Ponyfic Roundup 435: mushroompone Edition

Read it Later story count: 97 (+1)

Words read this week: 33,706

It's been a while since I wrote a Roundup spotlighting a single author. In fact, it was PR 364 in October 2021, when I reviewed five stories by Lets Do This. As with LDT, mushroompone's account dates back only to 2018 (although apparently they've been around since 2013) and I've been somewhere on the scale from pleased to blown away by what I've read from them so far. Womb (PR 405) in particular was extraordinary. Of today's five, two were deliberate picks: The Head as the author's most recent story and Debt to Society as a Scootafic. The others were chosen randomly. Off we go!

Comet Day by mushroompone
The Great Hearth's Warming Bird Count by mushroompone
The Head by mushroompone
Debt to Society by mushroompone
Symbiosis by mushroompone

★: 0 | ★★: 0 | ★★★: 3 | ★★★★: 1 | ★★★★★: 1
Note: I use a skewed rating system. A fic I enjoy an average amount scores two stars.

Comet Day by mushroompone
Octavia and Vinyl Scratch
G4; Romance/Slice of Life; 2k words; Apr 2021; Everyone

On the day a comet passes overhead, Princess Twilight Sparkle decides to keep the sky dark, allowing all of Equestria to enjoy the view.

Starting off with a Quills and Sofas speedwriting contest winner, though it has been edited since. This is an appealing OctaScratch one-shot, though they're simply housemates as the story begins. The implications of Twilight messing around with the skies might be considerable, but that's not the point here. The point here is Vinyl and Octavia. Told by Vinyl herself, it's a cute little thing, fairly dialogue-heavy but with that dialogue being really quite appealing. The comet itself behaves more like a fireball, which is odd, but that's only a small gripe as it gives us a really sweet ending. A top-end three, which for this kind of fic gives this Roundup a very solid start. ★★★

The Great Hearth's Warming Bird Count by mushroompone
Fluttershy, Twilight and Cheerilee
G4; Comedy/Slice of Life; 1k words; Apr 2022; Everyone

Every year, the most obsessed birders of Ponyville gather to perform an informal census of all the birds in town. It, of course, has devolved into the most cutthroat competition this side of the Dragon Lands.

A non-scoring entry from the Thousand Words contest in which the aforementioned Womb deservedly won a Gold Medal. This fic, by an author who is (per the A/N) also something of a birder, isn't quite in that class – but then few stories are. It is an enjoyable read, with Twilight in one of her obsessive moods trying desperately to outdo Cheerilee's apparently remarkable birding skill. The fic does require you to believe the latter has a slightly unappealing show-off streak, something which (not knowing whether that's realistic for birders) I'm not entirely comfortable with. Fluttershy is great as the slightly exasperated voice of reason, though. Perhaps not one of mushroompone's greatest, but it's still a good deal of fun and a pretty high three. ★★★

The Head by mushroompone
Ocellus, Trixie and Starlight
G4; Dark/Horror; 11k words; Oct 2022; Mature (Gore, Suicide/Self Harm, Death)

On a chilly morning in early October, Ocellus came to class without a head.

"A post-canon fic," the longdesc says. It kind of has to be, as you'll see if you read this. More to the point, it is definitely not messing around with its rating or tags: quite early on Starlight is off looking for Ocellus's probably mutilated head. But here's the thing: The Body (caps for a reason, as you'll find out) is still moving around. This is a truly sensational body horror fic that is deeply disturbing, cleverly constructed and excellently written. There's a running theme of dealing with cultures that are alien to you: a side but significant character makes the distinction between understanding and respect. If you have knowledge of Earthly insects, you may have a slight head start. After a perfectly shocking final scene, mushroompone also breaks off in just the right place, leaving me wondering. Nit-picks? Referring to headmare Starlight as headmaster a couple of times is strange and there's a single mildly irritating narrative intrusion near the end. But honestly, those are nit-picks. This fic is one of mushroompone's greatest. ★★★★★

Debt to Society by mushroompone
Scootaloo, Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon and Rumble
G4; Dark/Mystery; 10k words; Sep 2021; Teen (Gore, Violence, Profanity)

After an "incident" at Twilight's School of Friendship, Scootaloo returns to Ponyville on sabbatical.

This won the Rainbow Factory Anniversary Contest, set up to mark the tenth birthday of AuroraDawn's hugely popular grimdark (PR 72), which knowing will help to add context here. (Maybe worth noting in passing that mushroompone likes that fic rather more than I do.) Scootaloo, now a young adult, is working in fast food while she's away from teaching – but when she sees the aftermath of a horrible accident, her mind can't help but wander. Her colleagues and friends (maybe – spoilers) Rumble, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are around as well, and Scoots' slightly awkward relationship with them is very well portrayed. There's a change of gear almost to adventure later in the fic that alters the feel of it all, but mushroompone manages to pull it off. I'm not surprised this appealed to the judges; it did to me as well. ★★★★

Symbiosis by mushroompone
Autumn Blaze and Chrysalis
G4 AU; Slice of Life; 10k words; May 2020; Everyone

Autumn Blaze and Queen Chrysalis get paired up for a special friendship project.

Back to E-rated fiction for my last pick, which caught my eye because of that really unusual team-up. The team-up is actually down to Twilight, since Autumn and Chrysalis (most definitely not "Chrys") are in the Castle of Friendship trying to work out a diplomatic agreement. There's a quiet undercurrent of comedy, but that never quite sparks into Nirik-fire (there's no [Comedy] tag, after all). I dunno, maybe I personally would have preferred this to go for a few more laughs, even if retaining the more serious elements. On which note, I do like how mushroompone uses Autumn's bubbly character and Chrysalis's underlying sadness to create interesting contrasts – and similarities. One or two oddities, such as one of the two saying they haven't agreed on anything a few paragraphs after doing exactly that. For me, this is "better than I have a right to expect with this pairing" rather than "wow, blew me away regardless" I think. Another top-end three to end with. ★★★

---

That's a pretty good return! Next time, it'll be back to the usual mixed bag of fics. Here are the stories I hope to be reviewing on the 29th:

Not All Peaches and Cream by Garbo
Felt Heart by Tchernobog
The Line by Axan Zenith
Possibly, Probably, Positively Platonic by DualSoul1423 (review requested by author)
Confessions in a Canterlot Statuary by Daffodil