better run upstairs and check on Willow. Excuse me.” Fluttershy flew off to her upstairs, leaving Palette and Taboo alone once again. The pair had spent a lot of time together this week, but the day after tomorrow Taboo would be living with Rainbow Dash and Thunderhead fulltime again. Palette was glad for the little vacation from normal, even if it did have its share of odd moments.

“Yep, that’s the good stuff!” Birdie said, reentering the room with Turner. Both ponies had wisely limited themselves to one drink, one due to new responsibilities and the other because of a very recent embarrassment. “You sure you still don’t want any, honey?”

“If I have any, I won’t be able to fly straight back to Cloudsdale.”

“Well, do we have to go back to Cloudsdale?” Birdie asked, scratching his chin a little. “We could always shack up at Rainy’s for the night. It would save us the trouble of flying all the way home in this cold.”

“Tempting, but how are we going to get in?” Palette asked.

“I bet she left her house unlocked. You know how she is.”

“We aren’t breaking into our daughter’s house,” Palette said, firm on that point if only because she would prefer to just go home.

“Oh, you wouldn’t have to break in,” Fluttershy said as she descended the stairs. “Rainbow Dash left me the key so I could go feed Tank if I was ever feeling up to it.”

“Well then, I guess that settles it,” Birdie said with a sly smile. “How about it, Taboo? Want to spend the night at your house?”

“Mmhmm!” Taboo nodded her head with energized bobs. Sleeping in her own bed sounded really nice. Outnumbered two to one, Palette was forced to comply. On the condition they leave for home first thing in the morning, she agreed to let Fluttershy guide them from her cottage to her daughter’s house up in the clouds.

“Well, here we are,” Fluttershy said, unlocking the front door. “Cloud, sweet clou-*crash*-EEEEK!” Fluttershy jumped as something came crashing down the moment she opened the door. It only took a glance around the back of the door to see she had knocked over what appeared to be Thunderhead’s armor.

“Mommy keeps telling daddy he should move it somewhere else,” Taboo said, trotting on inside. “And daddy says the house isn’t big enough.”

“It could do with some renovations,” Birdie said, following his granddaughter inside. “I see a big project coming in the near future.”

“I would be happy if she would just redecorate.” Palette was never a huge fan of the Wonderbolts, so the fact that her daughter insisted that everything she owned be covered in their logos and images didn’t really jive with her. Even so, she entered on inside while Fluttershy set to trying to put Thunderhead’s armor back where it was.

Everypony else went upstairs, tired from their respective days. There were a few more pointed comments regarding Rainbow Dash’s decorating sense, but other than that they found themselves drained. It seemed like everypony was about to go down for the night, but then Taboo suddenly shot up from her bed.

“Something up?” Palette asked, sitting up from her daughter’s bed.

“I thought I heard something,” Taboo said, her ears swiveling around as if searching for the sound.

“… I don’t hear anything,” Palette said, knowing full well she probably wasn’t going to be able to hear whatever it was Taboo was listening for. Taboo, for her part, didn’t seem all that bothered by it. She seemed a bit frustrated that she couldn’t identify whatever it was she thought she heard, but in the end she lay back down.

“I guess it was nothing.”

“I guess so,” Palette said, laying back down herself. “It was probably just Fluttershy locking the door behind her or something.”

Oddly enough, Palette was closer to the truth than she realized.


“Honey, was that you?” Turner said, calling downstairs in an audible whisper. He didn’t want to wake Willow up, even though he just checked up on her sleeping soundly. When no reply came from downstairs, he began descending the stairs to check it out himself. “Honey?” he asked with a little more voice than before.

“In the den.”

“Ah, I thought I heard the door,” Turner said, arriving at the bottom of the stairs. He was surprised to find the entire downstairs was completely dark. He also noted that the usual cast of animals had apparently retreated elsewhere. Examining the slightly eerie changes to his house, he wandered into the den. “Are Rainbow Dash’s parents all settled?”

“Yes… so they won’t be here to bother us.”

“… Huh?”

“Come closer.” Fluttershy beckoned from somewhere in the den, but Turner didn’t see her anywhere. He moved towards the sound of her voice, even though he was still extremely confused. “Clooooser…”

“Um, are you feeling alright?” No sooner had Turner asked this than something flew into him and pinned him to the couch. When he got his wits about him again, he realized it was Fluttershy standing over him; however, something about her was different. “F-Fluttershy?”

“Oh, I feel better than alright,” she said, her blood red eyes gazing deep into her husband’s. Even in the darkness, Turner could place the changes in her appearance. The slitted pupils, the tufted ears, and the webbed wings gave it all way.

“What happened?”

“I don’t really know,” Fluttershy said, getting down close to her husband. “I was trying to put Thunderhead’s armor back together when something got stuck to me. It felt kind of funny at first, but then I started feeling much, much… muuuuch better! There’s just one problem.” Fluttershy sat on his belly, staring lustfully down at him.

“Which is?”

“It’s been so long since we’ve done it.” It was completely out of character for Fluttershy to even allude to “it.” Time Turner suddenly felt a chill run up his spine, but it was also accompanied by a kind of guilty anticipation as he realized what was inevitably going to happen. “I know I look like this, but a mare needs what a mare needs. I need you, Timey. Won’t you give me what I need?”

Time Turner had become a pile of incoherent psychobabble at this point. If he had any objections, he sure didn’t do anything to express them that night.


Rainbow Dash and Thunderhead flopped down onto the bed, both of them more spent than a child’s allowance in a candy store. The evidence of having lived in glorious squalor for the past week was strewn about them. The floor was literally covered in empty pizza boxes, seeing as pizza was the only thing the pair could order at any hour of the day. A pyramid of disposable coffee cups stood in a pyramid beside the closet. There was a miasma of cheese smells, body odor, burnt out candles, and coffee rinds permeating the air. Pillows were strewn about all over the place, including beneath and on top of overturned furniture. The comforter that was originally on the bed had disappeared into the ether somewhere, but at some point a bath towel had found its way into the mix. In other words, it looked like a hotel room.

The occupants, of course, smelled much like the room they’d been occupying. They’d been at least bathing regularly, but the complimentary hotel soaps and shampoos were only so powerful. Plus, they had run out of shampoo around day three and began rationing the soap since then. Halfway through the last day, they found their cave-dwelling lifestyle was suddenly turning on them. Lethargy had somehow crept into their bodies, but nopony felt like sleeping.

“You know, we could go outside together for once,” Thunderhead said. Rainbow Dash had managed to live the last couple of days inside the room subsisting on coffee, pizza, and various other unmentionables. “It’d be shame if we came all the way out here and didn’t at least go out onto the beach once. Maybe it’d give room service enough time to clean up this mess.”

“… Maybe.” Rainbow Dash didn’t want to immediately concede to Thunderhead’s idea. She hadn’t been taking orders from him all week, so she wasn’t about to start right at the very end. “I’m not sure I remember what the sun looks like.”

“I’m pretty sure the hotel staff thinks I have you trapped in here.”

“Please, you’re the one stuck with me.” Rainbow Dash got up off the bed and stood on the pizza box floor. “… I guess we had a good run.”

“That’s an understatement,” Thunderhead said as he joined her atop the trash. “I know ponies joke that couples do nothing but have sex on their Honeymoons, but I think we overdid it.”

“Ha… overdid it.”

“At any rate, let’s get out of here. I think the beach would be a refreshing change of scenery.”

In the end, Rainbow Dash was more than happy to exit the confines of the hotel room for a couple of hours. They cleaned up as well as they could and wandered out onto the streets. The sunlight felt amazing after being cooped up for so long, a warm embrace unlike any other. The two were content to just trot along at first and stretch their legs, but it didn’t take long before they ended up by the waterside. That’s how on the last day the newlyweds ended up doing the most clichéd romantic thing imaginable: taking a long walk on the beach. The results were shocking.

“Alright, now I regret staying in the room for so long,” Rainbow Dash said, leaning on Thunderhead as they walked right where the waves would crawl up onto the sand. As the waves passed over their hooves and receded back into the water, they felt the sand seem to melt beneath them. The salt scent of the ocean rose up from the crimson waters, shining in the now setting sun. “Looks like we stayed out a little later than we intended.”

“Any complaints?”

“Not really.” Rainbow Dash cuddled up closer to her husband. Thunderhead didn’t say anything about it, but Rainbow Dash was being a lot more affectionate than usual. He chalked it up to being a byproduct of their recent escapades, but he didn’t dare say anything about it lest it shatter her pleasant demeanor. If she knew she was acting girlish and sweet, she would probably make a concerted effort to act tough. He realized he had to savor the little moments like these; they weren’t bound to last long. “The sunset’s so pretty. Kinda makes you think Celestia is doing it just for us… which is cool of her considering how much I’ve done for her.”

“Yep, there it is.”

“There’s what?”

“Nothing.” Thunderhead wondered if he could the blushing version of his bride back for a couple of seconds. “So, what’re we gonna name our kid?”

“… H-huh? What?!” The look on Rainbow Dash’s face told him he’d struck gold. She backed off a little from him, but he sidled back up to her and got in even closer.

“Don’t tell me you haven’t given it any thought,” Thunderhead said, prying even further. Even if he was asking just to pester her, he was also genuinely curious.

“Ah, well, kinda, maybe, a little?” Rainbow Dash furrowed her brow and turned away. “I’m just going to play it by ear.”

“Are you hoping for a colt or a filly?”

“Colt,” Rainbow Dash answered within a second of being asked. It would appear she had given the topic of exactly what she wanted in her next child some thought after all. “We already have a filly, so now we need a colt to round things out.”

“What if it’s a filly.”

“Pfft.” Rainbow Dash seemed absolutely certain about this for some reason. “As if.”

“Alright, if you’re that sure about it.”

“Hey, you think I’m pregnant right now?” Rainbow Dash asked, making it Thunderhead turn to blush. “The little tyke could be growing inside me right now! It’s that nuts?”

“I think it’s a little early to say for sure.”

The pair stopped and stared out onto the horizon, both of them noticing the same blemish on the crimson sky. Far off over the waters, there was a dense, dark mass churning on some distant point. It was so far away that it might’ve been impossible to see it without the setting sun throwing a golden halo around it. It seemed wildly out of place, so the couple couldn’t help but notice it.

“What is that?” Rainbow Dash asked, squinting a bit to try and get a better look. “It looks like a storm.”

“I think that’s what it is,” Thunderhead said. “There’s some kind of local superstition about it. It apparently never goes away and always hangs around the same spot on the ocean.”

“Sounds like something to be superstitious about.” Rainbow Dash could tell based on how far away the storm was that it had to be massive in size, far bigger than any storm that would’ve been sanctioned by any competent weather patrol. “Do you know anything about it?”

“I haven’t really had much time to research it, but I’m sure you knew that,” Thunderhead said. “I heard a couple of tourists asking about it in the coffee shop once or twice. It’s got some weird name like Saxumtactūs. Legend has it that there used to be an island beneath the storm, but it was completely destroyed. Whether or not the story is true, it’s a cold hard fact that the storm is stupid amounts of dangerous. It’s illegal to sail or fly within a mile of it.”

“Kinda makes you want to fly within a mile of it and check it out,” Rainbow Dash said, but Thunderhead was not amused by the joke.

“Inclement weather is serious business, Dash,” he said, getting serious rather suddenly. “Storms even a fraction of the size of that one are responsible for disasters all around Equestria.”

“I think I know my weather. Don’t forget I used to be Weather Captain.”

“I’m not talking about your planned cyclone or stray thunderstorm.” Thunderhead was practically scolding Rainbow Dash at this point, which was worrisome. She didn’t know he could get so worked up about something like this. “These things are unforgiving giants. You might think it’s just weather, but nature can cook up some of the most unstoppable forces you’ve ever seen. I know you’ve faced a lot in the past, but when nature attacks all we can do is try and stick it out.

“You gotta promise me, if there is ever a freak storm in Ponyville or anywhere you are that you won’t do anything reckless. You’re not prepared to handle it. There are ponies who are trained to handle it, so leave it to us, please. I don’t want you flying into danger, especially if you’re carrying my child.”

“… Jeez, where is this coming from?” Rainbow Dash hadn’t expected that kind of speech from Thunderhead. Despite being told outright that there was something in this world she couldn’t handle, her pride didn’t even move to get in the way. He was genuinely concerned for her safety, for everypony’s safety. He looked so serious, she couldn’t help but smile. “As long as you promise you won’t get yourself hurt handling it.”

“It’s a promise then.”

“We keep making all these serious promises,” Rainbow Dash said, glomping back onto her husband’s leg. She drew him close and put her cheek to his neck. “I’d like to return to the part where we weren’t being very serious. Remember, everything goes back to normal tomorrow.”

“Back to normal?” Thunderhead chuckled to himself, realizing she wasn’t quite right. “Don’t you mean the new normal?”

“New normal, old normal. It’ll still be me, you, and Taboo.” Rainbow Dash pensively put a hoof on her stomach for a moment. “And somepony else pretty soon, I bet.”

“It’s gonna get crowded fast,” Thunderhead said, realizing that even now they were living in a one-and-a-half pony space with three ponies and one tortoise. “We might need to renovate.”

“We can make it work.”

“You won’t be saying that when there are four ponies trying to use one bathroom.”

“Then we can build another bathroom,” Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes. “Look, I don’t care if there are ten of us and we’ve got mountains of cash to spend. We’re going to live shoulder to shoulder.”

“There aren’t going to be ten of us.”

“Is that your only complaint?” Rainbow Dash leaned up and kissed Thunderhead before he could reply, effectively ending the conversation.

“Your master plan baffles me.”

“Just follow my lead.”

It was back and forth the rest of the way down the beach. They imagined that this is what it must feel like to be married, or at least married to each other. It was a lot like not being married, but with more sex. Without the slightest notion and the wildest ambitions of where they might end up in the coming years, they had willingly joined their fates together. As the last day of the Honeymoon officially ended, they ended up asleep in the same bed tangled up with one another. If they hadn’t been so soundly asleep, they probably would’ve looked at themselves and remarked at how appropriate the image was.


“Wow, is she always this quiet?” Rainbow Dash asked, looking down at Willow in her cradle. Fluttershy just nodded, not wanting to wake the sleeping filly. “I’ve been here for, like, an hour and she hasn’t cried once. This has got to be the quietest foal in all of Equestria.”

“Everypony says that.” Fluttershy wasn’t exaggerating, but she realized it was true.

“I thought Taboo was a light crier, but Willow puts her to shame.”

“Did I really cry a lot when I was that little?” Taboo asked, not realizing that it a few days it would only three years ago that she was that small.

“You still cry a lot.” Her mother patted her on the head, not that Taboo particularly appreciated it. “Applejack was telling me that Applerose is practically crying all night long.”

“It’s true from what I’ve seen,” Fluttershy said. “Poor Roseluck and Big Macintosh have had their hooves full, but Roseluck absolutely adores her daughter. I haven’t heard her complain once. She’s smitten with that filly.”

“I guess that’s a good thing for both of them.” Rainbow Dash chuckled, imagining Roseluck with her mane all disheveled and dark circles beneath her eyes as she rocks her child with a smile. The image fit the mare perfectly. The group went downstairs, where Fluttershy made an odd request of Taboo.

“Would you mind going out to feed the ducks?” she asked, entrusting Taboo with a loaf of bread. “They should be in the pond out back.”

“Sure!” Taboo scampered on out the door to perform the task before Rainbow Dash could either give permission or ask why. When Fluttershy turned to her with a serious look on her face, she sensed a more serious conversation coming on.

“I need to talk to you… about an… um… incident… that occurred while you were gone.”

“Does it have something to do with Taboo?”

“Oh, no!” Fluttershy said, but Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but notice how much her bashful friend was blushing. “It’s about… uh… you see… well… when I went to your house…”

“Okay, when you went to my house… what?”

“I, well, knocked over Thunderhead’s armor.”

“I keep telling him to put it somewhere else,” Rainbow Dash said. “It’s no big deal. You don’t have to worry so much about it.”

“Y-yes, but… when I put it back, there was something inside it.”

“Something bad?”

“Err… well, no?” Fluttershy didn’t seem quite certain of her own story, but Rainbow Dash just kept quiet and listened. “What it was… was, well, it got stuck to me. When it got stuck to me, I transformed into a… well, I turned into…”

“… Oh!” Rainbow Dash put the pieces together. “You turned into a night guard?”

“Y-yes… sorry.”

“Fluttershy! That, uh, whatever-it-is isn’t exactly safe. Thunderhead told me it’s like poison. Are you feeling okay?”

“Oh, I feel perfectly fine,” Fluttershy said, waving off any notions of her being poisoned. “In fact, I felt much better after I first put it on.”

“Really?”

“Oh… y-y-yes.” Fluttershy started shaking more than usual while she turned bright red. “A-a-and then I flew back here… a-a-a-and m-m-m-me a-a-a-a-a-and T-T-ime-e-e-e-ey-” Fluttershy didn’t dare say it out loud, so she leaned in close and whispered the final part into Rainbow Dash’s ear.

“… ARE YOU SERIOUS?” Now Rainbow Dash had turned bright red. “Thunderhead wears that everyday… to work! And now you and your husband… I don’t even want to think about it!”

“Sorry, sorry, sorry!” Fluttershy apologized as quickly as she could while Rainbow Dash tried not to mentally picture anything she didn’t want to. “I was just possessed by this uncontrollable urge! It never happened again while I was wearing it. I even took it off and put it back on, but nothing like that happened again.”

“Why did you try and make it happen again?” Rainbow Dash immediately regretted asking that question as Fluttershy began to smile a bit despite her blushing. “Nevermind!”

“Sorry.” Her apology seemed a bit insincere given her little grin. “I just… thought I should let you know.”

“Yeah… I think we all would’ve survived without knowing all that.” Rainbow Dash wondered if Thunderhead could get a new one, and she also wondered how she could propose he do so without revealing her motives. “Besides, it also adds to the pile of mysteries surrounding Taboo.”

“Oh! That reminds me!” Fluttershy felt silly for forgetting about something so important. “Your mother mentioned that Princess Luna stopped by your parent’s house. She apparently had some kind of news for you.”

“Really? Well, thanks Mom for telling me about that!” Rainbow Dash’s mother had said nothing about this herself, but it was totally something she would do. Of course she mentions how her coffee table was inexplicably broken, but she leaves out the part where Princess Luna tried to deliver a message. “I guess it’s about time I paid a visit to Canterlot.”