The Kitchen.

[Plush Ramen]

Where the best food in Equestria comes from. Mainly because of the instant transfers of new cooks now coming into the kitchen to please the royal partners. While the Queen of the changelings fuels on love, the kitchen will still prepare her meals properly, with a body and all.

[Orange Glow]

[Enter Orange and Ramen Mare the Super Ninja Spy Lady]

As Orange walked into the kitchen she silently wondered why they had one. Honestly besides her not to many residents ate real food. She shook her head and looked around for some yummy food.

[Plush Ramen]

Nervously entering the kitchen with Orange Glow, the smells of the kitchen itself were a tease on its own. Every hint of a whiff was like getting punched in the stomach as Plush tried not to hurl at the thought of it. Walking around and finding a small bar table, she.managed to sit there as the need to walk was.no longer her priority. Face planting into the table and seeing if anyone would show up to help them, the less smells there were, the better right now. Muffling a response through the bar table to the changeling, she felt whiny all together.

"Find anything?"

[Orange Glow]

"Well.. I found a few apples and a few muffins.. Though I prefer something a bit more.. Meaty.." Orange continues to rummage through the cold storage. She finds what she is looking for and grins. She floats out a steak and throws it on to cook.

"What would you like?" Orange looks to Plush.

[Plush Ramen]

Still faceplanted in the bar table, the mare looks up to her with a dead expression. Thinking of what she actually wanted, the chances of finding strawberries were probably not as likely. Still, ready to eat almost anything, the orange coated mare cleared her dry throat before attempting to speak once more. Remembering the last time she ate a muffin, a small cringe escaped her facial expression with a another grumble from her stomach.

"Anything without artificial sugar. Apples are great. So no muffins.."

(Bleh short post *slaps self*)

[Orange Glow]

Orange walks over to a basket of apples and grabs them in her magic floating them over to Plush. "Eat as many as you would like, it doesn't really matter if you ate them all"

Orange continued making her steak with a grin forming on her lips. She was at least a half decent cook and this was going to be delicious.

[Plush Ramen]

Looking up to the heavenly apples just awaiting her stomach, Plush didn't care that it wasn't a full meal. She didn't care that it was part of only one food group. All she cared about, was scarfing down as many apples as physically possible. Not even giving Orange Glow a response, her hoof takes an apple before biting into it in glee. Devouring the first one in seconds, she truthfully didn't care what ponies thought of her right now as she dove in for more. Each went as quickly as the next, core and all as the basket begun to less and less full by the second. Looking down after some time, the basket was now empty. After losing count, Plush Ramen groaned in satisfaction before laying back down on the bar table. Smelling something rotting and fried, she could only imagine what Orange Glow was even cooking.

"What.. is that smell?"

[Orange Glow]

"Hm? Oh, that's what I am cooking darling. Steak!" She smiles licking her lips her maw watering in anticipation. Ever since she became a changeling she seemed to like steak a lot. Well, when she wasn't feeding off of love. The taste was always just divine. She looked at the steak adding some seasoning before putting it down before Plush on a plate and sits down before it.

[Plush Ramen]

"Oh goodness.."

Between eating a lot at once after not getting fed for awhile, the smell of her meat had begun to effect the mare's body in the worst way. Finding herself growing nauseous, it wasn't long until Orange placed the hot and vile to her smelling flab of meat closer that she felt everything go sour. Looking away and trying to keep her food down, the orange mare couldn't stand it any longer before hurling and vomiting onto the floor beside her and away from the changeling.

"Ugh.. w-hy."

[Orange Glow]

"What? You can't even stomach the smell of meat? What a pity." Orange rolls her eyes and casts a spell on Plush to help keep her food down and dulling her sense of smell. After that Orange immediately dug into her steak almost viciously. Oh the steak was good and she savored it's flavor.

[Plush Ramen]

Deciding not to watch the mare eat her meat, Plush turned away for her own health. Finding her stomach starting to calm down, the smell no longer seemed to bother her as she let out a deep sigh. Happy some things were going her way, Plush tried to ignore Orange Glows's words with her own thoughts. The kingdom was no longer home to the princesses... What a weird feeling. Rubbing against her neck and towards her collarbone, a unique black mark was placed there exactly five years ago. Flashing back to the exact day Princess Luna threatened her nearly to death, the pain and words that went into marking her for her own cause was certainly not a pleasant one. The burning sensation she used to feel at night was not something she wished to brag about. It was however, a permanent cruel reminder of what she was, visible to all as she moved her hoof before holding her head up.

"So.. You're attached to me huh? What did you do to deserve this punishment. Where to next?"

[Orange Glow]

"I'm the only one she trusts enough to watch you." Orange shrugged finishing her food and rubbed her belly. She let out a content sigh. She got up and walked towards Plush seeing the mark at first.

"To the Queen I guess. Gotta ask about a bat don't I?"

[Plush Ramen]

Hating that she needed to be babysat, Plush tried to think of the positives. Along with her deserving this, the orange mare's ear twitched at the sound of the word bat. Growing excited and scared at the same time, Plush immediately stood. If there was ever a positive thought so clear, it was a chance to see him again. She needed closure, and every second thinking of him had only made things worse.

"Oh! Yes. Please. After you."

[Orange Glow]

Orange got up and went for the door. This was going to be an interesting sell considering what he did to the Queen.

[Exit Plush & Orange to the throne room]

[Orange Glow]

[Enter Plush and Orange]

With a flash the two mares appear in the kitchen, Orange was now panting lightly an obvious tell that she might have over done her magic just then. Though it'd be a long day in tarturus before she admit she was weak from it. She looked around the kitchen quickly seeing if anyone was around before setting off to make a few snacks for herself and Plush. With her magic she grabbed a bowl of berries giving it to Plush, while she rummaged for something else. Though this time it'd be something hopefully Plush wouldn't puke at. As much as she loved screwing with her, now was not the time. Orange's eye gleamed as she saw a couple apples, they were her favorite before the change. She happily bit into them humming happily.

"Eat up"

[Plush Ramen]

Holding her head and adjusting to her new settings, Plush Ramen had slowly made her way back towards the bar stool. Climbing up and glancing with an exhausted expression to the berries given to her, the orange mare had almost been too tired to eat, almost. Shaking away the thought and eating up, her hunger had soon come back with vengeance. Finishing the fruit and simply enjoying sitting down, blue eyes peeked to Orange Glow for her food choice. Pleased to not smell cooked animals, the raven maned pegasus nodded in appreciation.

"Thank you."

Watching the halfling slowly, her demeanor had certainly been different, causing her to rethink the teleportation. While with Joxer, it seemed to come so easily, the mare never truly gave thought to how much other magic users must suffer with a placement spell like that. Blinking in realization that he had been gone far longer then she expected, Plush looked down, lost in her thoughts. What was he doing now? Why was he working with the Queen?

"Do.. you know anything about Joxer?"

[Orange Glow]

"Only that the queen enjoys his presence and he doesn't seem to like me all that much. Though that could be said about nearly anypony/" After a moment of eating and relaxing the halfling mare's breath started to return to normal no longer feeling the affects from the teleportaion spell. She continued to eat the extra apples she had found sitting down at a small table she had found.

"Why?" Orange looks to Plush with a smile.

[Plush Ramen]

With little to go off of, the orange coated mare pondered on her words with interest. The Queen liked him, he certainly dug himself a unique hole now didn't he? While she knew they had an act for being bad, Joxer had always been the one with the biggest heart. He was kind, caring, and overall warmhearted to the public. Despite his conditions growing up, he was a decent pony. That was, until she ruined him. Wondering if she was the reason he turned sour, Plush couldn't help but continue to miss him.

"Its.. nothing. He was once a close friend of mine."

It just didnt add up, he was dead, and somehow there he was. Unable to wrap her head around it, the mare found herself struggling to understand. Not thinking that the Queen had that much power to bring ponies back from the dead, a part of her was somewhat pleased. He was alive, and living a good life. Why should she ruin it with her neediness? Sighing mainly to herself, it was clear they had something, once. Wanting to spend more time with him and ask about his life, perhaps in time she would see him again.

[Orange Glow]

"Who knows, maybe he still is. The looks he gave me knowing I was to be your keeper. It was priceless. Of course a lot has happened since you were locked away in that hellish room." Orange shrugs and nods to herself. Finishing off the last of the apples she had dug out, throwing core after core away almost enough to make anypony wonder where a small made had put it all.

[Plush Ramen]

"I really doubt it. I do miss him though.. the old him. That stallion that I saw, didn't seem like him. Not the pony I remember. It seems everything changed."

Glancing to Orange Glow with little expectations, Plush watched her expression carefully. Did Joxer truly visit her in the prison because he cared? Doubtful, the mare found herself watching the apples disappear with moderate interest. Noting the hellish part of her sentence, Plush smirked mainly to herself.

"I don't know. I had plenty of time to catch up on sleep."

[Orange Glow]

"Well as much as I'd love to tell you, I honestly don't know. I tend to keep to myself while I'm avoiding love tax duty, and any other task I'm given. Though if the Queen asks me herself, I tend to do as I'm told. She can be really kind to you when she likes you, or rather if you entertain her. If you scorn or anger her? Then you better know how to hide, she is very creative" Orange thought how to word the last part of her statement. Truthfully she knew what happened to the last few ponies who pissed her off and it was far from pleasant.

[Plush Ramen]

The mare sighed, this whole new world was nothing she could have expected. Knowing she didn't belong, it was only natural for her mind to venture back towards the battle. Was that her only purpose? Why her? Surely there were others better trained for such a thing. She was rusty, startled easily, and out of shape, how could they fix that?

"I just don't think I'll get a chance to see her good side.. I worked under her before and... it wasn't pretty. I wasn't who I am now, and I caused everyone to get hurt because I failed the mission. It.. doesn't matter. Why did she pick me to fight? What in equestria was she thinking?"

[Orange Glow]

Orange smirks a bit before letting it falter into a frown. "Make no mistake, this is a battle. Though it is purely one for fun, nothing is to be won for the Queen or Sombra. She isn't risking anything by letting you fight, honestly she might be happy to see you struck down. Though if you win, I'm sure you'll be given your freedom or something of the sort"

Orange shurgged trying to think what the Queen was planning

[Plush Ramen]

Freedom? That was the last thing she wanted. Call her crazy, but Plush found herself wanting to be locked up all the more. This life, and its different ways, it wasn't for her. No place was, or so it seemed. Knowing Orange Glow was only doing her job, the mare mentally sighed. She was getting paid after all, she had no care for any of this. Her last words stuck on like glue, never yearning to leave as her thoughts traveled from place to place. If she had freedom, she could find him.. But on the bad side, if she had freedom.. she WOULD find him. Clearly distraught in her decisions, blue orbs glanced to the halfling curiously.

"Maybe you should ask her.. by yourself. Maybe the results would be different.." While she meant the Queen, it was clear to her at least what she meant by all of this. She wanted to know if he was alive or not. She wanted to know if she could see him again. If she could get this information, surely she would go a little more willingly towards this battle.

[Orange Glow]

Orange nodded and sighed. "I think I can do that, I just hope the other ponies are gone when I go to see her. I could careless to see anyone"

Orange got up and stretched her legs a bit, they had grown soar from sitting whilst devouring the kitchen's stock.

[Plush Ramen]

"Thank you. I really appreciate it."

Pleased to hear Orange Glow would try, Plush offered a small smile. While it wasn't much in this world, being shown kindness was a blessing. Noting her stand up, if the halfing left, that would however mean she'd have to be left alone. Wanting to plan a run away, the thought quickly left her mind as her eyes gazed over the odd creature. Not only would she not get her information, but she'd also get Orange in loads of trouble. Not wishing that, Plush stood up as well.

"Should I.. go back to your room?"

[Orange Glow]

"If you run, we'll find you. Though I guess you actually want to see me again to hear your answer. Yes, head to my room and make haste. I'll find the Queen and ask, then I'll be right back to my room to see you" Orange looked at Plush with a growing intensive look. Shortly breaking it off she left the kitchen and made her way to the throne room to hopefully catch the queen before she left it for the day.

[Exit Orange to the Throne room]

[Plush Ramen]

Taking in the mare's serious stare rather well, Plush found herself growing anxious already. Watching her leave, blue eyes widened in shock. She was alone, completely and bitterly alone, in the palace, by herself. Galloping to the door, Orange was right, she couldn't make haste. Flinging it open, the orange mare rushed out the door.

[Exit Plush Ramen to hallway]

[Vaan]

[Enter Vaan from Palace Hallway]

As Vaan stepped into the kitchen, his beak was filled with the aroma of food. And mot the food he'd would have to make in the wilderness, but actual chef made food. A smile crept on his face as his stomach found happiness.

"Time to feast!!" He yelled.

[Astral Midnight]

[Enter from Hallway]

Astral's stomach growled loudly as the smell of food hit his nose. He immediately began sorting through things to find something he liked.

"Hmmm. There's not a whole lot here. At least not from what I'm seeing.."