>>40397043>>40397046every individual pony in the group is hugging every other pony in the group, excluding themselves
so, if there are n ponies, each pony is individually experiencing (n - 1) hugs
thus, when you add up all those hugs together (by multiplying by n), you get (n * (n - 1)), or (n^2 - n)
for example, when the mane 6 are sharing a group hug,
AJ is hugging FS, PP, RD, R, and TS
FS is hugging AJ, PP, RD, R, and TS
PP is hugging AJ, FS, RD, R, and TS
RD is hugging AJ, FS, PP, R, and TS
R is hugging AJ, FS, PP, RD, and TS
TS is hugging AJ, FS, PP, RD, and R
= 6 ponies experiencing 5 hugs each -> 30 hugs
(6 * (6 - 1)) -> (6 * 5) -> 30
(6^2 - 6) -> (36 - 6) -> 30