Magic Butterflies….
…….because I honestly couldn’t think of a better title… XD

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Pumpkin Cake and her brother Pound were finishing up the frosting on a new batch of cupcakes when the door to Sugarcube corner opened, dinging the silver bell above. Pumpkin trotted into the shop from the kitchen to greet the guests. “Hello! Welcome to Sug~~” She stopped.

“Flurry!” she exclaimed, leaping over the counter and dragging the princess into a hug. “What are you doing here?!”

Laughing, Flurry Heart pulled out of the hug. “We just thought we’d drop by and visit since we were in town. We were visiting Aunt Twilight…. er, Princess Twilight,” she corrected herself.=, grinning sheepishly. Pumpkin shrugged.

“It’s fine. Everypony in Ponyville just calls her Twilight Sparkle. She hates being called Princess.” The two mares laughed.

“Hey, Pumpkin,” Pound called as he trotted into the shop with the cupcake boxes, “I thought you were going to~~” He stopped and gasped. “Flurry!” Pumpkin elbowed her friend as Pounds cheeks turned cherry red. “I-I didn’t know y-you were coming by.”

Flurry elbowed Pumpkin back and smiled at Pound, her own cheeks a little red. “Yeah, we were visiting Aunt Twily and thought we’d drop by and say hello.”

Pound nodded, grinning from ear to ear. “Great!” He trotted around the counter. “Hey, Thorax! How’s it going?” Pumpkin whirled around and saw the changeling behind Flurry.

“Thorax!” she gasped, feeling her cheeks burn. “Er, what are you doing here? N-not that it;s a bad thing I-I’m j-just w-w-wondering,” she blundered. Flurry and Pound grinned evilly at each other. Nothing but Thorax could make Pumpkin start stuttering.

“I was visiting Spike and Rarity,” Thorax explained. “I haven’t seen them in almost a year.”

“Wow, that’s a long time,” Pumpkin exclaimed. She saw the Spike’s almost every day. Thalia loved coming to the bakery to hang out, and Arrow and Livia brought their friends over for afternoon sundaes a LOT.

“Hey, sis,” Pound interrupted, lifting the cupcake boxes with one wing (glancing to see if Flurry was watching, of course) “We gotta get these to Mrs. Octavia’s.”

“But Mom and Dad are out. Who’ll watch the store?” Pumpkin asked. Flurry stepped in.

“Don’t worry Pumpkin. I’ll help Pound deliver the boxes.” As the two headed out the door, Pumpkin pumped an eyebrow at Flurry, making the mare flush. Pumpkin giggled, turning to Thorax.

“Sooo…. what d’you want to do?” she asked. “We only need to do work if a customer comes in.”

“Uh…” Thorax paused, thinking. He brightened. “Oh! I learned a new magic trick I could show you!” Thorax loved sharing the new magic tricks he learned with other ponies.

“Sure!” Pumpkin wasn’t very good with any magic besides lifting, pushing, or pulling things (which she did a LOT), and she loved watching magic. Thorax closed his eyes for a moment, concentrating. Blue-green light started to seep from his horn, the normal magic color for changelings. The light started seperating into shapes, and the shapes into…. “Are those… butterflies?” Pumpkin asked, squinting at the fluttering shapes.

“Yep!” Thorax announced proudly. “Flurry helped me learn it.” The glowing butterflies fluttered around the room, landing on shelves or flapping in lazy circles.

“That’s so cool!” Pumpkin watched as a butterfly hovered in front of her. “Can you teach me?”

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Okay, I LOVE the idea of a good changeling!!! “The Times are a Changeling” was a GREEAAT episode!!

In my Next gen universe, Thorax is basically the Changeling ambassador between the changelings and Equestria. He taught a lot of changelings how to be friends, and with the love they produce from being friends is enough to feed them quite well, so they don’t have to attack other countries to feed.

Pumpkin, Pound, Thorax, Flurry, and the Lumbra kids are all in their late teens/early 20s. They hang out a lot together, and Flurry and Pound as well as Thorax and Pumpkin have crushes on each other.

As for Pumpkin’s design, I imagine she’s a bit chubby like Mrs. Cake, and she likes how Aunt Pinkie Pie does her mane, so she has the frizz as well, just keeps it tied up in a bandanna. As for her cutie mark…. I just gave her a pumpkin for now, but I’m going to try and make a bio for her where I’ll probably change it.

Thorax: I know he doesn’t have that thing around his neck/ around his stomach in the show, but I decided all changelings get that as they mature.