Mercy, You Are My Greatest Friend

Chapters

Not As Bad
The First Step Out
Bury the Hatchet

Not As Bad

The midday sun stood above the students of Miss Cheerilee’s class as they walked down the rough path. The wild trees of the Everfree forest rose to the left and right of the path, safely held at bay by the pink forcefield surrounding the class.

“Thanks again for agreeing to do this Twilight.” Said Miss Cheerilee.

The purple unicorn in question simply nodded, mind focused on the dual task of maintaining the shield and walking in a straight line. Despite the recent trouble at her brother’s wedding, she was determined to uphold the promise she had made to the friendly schoolteacher earlier that year. She ran through the map she had memorized one more time. A quick survey of her surroundings confirmed her belief and she looked to Cheerilee

“We should be only a couple minutes away now. There’s going to be a bridge so everyone will need to be single file.”

“Got it.” She said, before turning towards her class. “Okay everypony, line up! We are about to cross the bridge and we don’t want to put Miss Twilight to any more trouble than we already have.”

“Really, it’s no problem...”

“Nonsense Twilight, I’m not clueless on unicorns, I know how hard you’re working to keep us safe. I appreciate it, really.”

Turning back to her class, Miss Cheerilee began to corral her students, leaving the blushing Twilight to continue plotting their course.

Drip. Drip. Drip. The black pony awoke to the splash of water as another droplet landed on her horn. Unmoving, she observed the cold ground beneath her face and the dark stone of the opposite wall. Tilting her head, she observed the length of the room she was in. Patches of a faded red carpet stretched across the corridor, visible only due to the large, picturesque windows. After a long look down the hall, the pony attempted to stand. She pushed her front hooves down only to discover that she had little to no strength left. All of her might only resulted in enough force to flip herself over. Luckily, her newfound view of the wall revealed a thick vine crawling up the height of the wall. Slowly, she reached towards it. Seconds stretched into minutes as she grasped the vine with both hooves. After a minute of hard breathing she began to pull. Buildings shook as she slowly drew herself up to a sitting position. Each movement requiring enough force to move the sun, she managed to turn herself to look out of the closest window.

The brightness of the outdoors blinded her, but she fought past the ensuing migraine to look out. A barren and lonely castle met her eyes. Decrepit parapets and partial walls littered her vision leaving an impression of a castle as beaten as she, herself. This stirred a thought. I am beaten. This thought brought another. Who am I? The pony thought on this. She recalled many names, many colors. Steady Brick. Red. Dancing Lilly. White. Amethyst Blossom. Purple. None of those seemed right. She raised a hoof to her face. Black. Holes. She turned to her wings. Clear. Holes. This wasn’t enough. She raised a hoof to her horn. Jagged. Changeling. This felt right, but at the same time, wrong. She looked towards her wings which sparkled and shone in the light as she fluttered them. Glimmer. I am Glimmer. This felt right, but something was still wrong. She cast a wary look across the hall. She focused on a pile of debris and felt a memory resurface. I fell. I made that debris. A turn of her head revealed a pony sized hole in the ceiling a short distance from the debris. With a flinch, she recalled the cause of her crash landing. The invasion...what happened? Where am I? Where are the oth- Glimmer shot bolt upright as the problem finally clicked into place. Buzz! where is he? She stood upright and began to look around wildly, dipping into reserves of energy she was sure she didn’t have. I’ve already lost everything else, I can’t lose my colt.

“Now students, this bridge has been repaired and reinforced, but it is still old. I expect everyone to behave themselves as they cross single file. Miss Twilight will go first and I will go last. Once you are on the other side, you are free to explore the grounds for a while, but no one is to enter without Miss Twilight or me.”

As Cheerilee finished her speech, a pegasus at the back of the class raised his hoof.

“Yes Featherweight?”

“I thought the Everfree was supposed to be super scary and dangerous, why are we allowed to wander around once we cross the bridge?”

“That is an excellent question, but I feel that that would be best directed towards Miss Twilight.”

Cheerilee turned toward the purple unicorn that was currently doing some calculations with a stick in the dirt.

“Twilight?”

Twilight gave a start and spun around, a blush faintly visible on her muzzle.

“Yes?”

“Featherweight wanted to know why it was safe on the other side of the bridge.”

“Oh,” said Twilight, surreptitiously rubbing her rear hoof over her calculations. “is that all? It is safe around the old celestial castle due to a variety of powerful warding spells that were cast on the grounds at its creation. These spells keep anything with ill intent from entering the grounds. Of course, anything with sufficient power or magical knowledge could circumvent these wards, but the only being to do that was Princess Luna, and that’s hardly a good example because she was one of the ponies who cast it in the first place.”

The students looked at Twilight blankly for a second before Sweetie Belle piped up,

“So basically, it’s because the princesses are protecting us?”

Twilight sagged a little at this.

“Yeah, sure.”

Cheerilee clapped her hooves together and chirped to the class,

“Right then, that’s enough questions. Everybody line up to start crossing.”

As the children argued their way into a single-file line, Cheerilee leaned over to Twilight and whispered,

“Don’t worry about it, they’re just foals. I’m pretty sure a couple of them got it, but for the most part you need to have a bit more patience than usual”

Twilight nodded before taking her place at the front of the line. At Cheerilee’s mark, the class set off across the bridge. Many of the more skittish students stopped moving the moment they looked down, but with some urging, they were convinced that it was safe to continue.

As the last of the class crossed to the other side, they all looked to Cheerilee, excitement obvious upon their faces. She looked around, mouth open in preparation for a speech, before sighing and saying,

“Fine, I’ll leave off the safety talk. you have thirty minutes to go explore.”

The class gave an excited cheer as they ran off to see what they could get up to in the short amount of time. She gave a slight chuckle

“I’ll need your help to keep track of them, Twilight. Do you think you’re up to it?”

Twilight gave a slight grunt, closely focused on some more writing she was doing in the dirt. Cheerilee gave a little cough and Twilight leaped into the air before turning to Cheerilee.

“Whatcha got there?” Asked Cheerilee.

“Oh, nothing. Nothing at all.” replied Twilight, a nervous smile plastered across her face.

Cheerilee gave her a look of disbelief before saying, “Did you hear what I said?”

“Something about tracking.”

“I need your help watching the foals.”

“Got it.”

Cheerilee eyed Twilight for a moment before turning to walk around the area. Twilight hurriedly scuffed up her writing before running after Cheerilee.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders Treasure Hunters Yay!”

The three mischief making fillies hadn’t waited a single second before rocketing off to explore the ruined castle of the Celestial sisters. Now far ahead of the rest of the class, they were poking around anywhere and everywhere, looking for hidden passageways and treasures.

“Ah don’t know Scootaloo. I don’t think anypony would keep their treasure in a compost heap.”

“Come on Applebloom, it’s the perfect hiding place. Now give me a lift.”

With a wary sigh, Applebloom dug her hooves in and pushed up as Scootaloo attempted to climb over the wall to the compost heap they were currently investigating. As Scootaloo crested the wall, Sweetie Belle piped up,

“Uh, girls? There’s a gate over here...”

The moment Sweetie Belle said this, Scootaloo lost her footing and tumbled into the moist dirt.

“See anything in there?” yelled Applebloom.

“Just a bunch of dirt.” replied Scootaloo.

“Ah’ll come around and let you out.”

As Applebloom rounded the corner to help Sweetie Belle release the gate, she heard the two voices approaching least wanted to hear.

“Where did those blankflanks run off to this time?

“No doubt getting their pretty little flanks into trouble like usual, Silver.

“I wonder what kind of ancient evil they’re going to unleash this time.”

“Maybe they’ll get their cutie marks in Helping Villains.”

After the last remark, the two fillies speaking came into view from behind a stone arch and spotted the pair standing outside the stone enclosure.

“Well there’s two of them. Hey blankflanks, where’s the orange one?” asked Diamond Tiara.

“I have a name you know.” said Scootaloo from inside the heap.

“Is she seriously in there?” asked Silver Spoon.

“There is a very good reason as to why I am in here and I will explain it as soon as you get me out.” retorted Scootaloo.

“What do you think Diamond? Should we help them?”

“Hmm, yeah. We might as well help the blankflanks.”

“We don’t need your help!” yelled Scootaloo.

“Yeah!” chimed in Applebloom.

“Um girls...” whispered Sweetie Belle.

“Looks like Sweetie Belle’s the only one of you with eyes.” said Silver Spoon. “The latch on that gate is rusted shut. You need our help if you want to get that open without getting into trouble.”

Sure enough, the old, two-door wooden gate was locked shut and rusted beyond all recognition. The old iron hinges were in similar repair. The metal was was decrepit, but still holding up. Applebloom gave a quick kick to the gate.

“Ah hate to admit it, but they may be right.”

“As always.” said Diamond Tiara.

“Ya’ll don’t have to be all smug about it.”

“Differences aside,” interjected Sweetie Belle, “We should probably get going before we get called back.”

“Whatever you girls do, can you hurry it up? It’s getting kinda gross to be standing in here.” complained Scootaloo.

“Yes, let’s.” said Diamond Tiara, “Everypony line up and we’ll kick the door at my mark.”

With a bit of fussing, all four fillies lined up in front of the door and prepared to kick.

“One, Two, Three, Kick!”

As one, the four fillies bucked the door as hard as they could, causing it to shudder and give off a huge amount of dust. The iron work held strong, but a large crack now ran up the gate.

“Aw shucks, it didn’t work. Should we try something else?” asked Applebloom.

“Buck up blankflank! We’re making progress. It just needs another good kick. Everypony bunch up and get ready to go again.” ordered Diamond Tiara.

Once again, the four fillies lined up. This time, flank-to-flank they kicked and caused a large portion of the gate to break off and land in the dirt.

“Ow!” yelled Scootaloo.

“Hold on Scoots, we’ll find ya!” shouted Applebloom.

Sweetie Belle and Applebloom ran to the pile and began digging through the dirt for their fallen comrade. Soon both of them felt a hoof in theirs and pulled.

“I’ve got her!” they exclaimed in unison.

Applebloom looked to Sweetie Belle to find her eyes wide and clutching Scootaloo. Slowly, she turned towards the hoof she was holding. She followed the black, holed hoof up the black, holed leg and up to the large blue eyes that were staring into hers.

“Changeling!” she screamed letting go and running away from the monster.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders came rushing out of the stone compost so fast that they ran into Diamond Tiara and Silver spoon who were still standing there.

“What are you blankflanks so worked up about? Did you touch a bug? Maybe get a little mud in your mane?” sneered Diamond Tiara.

“For your information there is an evil monster in there.” retorted Scootaloo.

Diamond Tiara poked her head past the gate.

“All I see is a terrified foal you dolts.”

Diamond Tiara stepped through the gate and took a good look at the form cowering before her. Gossamer wings buzzed skittishly as the black, horned pony before her watched every movement she made.

“Don’t let those idiots get to you. We don’t mean any harm. How did you get here?”

The pony didn’t reply. It simply continued to stare. She raised a hoof and it recoiled.

“I’m not going to hit you. I just want to see if you’re hurt.”

The pony returned to its original position and continued to watch her warily as she stepped closer to it. Diamond Tiara carefully looked it over but didn’t find much of any use.

“Do you mind if I call my friend in? She knows a lot more about medicine than me.”

The pony’s eyes widened before it carefully nodded its ascent.

“Silver! Get in here. I need you to check for injuries.”

“Just a second!”

Silver Spoon said something undistinguishable before slowly walking in. The moment she saw the Pony, she gave Diamond Tiara a questioning look.

“He won’t say anything and I certainly don’t believe he lives here. Check his health if you can. I bet he has a mother somewhere and I would hate to return him injured.”

At the mention of a mother, the pony began to sniffle. Diamond Tiara took it into a hug.

“There, there. We’ll get you back to your mother somehow.”

Silver Spoon, working around Diamond Tiara, carefully inspected the foal. The alien physiology made it difficult, but she applied everything she knew to diagnose.

“I think it’s fine. It seems to be built differently than us, but I don’t think it has anything more than a scuff or a bruise.”

“Do you feel fine?” Diamond asked the pony.

The pony didn’t respond. Diamond Tiara turned to see it breathing slowly, fast asleep. She attempted to extricate herself from its hold only to be gripped even tighter.

“It looks like I’m stuck here Silver. Can you go make sure the others don’t freak out?”

“No problem.”

“What’s the deal? Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon are never this nice.” said Scootaloo.

“Just because we’re not nice to you, doesn’t mean we’re not nice.” Interjected Silver Spoon as she rounded the corner. “Diamond Tiara and I are active helpers in our community, unlike you three.”

“We help.” protested Applebloom.

“No, you destroy. We’ve spent many, many hours cleaning up after your messes.”

“You really did that?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Yes Sweetie, we did.”

“Ok, this is real fascinating and all, but aren’t we forgetting the important issue here? There’s a highly dangerous changeling in there. Shouldn’t we tell Miss Cheerilee and Twilight?” asked Scootaloo.

“We should not.” snapped Silver Spoon, “All that is in there is a highly terrified foal. We don’t need to bring anyone else into this at the moment.”

“But Silver, you don’t know what they’re capable of.” Insisted Sweetie Belle “We’ve seen first hand what they will do. We really need to tell someone.”

“Sweetie, I’m sure you three saw some bad stuff, but I’m trusting Diamond’s judgement on this. She’s really good at reading ponies. If she doesn’t see a threat, then neither do I.

“No offense Silver, but we don’t exactly trust Diamond. I’m going to go get Miss Cheerilee.”

“Scootaloo if you take one step I will take you down.” growled Silver Spoon. “I think you three need to march in there and apologize to that poor thing as soon as it wakes up.”

“Ah hate ta say it, but I think she might be right, girls.” said Applebloom.

“Fine, but I don’t have to like it.” sulked Scootaloo.

“Uh Silver, I agree with you, but we’re going to need to check in with the class pretty soon. Maybe we should get Diamond Tiara and come back later?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Darn, you’re right. Let’s go grab her.”

The four fillies crept through the gate to find Diamond Tiara sitting in the arms of the changeling. She was cooing to it quietly and rubbing its head as they approached. She looked up and gave them a quick shush before returning to her cooing.

“Can you get out?” asked Silver Spoon. “We need to report in pretty soon.”

“Not really,” whispered Diamond Tiara “he’s got me pretty tight.”

“He?” asked Scootaloo.

“He’s been talking in his sleep. His voice sounds masculine.”

“Well we need to figure out something. We can’t just have you not show up.” said Sweetie Belle.

“I hate to say it, but we might need to tell someone.” said Silver Spoon.

“Wait! I’ve got it!” exclaimed Diamond Tiara “You go tell everyone that you think I got lost in the castle. That will give me enough time to get him to safety somewhere else. Once that’s taken care of, I’ll come find you girls.”

“Ah don’t know, what if ya’ll get actually lost?” asked Applebloom

“I’ll just have to figure that out. Do you have a better plan?”

“No, not really.”

“Then it’s set. You go tell them that, and I’ll try to wake him up.”

With some nervous affirmations, the CMC and Silver Spoon set off, leaving Diamond Tiara with the slumbering changeling. She nudged him, causing him to nuzzle her.

“Come on, we need to move. We can’t leave you here.”

The sleepy changeling yawned, revealing tiny pointed teeth and buzzed its wings.

“I’ll take that as an agreement.”

Author's Note

Here it is. My latest story. This one is looking to be much, much longer than my others. This one is for the Diamond Cutters group. Also changelings. I love me some changelings.

The First Step Out

Glimmer cursed as she turned another corner only to find yet more cold, stone passageways. How big is this place? Grinding her teeth, she kept moving. Her hooves had long since given up on telling her to stop and she was fairly sure that the exoskeleton on her underbelly was badly cracked. Her shoulder gave another protest as she forced a decrepit door open. The room inside was no different than the last dozen she had searched. Dust covered everything and bits of insect ridden cloth and wood littered the floor. A cursory search turned up nothing and she moved onto the next room. This one appeared to be an ancient servant’s quarters. Nothing remained of the bed except a pile of rags and the chest at its foot was filled with holes. Glimmer stumbled over lifted its lid. A horrid squeal and a dusty lungful of air were the first things to greet her. Coughing, she felt around the bottom until her hoof found a heavy object. Lifting it to her face, she found a rough stone sculpture of an alicorn. The dark blue stone was smooth to the touch and still felt sturdy. Glimmer stared at it for a while. Buzz would enjoy this. Hardening her gaze, she grabbed at the pile of rags and began to wrap the sculpture. Tying a knot, she took the bundle in her mouth and left the room. The added weight mad her neck ache, but she pushed on.

Room after room turned up nothing more than an old necklace and a set of navy shoulder pads. Glimmer soon found herself standing on a balcony above a long hallway. Massive windows decorated the walls below blocked only numerous bookshelves that bordered the centralized walkway. The movement of dust through beams of light was the closest thing to a sign of life. Cringing, she turned her head first left, then right. The only way down was a dubious stone stairway. Glimmer fluttered her wings then, finding no lift, she forced her hoofsteps towards the stairs. A tentative prod revealed the stairs to be fairly sturdy and she began the arduous descent. Inch by inch, minute by minute she took each step. Four steps from the bottom, she felt her hoof give way and gravity’s malicious grip upon her once more. This final straw proved too much and she lost her hold on consciousness.

“And you girls are sure that’s the last place you saw her?” asked CheerilieeCheeriliee.

The four fillies in front of her nodded their head fervently and she gave a sigh.

“Alright then. Come on everypony, we are going to have to go look for Diamond Tiara. Stay close to Twilight and I. We are going to search the Library first and we don’t need anypony else getting lost.”

With no short amount of disorder, the remainder of the class gathered around the two mares and they began to pick their way through the ruined castle. Fallen walls and ancient woodwork littered the castle grounds, but despite the best efforts to the contrary, no one got lost. The class was soon standing outside the ancient library. Whether by luck or magic, this building was the most intact of any here. The great stained glass windows stood proud along the tall stone walls. Twilight gave an experimental push to the large double doors.

“I don’t think it is locked. We should be able to walk right in.”

“Ok class, you know the drill. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for Diamond Tiara and don’t get separated from the group.”

After receiving a nod from Cheerilee, Twilight opened the towering door and led the way into the dusty chamber. Even the students were quiet as they gazed upon the preserved shelves. The books, furniture, and even the air felt ancient. Neatly stacked books lay at the ends of aisles like the mummified remains of great pharaohs. Cheeriliee, being the first to break out of her reverie, began to slowly walk down the central aisle. Each row of shelves was identical to the last. No sign of life, no sense of time. After what seemed like millennia, she found herself at the center of the room marked by four monumental stone pillars. The path continued an equal distance in every direction and she found herself once more boggling at the size of the library.

Giving a quick glance and a nod back to Twilight to communicate her course of action, she proceeded towards a nearby staircase that led to the balconies bordering the entire building. Her gaze remained trained upwards as she mounted the first step, only to find that it was no step at all. Looking down, she found the hard, shifting form of a pony with a jagged horn and insect wings. Carefully, quietly, she retreated back to the central crossing and hissed,

“Twilight! Twilight! Get over here! We’ve got a situation.”

With a worried look, Twilight began to walk towards Cheerilee, only to break out into a gallop at Cheerilee’s insistence.

“Come on little guy. We’ve got to get moving.”

The changeling currently wrapped around Diamond Tiara gave a sleepy chirp and snuggled in closer. Diamond Tiara huffed and scrunched up her face in concentration. After some thought she developed a devious expression and raised her hoof to the changelings back.

“If you won’t come willingly, I’ll have to tickle you into submission.”

Upon receiving a stubborn grumble, she began her onslaught. The sleepy foal began squirming and giggling uncontrollably. Finally, able to take it no more, he let go and curled up into a laughing ball.

“I warned you. Now come on. We need to find you a safe place to hide.”

Now wide awake, the black foal jumped up and ran ahead of Diamond Tiara.

“Hey! Wait up!”

The little colt kept running, always making sure that Diamond was in sight, diving behind walls, and generally playing around. Diamond Tiara, despite her difficulty keeping up, found herself enjoying the chase and the two were soon rocketing around the castle grounds. Because of the colt’s seemingly endless energy, Diamond Tiara found herself panting as she turned a corner to find the foal perched atop a pile of rocks and looking through a large window.

“Momma...”

Diamond Tiara perked her ears and quickly ascended the pile. Though the room inside was shadowed, she could clearly make out the prone form of an adult changeling and her teacher backing away from it. Another movement caught her eye and she saw Twilight running towards Cheerilee.

“Come on! The rest of the girls are unattended. We’ll get them to make a distraction so that we can get to your mother.”

Without waiting for a reply, Diamond Tiara grabbed the colt and took off towards the large doors. Thanking the princesses that the door was open, she stuck her head in and frantically whispered,

“Silver! Get the girls over here. Now!”

Silver spoon gave a quick nod before catching the attention of the other three. Quietly, the four fillies snuck out the main door. Silver Spoon was the first to speak up.

“What’s the problem Diamond? Aren’t you supposed to be hiding him?”

“The plan’s changed. Do you know what Cheerilee and Twilight are doing?”

“No, they just walked over and started freaking out.”

“This little guy’s mother is over there.”

“His mother?!?” cried Applebloom.

“Keep it down. We need to create a distraction so that they can reunite. You three are really good at calling attention to yourselves so I’m counting on you.”

“What should we do?” asked Sweetie Belle

“Think of something. I’m sure you can handle it. Silver, I need you to help me on my end. We’re going to sneak in through the side door and try to get close. You’ll have to be the backup distraction. Everyone got it?

The four other fillies nodded and they broke off. The Cutie Mark Crusaders went back through the main doors and Diamond Tiara led Silver Spoon and the changeling along the side.

Twilight came skidding to a halt next to a very distressed Cheerilee.

“What’s going on? Is there a timberwolf in here or something?”

Cheerilee said nothing, choosing instead to nervously glance at the stairway she had been about to climb. Twilight followed her gaze and froze as she spotted the stirring changeling. Before Twilight could react, its eyes opened and locked with hers. For a long moment, neither moved. Then, quick as a flash, the changeling rolled to its feet and gave a loud hiss. Cheerilee yelped and dove behind Twilight. Twilight lowered her horn and said,

“I won’t let you harm the foals.”

The changeling turned toward the distant class and let out a high chirp. Her head perked up and she started galloping in an entirely different direction. Twilight set off after her, shouting back at Cheerilee,

“Get back to the class and stay safe! I can handle this one!”

Of all the ponies to run into, why did it have to be her? Why couldn’t it have been the pink one? Glimmer galloped through the cluttered building, thankful that her ability to feel pain had not come back yet. Her purple aggressor was still in hot pursuit as she rocketed towards her foal. I can’t lead her to Buzz. I’m going to have to lose her somehow. Glimmer took an abrupt left turn and started to weave her way through the bookshelves. Left. Right. Left. Straight. Left. Straight. Right. Right. Straight. Right. Glimmer chanced a glance back to see that she had lost Twilight for the moment. Slowing, she attempted to find a way out. She was in the thick of the shelves so she could not see more than a nearby window. Silently, she crept towards it only for a bit of movement to catch her eye. Thinking it was Twilight, she got ready to run. What she saw, however, was most certainly not Twilight. A small, pink filly was frantically waving at her from an open door. Confused, she simply stared at the strange pony. When Glimmer did not respond, the filly ducked through the doorway and returned with another foal. Glimmer gave a start as she realized that it was Buzz who was wiggling excitedly. The pink filly again waved at her to come over and this time she complied.

“Ok girls, now’s the time. Twilight’s almost found her.” said Sweetie Belle.

“Ah’m still kinda hesitant on this, girls. We’re gonna get into a whole heap of trouble for this.” said Applebloom

“Puh-lease, we’ve gotten into worse trouble. How about the time we accidentally destroyed the school?” asked Scootaloo

“Fine, Fine. Let’s just get this over with.” said Applebloom.

The three fillies, perched atop a bookshelf, readied themselves and jumped onto a nearby table. As one, they struck the ancient wood causing it split in half with a deafening crack. This had the desired effect as Twilight came galloping over to investigate.

“What are you girls doing? It’s not safe here!”

“We were, uh, trying to get a better view?” offered Scootaloo

“Yeah, then we slipped and landed on this desk.” added Sweetie Belle

“Ah think it can be fixed pretty easily.” said Applebloom

“Well, I lost it now so I’ll bring you girls back to the class and we’ll get everybody home.”

Twilight picked the three fillies up in her magic and began to walk back to the class. Cheerilee turned to her, relief evident on her face.

“Oh, thank goodness you found them, Twilight. You girls should know better than to wander off. You could have been seriously hurt. I’ll be sending letters home with all of you.”

“I think we should get the class back home now. I lost the Changeling and I don’t know how many more there may be.”

“That sounds like an excellent plan. Everypony line up! The field trip is over!”

The class gave a collective groan. Twist raised her hand and asked,

“MIss Cheerilee? What about Diamond Tiara?”

“Shoot, I’d forgotten her. Twilight, can you find her? I’m going to take the class over by the bridge.”

“Sure thing, Cheerilee.”

Silver Spoon shut the door behind the adult changeling as the colt rushed up to his mother. The two shared a warm embrace that the two fillies watched with smiles before Diamond Tiara gave a polite cough.

“I hate to break up this wonderful moment, but we really need to get you two to safety”

“Yeah,” chimed in Silver Spoon, “you’re not looking to good. You’re colt should be fine, but you are in need of some serious medical attention.”

“They’re not going to search immediately, because they will want to get us to safety. After that, though, they’re going to scrub this place clean.”

“There’s a zebra in the forest that will probably help you. Wait until we leave and follow the same path for about 3 miles. Take a right after the river and you should find the path to her hut. Tell her Applebloom sent you. We’ll come meet you if we can.”

The changeling gave a silent nod before looking down anxiously at her foal. They stared at each other for a couple of minutes before she relaxed. Placing the bundle in her mouth on the ground, she turned towards the two fillies and began to speak in a voice like wind chimes.

“I cannot thank you enough for what you have done. Buzz and I are forever in you debt. I will follow your advice and perhaps we may meet again.”

The fillies nodded and turned back the way they had come. Not stopping to say goodbye, they began running back to the group.

Just as Twilight rounded the corner, she saw the missing fillies rushing towards her.

“There you two are! Where did you go running off too?”

“I’m sorry Miss Twilight.” said Diamond Tiara. “I got lost while we were exploring. I was starting to get really scared because this place is so big. Luckily, Silver spotted me while I was wandering around and came to find me.”

“Well that’s good, but you really should have stuck together in the first place. We’re leaving now so we need to go meet up with the group.”

“Yes Miss Twilight!” said the fillies in unison.

The three Cutie Mark Crusaders watched as Twilight Sparkle rejoined the group with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon in tow.

“I found them not far from where we were. Apparently Silver Spoon saw Diamond Tiara and went to fetch her.”

“That’s good. Ok class, same drill as last time, we’ll cross the bridge and make our way home. I’m sorry we couldn’t stay longer. Maybe we can get some more help next time.”

The class once more lined up and began crossing. This time, however, the Cutie Mark Crusaders made sure to be next to Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.

“How’d it go?” whispered Applebloom.

“We got them together and told them to go find Zecora after we leave. They should be fine.”

“I hope so. We’re getting letters sent home for that stunt.” complained Scootaloo.

“We’ll treat you three at Sugarcube Corner.” said Silver Spoon.

“Can any of you make it to Zecora’s tonight?” asked Diamond Tiara.

“Ah doubt it” said Applebloom

“Same here. Rarity’s going to kill me.” added Sweetie Belle.

“I might be able to. My dad’s pretty lax.” said Scootaloo.

“We’ll meet you at your clubhouse at six.” said Silver Spoon.

“Got it.” replied Scootaloo.

Bury the Hatchet

A short knock sounded in the dark clubhouse. Scootaloo opened the door a crack and said,

“What’s the password.”

“You never told me about a password buzzbrain.”

“Oh, it’s you.”

Scootaloo opened the door to allow Diamond Tiara access to the Cutie Mark Crusaders clubhouse. Entering the room, Diamond tiara took note of the gayly decorated room. Drawings, materials, and any number of things littered the chaotic space. She grabbed the nearest paper and read in icy tones,

“Totally Awesome Ring of Fire?”

“Hey, that plan would have worked if I had a bigger ramp!”

Diamond Tiara gave Scootaloo a blank look before turning to her saddlebags and removing a pair of lanterns. Giving one to Scootaloo she said,

“Idiocy aside, I believe we have somewhere to be going?”

Scootaloo pouted at Diamond Tiara before replying,

“Yeah, when is your marefriend getting here?”

“Silver Spoon couldn’t make it and I can assure you that she is single.”

Stopping to glare at Diamond Tiara, Scootaloo took the proffered lantern and left the small clubhouse. Rather than head in the direction of the Everfree, she turned and walked to the rear of the clubhouse.

“Hey! Where are you going?”

“I’m getting my scooter. I’m assuming that you want to get this done before morning?”

Diamond looked warily at the waiting wagon. A minute passed as she considered the merits of walking all the way there.

“Oh just hop in already you foal. Honestly, who’da that after all your chicken taunts you’d be the scaredy cat?”

“I’m not scared, I’m just worried that you won’t be a good driver.”

“You’re not fooling anyone, hop on.”

With one more glance at her hooves, Diamond Tiara climbed slowly into the wagon. The moment she was in, Scootaloo took off. Rocketing backwards, it was all Diamond Tiara could do to keep from falling out. Tightly gripping the sides, she let loose a scream.

“Scootalooooooooooooo slow down!”

Ignoring this, Scootaloo plowed on towards the Everfree. Diamond Tiara continued to scream bloody murder until they reached the edge of the forest where Scootaloo stopped. Turning back she saw the prone form of Diamond Tiara shaking at the bottom of the wagon.

“Uhh, you okay there?”

Without responding Diamond Tiara started to crawl out of the wagon, tipping it over as she did so. Completely out, she attempted to stand but was unable to due to her shaking. Scootaloo rushed over to help but was pushed away.

“...Never... again.”

With that, Diamond proceeded shakily down the path. Scootaloo gave an anxious look at her scooter before rushing after Diamond Tiara.

“Hey, I didn’t mean any harm by that, it was just a joke.”

“Maybe you should learn a thing or two about humor.”

“How was I supposed to know you would react like that?”

“Applebloom didn’t tell you? I thought you three shared all of my weaknesses with each other.”

“What does Applebloom have to do with this?”

“I’m not going to talk about it with you.”

“But-”

Before Scootaloo could finish her sentence, Diamond turned her head away and began to speed up. Scootaloo rushed to keep up, but found that Diamond Tiara was surprisingly fast. Every time she got near, Diamond would increase her pace. It wasn’t long till they were both running full speed through the dark forest. Diamond Tiara, now running blindly did not see the approaching blue flowers, but Scootaloo, who was very familiar with their effects skidded to a halt and shouted,

“Diamond, don’t run into those flowers!”

The pink filly paid this no mind and plowed full tilt through the mischievous plants.

“Ponyfeathers”

mumbled Scootaloo as she began to pick out a path around the patch.

Stupid Birdbrain, why’d she have to go and do that? Diamond Tiara slowed to a halt and gazed around the dark forest. The trees that she had so readily ignored in her mad dash now seemed to lean towards her, blocking the sky from sight. Glancing back, she realized that she didn’t know how to get back to Ponyville, or how to get to Zecora’s hut.A cold breeze blew in and Diamond Tiara realized, she was alone. There was no sign of Scootaloo anywhere. In fact, Diamond Tiara couldn’t see any sign that ponies had ever been here at all.

“Scootaloo?...”

Diamond Tiara waited, but received no reply. The filly glanced once more around the area lit by her lantern. There was no movement save for the rustle of leaves in the wind. She looked at the ground, searching for any sign of a path. The only thing she found was the unforgiving stare of the cold soil. Diamond Tiara kicked the dirt and muttered to herself,

“Why’d she have to do that? Now I don’t where I am. She should have just dropped it.”

Giving the dirt another kick for good measure, Diamond turned back towards where she thought she came from and began walking.

An eerie silence enveloped the world as Diamond Tiara picked her way across the forest floor. Each crinkle of leaves and crack of a branch that she made seemed to echo across the world. Diamond felt her muscles tense up with every step she took forward. The silence shattered as she heard a loud crack followed by a screech. Diamond Tiara froze in place and listened in horrible silence for any further sound. A faint scrabbling came from further along her path and she desperately tried to make herself move. Her hooves felt glued to the spot, as the sound grew closer with each passing second. Movement came, but to her horror, Diamond Tiara found that it was her legs buckling underneath her. The sound was now a steady beat and Diamond Tiara tried desperately to crawl into hiding. Her legs felt like jelly as she forced all of her strength into pulling herself towards a nearby bush. Each thump of the approaching sound made her heart pick up it’s pace until it was a constant sound in her ears. With a final push of effort, Diamond rolled into the concealment of the waiting bush.

Scootaloo looked dejectedly at the gorge in front of her and the old rope bridge that crossed it. Of course it’s an old, broken down bridge. It couldn’t have been a simple path or maybe a good stone bridge.

“Diamond had better appreciate this.”

Scootaloo began to creep across the decrepit wooden planks. The creak and sway of the bridge reminded her of all the times that Daring Do had crossed a rope bridge and inevitably had it break apart underneath her hooves. Step by careful step, she made her way along. Halfway across, the bridge gave a loud creak and Scootaloo shot a glance back at the beginning of the bridge. The old ropes showed no signs of breaking and she let out a sigh of relief. Carefully, she resumed her journey, now feeling a bit more confident in her steps. Despite the threatening strains and groans of the bridge, she made it to the other side no worse than a raised heart rate. Scootaloo let out a sigh of relief and surveyed the path before her. The trees nearly blocked out the sky and the various plants were growing over an aging path. Seeing the way forward to be relatively clear, and being a bit creeped out if she was honest, Scootaloo began a quick trot. To keep her mind off of her surroundings, she tried to figure out where she was.

“Let’s see, Zecora showed us where the Poison Joke grows in the forest, and we had only just entered, the patches on the other side. I’m on some kind of trail, so this is probably a path Zecora takes. Maybe the Northern patch? Wait, which way is north? Gah, this is too hard! Maybe I should find a higher vantage point.”

Scootaloo slowed down a bit and looked around. The trees around her were too tall to climb, but she could just make out a fallen limb a slight way off the path. Creeping carefully, she made her way over to the branch and tested its strength. Gently, she stepped onto it and began to ascend. The timber was thankfully free of moss and she managed to pull herself up onto a nearby limb. She gazed out into the night and saw a faint glow in the distance.

“Is that Zecora’s hut? I can’t tell.”

Still looking forward, Scootaloo began to climb up towards the end of the branch. Just as she spotted the familiar decorations of Zecora’s tree, the limb she was standing on broke with a loud snap. Scootaloo screamed as she fell into a pile of leaves. Grunting, she shifted the leaves out of her way and pulled herself to her feet. She gave her head a shake and groaned.

“Diamond had really better appreciate this, that hurt.”

Scootaloo turned towards where she had seen the light.

“Okay, so Zecora is that way and that patch of poison joke connects to the path up ahead, so I should be catching up with Diamond Tiara soon.”

With her path confirmed, Scootaloo set off again down the path. The path now seemed more familiar as she recognized various trees and landmarks. Just as she approached the last turn before Zecora’s hut, she heard a rustle of leaves. Wordlessly, she crouched down and began to creep towards the bushes. The Colt scout manual she had read had had all sorts of options for what could be the cause for that noise, and she didn’t want anything to do with any of them. She kept her ears perked as she slipped under the cover of a bush and peeked out. She looke towards the path, then towards the forest. She waited. After a minute or so, nothing came, so she began to poke her head out of the top of the bush. From her new vantage point, she was able to see a cotton candy tail sticking out of the same bush she was standing in. Ducking back into the bush she moved around until she was able to see the prone form of Diamond Tiara. The filly was curled into a ball and was quietly crying. Scootaloo bit her lip and quietly sidled up next to her.

“Hey.” Diamond jumped made to flee, but Scootaloo pulled her into a hug. “Listen, I’m not good with this touchy feely stuff, but I really didn’t mean to upset you this much. Even if you are a jerk, I don’t want to make you this sad. Nopony should be crying alone in a bush.”

Diamond Tiara pressed into Scootaloo’s chest and sobbed harder.

“You-you’re the jerk. I told you to slow d-down. I’m afraid of going fast. And now we’re lost in the Everfree forest, and I’m going to die out here with the meanest pony in the world.”

Scootaloo hesitantly patted Diamond Tiara on the back and listened to the filly cry. After a while, she sighed and said,

“I guess you’re right. I’m sorry I did that. I could see that you were scared and I still went fast. If it makes you feel better, I’m actually afraid of swimming.”

Diamond Tiara raised her head. “Really? But I thought you always say that you aren’t afraid of anything.”

Scootaloo rubbed the back of her head. “Weeellll, I’m kind of terrified of swimming. I’m find with bathtubs, but anything where I can’t touch the ground and I am out.”

Diamond Tiara wiped her eyes and smiled.

“Thanks. For a jerk, you’re pretty nice.”

“Yeah, well don’t go spreading it around. I have a reputation to protect.

“Same.”

Diamond Tiara took a moment to collect herself before saying,

“What makes you say I am a jerk?”

Scootaloo gave her a look of disbelief.

“You really don’t know?”

“Of course I don’t! I wouldn’t ask if I did!”

Scootaloo took a breath and said,

“I think you are a jerk because you spend all day flaunting your cutie mark and proclaiming yourself to be better than everybody just because your dad buys you stuff. Your head is so far up your own ass that you need and oxygen tank to breath, you bully me and my friends whenever you think you can get away from it, and wear a piece of jewelry to school everyday like it is a pair of horseshoes. Also, you smell like lemons and I hate lemons.”

Diamond stared at Scootaloo, then at her hooves, then at nothing.

“Really?”

Scootaloo turned her eyes upward and mumbled under her breath. Then she looked back to Diamond Tiara and said,

“Yep. Pretty much.”

Diamond Tiara turned away from Scootaloo and let her head sink.

“Well now I actually feel like a jerk.”

“Excuse me?”

“I did that stuff because I really thought I was better than you. I thought that you and the rest of your club were a bunch of dumb losers not worth the time of day.”

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and said,

“Gee, thanks.”

“You’re not, though. At least, I don’t think so anymore. A worthless pony doesn’t hold their sworn enemy until she stops crying. They wouldn’t tell her what they were afraid of to make her feel better.”

At this, Diamond Tiara began to sob again.

“If anyone’s worthless h-here, it’s me. You’re a better pony than me.”

Scootaloo stared at her wide-eyed before pulling her into another hug.

“Ponyfeathers Diamond, what’s gotten into you? I never thought I’d hear you say that if I lived as long as the Princesses.”

“Shu-shutup.”

Scootaloo let go of Diamond Tiara and looked her in the eyes.

“If you don’t stop crying, I may have to think that you’re not a heartless monster. Now come on, we need to get going.”

With a sniffle, Diamond Tiara pushed herself to her feet, only to immediately stumble into Scootaloo.

“What’s the deal, did you break your leg or something?”

“My legs feel weak.”

Scootaloo looked at her disbelievingly before giving up and saying,

“Fine, lean on me. Zecora’s place is just a little way away.”

Diamond stumbled over to Scootaloo and attempted to find a comfortable position. After a minute of shifting and squirming, Scootaloo grabbed Diamond Tiara’s leg and placed it over her shoulder. With a nod of the head she began to walk. Diamond Tiara murmured a thanks and limped alongside her. The two walked in silence down the dirt path until they reached a tree decorated in tribal masks and lit with torches. Scootaloo nodded towards the home.

“This is the place. Just a little bit longer.”

As they approached the door it was opened by a somewhat tired looking Zecora

“You’re out quite late my fillies two. I see the mother’s story was true.”

Scootaloo nodded to Diamond Tiara and said,

“Yeah, none of the others could come but we wanted to check on Buzz and his mom.”

Zecora smiled and stepped out of the doorway.

“At my home, you’re free to be. Though I see that you may need me. What folly has this foal committed that she would be be this way admitted?”

Diamond Tiara scowled and said, “Are you insulting me?”

Scootaloo quickly interjected, “What Diamond means is that I scared her and she ran through some poison joke.”

“Though fun in name and gay in color, Poison Joke is quite a bummer. What prized trait that she held dear causes her to lean on you here?”

Diamond Tiara scrunched up her face and looked at Scootaloo.

“What’s Poison Joke?”

“Those blue flowers you ran through when we got separated were Poison Joke. They play some mean joke on you using magic. They made Applejack super tiny and totally messed up Rarity’s coat.”

“So all that stuff that happened was just because I was under the effects of some dumb plant? They made me cry like a foal and share my secrets with some dweeb?!”

Zecora turned and put a hoof to her lips.

“Ponies keep your voices low. The sleeping two don’t need to know. Poison joke will only change, that which it can rearrange. Your thoughts, your mind, that which you do, those remain up to you.”

“What does th-”

“What she means, Diamond, is that Poison Joke only affects your body. Anything you do while under its effects is you and nothing else.”

“Oh yeah, and what makes you an expert on it, huh?”

Scootaloo, rubbed the back of her head and said,

“Well, ever since we all wandered through a patch of Itchweed, Twilight has been drilling us on dangerous plants and what they do. Some of it kind of stuck. Especially after hearing what happened to Big Mac.”

“What happened to Big Mac?”

Scootaloo looked around conspiratorially before leaning over and whispering in Diamond Tiara’s ear. Diamond stifled a giggle and responded,

“I can see how that would stick in the mind.”

She then turned towards Zecora.

“What did they do to me then?”

“As a foal your size is small, and your dose was very tall. If I had to make a place my bits, I’d say that they are why you now sit.”

Diamond Tiara scrunched her face up in thought. She stared at Zecora then at her hooves. After a minute, she replied,

“Sooo, you’re saying it is my legs?”

“I can see you are starting to understand, the dialect of my homeland. The Poison Joke thought it fun to take away your strength to run.”

“Is there anything we can do about it?”

“As it happens you’re in luck. In my house you will not be stuck. I went out to gather Poison Joke, and now I have to take a soak. The bath is bubbling in that tub, hop on in and give your legs a rub.”

Before Diamond could ask, Scootaloo began walking towards the steaming pot of liquid in the middle of the hot. Zecora found a step stool and Scootaloo eased Diamond inside. As Diamond washed herself, Scootaloo looked around for the Changelings. Though she saw many odd objects around Zecora’s hut, she spotted neither Buzz, nor his mother.

“Uh, Zecora? You did say that Buzz and his mom were here, right?”

“Mother and son are in my bed, do not worry your little head. I have a room out of sight where I can sleep throughout the night.”

“Oh, ok. They’re doing fine, right?”

“The mother’s body was greeting death, her iron will has kept her breath. With much time and great care, her chance at recovery is quite fair. The child’s case is much less bleak, he arrived without a squeak. Let them rest for this night, they have many battles yet to fight.”

Scootaloo nodded and sat down. She let out a large yawn and Zecora chuckled.

“I guess that your parents do not know where there offspring go. When your friend’s bath is done, we’ll make the trip back home a bit more fun.”

Zecora left and began to rummage around in her cupboards. As Diamond pulled herself out of the path, she returned holding two small packages and a towel.

“Dry yourself and find your feet, I have for you a little treat. Honey, peach, and a little spice makes a candy treat that is quite nice.”

Diamond gratefully took the towel and patted herself dry. Scootaloo opened her candy and took a bite with a satisfied crunch.

“Come children while the night still looms, we must return you to your rooms.”

Diamond Tiara nodded, placing the towel on the stool and taking her treat from Scootaloo. Zecora grabbed a lantern and led the way down the path. Scootaloo was dawdling a bit behind and Diamond Tiara lagged back to match her pace.

“Scootaloo, can I ask you a favor?”

Scootaloo stopped mid bite and said,

“I guess, what do you want?”

“I mentioned it earlier, but can you please not mention any of this to anyone? It would mean a lot to me.”

Scootaloo looked upward thoughfully, tapping the candy against her lips. Finally, she looked Diamond Tiara dead in the eye and said,

“One condition. You two and the CMC start over.”

“Start over?”

“Well, you’re actually nicer than I thought and it would be a bit of a bummer if we went back to being sworn enemies. You don’t have to hang out with us, but it would be nice if you would stop insulting us all the time.”

Diamond Tiara considered this, then got a devilish smile.

“Deal, but I get to give you a makeover!

“Alrigh- Hey!”

Diamond Tiara stuck out her tongue and ran ahead laughing. Scootaloo made a face and chased after her. Zecora smiled and said to herself,

“The enthusiasm of foals is quite a sight, one wishes that adults would follow their light.

Author's Note

Out at last! This took a lot longer than it should have. This is the chapter where Diamond decides that maybe the CMC aren't so bad. I fought a lot with that scene to make it seem right. I took some liberties with the characters but I don't think that I took many. I picture Scootaloo as tough on the outside, but secretly desiring to be somepony's knight in shining armor. Not necessarily romantically, but I think she likes to be the protector. Diamond I think genuinely thought the CMC were bad, but is reconsidering since Scootaloo was so nice. I really don't feel like changing too much of that, so this is where we are.