Ponyfic Roundup 415

Read it Later story count: 93 (+2)

That RiL list count has crept up slightly over the last couple of weeks, perhaps unsurprisingly given that up until today I've only reviewed one fic since before UK PonyCon. I should be making a little more of a dent in it now, though, as right up until 20th December when my Hearth's Warming break begins I hope to be reviewing four stories each and every week. Here are today's fics:

Imaginary by TheSlorg
Only Memories by Super_Sonic_Rainboom
Fluttershy's a Carnivore by Silver-Brony
The Origin of a Species by MasterThief

★: 1 | ★★: 1 | ★★★: 1 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 0
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.

Imaginary by TheSlorg
Pinkie Pie and Other
G4 AU; Sad/Slice of Life/Human; 5k words; Jul 2013; Teen

A young girl faces life's challenges with a little help from Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie has – somehow; we don't get the exact details – made contact with a human girl and become her friend (because of course she has). No-one else knows about this, so said girl can only tell her diary. While this isn't a "diary fic" as such, we do see quite a few entries, spanning a considerable period of time. These reveal the reality of the girl's life and how much she really needs Pinkie. The "human with difficult life is cheered by Pinkie Pie" plot is one you've probably seen before unless you're very new to this, but TheSlorg handles it pretty well here and without the cloying mawkishness that you sometimes see. Another canon (pony) character plays a pleasant supporting role, too. Although this fic's underlying storyline isn't especially original – it probably felt fresher in 2013 – it's a fairly solid example of the type. I note that there's a sequel, which I may also be reading at some point. ★★★

Only Memories by Super_Sonic_Rainboom
CMCs
G4; Sad/Slice of Life/Tragedy; 2k words; Jun 2012; Everyone

Scootaloo visits her parents` grave on the anniversary of their death, and the CMC learn her secret.

Back in 2012 there were a lot of fics about Scootaloo having a sad life in one way or another, some centring on her lack of home and some like this fic on her absent parents. For this story, they're very clearly dead, though I'm not sure giving all that away in the shortdesc is ideal. It's a straightforward little fic which isn't going to surprise you, but the writing is mostly serviceable if you can overlook the odd bit of weirdness like a random mention of Grand Theft Auto ("the game of course"). However the ending really hurts the fic, as Scootaloo's closing words are really odd when considered with what that shortdesc says. This is one of those "top-end one-star" fics that isn't unbearable to read but which doesn't really hang together. ★

Fluttershy's a Carnivore by Silver-Brony
Fluttershy and Twilight
G4; Random; 1k words; Dec 2013; Everyone

Ever since the bat incident Fluttershy has had fangs, and a strong desire to eat meat.

The show just ignored the little "Fluttershy still has a fang" twist at the end of "Bats!", but this fic doesn't. Indeed, it opens with 'Shy sinking her fangs into a squirrel (already dead, it seems). I quite like the idea of a fic looking at the implications of all this, but there's a big sticking point: Flutters wasn't a carnivore in "Bats!" as far as we could see. It was fruit she was after. Still, if I let that ride this does have some fun points, notably an amusing small twist at the end. Unfortunately it's roughly written, with irritating "Pinkie bursted [sic] out as she appeared from nowhere" lines and a slightly odd confusion between canine teeth and incisors at one point. That ending did make me smile, so this manages a modest two. ★★

The Origin of a Species by MasterThief
OC
G4; Drama/Sad/Slice of Life; 3k words; Oct 2022; Everyone

On an ancient stone tablet, a linguist discovers the origin of her kind. [1st Place, EFNW Iron Author 2022]

A prizewinning fic, no less! I'm not entirely sure what the terms of Iron Author are, but in any case I was intrigued, and eager to read this fic. A kirin linguist discovers some ancient writings and learns to decipher them. That's the framing device; the meat of the story is the actual legend she uncovers, which reveals the surprisingly exciting story of how her species came to be. Despite the genre tags, there's actually a good deal of adventure in that, with several quite memorable (and in one particular case, notably brutal) characters introduced and made use of. Considering the brevity of the story, doing that so well is quite a feat. I do think this probably should be rated [Teen], but it's a fine read and I'm glad it received recognition. I had a good time with this. ★★★★

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Next week, I hope that stories reviewed will include Lets Do This's AU comedy-drama When Ponies Fly.