Little Hooves in a Dark World

by David Silver

24 - Gift Giving

The world had always been a strange and mysterious place to Sandra. From the very first moments she had become aware of her surroundings, there was the presence of magic, ever at the edge of the world, just waiting for the right moment to burst out and make itself known.

That she had become a pony, later, hardly served to diminish this feeling. With a swaying tail and erect ears, she eagerly embraced life for having even more obvious magic in it. This, too, passed when her sister, who had always seemed to be 'normal,' became a pony as well.

But that was fine. It was good to know she wasn't alone anymore. They had been two joyful ponies, trotting side by side through what life had for them. At least until they became 'Responsible Adults'. Then bills had to be paid, and dreams had to be reached for slower than either wanted to.

Sandra had lucked into her dream. Streaming games was the kind of thing she could do for years on end, with no sign of getting bored. Her only regret was that Susan wasn't quite able to do the same, and that they were a state apart. So, when she woke up the next morning, she hit the ground on eager hooves and trotted out into the living room. "Are you awake? Of course you are. You know where I keep my gaming system?" She paused, looking around her now empty house.

Her ears drooped, and she slumped down onto her haunches. "You didn't run off that quickly, did you?!" She rose back up and put her forehooves to her face, calling out as loud as she could. "Sis? Louis! Where are you two!"

A door creaked, then swung open as Susan peeked out, rubbing at her eyes. "Why are you so energetic this early in the morning? I swear you're an actual kid."

Raspberry darted over and beamed at Susan. "Because! It's a new day, with new chances for adventure!"

Susan rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Yep, kid." She offered her arms, and soon was holding up Raspberry as she made her way towards the kitchen. "I assume you slept well then, being as energetic as that."

Raspberry swished her tail lightly, swinging her hooves. "Oh, yeah. You?"

"Yep. I'll have to steal that bed at some point." She set Raspberry down on the kitchen table and settled into a seat herself. "It has no business being as comfy as it is. Now, serious talk, you two really don't mind me moping around? A new couple probably doesn't want a sister bringing down the mood."

Raspberry tilted her head in amusement. "Mope? You? I can't imagine it. Besides, sis, I got good news for you. I may have found a gig you might be interested in." She beamed.

Susan slowly rose a brow. "You did that fast?"

Raspberry waved a hoof dismissively. "Not me. Louis said he'd be willing to get you in on something. His place is looking for some people, and that hole may be Susan sized." She clapped her hooves together. "Wouldn't that be great?"

Susan's face was inscrutable, but after a few moments she gave a little nod. "Sure. Let him know I'm interested." Her tone was dull, but there was an edge of hope to it. "You little laughter." She reached out, ruffling Raspberry's mane. "Couldn't let me go a full day of a mope before you jumped right on that problem. I hate that, but I love it too. Thank you."

Raspberry laughed and nuzzled into the touch. "That's what we ponies do. We have fun and share our good mood with others." She beamed. "But I'll send the word over. Now! Magic!"

Susan blinked at that sharp turn in the conversation. "Magic? Well, we're both ponies."

"More magic." Raspberry got a coy smirk on her equine face. "Magic magic, outside of being a pony. Watch." She held up a hoof and spoke ancient words of terrible import. That hoof began to crackle with electricity and fire, dancing elements across her hoof.

Susan's eyes grew wide. She stared, her mouth hanging slightly open as she tried to take in what Raspberry was doing. "Huh." Her head tilted. "What? How?" She rolled her hands quickly over one another. "That isn't in the pony list of tricks, last I knew."

"It isn't," sang out Raspberry, letting the power fade. "But I learned it. It's human magic, and we're still two of those, on top of being ponies." She wriggled, looking extra cute with her hooves wagging in the air. "Isn't it great?"

Susan slowly shook her head, looking at Raspberry in disbelief. "How? Magic, that's not a thing, is it?" She leaned closer. "You just made fire and lightning appear from nowhere!"

Raspberry got a flat look, barely holding back snickers. "We're two magic ponies, Sis. You do not get to pull the 'but there's no such thing as magic' thing at me."

Susan stared at her sister, a long, slow stare that said 'I hate when you're right.'

Raspberry giggled and nuzzled into her. "I'm sure you'll come to love it as much as I do." She lifted an ear. "If you want? Um, you don't have to, and I got the idea it's pretty mind bendy. But hey, I was never scared of a little bent mind in the morning!"

Susan leaned back, rubbing her hands together. She considered it, but only for a few moments before giving in to a little laugh. "Well... I don't think you would put up with a con that didn't pay off, and a magic trick would take some serious prep." She let out a slow breath. "But let's tackle one thing at a time. See if there's really a job, and if I can get it. We get that settled, then maybe magic time?"

Raspberry laughed and nodded along. "Okay! Fair deal. That's what we'll do, then." Her ears perked, then she hopped off the table. "There we go!" She hit the ground on human feet, shoe-clad. "For today, I want you to have fun. So, want to stream with me?"

Sandra did a twirl towards the computer room. "We can play games, chat with my fans, and just waste a day away." She paused to glance towards Susan's room. "But first, we should clean up."

Susan nodded slowly, a soft laugh escaping her lips. "Yeah, probably should. But let's make it snappy."

They moved together to clean up from the evening's rest. Soon, Sandra found herself sitting before her streaming setup, her camera pointed at them both. "Today will be a naked stream."

Susan blinked at that phrasing. "I'm a bit overdressed for that, and I don't want to be naked for your fans."

Sandra elbowed her sister. "Not that kind. I mean I won't be running any avatars. They'll see us, as us." She gestured Susan towards the second chair and got her settled into it. "Ready for some fun?"

Susan laughed lightly. "Sure. Let's do this. You know how to make a show, so I'll leave it in your capable hands."

"Hey, my herd-mates!" Sandra waved at the camera, than wrapped an arm around Susan. "I got my sister with me today, and we're going to both be playing games with you all today!"

The camera was able to catch the slight roll of eyes from Susan. "You sure you want both of us? I'm not a star like you are."

Sandra shook her head. "It'll be great!" She grabbed two controllers, pressing one into Susan's grip. "Now what kind of game shall we start with, hm? Something cozy? Maybe something adventurous?"

"Uh, how about something light?" Susan waved her controller. "Not sure if I'm up for too much today. You know, it's been a while since I had fun." Her tone softened.

"Cozy it is!" She pressed some buttons, conjuring a game on the screen. "Let's go retire to the countryside, start a farm, and then romance the heck out of every single walking person in this town."

Susan gawked at her. "That's what the game is?"

Sandra laughed at Susan's shock. "It is. We get a whole little world to play with." She settled back, glancing at her sister. "Never played a farm cozy game? I swear, they all follow the same basic formula."

On the second screen, her chat eagerly talked about the glories of the cozy farming genre. "We're going to build a farm, grow some produce, and have fun with everyone in the village. What could go wrong?" Sandra got the game started. "So, my name here will be Rasp, and sis, what should I name your character?"

But Susan was already busily entering a name with her gamepad. "I got this."

A moment later, their characters appeared on screen. "Let's see, there I am. I look like me. And there's you..." She tilted her head at her sister's avatar.

It was a buff, hulking man with a shirt that showed his abs. "Sis, that's an interesting take."

Susan smirked, barely holding back a laugh. "If I'm going to be staring at someone for a while, why not some eye candy?" Her avatar struck a pose.

"Well, you're not wrong," laughed Sandra. "But let's set our farm up and see where it goes from there." They quickly chose a plot of land to begin on, then moved their avatars into a home. A minute turned into an hour quickly with the chat eagerly offering ideas and advice to the two of them as they performed their agricultural adventure. "And now we have... a crop."

"Nice." Susan leaned over, nudging her sister lightly. "I think I like this game."

Sandra beamed. "Then that's what I'll play, because it makes me happy to make others happy." That got a new flood of heart emojis from her fans. "Aw, you guys."

They only stopped because it was about lunch time. "Let your mare get her snacks, okay?" She waved at her camera. "Be back later!" She rose up to head for the door.

Susan followed after her. "I'm surprised how nice it is. It feels so personal."

Sandra laughed softly. "My fans love it." She stepped into her kitchen and went about making them some quick bites. "Why they're usually happy to play some cozy games with me. A chance to have fun, chat, and just hang out." She took a breath, thinking about it. "For some of them, I'm their only real chance to just do that, hang out with someone without expectations, who'll tell them little funny things and not bring the mood down."

Susan took one of the sandwiches offered to her. "Huh. You really do know your fans, don't you?" She munched away at the morsel with a light smile on her face. "Being a streamer really is your kind of thing. I love that you made your pony self fit into your human life so seamlessly like that. Jealous a little." She gave Sandra a little nudge. "You make me want to chase my dreams harder."

Sandra snickered softly at that and nudged her right back. "Sis? I'll be right there with you. If you want some help, you just have to point me in the direction. I got a lot of luck in my life, and I don't mind sharing it with my sister." She munched on her sandwich, then gave Susan a little wink.

"Thanks," murmured Susan, holding the word close as she ate. "Seriously, all good luck?"

"Well, mostly." Sandra turned her thoughts to her recent escapades. "A lot of good and bad luck all mixed together, but came out good in the end?"

Susan nodded slowly. "That makes more sense than just luck. There's always some bad, just how much bad."

"Mostly good, though." Sandra set her plate down and considered the meal. "Met some new wonderful people, got scared away from them, ran into my sister suddenly." She hugged Susan with that part. "And some waggy-tailed dogs! Nope, happy enough being alive."

Susan laughed and leaned in. "Oh yeah? Waggy tailed dogs?"

Sandra scoffed, shaking her head lightly at that. "It was adorable. Two wolfy boys, one of which kept playing with me. You met them, but don't call them dogs. That will probably annoy them, a lot, and I hear annoying them is a bad idea. They are proud wolves."

"A couple of wolves, huh?" Susan shrugged lightly. "Sounds like you're living dangerously."

"It's just life for us." Sandra smirked at her sister. "We're the kinds who can do things like be a magic pony if we feel like it." She reached up and rubbed at an ear. "I heard, just heard, that some ponies can change bits of themselves, instead of just all pony or all human. Can you imagine that?"

"I can." She grabbed at her tail, which swished into being as she did so.

Sandra's eyes lit up and she bounced in place. "Oh, oh! So good to see!" She did not hesitate to grab her sister's tail. "Look at it! When did you learn that trick?! Is it a gift?" She narrowed her eyes with a growing grin. "A gift you can teach me?"

Susan squeaked, then pouted lightly, trying to hide the blush on her face. "Y-yeah, I learned it recently. Just a little thing." She wiggled gently in her sister's hold. "Get your hands off my butt, you."

Sandra let go to laugh at the ceiling. "You're so cute, sister! I love you." She wiped a tear from her eyes. "Okay, okay. Show me." She hand out a hand towards Susan. "It's been a while since I got a gift. It's nice to go back to pony roots."

Susan's lips quirked upwards in amusement. "Huh. I guess so, yeah." She held out her own hands. "Well... close your eyes, and reach out."

Sandra closed her eyes, putting her hands firmly in Susan's grip.

Author's Note:

Sisters come with even more advantages when they're also a magic pony.

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Comments

[Amethyst Dragonfly]

Can a Pony in this world learn to go centaur? If not, what about Pony satyr?

[David Silver]

12104781
They haven't tried that, at least on camera. What would the advantage be?