My Little Villains

Chapters

... And I didn't want it
Mission Chry-possible
"Hello, Chryssie. Nice to Peck You!"
(Un)Just Retribution
Drop the Hive
Don't touch it! It bites!
Flutterrage
How not to be a jerk
Evil Has Waffles!
Camping Trips and Ghosts Stories... Sorta - Part One
Camping Trips and Ghosts Stories... Sorta - Part Two
Definition of Insanity
Pick a team
Closet Relationships
Life gave me a lemon
Totally platonic cuddles

... And I didn't want it

Fluttershy opened her eyes to find herself face to face with Twilight Sparkle. The yellow pegasus was confused at first. What was Twilight doing in her house? And why did she look so messy?

"You're finally awake, thank Celestia!" Twilight exclaimed.

"Twilight, I’m so glad to see you... I had this... dream..." Fluttershy said, slowly rising from the couch.

"Dreams? I like dreams!" she heard the childish voice of Nightmare Moon from behind, and Twilight hissed an angry 'shoosh' in her direction. Fluttershy flapped her eyelids in confusion and finally remembered that strange ‘dream’, which had been quite real.

"So... not a dream?" Fluttershy asked helplessly.

"Nope," Twilight replied and Fluttershy dropped unconscious once again. "Argh, come on! Not again! Spike!"

"Yes, yes, just wait a second!" The dragon threw away the broom and dashed to the kitchen. He quickly poured a cup of water into the mug and brought it to Twilight. "Here you go. It's a bit cold, so be careful drinking it," Spike said and the mug turned purple when Twilight wrapped it with her magical aura.

"Thanks," the alicorn replied and splashed the cold water all over Fluttershy's face. The yellow pegasus jerked awake, almost throwing Twilight into the air, and gasped loudly.

"Wha—" she gasped, looking around. Her cheeks turned pale as she beheld the devastation in her house. The table she had so carefully set was turned over, all the dishes smashed and in pieces, the salad she had so carefully cooked and sorted for her little critters to enjoy was mixed with shards of glass.

In the middle of the room, there was a huge hole in the floor, half covered with boards. Right beside it, a hammer and several nails were lying, with Spike looking at all of the tools.

"Oh, my..." Fluttershy gasped. "My house.... my dishes... my everything!"

"Relax, Fluttershy. Relax," Twilight touched her shoulder and gently massaged it. "Take a deep breath. A deep breath."

Fluttershy breathed deeply for a few minutes, and then finally seemed to have cooled down. Her face assumed its normal colour again and she didn't seem to be as nervous as before.

"Now, Fluttershy, let me explain," Twilight said. "Yes, I made huge.... colossal mistake and summoned three of our worst enemies to Ponyville, but—" She moved a little closer to Fluttershy and spoke the rest in a whisper, "—they don't remember a thing from their adult lives. Also, they don't seem to be as near as powerful or malevolent."

"O- okay, I get it... You don't have to come so close... It's uncomfortable," Fluttershy said, clearly confused since Twilight's muzzle was almost in her face.

"Oh... sorry," she apologized and moved away. "So, I need your help. I can't work in the library with them around. If they stay with me, it will take ages for me to make a counter-spell. But if they stay with you, I'll make it much quicker!"

Fluttershy thought about it for a second. Chrysalis, Sombra and Nightmare Moon: three of the most dangerous and evil ponies in existence. They had caused so many tears, spread fear across the land. And she would have to stay alone... with them.

"No! No-no-no-no-no! Never! Not in a million years! Not even in two!" Fluttershy burst out, flying into the air. "Twilight, I'm sorry, but I can't help you! They are... they are..."

She looked at the wagon and little Chrysalis noticed that and smiled at her, showcasing her mouth full of sharp teeth plus two fangs. They sparkled in the light and Fluttershy felt her heart rate speed up thousandfold. She was so close to fainting once more. The most deceitful pony in the world had just smiled at her.

What a nightmare!

"Fluttershy!" Twilight quickly lifted herself into the air, put her hoof to Fluttershy's lips and started slowly and carefully pulling her down on the couch.

"Listen to me: you are my only hope. You are the kindest, most friendly pony in Equestria, and you are the only one who can handle them," the alicorn tried her hardest. She forced Fluttershy to focus solely on her eyes.

"Please, Fluttershy. I'll provide all the help I can. Just help me correct my mistake," she begged. "I need you for this!"

The poor pegasus staggered for a moment, clearly indecisive. On one side, she had her own fears, on the other, there was the fate of her best friend, maybe even the fate of the whole Equestria at stake.

"Okay, Twilight. I will try!" Fluttershy said and Twilight encased her in a warm hug.

"Thank you. Thank you so much. I owe you my life," the purple alicorn said.

"Heeey! Maybe thou shouldest stop fondling and give us food at last. I am hungry!" Nightmare Moon rudely interrupted their little tender moment with her irritated voice.

"Remember, Fluttershy: nopony is to know about them, okay?"

"Okay. I'll do it," Fluttershy assured and Twilight smiled.

"Listen up, kids, you'll be staying here in the house of this good pony, who kindly allowed you three to stay at her house," Twilight turned away from Fluttershy and faced the three. "You will do as she says you will follow her rules and there won't be any trouble. Got it?"

The three little villains looked at her with frowns. They noticed how easy it was to scare Fluttershy. They could escape at any time and she wouldn't lift a hoof to stop them. That was what Twilight read in their eyes.

"If my friend reports about trouble with you, I'll make sure you regret that!" Twilight announced immediately. The three quickly turned gloomy.

"Party pooper," Chrysalis grumbled.

"Fluttershy, don't mean to be rude, but could you help me out here?" Spike asked. "I think the candelabra fell down all the way to the basement."

"But that's not a basement. It's a special section for my furry friends. Those who are carnivores," Fluttershy said, blushing.

"Agh, perfect. Just magnificent," Spike grumbled. "If anything goes south, tell Rarity I loved her," he said and looked down into the hole, preparing to jump.

"Thy name shan't be forgotten!" Nightmare Moon encouraged him.

***

"Ouh... oooouch..." Spike grunted through his teeth as Twilight pulled the needles out of his backside.

"Why did you think sitting on a hedgehog was a good idea?" Twilight looked at him cynically as they walked towards the door.

"It was dark; I mistook it for a pillow!" Spike grumbled in reply and the aforementioned hedgehog poured out an angry tirade, shaking his paw at Spike.

"Oh, Mr. Sonic, for shame! That's some very bad language!" Fluttershy berated the disgruntled hedgehog. "Don't say that, especially in front of me."

"I'm sure he has his reasons. Spike did go rather heavy on the rubies lately," Twilight said, looking at her assistant while she pulled out yet another needle from his behind.

"Hey, cut me some slack! I bet if thousand needles got stuck in your soft, royal rump, you would be talking differently!" Spike replied angrily. "Aaah... I don't think I'll sit anymore. Ever."

"Don't worry, cry baby, you'll be sitting in no time at all," Twilight told Spike and turned to Fluttershy before leaving. "Thank you once again, Fluttershy. I knew I could count on you!"

"Please, Twilight, don't take too long," Fluttershy bade, carefully pointing at the three kids who were sitting on the rug and stared at a patch on the floor that consisted of several boards hastily put together with long nails.

"It won't take long, just stay calm, Fluttershy!" Twilight promised and she and Spike left, closing the door behind themselves. The yellow pegasus took a deep breath and turned around to face her little fosterlings.

"Uhm.... uuh... Hi..." Fluttershy raised her hoof and waved it as a greeting. "I don't believe we... were introduced to each other properly. My name is... Flu- Fluttershy."

She was stuttering, swallowing most of the words. Her heart was beating like a war drum, and she couldn't control her own limbs, for they were shaking uncontrollably. As soon as Twilight left her house, she started to feel unsafe with the three little villains around.

"Hello, Fluttershy," Chrysalis stepped forth, beating Nightmare Moon to it. "My name's Chrysalis—" She put her hoof to her chest, "—this is Nightmare Moon—"

"I can introduce myself just fine!" Nightmare groused, but Chrysalis ignored her.

"—and this is Sombra," she pointed at the dark unicorn, who blushed a little.

"Hi... Sorry about the table," he said, rubbing his ankle.

"It's...alright," Fluttershy relieved the tension a bit. She needed to establish at least neutral relationships with the kids; they looked like they could read her very easily and her shyness and softness could play a major role in her losing this 'fight'.

"Good. But, I implore thee, can we get some food now? My stomach demands for some fresh hay!" Nightmare Moon announced loudly and the rest nodded thereto.

"Yes... I guess some hay is on order," Fluttershy figured. "Just wait till I set up the table.” And then a bit quieter, “Please... don't flip it again."

"He-he... Heh... Aren't they adorable?" Fluttershy addressed her bunny friend, chuckling and blushing.

Angel's left eye was twitching, and he seemed to have lost interest in the carrots with salad, which were lying in his dish. That was completely understandable: the three ex-villains had a rather healthy appetite, somewhat shocking, even.

"’Tis just magnifecent! I had never tasted such perfect foods before! ‘Tis a blessing!" Nightmare Moon sung, shoving one hayburger after another into her mouth. It was inconceivable how she was able to fit it all inside herself.

"Hey, don't be so greedy!" Chrysalis grumbled, trying to mug some from Nightmare's dish, wrapping the soft, crumbly burgers into her brilliant green magical aura, and slowly levitated them to her mouth.

Before she could eat it, however, Sombra jumped in between the two fillies and gobbled up the burger quickly. Even though Fluttershy had asked them all to sit, Sombra couldn't stay in one place. He was constantly moving, changing seats, or stealing food from his companions' dishes.

Angel looked at the little tyrant with something resembling pride, as if he wanted to say: "Even I don't do that." Barely a second had passed since the bunny said it in his mind, and Sombra suddenly hid himself under the table.

"Wha- Sorry, So- Sombra, you can't eat under the table!" Fluttershy exclaimed, leaning down and looking under the table. "Civilized ponies eat at the table."

Sombra was far too quick for her to notice, thus the dark coloured foal had already dashed to Angel's chair as Fluttershy looked under the table. The bunny looked at him with his round eyes, filled with confusion, and a little bit of terror.

Sombra gazed at Angel, then at the food he was supposed to eat. Fluttershy felt a chill run down her spine; the way the underage king was looking at the bunny was... unsettling.

The red eyes, the red horn, the sharp fangs: it all added up. Sombra was hungry and he wanted to eat Angel. That was why he needed to enslave the empire! He wanted to eat his subjects.

Sombra was a carnivorous dictator!

Before Fluttershy could even move a muscle to save Angel from his imminent demise, Sombra dashed to Angel's plate and quickly gobbled up the carrots along with the salad, leaving only a clean dish. "Shis shtuff ish sho gooowd!"

Fluttershy sighed with relief. She was so glad she’d been wrong.

Angel the Bunny, however, wasn't too happy about it. He started jumping in place, squeaking angrily. His language was... far from polite to say the least. Fluttershy turned red as a ripe tomato.

She couldn't stop Angel, for her flow of thoughts was interrupted by Nightmare Moon, who smashed her forehooves into the table.

"It does not suffice! I demand more of this delightful treat called hayburger!" she loudly announced. Her lips still had a few crumbles of bread on them, and her dark blue energy mane fluttered in the air menacingly.

"I pray thee, fair jailer of my kin, bring me more of these treats!" Nightmare Moon said, pointing at the empty dish. "Methinks my comrades wish not to share!"

"Hey! Sombra ate most of them, not me!" Chrysalis grumbled, deeply offended by that remark.

"They were just so crunchy," Sombra said in a downed voice. He seemed to have shrunk a bit and turned sad. All the glee and joy disappeared from his face in a second.

"You could have shared, you know! We helped you with that Spikey-dragon, and in return you eat all our hayburgers!" Chrysalis continued to scold him.

Fluttershy didn't listen to their quarrel. She had only heard one word, said by Nightmare Moon, which made her feel incredibly... horrible. One word she had never thought to hear with her own name in the same sentence: Jailer.

It had hurt to hear it. She wasn't a jailer, not at all. She didn't even look like one: she was a simple yellow pegasus.

Besides, what would make Nightmare Moon say that? It's not like they were... stuck in her house, with Fluttershy watching over them, making sure they wouldn't escape?

I am a jailer...

And a jailer for kids, no less! They were her friends' most terrifying enemies but... they were but children right now! Twilight's spell had changed them beyond recognition: Chrysalis wasn't cackling and speaking in evil monologues, Sombra was no cloud that flew around, growling, "Slaaaaaaves", and Nightmare Moon...

Nightmare Moon wasn't evil, at least. Fluttershy couldn't even imagine that Nightmare Moon had ever been a filly. Could Princess Luna feel her alter ego’s presence in this world? Or were all of these three completely independent? They didn't seem to remember anything of their evil deeds.

All this made Fluttershy's head hurt. However, one thing was clear to her: she wasn't a jailer, and she was going to prove it right now!

"Don't quarrel, children. Please!" Fluttershy exclaimed, stopping their conversation. "I can make more, don't you worry, just give me a minute."

She stood up from her chair and walked quickly to the kitchen. Fortunately, many of her little critters had taken quite a liking to her hayburgers, so she had learned to make them quickly and efficiently.

She bit her lips as she performed truly magical things with a knife, bread, and piles of hay. In just a matter of minutes, she was holding a tray full of the delicious food.

"Here we go, my little ponies!" she said, putting it on the table and sitting down.

"Yay!" the three exclaimed, and immediately got to eating.

They ate with incredible vigour, and quite messily too. Crumbs of bread were flying everywhere and the floor quickly became covered with the remains thereof. Angel couldn't help but cringe at this. Fluttershy chuckled a little bit, Look who's talking.

One by one the hayburgers disappeared, but Fluttershy still felt uneasy. She was supposed to watch over them, but that didn't mean she was a jailer! A stay at her house could always be a pleasure, too!

The yellow pegasus gulped and mentally prepared herself for an oncoming conversation. She wanted to explain to these little kids that this wasn't a prison and that they would enjoy their stay here. Maybe, who knew....

They might become friends.

Fluttershy looked at the dishes whereupon only piles of crumbs and a little bit of hay remained. Some sweat ran down her face and wettened her mane. Her wings ached from exhaustion. Her mind quickly brought back the image of the furniture she would see when travelling to the kitchen since she had memorized it better than her own mane.

"More?" she asked, holding out her hoof, aiming to move the empty dish towards herself.

"No..." Chrysalis barely managed to pronounce, crossing her hooves over her belly, which seemed to have grown threefold. The same change had happened to the rest of this gang.

"I don't think I can walk anymore," Sombra uttered, carefully getting off the chair and trying to stand, but being immediately brought down by the weight what was burdening his stomach.

"Thou poor soul," Nightmare Moon said somewhat mockingly and tried to lift herself off the ground and take flight. Though, no matter how hard she flapped her wings, she couldn't fly.

"If only... thou hadest... wings... like... I do!" she grumbled, flapping her wings harder and harder. "Argh, curses! Why won't they work?"

"Ha! Loser!" Chrysalis exclaimed and started flapping her insect wings. "My wings, unlike yours, are functional."

Her wings, as expected, weren't strong enough to lift her up into the air with all that food inside. No matter how she swung her fragile, transparent wings, her body wasn't rising into the air.

Fluttershy looked at this picture and couldn't help but chuckle: three balloons tried so hard to fly or even move, but all tries were in vain. Their hopeless tries made her chuckle as Sombra tried to lift Nightmare Moon into the air with his magic. The little alicorn filly, engulfed in the red aura, tried to use it to her advantage and started flapping her wings, finally starting to gain attitude.

"Hey, ‘tis working!" Nightmare Moon exclaimed, before her horn hit the ceiling. She shrieked, but Sombra seemed ignorant of her pain and continued holding her aloft.

Even though Nightmare had stopped moving her wings, she was still rising.

"Stop it! Stop it!" She tried to signal Sombra to stop, but he mistook it for her wanting to gain more altitude.

"Don't worry, I got this!" he exclaimed, and applied some more pressure, making Nightmare Moon hit the ceiling with her head.

"That’s not... funny... thou sadist!"

"It's alright, I'll help you fly, don't worry!" Sombra continued to assure her, hitting the ceiling with Nightmare Moon continuously.

"That's... not... how... flying... works!" Nightmare Moon shouted, and Sombra finally stopped.

"It doesn't?" he asked just as the red energy around his horn dissipated suddenly.

"No, it doth no—" Nightmare Moon screamed as she fell. She quickly flapped her wings, but that didn't help at all.

Fluttershy was too slow and couldn't save Nightmare from smashing her backside right into the table. The poor filly gritted her teeth, closed her eyes, and took the impact.

"Ouuuuch... it is good that I'm invulnerable to pain," Nightmare Moon said, extending a hoof to her backside.

"Moon, are you hurt? Does it hurt?" Fluttershy jumped from her chair and flew closer to Nightmare Moon. The proud alicorn dismissively waved her aside.

"No assistance is needed! I'm absolutely fi—" Suddenly, the sound of cracking wood filled the room as the table fell apart in two. The left side of the table acted as a catapult, sending one of the dishes up into the air. It performed a semicircle during its flight, landing promptly on Nightmare's head.

The sight made Fluttershy shiver in fear and worry while it sent Chrysalis into a laughing frenzy. Even though overstraining her belly caused her pain, she laughed loudly and cheerfully.

"Nightmare!" Fluttershy exclaimed as Nightmare Moon's eyes filled with water and her eyelids quivering.

A second later, she filled the room with the sound of her cries. Like two fountains, tears were pouring out of her eyes and she sobbed constantly. Her cries were even louder than Chrysalis's laughter.

"Oh, my," Fluttershy said, approaching the poor filly and wrapping her forehooves around Nightmare's surprisingly soft body. Her wings had a quite soft and tickly plumage and her coat felt warm and furry. The filly responded to this outburst with burying her muzzle in Fluttershy's fur and sobbed quietly thereinto.

"There, there," Fluttershy said. "Where does it hurt?"

"Ev...everywheeeere!" Nightmare Moon cried, her voice muffled by Fluttershy's fur.

"Oh, you poor thing," Fluttershy whispered and looked out the window.

By Celestia, it's so dark outside! It had to be midnight, no less!

"I should get you to bed, filly. Don't cry, I'll make it stop hurting soon!" Fluttershy flew up into the air, holding the filly, and carried her over to the upper floor. "Just don't cry, my little pony, it will be alright."

After she left, Chrysalis finally stopped giggling.

"Oh, my, that was hysterical! Hey, Sombra, did you see the dish go 'whoosh' and then 'whoom' and then 'bam'! Right on her head, ha-ha!" she gushed, each sound effect followed by a gesture describing the situation. "Ha-ha-ha... Sombra? Sombra!"

Sombra was sitting on his chair, appearing to have shrunk. His face looked as red as a ripe tomato and his hooves were crossed over his chest.

"Hey... Sombra? Are you alright?" Chrysalis asked, whereto Sombra only mumbled something in return. A wide grin crossed the filly changeling's face; the poor unicorn was feeling that little worm in his soul, which woke up when one made somepony cry, writhe and bite. He felt incredible guilt.

"Aw, come on, that wasn't your fault. She ate too much and that's why she couldn't fly. Big deal!" Chrysalis tried to calm him down, but Sombra wasn't looking at her. He just stared at the broken table and seemed to be suppressing tears.

***

Fluttershy gently nudged the door leading to her bedroom and it creaked a little before opening, revealing a big, comfortable sleeping room. The walls were decorated with the pictures of her critter friends, and also a photo of a group hug with the rest of her friends. There were some cupboards by the left and right walls as well as a big cabinet, wherein Fluttershy kept all the dresses made for her by Rarity.

When everything was done in the yard and Fluttershy felt lonely, she often put on the dresses and pranced in front of the mirror. Often, birds came to peek through the window.

Fluttershy's bed was made out of materials produced purely by nature. Her pillow contained only the softest feathers, willingly and happily donated by Mr. and Mrs. Guffaw, the geese that lived with her. Not only was it very soft, it was also very warm during cold nights.

Fluttershy approached her bed and carefully placed the crying filly on it. The little darling reluctantly let go of her, but her face became less saddened when she felt the soft blanket under herself.

"Now, Nightmare Moon, tell me: where exactly does it hurt?" Fluttershy asked, caressing the filly's cheek. One tear got on her hoof and Fluttershy was surprised at how cold it was: like a drop of molten ice.

Nightmare Moon only sobbed quietly, but pointed at her head. Fluttershy got closer to examine it.

"Tell me when it starts to hurt, okay... Oh, no..." Fluttershy immediately noticed a tiny patch of Nightmare's usually dark blue mane that was crimson.

"What 'oh, no'?" Nightmare Moon hiccupped.

"You're bleeding," Fluttershy told the filly the truth, and immediately saw her turn as pale as chalk. "Not seriously, of course! This is just a little scratch; I can fix it in no time, just let me find iodine and some clean bandages."

Fluttershy quickly dashed to one of the cupboards and opened it, noticing the box with a red cross on it right away. She always kept her med kit close, because... who knows, maybe she would need it.

Inside, she quickly found a bottle of iodine and some clean and white as clouds bandages. She grabbed the roll of bandages into her mouth and flew back to the bed.

"Uuugh... It hurts.... it huuuurts..." Nightmare Moon moaned, touching her head, and when Fluttershy arrived and put the bottle of iodine on the cupboard right beside the bed, she quickly shifted her sight on that.

"Is that iodine? What does it do? Is it an ancient medical brew to cure all ailments? Be thou a healer-jailer?"

"Well, first of all," Fluttershy had more courage when she was alone with the child, "I'm not a jailer. My house isn't a prison."

"I see thy logic... it hath no gratings on the windows," Nightmare Moon said.

Fluttershy rolled out the bandages and poured a few drops of iodine on them.

"Could you help me a little?" she asked, after putting the bottle on the cupboard. "I have a teeni-tiny problem with using my hooves."

"O- okay," Nightmare Moon said, and used a little bit of magic to help Fluttershy bandage her head. The yellow pegasus took great care when covering Nightmare's wound, so the iodine would hit right on the spot.

"Now be patient, it's going to bite a little," Fluttershy warned.

"Bite? ‘Tis alive?!" Moon panicked for a moment, but when Fluttershy finished bandaging, she realized that she’d meant. "Yiif! Ouch! ‘Tis biting! ‘Tis biting!"

Fluttershy stood by the bed until the biting subsided and Nightmare finally stopped murmuring something to herself and seemed to relax a bit.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yes... But..." Nightmare Moon looked at Fluttershy. "Why dost thou help me? Did thy purple friend — the one hight Twilight, I believe — not advise thee to stray clear of any of us?"

"I can't stand by and watch when kids are hurt!" Fluttershy exclaimed.

"Thou dost not appear to be a jailor... But why art thou so nice when Twilight isn't?"

"Well... It's difficult to explain... but I'll try," Fluttershy moved closer and leaned on the bed. "You see, you and your friends downstairs are a lot... different from other ponies around here. For example, there are so few ponies that have both a horn and wings."

"Twilight is such a pony. Why doth she not hide herself?"

"Well, she’s gained wings a while ago. You, however, came here just recently.... today... and that would surprise many ponies. Maybe scare some, even," Fluttershy tried to be as tactile as possible and reminded herself not to tell Nightmare the whole truth. She wouldn't like it at all.

"Scare? I don’t want to scare ponies!" Moon replied. Fluttershy couldn't help but feel somewhat distressed at such an irony. Irony was never a good sign, never.

"Ponies around here get scared very easily," Fluttershy went on and put her hoof to Nightmare Moon's forehead.

"I see. Thou’st fainted when first thou saw’st me. Have I... afeared thee?"

"What? No, not at all," Fluttershy replied maybe a tad too fast. Sweat started to appear on her forehead and she prayed the child wouldn’t notice. She opted to reply with a little white lie: "You scared my pet rabbit, though."

"Oh, sorry. I’ve had no intention to, really." Nightmare said. Fluttershy felt incredibly warm, even despite the fact that she was talking to a demigod, who had wanted to bring about the eternal night...

These kids were different from their adult counterparts, completely different. Nightmare Moon had proven that to Fluttershy.

"It's pretty late. You should sleep now," Fluttershy informed, but the dark filly suddenly puffed up.

"Why do I have to sleep during the night and during the day? What do I look like, a demon of sloth?"

"Sleep is important for your health. You should sleep a lot — and you will be very healthy and beautiful later!" Fluttershy informed and Moon graced her with a doubtful look.

"Alright... I shall sleep... for this time!" she yielded. Fluttershy smiled at her and left the room when the little alicorn wrapped herself in the blanket and closed her eyes.

Wow, this is really turning out better than I had expected, Fluttershy thought. The little villains weren't really villains. Though... maybe Nightmare Moon was the single case, an exception. Though, Sombra didn't look that menacing at all — he couldn't deceive her.

Deciding to brainstorm the thought later, Fluttershy hurried downstairs where the rest of the kids were waiting for her. She had to get them to bed as well, after all.

***

I should consider getting more beds, Fluttershy thought to herself when she had finally finished putting the camp-cots, and brought some bed linen. Thankfully, all the mattresses, blankets and pillows Fluttershy had were natural and fluffy — one could sink your face into them and sleep for hours straight.

Chrysalis quickly made herself a comfortable dimple into the mattress and curled up into a ball, covering herself with a puffy, pink blanket. She burrowed her head inside the pillow and put her horn in such a way that it wouldn't damage her bed in any way.

"Sleep well, children," Fluttershy said. "Sorry, that you have to sleep in the camp-cots... I don't have any more beds, and my own bed is... occupied."

When Sombra heard that word, he dragged his blue blanket with butterflies on it closer to himself and turned away from Fluttershy as if he wasn't listening. Chrysalis, on the contrary, looked at the yellow pegasus and made a thoughtful expression.

"Is Nightmare hurt?" she asked and Fluttershy shook her head in denial.

"Nothing serious, just a little scratch. I already patched her up and she's already asleep. Would you—" Fluttershy suddenly froze, as Chrysalis stared at her with her huge, green eyes. The poor pegasus was literally paralyzed as the young changeling looked at her.

"Go to sleep? Okie-dokie, I was feeling sleepy anyway!" Chrysalis said, and turned her sight at Sombra. "Sombra can prove that, eh? Hey, Sombra! Are we sleepy or not?"

"Yes..." Sombra grumbled angrily and covered his head with the blanket. He clearly didn't want to be disturbed.

"He's cranky about the table. Don't mind him," Chrysalis told Fluttershy. She didn't believe her, however, but it was too late in the night to try to talk to anypony and Fluttershy decided to put it off till tomorrow.

"Oh, don't be so worried. I have a lot of tables," Fluttershy said, trying to touch Sombra but he emitted a quiet growl when she tried to touch him, so she backed away.

"Sleep well, ponies... and please... don't try to run away. I'm—" Fluttershy stuttered for a moment before she gathered all her courage. "I'm going to make sure your stay here is comfortable and pleasant, you'll see! My home is no jail at all!"

"Yeah, yeah," Chrysalis yawned, revealing her little sharp teeth and two big fangs.

"Oh, sorry... I'll take my leave now... Have fun... sleeping," Fluttershy said, backing away until she hit her rump against her own bed for this night: the couch.

Sleeping in one room with the two villains didn't scare her anymore as they were clearly children. She still felt a little uneasy about this. Deep inside, she wanted Twilight to finish the spell as soon as possible, hopefully tomorrow.

Fluttershy dropped a pillow and a blanket on the couch and quickly made herself comfortable under the cowl of cloth. The warmth made her feel sleepier than any hot milk with honey and she quickly drifted away to the land of dreams.

Today had been a hard day. She better made sure she had a good rest. Tomorrow, she had a lot of explaining to do: telling them some small, tiny rules and explaining why her house wasn't a prison. Again.

"Psst... Sombra. Hey," Chrysalis hissed at the dark-colored unicorn, who obviously didn't want to hear the sounds of the world around him. When the little changeling called him again, he just covered his ears with the pillow.

"Grr, don't ignore me!" Chrysalis whispered, and put her blanket away, exposing her frail body to the rather chilly air. She shivered a little, but quickly got used to the cold night air.

Chrysalis had waited just long enough for all the candles to go out, so she would know for sure that Fluttershy was asleep as long as her little friends.

Now, it seemed that the whole world was asleep: Animals, ponies, only the little changeling was awake, ready to attempt her escape.

"Pssh! Sombra, you lazy butt! Stop ignoring me!" she approached Sombra and nudged him slightly. The unicorn didn't even react.

"Sombra, I'm warning you! If you ruin my perfect escape plan, you will regret it. No, you will start regretting right now, if you don't stop ignoring me!" Chrysalis raised her voice, trying not to talk too loud, so the sleeping pegasus wouldn't hear her, but Sombra kept quiet.

"You asked for it." Chrysalis said and walked away from Sombra, towards the kitchen. Half a minute later, she returned with a glass full of water. With an emotionless face, she turned the glass over right above Sombra.

The poor unicorn immediately jumped from his bed and fell on the floor when he felt the water wash over him. He seemed to have really fallen asleep, but it didn't matter: he was awake now.

"What the—" he couldn't finish his sentence as Chrysalis shoved her hoof into his mouth. He mumbled something angrily, tried to express his anger and irritation, but to no avail.

"You done?" Chrysalis asked and Sombra nodded in reply. After that, she slowly moved her hoof away from his mouth.

"Was that necessary? I was sleeping, you know!" Sombra exclaimed, keeping his voice down.

"You were ignoring me. I didn't like that too much," Chrysalis snarkily replied. "So, we going to getting out of here or not?"

"Out of here... but... what about Nightmare Moon?" Sombra mumbled, turning a little pale. Not that it was noticeable, it was too dark.

"Oh, yeah... It is too dangerous to walk upstairs. and we don't know for real where she is. Maybe this Fluttershy locked her up in some kind of a secret room, where she would cut out her organs and make pies out of them." Chrysalis said, feeling satisfied as Sombra shuddered at her assumption.

"Re- really?" he asked and Chrysalis barely saved herself from bursting into laughter.

"No, of course not, silly. Though, I still advise against looking for her; we might wake somepony up. So come on, let's get out of here while we still can."

"No," Sombra said firmly. "I'm not leaving without Nightmare Moon. Not after what I've done."

"Urgh, don't be overdramatic. She's just a cry-baby. Let it go already," Chrysalis retorted, but Sombra was persistent.

"No. I said no!" he replied angrily and Chrysalis uttered an angered growl.

"Fine, then! Stay here, and enjoy yourself! I'm getting out of here," she said and started sneakily moving towards the main door.

Sombra wanted to go back to sleep, but he didn't feel tired at all. Even the soft bed and warm blanket didn't do anything to make him sleepy. He got back up from bed and decided to do the craziest thing: he would apologize. Right now!

Without delay, he walked to the stairs. He was preparing himself for the upcoming conversation and, though he really wanted to avoid it, knew that it would be right to apologize. There was nothing that could prevent him from doing that.

Mission Chry-possible

Sombra crept slowly through the darkened halls of Fluttershy's house. Every shadow, every dark corner seemed alive and infested—with scary monsters, insect-like little demons.

Maybe this wasn't a good idea, Sombra thought, yet he proceeded, without really knowing where he needed to go. He had passed some doors on his way, but none of them led to where he was going. He saw only animals sleeping in their cradles, on piles of hay, and in the boxes too.

He wondered if this yellow pony kept any carnivores in her house. What if she did, and Nightmare Moon was to be used as food for them? Sombra shuddered at the thought. The pony looked sweet and nice outside, but what was she really hiding?

Maybe he should have followed Chrysalis and escaped this place, but he knew he would not be able to live with the thought that he left Moon here.

Sombra noticed another door—no different from those he saw before. He slowly approached it and nudged it slightly. The door gave way revealing a menacingly big and badly lit room before him. Moonlight seeped through the window, making the environment around him seem far more mysterious and menacing than they should.

But, out of all the half-lit pictures and shelves present in this place, Sombra saw a bed, not too far away from him.

Fluttershy had mentioned something about her bed being occupied. This room looked creepy enough for its owner—featuring a large bed, too. Sombra carefully crept up to the bed, and jumped swiftly on it.

To his great relief, Nightmare Moon lay there. She appeared relaxed, her gentle breath coming slow and steady as she buried her muzzle into her pillow. She was safe. Sombra let out a sigh of relief.

Now, he had to apologize to her. Just say sorry, and then offer her to leave together. Sombra was just about to open his mouth, but hesitated as he stared at the miniature nightmare. She was sleeping so... quietly. It would surely be criminal to simply drag her out of the land of dreams.

She looked so peaceful and calm, as she hid beneath the blanket, and she actually seemed to be smiling. Sombra just couldn't bring himself to wake her up. Instead, he slowly joined her under the blanket and wrapped his forehooves around her in a warm hug. She wouldn't mind... would she?

Unexpectedly, Sombra found his nose in her mane, and was once again reminded of just how delicious it was. Not only did it look beautiful, it also tasted like ice-cream... and rice-pudding! Combined!

He couldn't hold back, he just couldn't. He carefully nommed at the thickest part of Nightmare Moon's mane. How delicious!

“’Tis a little too much too quickly, is it not?" Nightmare Moon said, scaring the living croockles out of Sombra. He immediately released her mane and crawled away quickly, not noticing the edge of the bed from which he promptly fell. Nightmare Moon moved herself closer to the edge and looked down upon the fallen unicorn.

"Oh... sorry I woke you up..." Sombra said, turning red as a tomato. Nightmare Moon squinted.

"I wasn't asleep, thou silly head. I do not sleep at night," Nightmare Moon cynically exclaimed.

"Oh... sorry... I just wanted to apologize... for what I did at the supper..." Sombra covered himself with his forehooves.

“This is thine idea of an apology—sneaking into my bed and chewing my mane?"

An awkward moment of silence descended upon the room.

"Yes."

"Thy logic is either convoluted beyond understanding, or incredibly stupid... Or both." Nightmare Moon scratched her chin.

"So... will you accept my apology?" Sombra interrupted her flow of thoughts. "I'm really sorry. I didn't think the ceiling was that sturdy."

"Thou’st wanted to ram the ceiling with me?!" Nightmare Moon’s jaw dropped

"No, no! I just wanted to see... if the ceiling was.... Yes, you're right—I did want to ram you through the ceiling."

"But... why? For what reason?"

"I... don't know. I just thought you would like me more if I did that."

Nightmare Moon gave him a long and questioning stare.

"Be thou from the outer bounds of deep space? I can find no other explanation for thy logic," she said. A grim shadow settled over Sombra’s face.

"So, you're not forgiving me? Should I leave?" He looked to the door.

Sorrow crept into Nightmare Moon’s heart. She looked at the poor foal; he worried so much about her, while others—she was sure—wouldn't even care.

"Thou art forgiven. I bear no malice against thee," she said. “’Twas a simple mistake, anypony can make those.”

Instantly, Sombra brightened up. He prepared to leap into the air and scream with joy, but quickly stopped himself, knowing far too well what that would lead to.

"Yaaay!" he whispered. "So, Nightmare Moon... do you want to get out of here? Did that strange pony try to feed you to her animals?"

"What? Nay, ’tis false!" Nightmare Moon declared. "Fluttershy is rather sweet, I say. She treated my bruise and let me sleep in her bed."

"Whoa... so this is her bed?" Sombra looked at the construction.

"Yes. She's much nicer than I thought she would be. And her house seems not like a jail," Nightmare added.

Sombra clambered back on the bed and sat down. Nightmare Moon scanned him with a question in her eyes. Sombra turned red under her gaze. “Moon,” he began, “do you... mind if I stay here? It's scary outside... it's really dark.”

Nightmare Moon chuckled. What was so scary about darkness? Didn't this little unicorn know he could light his way with magic? But reminding him once more of his own silliness would be highly unladylike, and so Nightmare Moon nodded.

"Aye, of course thou may’st stay. Thou may’st have the right side of the bed, and I'll take the left."

Chrysalis approached the front door and squinted her eyes, trying to peer through the late-evening darkness. The glimmer of an iron bolt alerted her senses and she hit the ground with her right forehoof.

"Blast it, foiled!"

Her brilliant plan of walking out the front door was ruined. However, she was a smart little changeling, and she knew she could get out some other way. The doors weren't the only path of escape—there were others. Like windows!

Chrysalis turned away from the door—stupid door! It may have foiled her plan, but the windows wouldn't be so malevolent! Making no unnecessary noises, she sneaked past Fluttershy, who was peacefully snoring on her pillow.

Silly pegasus. You can't keep me in here! she thought. I'm a free filly, and I have to run free!

Her excitement building, she started a little dance. Drumming a catchy tune with her hooves, she walked onward, swinging her backside to and fro.

"Don't stop me now... I'm having such a good taaaime... I'm escaping your hoooome...." She started to add lyrics to her little dance. "Don't stop me naaaaooow... I'm having such a good time... Escaping your hooooome!"

The window was just up ahead, ever-so-inviting. It begged to be opened, to be crawled through. That's what Chrysalis was going to do. Though, she still had to be careful—the yellow pegasus might wake up. That wouldn't be so pretty.

But Chrysalis was smart. She was also very nimble and agile—if things went south, she would just run away. She didn't need those other two; they would just be a nuisance, they would slow her down.

Pff, friendship, what does that taste like?

Suddenly, Chryssie’s sensitive changeling ears detected a barely discernible sound. It sounded like the silent stepping of furry feet on the rough wood. She slowly turned around to check who it was, and was shocked—she actually saw the offender: a small, long-eared white one.

"Oh... hi, Holy the Bunny... why aren't you sleeping? He-he-he..." Chryssie laughed nervously in the critter’s direction. "I thought... you were supposed to be sleeping."

The bunny squinted at the little changeling. He began tapping on the floor with his left foot, his arms crossed. Judging by his expression, Angel didn't quite like the idea of Chrysalis escaping.

The tapping increased in volume, and the little changeling's heart started to race. This little animal could wake Fluttershy—it seemed like that was his plan all along.

"Now there... no need to judge so fast..." Chrysalis said, taking a step towards the bunny. He could ruin everything. Maybe she could tie him up and put him quietly back into the bed, where he wouldn't cause any trouble.

However, the instant Chrysalis moved her hoof forward, Angel took a step back, and tapped with his foot once more, harder and louder. Chryssie cringed as the sound reached her ears.

"Don't do that, please... Just let me say something." Chrysalis stopped dead in her tracks, improvising a cunning plan. "Do you like... carrots?"

Angel nodded several times and smiled.

"I can give you a lot of carrots, if you let me go and don't wake up Fluttershy. Deal?"

Angel closed his eyes and gave a brief chuckle into his paw. He pointed at the window. It showed a view of the hill, where Fluttershy had a garden. From the looks of it, it was full of all kinds of vegetables, probably including carrots.

"Urgh. Alright, you win this one." Chryssie turned back to him, only to have an open book shoved into her face.

It was a recipe book, and on the page open it depicted a giant tower of ice-cream. As Chryssie stared at the tantalising image, she actually felt her tummy rumble. The construction included cream, strawberries, lemon juice, berry juice and—most important of all—vanilla.

"Wow..." Chrysalis gasped at the picture, then snapped out of her amazement immediately when Angel’s expectations became evident. "You want me to get that for you?"

Angel nodded with affirmation. Chrysalis thought carefully for a moment—she had to find a way out of the situation. She couldn't very well go to the kitchen and make such a dessert for the bunny. There had to be a quicker way.

"You know what? Not in a million...'ears'!" Chrysalis buzzed her insect-like wings and took flight. With barely a moment's notice, she turned around and rushed through the air to the window.

"Ha-ha! Better luck next time!" Expecting to feel the cold air of the outside world welcome her in a moment, her dreams—as well as her muzzle—were crushed against the glass.

Angel leaped away from the windowsill, laughing. He’d timed his jumps just right and got to the window before Chrysalis did—closing it immediately.

"Argh... Ouch!" Chryssie growled, rubbing her pounding head. "Grrr, you little..."

Angel only poked his tongue out at her and began mocking her. Little Chryssie gritted her teeth and bared her little fangs. Her horn was set aflame with green tongues of energy.

"I'm going to get out, whether you like it or not!" She rushed to another window, fast as she possibly could. The air whistled in her ears, her mane fluttered in the majestic flight. She felt free, powerful. She could get out!

Or not.

History repeated itself as Chryssie crashed into the window once more. This time, her impact was strong enough to leave a crack in the glass.

The changeling backed up, rubbing away the pain. Tears gathered in her enormous green eyes, and a little droplet found its way to the floor. Bitterness rose with the bile in her throat.

"You.. you stupid, big-eared pile of poo!" Chrysalis growled the most offensive insult she could come up with. "You'll pay for that!"

Losing all sense of logic, the changeling's mind filled with nothing but thoughts of revenge. She swooped down at the bunny, who continued poking his tongue at her. She cut through the air like a knife through butter, her wings whistling in her flight.

Angel jumped up from the sudden scare, hopping away from the fast-approaching Chrysalis. In desperation, he bounced onto the table, hoping that the presence of Fluttershy's favourite vase, where the red roses were, would shatter her resolve. Realizing that she wasn't going to stop, he jumped off at the last possible moment.

Chrysalis didn't even see what she’d hit. She swooped through the vases and pictures that lined the shelf, sending them all crashing to the floor. Several ornaments hit her head on the way down, generating an intense dizziness. Her wings spluttered and ceased vibrating. She could barely even move her limbs as the power of gravity brought her spiralling down to the ground.

Angel witnessed the entire thing. He saw Chryssie about to fall. On impact, she was sure to hurt herself.

There was no time to lose. Angel gritted his teeth, knowing that he would probably be better off just running away. Against his better judgment, he leapt at the falling changeling, knocking her away from the designated course and right into her own bed.

The soft mattress softened the impact immensely. Of course, it also helped that, doing barrel rolls during her fall, Chrysalis landed right on top of Angel.

Pinned underneath the distressed damsel, Angel fought to extract himself, finally managing to do so by pushing the filly off himself. Chrysalis uttered a few moans and fell silent—it seemed she was knocked out.

Fluttershy briefly uttered a short snort... and turned around on the couch.

Angel felt a little disappointed. Sure, she always seemed to wake up when he decided to steal some cookies from the cookie jar. But a filly in her house destroying her favorite vase? Nope! Not a peep.

Speaking of the vase, a lot of conversations were bound to happen tomorrow. Angel snickered. The little changeling was in a lot of trouble, once Fluttershy finds out. Oooh, how exciting it would be to see that meanie get a taste of Flutters' good ol' Stare.

***

The rooster's cry echoed throughout the green trees of the forest. The sun seeped through the window, teasing Fluttershy's eyes. The pegasus slowly opened her eyes.

Her body felt rested and energized, ready for whatever the upcoming day held in store for her. Her mind sang and danced as one

Now, to actually wake up, and greet the sun and the world. Usually she would fly outside and sing a melodic tune, calling upon her furry friends to join her for breakfast. She always fed her animals first, before having some oatmeal and then flying off to do chores. Today especially, she had a lot to do.

Fluttershy sprang up from her bed-couch, throwing away the blanket and spreading her wings wide.

"Good morni—"

The sentence died in her throat as she made the unfortunate mistake of opening her eyes. Witnessing the state of the room, she blinked a few times, unsure of whether or not she was still dreaming.

Did a war erupt while she had been asleep? Did an army of demons appear from the portal and laid waste to the room? Poor Fluttershy flickered her eyelids in confusion.

Pictures and vases that once stood peacefully on the cupboard now lay on the ground, smashed to pieces. A small, half-dried puddle of water could be seen, the red roses within already dark and withered.

Oh no... Her favorite vase—a birthday gift from her mother—lay in hundreds of shards. Who could have done this?

Fluttershy scanned the room for more destruction. Mercifully, the only thing she noticed was crack in the window, and the fact that both of them were closed.

Suddenly, Fluttershy noticed the most crucial detail: Sombra was missing! His bed was all disheveled and messy, but he was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh no!" Fluttershy’s lingering drowsiness evaporated in a millisecond as her eyes flew wide open. If one or more of the villains had escaped outside… there was no telling what they would do!

Twilight's going to kill her!

Anxiety grasped Fluttershy tightly. She felt her heart rate accelerate, pulse pounding in her temples. Worry grabbed her throat with its long sharp claws and squeezed.

"Calm down, Fluttershy, calm down," she whispered to herself. "What would a brave pony like Rainbow Dash do in this situation? Probably sit down and think logically—where could he possibly be?"

Or circle around the town, calling for him until he was found—that could work too.

Fluttershy decided she should check upstairs first. Who knows, maybe he was still inside the house. It was never late for hope, right?

"This is very... very awkward," Nightmare Moon whispered to herself when Sombra poked her with his hoof for what felt like the hundredth time. "’Twill the last time I ever let thee in my bed."

She wasn't really going to sleep—her very nature prevented her from falling asleep at night—but Sombra ruined every possibility of her having even a little shut-eye.

The instant he fell asleep, he’d immediately crawled closer to Nightmare Moon and started munching on her mane. Even now, the end of her sparkly hair was in his mouth as he periodically chewed it, smiling and uttering some kind of a pleased murmur.

Nightmare desired to push him away, but... Sombra was very warm. He served as a nice second blanket, so she decided against it.

"Mrrmmm..." Sombra burbled once again and moved closer to little Nightmare Moon, wrapping her mane around his body. What was it with him and her mane—she couldn't possibly know. Or maybe it wasn't just her mane he was after; he did chew Twilight's mane as well. She should ask him about this when he’d wake up.

In fact, he should wake up now, because otherwise her mane would be soaked in his saliva for weeks.

"Arise and shine, thou great apologizer."

Sombra quickly opened his eyes at her strong voice and looked around, still holding her mane in his mouth.

"Wuh? Wuh? Whuh am wah?" He murmured something barely comprehensible, before finally realizing what he was holding in his mouth.

"I advise thee to release my mane, else thou wilt not reclaim thine ability to talk," the alicorn recommended. Sombra followed her advice, opening his mouth. The sullied, chewed mane drooped to the bed, saliva dripping on the blanket.

"I wish not to offend thee with this remark but... eww..." Sombra blushed at her words.

"So-sorry," he said, looking at her mane. "I can fix that, if you want."

Before he could squeeze the saliva out of her mane, she moved closer to him and put her hoof to his lips.

"Nay, ’tis unnecessary. I can handle myself just fine. But, please, next time, if possible, pick a place to sleep away from me," she said, making Sombra’s cheeks bloom brightly with colour.

"Oh... okay... Sorry about that... I can't really control it, especially when I'm asleep. It just... happens," he said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Especially when thou’rt asleep? So... thou canst not control it at all?" Nightmare Moon noted. "Art thou possessed by an ancient spirit that takes of thee from time to time, causing thee to chew on the manes of innocent ponies, no matter if they like it or not?"

She stood up and took a storyteller’s pose, raising her left forehoof as if she was holding something, and started her epic speech.

"’Tis an old legend, of a spirit that was obsessed... with manes! It is believed that it possesses those who misspelt its name, as it seeks vengeance for the butchery that was committed unto its sacred name!"

Sombra quivered slightly. He thought he liked chewing manes for one reason—but suddenly his whole world had changed! He was possessed by... by...

"What is its name?" Sombra gulped. If he was possessed... it might be the end of his life. He, little Sombra, who didn't manage to do anything in his life, would die by demonic possession.

"It's name is..." Nightmare Moon moved closer to Sombra, baring her fangs, "manes!"

An awkward pause followed.

"Manes? Really? Who would make a mistake with such an easy word?" Sombra asked, raising his eyebrow. And he’d been worried? Bah.

"Yes, thou art right. Manes is the word. And... I know not who would make a grammatical mistake therewith. I thought you would."

"No, no! My grammar is quite good!" Sombra said, sounding somewhat proud.

"Then thou’rt not possessed. So, the origin of thy mane obsession remains a mystery..." Nightmare Moon said, turning to the window. "A pony, eyes burning like red coals, of a mane darker than the night, and with an obsession—the origin of which we may not know. How... romantic."

"What was that?" Sombra asked, unable to hear her whisper. Nightmare Moon's cheeks turned pink and she smiled shyly.

"Nay, tis nothing. I said nothing..."

They both leapt up at the sound of the door smashing open. Sombra almost fell off the bed, while Nightmare Moon eeped and backed away on the pillow.

"Nightmare Moon, Sombra ran away! Do you know if—" Fluttershy fell silent the instant she stuck her head into the room and saw the terrified foal sitting on the bed.

"Oh... I see... Umm... You're busy." Fluttershy turned red as a tomato. "I'll just... go away... Come to breakfast, when you're... done. I won't interrupt..." She closed the door, leaving the two foals to listen to her receding steps.

"What was that?" Sombra asked, looking at Nightmare Moon.

She only shrugged. "Unknown to me. There is worry in her heart about you, though, methinks."

Sombra made a sheepish expression. "Well, I guess I didn't leave a note behind that I was going to visit you and apologize... Whoopsie," he said. "I hope it didn't cause much trouble."

"There's one sure way to find out: let us descend downstairs and see if thy sudden disappearance made Fluttershy mad." Nightmare Moon jumped off the bed. Her mane still needed a little drying, but she decided that it could wait. For now, she had to check on her holey comrade.

***

Sadness weighed heavily on Fluttershy’s heart, as she looked at the remains of the vase she adored so much. She remembered the day her mother bought it for her, long ago, when she was just about to move to Ponyville.

She’d been beyond terrified; it was a whole new world. New town, new ponies, new faces! Thankfully, Rainbow Dash was by her side, but even her presence did little to assuage her fears.

Only when her mother approached her with the vase—words that were forever engraved in Fluttershy's soul—could she finally pack her things and go.

"You're never alone. We're always with you; always by your side," her mother had said, smiling brightly at the young and scared pony. "Your father and I will always watch over you—even when we're far away from each other."

It was the moment Fluttershy took a step into the adult life, and this vase was the symbol of her growth. On the side of the vase their address was engraved, in case Fluttershy ever forgot where she used to live.

Every time she wrote a letter, she needed this vase. Every single time.

Fluttershy had already placed the red roses in a different vase. All that remained was to clear the floor of shards of this particular vase, but she just couldn't bring herself to collect them and throw them into the trash. It seemed so wrong.

Maybe she could remake it, put the pieces back together. Shouldn't be too hard, especially if she asked Rarity to help.

Angel crossed his paws and looked at Fluttershy, tapping his foot on the floor. He expected Fluttershy to take action towards the vase's destroyer: Chrysalis, who still lay snoring on her bed. Not that it wasn’t obvious—in the changeling's mane, Fluttershy saw tiny pieces of the vase. Angel's loud exclamation and demands were completely unnecessary.

"So, she tried to run away?" Fluttershy looked at the sleeping changeling, and Angel nodded. He squeaked something in his language, clearly expecting Fluttershy to get mad at her for breaking her vase.

Fluttershy sighed heavily and turned away from Chrysalis. Of course, losing the vase was a sad turn of events for her, but... It was only a vase. Chryssie could have hurt herself in that chase—that was more important than a vase.

"No, Angel, I won't punish her. That wouldn't be fair," Fluttershy said in a soft, gentle voice. "Think about it: she has only been here for one day. Maybe... Maybe it's okay in the changeling society to smash the furniture of other changelings. Maybe they express their affection this way."

Angel looked at Fluttershy angrily. He grumbled something under his nose.

"Oh, don't be so mad, Angel. She just needs a little time." Fluttershy’s lips lifted slightly. "Today, I will explain to the kids why they shouldn't run away. They'll understand—you watch!"

She patted Angel on the head, but he still remained gloomy.

"When Chrysalis wakes up and Sombra and Nightmare Moon finish... doing what they were doing at night, I'll talk to them right away! You'll see—they'll understand!" Fluttershy smiled at the bunny and turned to the changeling. "I really should clean her mane. Those shards look painful!"

Fluttershy quickly prepared to take off and fly to the pantry to get a brush.

"Angel, could you clean up here? Please?" Fluttershy looked at her bunny friend with big round eyes. Angel closed his eyes, gritted his teeth and grumbled something—no doubt offensive—but obeyed.

The sleepy changeling finally opened her eyes when Fluttershy swept the final shard of vase from her mane. Chryssie’d had quite an unshakeable sleep, just like Fluttershy. Once she fell asleep, there was nothing in the world that would wake her up.

Probably not a good thing, considering her situation.

"Uuh... Where am I?" Chrysalis looked around groggily. When she realized that she was still 'imprisoned', she let out an annoyed groan. "Grrrah!"

"Good morning... Did you sleep well?" Fluttershy stood beside her bed, having put the brush away already.

"I slept fantastically, thank you." Chrysalis yawned while getting up. "Though my peaceful dreams of chocolate rain and cotton-candy clouds were interrupted by a certain bunny."

Fluttershy hesitated. Should she call Chrysalis out on her lie or ignore it? It was tough to decide. Calling her out might anger her, and then they would never reach understanding. Ignoring her lie might make her think she was capable of everything, ensuring another attempt at escape. If only Twilight was here; she had more resolve and was cleverer, she could sort this out.

Come on, Fluttershy, think!

"Oh... I'm sorry about that... Angel is usually very quiet at night." Safest option it was. It couldn't hurt—just this one time she'd close her eyes. Nothing would go wrong.

Chrysalis said nothing in reply, and just got up from the bed. Fluttershy felt something touching her leg.

"What is it, Angel?" She turned around to see the bunny showing her the bag he put all the shards in. "Oh, let me handle that."

"Something broke?" Chrysalis asked.

"Yes... A tremor at night, so the vase and a few pictures fell off. Nothing too major," Fluttershy said, turning red. She was so, so bad at lying! She needed to take a few lessons—either from Discord, or any of the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

"Good morrow to thee, fair Fluttershy! Good morrow to thee, my holey comrade Chrysalis!" Nightmare Moon loudly announced her presence, striding proudly into the room.

"Hey! Look at yourself, you 'Full Moon'!" Chrysalis suddenly blurted angrily, covering her hooves with the blanket. "Pff! 'Holey' comrade! Blah!"

Nightmare Moon looked at Chrysalis with confusion.

"Err, I cry thy pardon, fair maiden... I'm sorry for... something I said... that was offensive," she spoke.

"Urgh, forget it!" Chrysalis grumbled, jumped off the bed and trotted to the kitchen.

"Oh, you're both awake!" Fluttershy finally decided to join the conversation. "So... how did... it... go?"

"Oh, ’twas alright," Nightmare Moon said. "Sombra showed himself as a true gentlecolt and apologized for the woe he caused. Ergo, we hold no grudge against each other; now we simply desire the consumption of food."

Sombra turned as red as a Fuji apple.

"Ooooh... so that’s what you were doing... But why didn't you tell me?" Fluttershy looked at Sombra. "You could have woken me up, I don't mind at all."

"Well... I didn't want to... and it just took... two minutes... yes." Sombra turned an even deeper crimson, hiding one forehoof behind another. "I totally didn't sleep in her bed because I was scared to go back... totally not."

"I see. Well, I just got confused," Fluttershy said, smiling. "I thought you two were... never mind..."

An awkward pause blanketed the room.

"Come ooooon! Are we going to eat or not? I'm huuuungry!" Chrysalis drawled loudly, jumping up on the chair. Sombra quickly joined her and sat down on the chair next to her.

Fluttershy made to enter the kitchen and make something to eat, but Nightmare Moon stood in her way. She winked at her, tilting her head to the left. Intrigued, Fluttershy followed her to the corner.

"Fluttershy... I just want to apologize to thee for calling thee a jailer. Thou art no jailer—thou’rt actually... very nice," she concluded. Fluttershy's cheeks could have burst into flames.

"Oh, it's okay. I wasn't angry, but I'm glad you don't think so anymore." Fluttershy smiled, earning a return from Nightmare Moon.

She was so adorable when she smiled. Fluttershy couldn't even imagine how such a polite, nice-yet-extravagant filly could ever be a threat.

"I'm glad we settled that... although, your friends don't seem to believe me." Fluttershy’s face fell.

"Worry not, I shall do my best to persuade them," Nightmare Moon assured the pegasus. "Now if thou wilt, I would like to get a dose of food for today."

"Sure!" Fluttershy flew to the kitchen, newly energized; she’d actually managed to make friends with Nightmare Moon! Well, it wasn't a real friendship, but they seemed to like each other.

Everything was going well so far! Maybe it wouldn't be that bad.

"Hello, Chryssie. Nice to Peck You!"

"So, how is the rice pudding?" Fluttershy asked, pushing her empty bowl away. Her belly purred a little, thanking her for this delicious breakfast and, surprisingly, her body felt even lighter than before.

"It's awesome!" Sombra exclaimed excitedly, his lips covered in the pudding. "Best thing ever!"

Fluttershy smiled. The foals certainly had quite an appetite. Sombra, for example, had just emptied his third bowl. She found that the young child demanded a lot of food to grow and function properly and Fluttershy was happy to provide it.

"’Tis very good. The flavour could use a little bit of diversity, but I liked it a lot. Would definitely eat again," Nightmare Moon said, swiping away the remains of the pudding off her lips with a white towel, like a gentlemare. "I'd recommend adding some spices, either southern or eastern. They specialize in making dishes of rice, so their spices fit right in!"

"Meh," Chrysalis said, pushing the bowl away from her. "I've eaten better."

Fluttershy felt a little hurt about Chryssie's disregard of her efforts, but she didn't say anything. Maybe her skills as a cook weren't as high as she had assumed.

The clock on the wall let out a loud chirp and a little wooden nightingale jumped out of the house. Fluttershy got a little lost for a moment before she realized what time it was: time to go out into the yard and do her daily chores.

She was about to fly out immediately, when Nightmare Moon's voice interrupted her train of thought.

"So, what should we do now?" she prodded, pushing the bowl away. Fluttershy became a little confused. It was a good question, what should they do? She obviously couldn't leave them alone at home; no good would come out of that!

Taking them outside seemed like a bad idea but, she couldn't keep them inside her house forever. Besides, some fresh air would be ideal for their young bodies.

"We can go outside. There is a lot to do there," Fluttershy offered. "I have a lot of animals that need—"

Before she could finish her sentence, the trio jumped from their seats and rushed outside through the door.

"—tending," Fluttershy finished lamely, knowing very well nopony was listening anymore. She really had disrupted her usual schedule, but she hoped the animals would understand and forgive her as she had three little foals to take care of.

Fluttershy put all the dirty dishes into the sink—she would wash them later—and went outside.

Her body shuddered at the feeling of the soft morning breeze touching her skin. The sun rose, its warmth already drawing many of her pets out of their homes. The chicks strode around behind the fence, their mamas watching carefully, mindful of any threats. Their proud fathers patrolled near the feeding stand, ready to lash out on anypony who approached it. The bees swarmed near the garden area, trying to pollinate as many flowers as they could.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and mentally prepared herself for the chores. So, what did she have to do? She had to feed the chickens; water the flowers; bring food to the bears, boars, spiders, bunnies, hares, butterflies...

Chrysalis squinted and took a good look around herself. Fluttershy's yard was filled with all kinds of animals but, none were familiar to the young changeling. It felt so weird admitting it, but she knew absolutely nothing about her surroundings!

A small bug with multicoloured wings landed on her nose. At first, the young changeling got confused, for she had never seen a bug this colourful. It had beautiful colour pattern on its wings, which confused the changeling's young mind even more. All the spins and whirls and the big hairy spiders...

"Aah!" Chrysalis shrieked, as the big spider jumped off her muzzle, landing into the soft grass. "Sweet gosh, it's humongous!"

Chrysalis had seen spiders back in the fledgling room, where she had been born, the corners of that place always had webs in them and where the webs were, there were always spiders. Chrysalis hated the fledgling room. Stupid caves.

The big spider looked at her with all of its eight eyes, and suddenly took a menacing position, as it was preparing to jump. It seemed quite capable of doing so; its legs were long and strong enough to allow it to jump back on Chrysalis's face.

The filly put her gameface on and prepared to strike back at the vermin, when suddenly it stuck one of its long legs into the area behind its pincers.

Whatever tricks you've got up your legs, I'm ready! Chrysalis thought, when suddenly, instead of something menacing like a stream of acid or a bone twice as big as itself, the spider took out a pretty white flower and extended its leg to Chrysalis, offering it to her.

It tried its best to express happiness with all eight eyes, even going so far as to try to make a smile out of whatever it had for a mouth.

"Ha!" Chrysalis spat and depreciatingly slapped the flower out of the spider's leg. "Offer your flowers to somepony else!"

She turned her attention away from the spider and looked around once more. All these animals, bugs and birds—there was so much life, so much movement in this place, so much to find out! So much to explore!

The changeling decided to head for the small wooden house behind a fence that was not far from her current location, where the birds that couldn't fly were walking around. Chrysalis wanted to take a closer look at them. Maybe there was a reason why they couldn't fly. Maybe there was a mystery, a conspiracy she could discover! And hopefully no spiders to the face.

Who knows what secrets this place held, what kind of ancient artefacts and long forgotten legends could be found in this house... which looked more like a shed. Maybe, just maybe, this Fluttershy was actually an archivist and hid powerful items in her yard. Maybe she was a magician and invoked these fantastic beings, these birds that couldn't fly.

Though, it was unlikely, for Fluttershy didn't have a horn, thus she couldn't call upon magic. Had she both horn and wings, Chrysalis would have assumed that she and Nightmare Moon were related.

Where was Nightmare Moon, anyway?

Chrysalis scanned the surroundings, looking for the shadowy alicorn, but she was nowhere to be seen. She couldn't see her sparkly mane anywhere.

What is so attractive about her mane, anyway? Chrysalis stopped for a second and stroked her own mane several times. Her curls were, in no way, worse—in fact, they were even more beautiful. Who couldn’t resist the charm of her long, straight, bright green hair? She just needed to take a pose and swing her mane around.

Chrysalis sighed heavily and turned her sight to Sombra, who was resting under the sun. He could resist. He didn't even notice her, instead deciding to gobble up Nightmare Moon's mane. Of course, that was it, it was sparkly!

Chrysalis gloomily turned away from Sombra and walked towards the fence. So what if he didn't notice me? It isn't like I wanted him to. I just don't like being ignored, that's all!

Sombra closed his eyes and threw himself onto the soft grass. The ground was warm and yet a little wet. They should have gone out later, but he enjoyed the little bit of water on his coat. He saw no problem with that.

The nature welcomed him, just as he welcomed it. Dozens of little critters came out of their hiding places to take a look at the dark-coloured foal, which, just like many animals here, rested under the sun's warm gaze, enjoying every single moment of it.

A little red fox gathered all its courage and left his hiding place in a bush, walking carefully and slowly towards the strange foal. It measured every step, every movement, in order not to alert the pony. What if he was hostile?

The unicorn simply smiled with his belly exposed to the sun and his fore-hooves held apart, as though he was about to hug the sun.

The fox approached the foal and poked him on his side with its wet nose. He felt so warm and soft to the touch, so much so that the fox decided to poke him again.

"Ow!" Sombra exclaimed and opened his eyes to see who was disturbing his sleep. Instead of something nasty, he saw the pointy muzzle of a fox and its deep green eyes.

"Oh... hi! Is this... your spot? Should I move?" Sombra asked with a nervous smile. He was new here and the last thing he wanted to do was to make enemies. "I don't mind... I don't mind at all."

The fox sniffed at him, checking him for any unknown smell. He found none and sat down in front of him, tilted its head and just stared. Sombra looked back at the fox, scanning the critter that he had never seen before.

"I know how foxes look like, but you're much puffier than foxes on any picture I've seen," Sombra pronounced with wonder, eager to touch the animal but afraid to do so. His most childish instincts roared inside him, urging him to just move forward and touch the animal, find out how it felt, run his hooves through its fur and... and bite its tail! It looked so puffy, so long, so tasty!

But Sombra held back, his inner fledging adult telling him to keep cautious and stick to manes when it came to biting.

This train of thought derailed violently as he came to think about Nightmare Moon again, instantly blushing when the image of him chewing on her mane while she tried to sleep— Or did she sleep? She said she wouldn’t slept at night.

Sombra suddenly felt even weirder. Not only did he disturb Nightmare Moon, but he also had been stuck to her through whole night while she was awake! He felt so ashamed now...

He got interrupted once more, when the feeling of a cold wet tongue was registered by his burning cheek. The fox continued to lick him, thinking that his cheek had turned into a lollipop, Sombra assumed.

"Hey, hey, okay, enough," Sombra said, giggling. "Come on, stop."

Truthfully, he didn't want it to stop. It was funny, tickly and strangely pleasing. It was like the fox wanted to be his friend and just showed it in a weird way.

Still, this strange offer of friendship may not be ignored! Thinking he had understood the fox's intentions, Sombra smiled and licked its nose in the same manner as it did his cheek.

The fox backed away slightly, as if Sombra had just tried to eat it alive. The foal smiled widely, closing his eyes.

"I like your way of making friends," he said happily. "We are friends now, right?"

He looked at the fox with a hopeful glance and it replied by licking his cheeks once more.

"Yay! We are friends!" Sombra exclaimed. After a few licks, the fox ran away, leaving the unicorn to rest.

Suddenly, a butterfly landed on his nose. It flapped its beautifully multicoloured wings and stared at Sombra. Then, he felt something climbing his back... and his belly.

"Woah... he-he, not all at once!" Sombra said, giggling, as many little insects came to greet the newcomer. While others would scream, Sombra knew they weren't out to hurt him. They were out to tickle him.

"He-he..ha-ha-ha... Oh-ha-ha-ha..." he could barely stand. His eyes filled with tears of joy as he saw other animals coming to greet him.

He was surely going to have great time!

... bears and lizards that lived under a rock!

After remembering all animals she had to take care of, Fluttershy quickly rushed to do her daily duties: first of which was to feed the chickens. They were always the most demanding ones, and would squeak for days until properly fed. Even carnivores weren't that demanding.

It took minutes for Fluttershy to find the bag wherein she kept the grain. She quickly carried it to the chicken coop, humming a tune on her way. Several butterflies landed on her head and accompanied her.

"What are you saying? A new foal? Oh, that must be Sombra," Fluttershy listened to the butterflies. "I hope he's not causing you trouble. Oh, he's your new friend? That's so delightful!"

Sombra was actually making friends with her animals! What delightful news! She was glad her animals liked the new ponies; this would surely make their stay much more pleasant. Maybe not only Sombra, but others would try to make friends with her critters. Maybe even adopt them as pets! Sombra looked like he could use a pet tarantula; Nightmare Moon would love an owl and Chrysalis...

She suddenly heard loud clucking in the coop, the sound of fighting and cracking wood. It seemed that the roosters had decided to pick a fight with each other again, or one of the foxes had wandered there accidentally. She hated when her animals fought. She always felt like she was responsible.

"Oh, no! Not again!" she groused, dropping the bag of grain near the fence, planning to pick it up after solving the problem. Fluttershy quickly flew over the fence and approached the coop.

"Please, my friends, there's no need to be hostile!" she said in a firm, but tender tone. "Come out, and we will have a civilized talk, like all chickens, hens and roosters should."

There was no reply, and Fluttershy felt a little worried. Usually, they would immediately listen...

"Ah! Stop pecking me!" Chrysalis's loud voice reached Fluttershy's ears. Then, the little changeling jumped out of the coop, a big rooster right behind her.

Chrysalis turned her head just a little to see if he was chasing her and immediately received a painful peck on the head. In retaliation, she created a fragile wall of coruscant green energy and used it to push the rooster away from herself.

"Leave me alone!" she shouted, putting all her power into this wall, which wasn't nearly enough to stop the angered animal. The rooster broke through and Chryssie panicked.

Forgetting she had wings, she ran towards the hole in the fence, hoping to slip through it and escape. She ran so fast her hooves actually dug into the ground, throwing up the chunks of dirt into the air.

The hole in the fence was her only chance of escaping, so she ran, ran as fast as she could. Her heart was pounding, blood pumping in her temples. She had to get away.

"Aaah!" she screamed, as she slid into the hole. Her head fit through just nicely... The rest of her body didn't.

The rooster approached the changeling, who, from this position, could only swing her tail around, hoping to slap the rooster across the face and drive him away from her backside.

"Aaaargh, gosh darn it to heck!" she crowed, trying to push her body through. What an awkward position to be in.

"Grr, you stupid bird!" Chryssie swore and then suddenly her eyes widened and her lip started to tremble.

Fluttershy gasped as Chryssie unleashed a terrifying, blood chilling shriek as the rooster pecked her backside due to the absence of her head.

"Waaaaaah!" she screamed, and tried to kick the rooster, but it already backed away. "You little, stupid, smelly feathery..."

The rooster decided to give the noisy changeling another peck, but he stopped immediately when Fluttershy gazed at him with disappointment.

"Mr. Tuft, that is enough!" she said in a strict voice. "You know better than peck silly fillies on the head! So stop right now!"

The rooster looked at her with surprise in his eyes.

"If... that's okay with you, of course..." Fluttershy blushed. The rooster nodded to her, recognizing Fluttershy, whom he knew and loved, and stalked away with his head held high, feeling proud about defeating a foe and protecting his hens.

"Aaaaah..." Chryssie moaned, desperately trying to reach her behind with her forehooves. "It huuuurts."

Fluttershy landed behind the fence and pushed Chryssie through the hole, finally freeing her. The poor filly quickly sat down on the ground, making sure the hurt bit of her butt touched the coldest part of it.

"Why did you even go there?" Fluttershy asked, flying over the fence and landing near Chryssie. "You know the coop is the house for chickens, roosters and hens, right?"

"Hens? Chickens? What are those?" Chryssie said, feigning ignorance, rubbing her behind. "Ouch, it hurts!"

"Oh?" Fluttershy gasped. "Let me take a look at it. I can help you."

Chryssie eeped, when the pegasus carefully positioned her in such a way that she could see where the peck landed. Fluttershy hummed thoughtfully. There was a small bruise, but nothing major. The little changeling got away easy.

"I can apply some salve to ease the pain. It will take just a mome—"

"No. There is nothing you need to apply to my butt, I'm perfectly fine!" Chrysalis replied, angrily shoving Fluttershy's hooves away. "I don't need your help!"

"But Chrysalis, what's wrong with helping? I'll just apply some salve, there's nothing wrong with that!" Fluttershy said in a somewhat offended voice. She really wanted Chryssie to feel better around her, but the little filly clearly didn't want to even consider the idea.

"Blah, I can handle myself just fine!" Chrysalis groused angrily, walking away from her. "Go help Nightmare Moon instead. That cry-baby could surely use your help! Bwah... Stupid bird."

She rubbed the bruise several times and disappeared behind the corner of the fence, probably going to the nearest drinking bowl where she could apply some cold water.

Fluttershy felt hurt by her words and even more by her behaviour. Out of all three, Chryssie seemed to be the meanest, possibly even a real bully. The kind pegasus didn't have to deal with a bully being in her care before. For a moment, she wished Twilight would hurry up and finish the spell, but quickly drove away those thoughts. There was no time to waste and still so much to do, so many animals to feed and treat.

However, Chrysalis did have a good point... Fluttershy hadn't seen Nightmare Moon ever since she had finished recounting the animals she needed to feed today, which was quite a long list. She saw Sombra and Chrysalis, but, where was Nightmare Moon?

Fluttershy turned around, scanning the surroundings for the traces of the dark alicorn but found none. She flew higher into the air, trying to cover more ground, but the filly was nowhere to be seen.

"Nightmare Moon! Nightmare Moon!" She called for the child, hoping that she would at least give her a sign. No answer followed.

Fluttershy really started to worry about Moon's wellbeing. What if something bad happened to her? What could the residents of Ponyville, the memory of the nightmarish arrival of the Eternal Night's Harbinger still alive in their minds, do to the defenseless alicorn? The thought was blood chilling.

Suddenly, she noticed a little blue sparkly patch on the ground, ending right near the bushes. Realizing that it was the filly's mane, the horrified pegasus rushed down to help her, her heart beating like a drum. If anything bad happened to a filly she was supposed to watch over...

What a nightmare!

Fluttershy swoop down on the ground and ran towards the bush as fast as she could. All kinds of scary pictures were popping up in her mind, predicting the horrible fate that was awaiting the little filly in the bush. Horror, pure and sheer horror!

Fluttershy moved the bush apart and looked around. The poor filly was lying on the ground, unconscious. The pegasus felt a chill run down her spine.

"Oh no!" She gasped and kneeled before Nightmare. "Moon, are you okay? Please, answer me!"

The alicorn didn't reply. Only her calm breath was the signal that she was still alive. Fluttershy grabbed the filly and lifted herself off the ground. She had to carry the poor little alicorn to the house at once! Her life might be in danger, she had to help her!

She flew through the air as quick as she could, air whistling in her ears. She busted through the door right into the guest room and looked around with anxiety. Should she go upstairs and put the filly in her bed, or would it take too long? Fluttershy had no time to waste.

She put the filly on the couch in such a way that she was looking at the ceiling. In the dimmer lighting of the room, Fluttershy had finally noticed the minor burns on the alicorn's body. The red skin was barely noticeable behind her dark colored fur, but some parts, especially her back, had been badly burned. Fluttershy wasn't an expert, but they looked liked a second-degree burns.

"Oh, sweet Celestia, why is this happening?" Fluttershy muttered, tears filling her eyes. She felt so irresponsible for not looking out for the filly, allowing her to just collapse in the sun and get burned so badly.

Fluttershy quickly flew to the kitchen, to make compresses with cold water. That should ease the pain. Before going back, she rushed to her room upstairs and got some anti-burn salves. The green liquid, contained in a small bottle, had saved her so much trouble whenever her animals got careless around fire, but now it could save a life.

When Fluttershy returned to the room, holding the bottle in one hoof and the compress in another, Nightmare Moon had already woken up. She slowly turned her head and looked at the pegasus. Fluttershy was horrified by how sickly she looked. Her eyes were muddy and swollen, and her face sported shades of green.

"Oh... what happened?" she muttered weakly. Fluttershy quickly approached her and put the compress near her to have a free hoof wherewith she could gently stroked her mane.

"Oh, Moonie, you had me so worried."

"Oh... ‘tis nothing. I just walked outside into the sun... Can't remember anything else..." the filly replied, touching her forehead. "I keep forgetting I shouldn't go into the daylight..."

Fluttershy quickly figured out what was wrong. All these burns, all of them were caused by the sun but, why? Why would Nightmare Moon react to the sun in such a way?

The answer seemed as obvious as it was scary. Nightmare Moon simply could not stay in the sun for too long. Her very essence reacted to the sunlight and hurt her frail young body.

Fluttershy felt such sadness about it. That meant the poor filly would have to stay inside the house during the bright day, doing nothing, while the other children played. Even the thought of it seemed horrifying.

"Poor little thing," Fluttershy cooed. "Tell me, how are you feeling? Do the burns hurt?"

"They do... a little bit... I also feel... dizzy..." Nightmare Moon replied. Fluttershy felt another ball of sadness crawling up her throat.

"Hang on, sweetie," Fluttershy said. "Could you please turn around? I have some salves here that will ease the pain."

Without hesitation, though with some struggle, Nightmare Moon turned on her belly. Fluttershy carefully applied the salve on her hooves and started gently rubbing the oil onto the filly's back.

A few minutes after Fluttershy finished, the extract dried out and sucked into Nightmare's skin. Her burns already looked much less dangerous and painful. To solidify the victory, Fluttershy applied the cold compress. The little filly eeped when she felt the chill running down her spine.

"Fluttershy, I am grateful for thy help, but I am no ice-cream cone," she said, making Fluttershy giggle.

"Don't worry, it's just some cold water," she said, and gently touched the filly's head. "I think I'm done. Are you feeling better?"

"Yes... though still a little dizzy... and my stomach hurts," Nightmare Moon informed Fluttershy. The pegasus sighed heavily and gently rubbed her cheek against Moon's.

"You should have told me that the sun hurts you. You endangered yourself greatly," Fluttershy said, feeling her usual shyness go away and her tender heart taking over.

"I know... I just thought it would seem alienating to thee, that I can't walk out in the sun. That would ruin our relationship," she replied and Fluttershy felt the filly's cheeks get warmer. Her body temperature was rising, either because of the sickness, or because she felt awkward.

"No, it wouldn't," Fluttershy replied.

She stood near Nightmare Moon, thinking that her presence would make the filly feel better. However, her job was not yet done. She needed to get more salve and she had just used the last bottle of it. To heal the burns completely, she needed more.

Fluttershy decided to put the filly to bed. In her state, staying in calm and quiet would help her recover faster.

"Moonie, I need to go now. I hope you won't be angry if I put you to bed, and go get some more salve? I promise, it won't take too long," Fluttershy asked quietly. The filly nodded.

"’Tis okay, Fluttershy. Worry not, I shan’t depart the world of the living," Nightmare Moon replied. Fluttershy carefully picked the filly up and wanted to carry her upstairs, but a wall of magical energy appeared in her way.

"Nay, I wish not to bother thee anymore. Please, if thou wouldest be so kind, make me a bed as the ones provided for my comrades," Nightmare Moon asked quietly. Fluttershy wanted to protest, but decided not to. She felt the filly would not back down.

***

The camp-cot had been set up. Fluttershy had found the puffiest blanket and a pillow she had left and set Nightmare Moon down into it gently. She had positioned her in such a way that she could feel comfortable and wouldn’t have to turn.

While Nightmare Moon got used to the soft, bouncy cot, Fluttershy found a small wooden bucket and put it to the side of the filly's cot.

"Wherefore is that?" Moonie asked and Fluttershy got a little confused.

"It's a... a trash bin. In case you feel... very, very sick, you should use it. Don't worry, I'll clean everything up," she explained. Nightmare Moon made an expression of disgust, clearly understanding what she meant.

"Eew, ‘twould be unladylike of me!" she noted, and tried to pull her hind legs closer to herself. Hidden under the puffy, white blanket, she felt warm and protected.

"Are you comfortable? Do I need to bring more pillows?" Fluttershy asked, but Moonie shook her head.

"Nay, I feel very good. Thank you, Fluttershy," she smiled at the pegasus, causing her to melt inside.

Nightmare Moon looked so cute when she was smiling. Her little fangs didn't look menacing at all, and her big sparkly eyes only made her look even cuter. She was like a little kitten. Fluttershy felt such tender in her heart the moment she looked at the alicorn.

"Now, sleep, sweetie. I'll be back soon with help," Fluttershy said and leaned towards the filly. Nightmare Moon carefully raised her head, putting her horn out of the way and let the pegasus kiss her forehead.

The poor filly was on fire. It seemed that she had suffered a sunstroke as well as the burns. Fluttershy felt so sorry for poor Nightmare Moon, that she felt that one kiss wasn't enough, and kissed her once more on the cheek.

She smiled at Moonie after kissing her and wanted to leave, but the filly spoke once more. And those words, Fluttershy would remember the rest of her life.

"Nopony has called me Moonie before... And, in my opinion, it sounds very lousy and poorly constructed grammatically... But, when thou say’st it, it sounds so... lovely," Nightmare Moon spoke slowly, as if it’d take great effort to enunciate her thoughts. "Thank you for caring for me, Fluttershy. You're the kindest pony in the world."

Fluttershy had never thought that she would get praised by Nightmare Moon, a pony whom she was taught to be afraid of since her foalhood. Even though she had already befriended Discord, who was basically in the same case as these three but... at the same time, it was something different. These three 'villains'... they were different from Discord. Much different.

She felt some weird feeling inside of her. It was warm, tender and very... close to her nature, and yet, she couldn't figure out what it was. She didn't know what it was.

One thing she knew for sure as she finally left the room and closed the door behind her. Her life was going to change. Her entire schedule was going to change. Her duties were going to change.

She whistled gently and a pretty blue jay approached her, quickly flapping her wings around.

"Please, find Angel and tell him to take care of my duties for today... I have urgent matters to attend to... If that's okay with you, and I'm not... disturbing you, that is," Fluttershy said, and the bird sung a little tune, to convey his 'Will do!' and flew away. Fluttershy took a deep breath and sat her sights on the forest.

She would probably have to take Sombra and Chrysalis with her. Considering what Chryssie did in such a short amount of time, she better not leave them alone here. Taking them along didn't seem like a bad idea. Nopony would find them in the forest, they could play all they want, and the fresh air was even more potent in the forest.

***

"Tee-hee... You're tickly." Sombra said, when the spider put one of its legs to his cheek. "Tee-hee-hee."

The spider continued to climb Sombra's face despite the previous attempt being futile. Maybe accepting its flower hadn't been a good idea since he intended it to be in his mane. Sombra didn't mind a flower in his mane. In fact, he quite liked the idea, but he could have done it himself; there was no need for the spider to facehug him.

The spider carefully extended his leg holding the flower towards Sombra's mane. The foal stood still, waiting for it to finish and finally stop tickling him. Occasionally, he would let out a giggle or two, but otherwise, he was completely motionless.

Carefully, slowly, the spider was only moments away from its victory. The flower was centimetres away from its destination and the spider’s dream was almost complete. It had finally given a flower to somepony!

"Sombra! Come here, I've got something for you," Chrysalis exclaimed, approaching him. Her horn quickly coruscated in green energies the instant she saw the spider. Before it could place the flower upon Sombra's head, she threw it away on the ground.

"Hey, you didn't have to do that!" Sombra exclaimed. Chrysalis gave him a cynical look.

"You had a big bug on your face. I don't think that is what you usually want, but..." she looked at him one more time. "If you're into that, that's fine with me."

She slowly walked up to him, scaring the little critters that surrounded Sombra away, and sat down by his side.

"You seem to be handling these parasites quite well, aren’t you?" she said, smiling. Sombra gave her an angry look.

"They're not parasites. They're my friends!" he replied angrily, whereto Chrysalis only giggled.

"Fine, fine, if you say so, sugar," she said, leaning closer to him. "Still, would you be so kind to hear me out?"

Sombra looked at her confused, then licked his right forehoof.

"I'm not sugar," Sombra deduced after tasting himself and Chrysalis groaned loudly, facehoofing.

"Sweet love, you're annoying!" she hissed, hoping that he wouldn't hear her. "Yes, you're right, but... tell me, would you like to play a game with me?"

"Oh, a game! That sounds like lots of fun!" Sombra exclaimed, turning to Chrysalis. "What do you want to play? Hide and seek? The ball? Fun magical duel?'

"Whack-a-mole," Chrysalis replied, grinning rather evilly. "Or rather, whack-a-hen."

Sombra looked first at Chrysalis, then at the coop, where the hens were stalking around.

"Huh? Why would you whack a mole? Or a hen?" he asked, tilting his head.

"Do you know how nuts crack when you step on them with your hoof?" Chryssie turned to him and the foal nodded in agreement. "The same deal with moles and hens - you just..."

"Bam!" she suddenly shouted, jumping at Sombra and nailing him down on the ground. "And they crack. Just like that!"

She grinned widely, baring her long, pointy, slim fangs and leaning closer to Sombra, looking him straight in the eyes.

"So, are you playing... or are you a chicken?" she asked in a saccharine voice, licking the tips of her fangs.

Sombra felt the blood in his veins freeze. His limbs felt numb and his face became as pale as chalk.

"S- sure, I'm in... Sounds like... f-f-fun." he stammered. Chrysalis gave him a kind smile and quickly backed away.

"Atta-boy. Let's go, we have a lot of hens to whack," she exclaimed merrily, turned around, and marched towards the fence, which protected the hens from the outside world. "So, this is the plan: you grab them with your magic and I whack them with my magic!"

Her body gifted her whacky desires with a tickly spasm.

"Oooh, yeah, this is going to be grea—" She went silent as a shadow descended upon them.

"Ummm, I'm sorry to interrupt your games... but do you mind taking your games somewhere else, like the forest? You see, I have to collect some herbs, and I don't want to leave you all alone here... so do you mind coming with me... to the forest?" Fluttershy said, her cheeks turning bright pink.

"A forest? Yaaaay!" Sombra exclaimed. "You hear, Chryssie? We can play whack-a-hen in the forest! It's so much more fun!"

Sombra's celebration was interrupted when his mouth was slammed shut by Chryssie's toxic green magic.

"Whack-a-what?" Fluttershy asked, looking at the two, and Chrysalis quickly turned to her, displaying a fake smile.

"Whack-a-fool! It's a.... an old board game... that you play in a forest," she lied, hiding her bluff quite unsuccessfully.

"Oh... okay then... Sounds like you are going to have a lot of fun," Fluttershy, who clearly saw through Chrysalis' lie, said, but feigned ignorance. "Let us go then!"

Fluttershy led the way, and when she was out of the hearing range, Chrysalis turned to Sombra and hissed at him.

"I swear, if you ruin my plan of revenge, I'll play whack-an-idiot instead!" She finished her statement by hissing at him, which showcased her fangs. Sombra tried to, but couldn't say anything because of Chrysalis's hoof in his mouth.

"Keep quiet! Just follow me and everything is going to be okay," she said. "Now, I'll take away my hoof. If you keep quiet, that will mean that you and I are friends. Deal?"

She slowly removed her hoof from inside his mouth and swiped the saliva off using the grass. Sombra didn't utter a word.

"Great! Now, friend, let's follow our kind pegasus. Maybe I can come up with a better plan of vengeance!" Chrysalis exclaimed and glanced hatefully at the rooster behind the fence. "Nopony pecks my butt and gets away with it. You'll taste my wrath soon enough, rooster!"

(Un)Just Retribution

"Now now, children, stay close to me and don't fall behind," Fluttershy said, trying to cheer her companions up. "I don't want you to get lost here."

"Oh, yes, because I am definitely going to lose my way after taking three steps away from your house." Chrysalis cynically noted, turning her head and looking at Fluttershy's house in the distance. "Yep, totally getting lost in the forest. One hundred percent."

The sun shone brightly, its warm light causing the trees to glimmer verdant green. The morning dew yet had to fully dry and the light that reflected from it caused the ponies to squint.

"Oh, Chrysalis, don't be like that. Maybe there are dangerous monsters in this forest, like frostwolves or dragons," Sombra said, keeping up with the changeling.

Fluttershy flinched at the word 'dragons' but kept her cool, didn't allow the worry and the thoughts of the possible threat to swoop down from the sky and overtake her mind. She had a clear mission: to find the herbs and help Nightmare as fast as she could.

The thought of Moon being all alone in her house, sleepless and still feeling the pulsating pain from her burns caused Fluttershy to increase her pace, for she couldn't bear the thought that the little filly was ill and lonely.

"Where is Nightmare Moon, by the way? I haven't seen her ever since we got outside," Sombra whispered to Chrysalis. He couldn't gather enough courage to ask Fluttershy. He still had a few doubts about her.

"Moon? Meh, probably crying in the corner, the cry-baby," Chrysalis snickered. She still couldn't forget the look on Moon's face when she’d burst into tears. It reminded her of her own face, when she accidentally swallowed a rock.

"Chrysaliiiis! Don't be so mean! Moon is not a cry-baby," Sombra replied angrily. Chrysalis only chuckled in reply.

"Sure, of course she's not." she amended and continued to watch Sombra. For a moment it seemed his faith in Moon was shaken.

"If she's not a cry-baby, why isn't she with us, then?" Chrysalis continued to pressure Sombra. "Don't you think it's a little... strange?"

"Maybe she just didn't want to go..." Sombra replied, but Chrysalis interrupted him.

"She didn't want to go because she's scared! Don't you realize? She's a sissy little princess!" She decided to talk bluntly. "All her thous and thees! Ew! Why can't she talk like a normal pony, like you and I do?"

Sombra stumbled and didn't say anything. Chrysalis hid her evil smile away from the unicorn, turning away and baring her teeth at the ladybug who was sitting on the leaf, near the road. She just couldn't keep the smile back.

Ooh, how she would cherish the moment that dumb Nightmare Moon would realize that Chrysalis had bested her! To see the expression of despair and disappointment on her face would be such a delight!

Talking about despair and disappointment, she should get Moon a fitting gift from her forest trip, to see what she had lost. Like gather a pile of tasty berries and eat them all in front of her. That would be priceless!

Finally, the trio exited the green depths of the forest and entered the field. The bright sun bit Fluttershy's eyes, and she quickly covered her face behind her hoof, blinking to clear her sight.

The field greeted them with a kaleidoscope of beautiful and bright colours. The green expanse of the grass, the white puffy dandelions and the yellow chamomiles created an illusion of a beautiful blanket covering the whole field. This 'blanket' looked like a multi-coloured patchwork fabric.

If Rarity were here, she would definitely get new ideas for beautiful and creative dresses, Fluttershy thought. But she was here for a different reason. She needed to find those herbs.

She turned around, looking at Chrysalis, who was smiling predatorily, and Sombra, whose jaw had dropped from the amount of colour the field had.

"Children, I need to find some plants here. You can play all you want, but please, stay where I can see you, okay? I don't want you to get lost in the forest... because it's scary at night, trust me," Fluttershy warned the foals. Sombra was about to say something, but Chrysalis quickly pushed him out of the way.

"Of course! We are going to play our board game, if you don't mind!" she said, baring her teeth in what seemed like a travesty of a smile. Fluttershy felt her soul shrink at such a terrible lie but felt she could do nothing. So, she decided to stick to her strategy of non-involvement, so Chrysalis would get acclimated to this new environment quicker.

"Sure... have fun, you two," Fluttershy said, took flight, and flew away to look for the herbs. When the distance between Fluttershy and the two foals was big enough, Chrysalis dropped the facade and smirked evilly.

"Sombra, it is time for us to play a game!" she drawled. The unicorn looked at her, feeling a little uncomfortable because of her strange attitude.

"You mean... whack-a-hen?"

"No. A new game: find-a-beehive-and-drop-it-in-a-coop." Chrysalis giggled.

"I've never heard of that game before," Sombra noted, rubbing his chin. Chrysalis turned to him, looking a little annoyed by his remark. However, restraining her anger, she gently, but reproachfully, patted him on the head.

"Of course you haven’t, silly-head," she said. "I just came up with it. Now come on. We need to find a beehive."

"What do beehives look like?" Sombra asked, trying to see through the green thicket. Chrysalis gritted her teeth, unable to comprehend how she, a changeling, who spent so much time in a dark cave, knew more about outside world than this dodo.

"It's a round, yellow thing with bees flying out of it. Do I need to describe bees as well?" she hissed at him, and flapped her frail wings, preparing to take flight. It would be easier looking for the hive up there than on the ground.

"No... I know how they look like," Sombra replied, while Chrysalis disappeared in the thick foliage. He really couldn't understand what was wrong with this pony.

She wasn't nice at all. In fact, he could honestly say that she was a meanie. But there was something about her that made him want to stick to her and follow her orders. She had this... aura that made him feel dependent and duty-bound. Her commanding voice just had to be obeyed.

Sombra couldn't explain or understand it, but the aura Chrysalis had was an awesome idea. He quickly imagined what he could do if he had one like that: he would command his own army, or even have his own empire!

"Are you going to just stand there?!" Chrysalis's angry-looking muzzle popped out of the foliage. "Get up here and help me look!"

"Oh, yes, of course!" Sombra exclaimed, took a steady stance, flapped his wings, and...

Somehow, he kept forgetting he didn't have any. He frowned at himself, grumbling something under his nose while Chrysalis chuckled.

"Maybe one day, Sombra, maybe one day," she drawled, smiling lopsided.

"And how am I supposed to get up there without wings?" He looked up at her. Chrysalis only shrugged thereto.

"Beats me," she said and disappeared into the foliage once more. However, her voice still reached Sombra’s ears.

“Don’t take too long to get up here,” she shouted, “or you’re a legitimate chicken!”

“I am not a chicken!” Sombra shouted as his horn coruscated in red flames. The magical flame quickly engulfed him and, with a single flinch of his head, he started rising up.

“Haha! Can you see this?! I bet you can’t do things like I ca—” His prideful boast was interrupted when he lost focus and slammed himself into the tree. Chrysalis’s hearty laugh resounded through the trees.

“Oh sure, please, teach me how you do that!” she begged sarcastically, giggling and snickering as Sombra struggled to keep himself aloft. Trembling and shaking, he barely managed to land on one of the branches, and, the instant he touched it, he wrapped his hooves around it as if his life depended on it.

“Woo… Chicken!” Chrysalis concluded, descending on Sombra’s level and giving him a taunting smile. He turned away from her and grumbled something.

“Aw, don’t give me that look, I am just kidding,” Chrysalis said, reaching out to him with her hoof. “Come on, Sombra… It’s okay for friends to call each other names sometimes. Don’t be such a grump.”

Sombra didn’t want to reach out to her, but the mention of the word ‘friend’ made him reconsider. He still couldn’t figure out this pony, but one thing he knew for sure: he did not want to be left alone.

Their hooves touched, and Chrysalis’s expression suddenly changed to a tender, softer one. The edges of her mouth went up, forming a smile, not a toxic one like before, but a kind, caring one.

The smile lingered for a split second and then it disappeared, Chrysalis’s usual smirk taking its place.

“I’ll help you. But don’t lean on me too much: I’m not used to carrying weights,” the changeling warned him. Moments later, he loaded his body onto her. The poor filly barely managed to hold herself aloft and the fact that he wrapped his hooves around her to get a better grip didn’t help one bit.

“In the name of all that is changing, how much do you weigh?!” Chrysalis uttered, barely managing to swing her wings. “You look much lighter than you actually are!”

“I’ve got heavy bones. That’s why they’re so strong!” Sombra noted with pride. Chrysalis smirked and tried carrying them both somewhere. Barely managing to keep herself airborne, the ground looming right under them and threatening to get dangerously close in seconds, they slowly drifted through the air, avoiding any trees.

“I think I can see it!” Sombra pointed ahead, fighting back the desire to shout ‘Go forth, my trusty steed!’, knowing well that if he said that, he would receive a one-way ticket down to the ground. Chrysalis raised her eyes and noticed the yellow thing she had been looking for.

“Yes! This one fits perfectly for my totally awesome plan,” she exclaimed triumphantly. “Now, we just need to bring it down.”

Together, they landed on the ground, just under the tree where the hive was hanging. The little bees were flying in and out, ignoring the two foals completely, just as Chrysalis had planned. Having a swarm of bees chasing them wouldn’t help, would it?

“So, here’s my plan: we get the hive and drop it into the coop!” Chrysalis sat down on the ground; her butt was still quite sore from that peck. “The stupid chickens will try to investigate… and anger the bees, which will fly out and torment them until the end of days! Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!”

She threw back her head, bared her fangs and cackled so loudly and evilly it made Sombra shudder. Her demonic laughter echoed throughout the forest, letting the animals know that there was a new overlord around here.

“Oh, yes, how delightful!” she chirped.

“Uhm… do you really need to do that? That sounds like a very mean thing to do,” Sombra piped up, but Chrysalis reminded him of his place with an angry glare.

“My little pony, you don’t know life as I do.” She made a tragic, tearful expression, approached Sombra and put her left forehoof on his shoulder. “It’s that moment when a rooster’s beak connects with your… soft parts, you realize the true bitterness of life.”

She feigned tragic face for a moment and then suddenly gritted her teeth and shook her hoof at the sky.

“My butt demands retribution!”

Sombra could bet his tooth that he heard a lightning strike in the distance.

“Now, let’s get this hive,” she continued as if nothing had happened. Sombra just opened his mouth to protest, but she immediately shoved her hoof, blocking the words.

“No more words. It’s time to act!” Chrysalis exclaimed proudly. The game of find-a-beehive-and-drop-it-in-a-coop had begun. Now, they just had to get that hive on the ground without disturbing the bees.

Chrysalis was a smart pony and already knew what to do. They needed smoke to send the bees to sleep. That way, they could safely grab the hive and be on their merry way. One problem still persisted, though: they needed smoke.

“Sombra, do you smoke?” Chrysalis asked the young colt, turning her head to him. He replied with a confused look.

“Do I smoke? What’s that supposed to mean?” Sombra asked, scanning his mind for any knowledge of the word ‘smoke’ used as a verb.

“What, you don’t know what smoking is? It’s when you put a round paper tube in your mouth, lit it up with fire and it emits smoke,” Chrysalis explained patiently, looked around, and lit up her horn with green energy.

“Let me show you,” she said as the energy formed the said tube, burning bright green on the end, emitting stinky smoke.

“For an illusion… that’s some realistic magic,” he commented and Chrysalis smiled as the illusion disappeared.

“Thanks. So, I guess there’s no point in asking whether you have any cigarettes,” Chrysalis deduced and made a thoughtful expression. “They would be great for our situation, but, since we can’t obtain any, let’s burn something.”

Chrysalis looked around in search of fallen branches or anything else that could burn. Several minutes had passed, and she had found enough fuel and dumped the ‘treasure’ under the tree beneath which the hive was hanging.

“Whew. Now, we can start!” she exclaimed, grabbed a small, dry branch, and turned to Sombra. “Gentlecolt, would you be so kind to light the lady’s cigarette, please?”

Sombra stared at her, completely lost in the meaning of her words.

“What?”

“Grrrr, nevermind!” She hissed in frustration and threw the branch back into the pile. “I get the feeling that it wasn’t me who spent most of her time in the dark cave. Seriously Sombra, you need to get out of your basement from time to time.”

After finishing her lamentation, she took a deep breath and pointed at the pile.

“Can you at least set it on fire?” she half sighed, half asked, and Sombra’s horn quickly lit up in red energy.

“Wouldn’t that be dangerous? I mean… we could set the whole forest on fire,” he said, and, by the sound that Chrysalis made, it was clear that she wanted to choke him.

“Aaah! Worried about the critters, you…. Fine!” She backed down, took a deep and relaxing breath and sat down. “What other ideas do you have?”

Sombra wrapped two branches in the red energy and lifted them high into the air, so high they almost touched the hive. Then, he forced them to rub against each other as quickly as his magical prowess allowed. Chrysalis watched with interest as the sticks started to emit smoke, and, eventually, gave away a small flame.

Slowly, but steadily, the noxious air filled the hive and all of the bees fell asleep. Seconds later, Chrysalis pulled the hive off the branch it was hanging on and carefully put it on the ground.

“That was actually quite clever. Where did you learn such a trick?” she asked, looking at Sombra, who turned red as a tomato.

“Well… I had to make fires at times back home,” he replied and Chrysalis smiled at him.

“Ah, going to have to remember that.” Chrysalis noted. “Nice job, Sombra.”

Her remark made Sombra blush quite noticeably. He quickly covered his face, suspecting that he would earn another gibe from Chrysalis if she were to notice.

“Th-…thanks…”

“Now, let us carry this baby to the coop. The fun starts now!” The changeling sung. "Just find something to wrap this thing up with... I think I saw a leftover picnic blanket not far from here. Let's go get it."

Finally, the last flower was plucked and its root was thrown into the basket. It was just enough to make at least one bottle of the healing salve for Nightmare Moon.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and sat down. This had exhausted her far more than it should have, perhaps because it was so hot, or maybe because her mind constantly kept worrying about Sombra and Chrysalis. She didn’t know why, but she just had this feeling in her gut that those two, especially Chrysalis, were planning something.

Chrysalis’ constant lies really hurt Fluttershy. It was clear the filly didn’t trust her in the slightest and still thought about running away or causing problems in any way.

“Hey, Fluttershy, are you done?” Chrysalis’ voice reached her ears and she turned around. The changeling filly was waving her hoof at her, Sombra standing near her with a strange construction on his back. “Because we’re done!” she added.

“Oh, I’m ready as well. How did your game of whack-a-fool go?” Fluttershy asked, approaching the foals and landing in front of them.

“It was great. Sombra won by a mile!” Chrysalis exclaimed, which made Sombra blush. “So, he won a… err…. a ball!”

Sombra turned even redder and sat down, trying to hide the oval construction that was tied to his back. It didn’t look like a ball at all, more like something round wrapped in cloth.

"A ball? Where did you..." Fluttershy wanted to inquire about the ball's origin, but Chrysalis' glare, full of fake honesty, quickly reminded about acclimatization process. The little changeling must not be put on edge, she just needed to unwind, do some damage. After that, she would relax... probably.... most likely....

At least, Fluttershy hoped so.

"Nevermind... I’m all done here. Let’s go home!" Fluttershy said, trying to sound excited, but it came out a little forced. Chrysalis didn't appear to notice anything and welcomed the idea with a smile.

"Then go home we shall!" she declared. "I wonder what Nightmare's doing—probably having loads of fun."

She turned away from Fluttershy and quietly whispered: "That snobbish cry-baby!"

***

"’Tis a great pleasure to meet thee, Lady Nightmare Moon," Nightmare Moon said in a grumpy, serious, stallion-like voice. "I have always dreamt of seeing thee in thy full glory!"

She crawled to the opposite side of her bed, assumed a ladylike stance, put her right forehoof behind the left, and smiled shyly.

"Oh, thou art such a flatterer, ser knight—" she said in her usual voice. Suddenly, she gasped loudly and fell on the bed.

Thanks to her strange magical powers, her wounds healed up quite quickly. She didn't feel any pain, only a slight inflammation on her back and that was about it. The headaches were gone and, just as she’d promised, she didn't have to use that bucket at all.

Moonie sat down and thanked Fluttershy once again in her mind. She imagined what could have happened to her if she hadn't saved her out there.

Stupid sun, Nightmare thought. Why needs it be so mean to me? I never did it any woe!

The filly sighed and looked around, hoping to find some sort of visual entertainment. However, nothing caught her attention and her thoughts returned to the knight in shining armour. What would her prince look like and how awesome would he be?

But even the thought of her future groom couldn't entertain the young filly for too long. Finally, she decided she had enough of sitting and doing nothing, so she jumped off the bed and stretched out her wings. She felt the tension in her muscles relax, sending a spasm of pleasure through her whole body.

"Ah, that felt good!" she exclaimed. Being a very tidy filly, she decided to make her bed before leaving, so she turned around and accessed her magic.

Her horn spewed out a tiny spark of dark-blue energy, and refused to bring forth more. Nightmare Moon raised an eyebrow and tried once more. This time, she managed to emit a weak light, which dissipated quickly, like a shade exposed to sunlight.

"What is this travesty?! Why refusest thou to work, horn?!" She talked out loud to her own body part. "Stop... not-working!"

The filly held her breath and calmed down—getting angry wouldn’t not help the matter. She needed to stay focused and calm. Only that way she could succeed.

Nightmare concentrated all her inner reserves and tried to wrap the edge of the blanket in the magical aura once more. But no matter how much effort she put into this, the only thing she was able to achieve was a pathetic dark-blue sparkle. Her hooves started to shake, and she finally fell on her backside, asking one silent question.

"What has happened to me?" she asked herself. The answer came to her quickly, when she looked through the window, where the sunlight was seeping into the room.

"Grrr, thou again! Wherefore dost thou hate me so, sun?!" she growled at the window, keeping away from the sunbeams. The giant yellow star in the sky didn't reply.

"Well, in that case, I hate you too!" she spat, jumped back into her bed, wrapped herself in the blanket, and closed her eyes. Several muffled sobs escaped her mouth as the hurt in her young soul wanted to pour out through her eyes.

"Stupid sun..." she whispered before she shoved her muzzle into the pillow and cried, realizing just how weak the star made her. No walking outside, no playing, no magic... What kind of an alicorn was she if she couldn't use magic?

And all because of the stupid sun.

Fluttershy was relieved when she entered her yard with the two foals on her heels. Even though their travel had been short, she was still afraid that one of them would get lost in the forest, or hurt, or something worse. She was happy that everything went fine.

"Now, children, you can resume playing," Fluttershy informed the two.

"Yay! At last!" Chrysalis raised her hooves to the sky. "The great deity allows us, so let us play!"

Fluttershy sighed, hearing a muffled snicker from Chrysalis, and headed straight for the door. She felt her patience wane at Chrysalis's constant provocations. She knew the filly just wanted her to become angry, but all her troubles were for naught. Fluttershy was still calm and collected.

"Come, Sombra. Let us finish the game!" Chrysalis said and dragged Sombra somewhere, while Fluttershy entered the house.

"Moonie? Are you up yet?" Fluttershy asked quietly, gently closing the door behind her. She slowly looked at the bed and turned pale when she saw the little filly sobbing into the pillow.

"Moonie!" The pegasus gasped, quickly flying up to the crying alicorn and wrapping her hooves around the filly. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Stu- stupid su-aaan!" Nightmare Moon replied. "I hate it! I hate it, I hate it, I hate it!"

Fluttershy felt great terror when Moonie muttered those words. For a second, it felt like the wicked cycle was going to repeat itself again.

"Moonie, don't say that! That is a very bad thing to say." Fluttershy said, rubbing the filly's mane. "Please, calm down. There's no need for anger or hate. Calm down and let me help you."

"How canst thou.. heeeelp meee? This stu... stupid sun burns me... and takes my magic as well! Why does it hate me so much?!" Moonie continued to cry.

Fluttershy didn't know what to say. Her knowledge of magic was nil, so she really couldn't explain why her little friend here was so allergic to sunlight. First, the burns, and now the lost magic, too. Everything was getting worse.

Suddenly, a bright idea came to Fluttershy's mind. She couldn't explain why the sun caused Moonie so much pain but, she could prevent it!

"Moonie, listen to me," Fluttershy carefully helped the filly get up and looked into her swollen eyes. "We are friends, right?"

"R- right..." Nightmare replied.

"Friends have to help each other, and I can help you deal with your little problem."

"Thou say’st... I will be able to play outside?"

"Yes."

"Even in the sunlight?"

"Of course!"

"And use my magic?"

"Ehm... don't know about that but, you'll definitely be able to go out during the day!" Fluttershy said.

"Was that... was that a promise?" the little alicorn asked. Fluttershy gave her an assuring nod.

Moonie screamed with joy and hugged Fluttershy's muzzle.

"Thanks so much! Thou'rt my new best friend! I love thee!" she declared.

"I- I love you too, Moonie," Fluttershy said, feeling all fluffy inside. She couldn't help but hug her back.

She would help Moonie. She already had an idea how, and, right now, at this very moment, Fluttershy thought by herself: Moonie will be able to play in the sunlight, whatever the cost!

Suddenly, all the fluffiness and tenderness of the moment was gone, when loud and impatient knocks reached her ears. Fluttershy quickly sprung up, her heart beating like a drum.

"What is it? What is wrong?" Nightmare Moon asked.

"Moonie, you should hide right now. Please, run upstairs and hide, I beg you!" Fluttershy pleaded.

"Okay... if thou wish’st so," Moonie said and quickly ran upstairs. Fluttershy gulped, knowing far too well that these knocks didn't mean anything good.

Oh, sweet Celestia, if anypony discovered the little villains... They were doomed! Doomed!

Fluttershy reluctantly approached the door and touched the handle. She only needed to turn it... Just one turn, and whoever was outside would enter. Then, her life and the three foals’ would be in danger.

"C'mon, Fluttershy! Ah know yer there!" the loud voice with a thick accent spoke. Before Fluttershy could muster all her strength, the pony lost all patience and just opened the door herself.

"Fluttershy! Long time no see!" Applejack exclaimed, giving the pegasus a warm, friendly hug.

"Hi, Applejack... nice to see you..." Fluttershy whispered, smiling awkwardly and turning red as a tomato.

"Ah don't know how long Ah haven't been at your place. Ah think it's been ages!" the earth pony exclaimed, finally letting Fluttershy go. "Sorry Ah didn't inform you. Just thought you wouldn't mind me dropping by for some cups o’ lemonade."

"Oh, it's okay, I'm always happy to see you..." Fluttershy forced the words out of herself, realizing just how much she wanted Applejack to leave. Her soul was torn between saving Twilight, herself, and the three foals, while offending her friend in the process, or just try to play as the situation evolves.

"So, will ya invite me, or do Ah need to invite myself?" Applejack joked, entering the room. Fluttershy faked a giggle and followed.

"Yer place looks... different than Ah remember." Applejack immediately noted, looking around, noticing the small details. Then, she finally noticed the big detail.

"Wait, campcots? Why d’ya need those? — and why three?" she prodded, pointing at the beds, standing in the middle of the room.

"Ugh... you see, the Cutie Mark Crusaders decided to get cutie marks in camping..." Fluttershy decided for the obvious and the easiest way to lie, but her hopes were crushed by the Element of Honesty.

"Camping? Apple Bloom never told me about any camping!" she exclaimed and her expression turned thoughtful. "Maybe she doesn't tell me everythin’ concernin’ her Cutie Mark Crusadin’ business..."

"May...be..." Fluttershy said, turning red and pale at the same time. She could barely stand. Everything inside her trembled as she realized she was lying. She was so bad at lying... so bad.

Applejack would ask more questions, and Fluttershy would have to lie more. This would snowball, and eventually, there’d be a point when she couldn't hide the truth anymore. Applejack would find out... and never forgive Fluttershy. Never!

Thankfully, all of that was prevented. No lies were necessary; the mystery was solved by loud shrieks from the outside.

"Aaaaah! Get them away from meeeee!" Sombra's shriek pierced the air. Fluttershy gulped.

"What the hay was that?!" Applejack immediately reacted. "It came from the outside."

"You must be hearing things..." Fluttershy objected and the earth pony gave her a confused look.

"Are you alright, Fluttershy? Ah clearly heard—"

"Waaaaaaah! Stop biting meeee!" Another shriek resounded.

"Fluttershy, there's something outside yer house! We need to—"

"Huh? No, it's just the wind," Fluttershy's cheeks turned bright red. Applejack started to get angry.

"Alright, Ah don't know what you're trying to hide, but Ah'm about to find out!" she said and tried to walk outside into the yard, when suddenly Fluttershy jumped in her way.

"No! Don't!" she exclaimed. "You won't like what you'll see!"

"Then we'll see it together!" Applejack said, grabbed Fluttershy, and pushed her towards the door. The pegasus closed her eyes, preparing for the worst.

The door creaked, these creaks meaning the end of Fluttershy's life. She could feel the cold biting her hooves. Or was it something else?

"What in tarnation...?" Applejack's jaw dropped as she beheld the chaos that was happening in Fluttershy's yard.

Dozens of bees circled around the chicken coop, buzzing like an angry mob waiting to attack something, or somepony, that was hiding in the coop. In addition, all the chickens, hens and roosters were walking around their home, constantly clucking and screaming angrily, as if trying to call out the one who drove them from their house.

"Oh, my..." Fluttershy opened her eyes and beheld this chaos. "What has happened here?"

"Fluttershy! Help!" Two small heads popped out of the coop, the small heads of a dark colored unicorn and a changeling.

"Please, help! They're going to eat us!" they shouted in unison. Meanwhile, the army of bees and hens charged at their little stronghold.

"Fluttershy," Applejack uttered, barely managing to move her jaw. "Care to explain that?

Drop the Hive

"Ah think... ah got the last one," Applejack exclaimed, dropping the last hen behind the fence. It quickly got up and ran away into the liberated coop, joining the rest of its kin in a happy celebration of regaining their home from two horned invaders.

"I promise: I will make you a new hive, It will be even better than the last one!" Fluttershy said to the giant queen bee, which looked at her with her giant reticulated eyes and buzzed something. "Oh, be assured, nopony will ever disturb you... and yes, I'll plant more flowers... yes, okay, okay."

Finally, the talk was over, and the bees flew back into their forest. The animals came out of their hiding places, feeling that the time of war had passed and peace had been re-established.

"Whew, that was wild, Fluttershy! Ah think chasing chickens is the most fun Ah've had this week," Applejack said, swiping the sweat off her brow. Fluttershy turned to her, blushing.

"I'm glad... you enjoyed it... I should—"

"—answer my questions. Yes, Ah agree with you, hun." Applejack interrupted her. "As much as Ah enjoyed chasing chickens around, you still gotta explain just what the heck two unknown foals are doing here—and one of them’s a changeling, no less!"

Applejack's face assumed a rosy shade as she turned to Sombra and Chrysalis, who were standing by the tree ever since Fluttershy had carried them away from the battlefield. Sombra had kept his eyes low throughout all the action, Chrysalis, however, had observed the entire thing and chuckled from time to time.

"Ah mean... where did you get them?! Where?" Applejack said in a loud voice, boiling with frustration. She quickly gazed at the giggling changeling and then focused her gaze on the unicorn.

"Wait a darn minute. That muzzle seems familiar... those eyes too..." She paled.

"Sombra?! Chrysalis?! What the—" she shouted, but Fluttershy quickly covered her mouth.

"No, Applejack! Not in front of the foals!"

"Flz? Ther munstrs!" The earth pony mumbled, trying to break free from Fluttershy's grasp. Fluttershy didn't want to let go but was forced to, unfortunately.

"So, let me get this clear: you have two of our worst enemies, one of which was supposed to be permanently sealed in the shadow realm and the other sent away flying into the sky, here... as your kids?" Applejack asked, looking at Fluttershy, who turned red when Applejack said the word 'kids'. "Fluttershy, I have no idea how you managed that but this is just irresponsible."

"Sealed in where now?" Chrysalis intervened but, Applejack quickly reminded her to stay silent with an angry glare.

"Shoosh! Adults are talking," she warned the little changeling, "and if you or your friend tries any more tricks, you'll get what's coming to you!"

"Applejack, they're not dangerous!" Fluttershy finally spoke up. "They're nice, they aren't evil at all!"

"Aren't evil?! These two just started a massive war in your yard! Ain't that evil enough for you? They smashed a beehive in the coop, just to avenge... a pecked behind!"

"Hey! A pecked behind is serious business!" Chrysalis objected, finally managing to make Applejack snap.

"Would you just stay quiet now?!" she shouted at her.

"Please, Applejack, stay calm!" Fluttershy tried to calm her friend down. "I know it might look weird but, you have to trust me. You were never supposed to know that they were here... it was a secret."

"Why won't you understand? They're dangerous, they might look cute and cuddly but, they'll sink their teeth into your neck the instant you turn away!" Applejack said quietly enough so that only Fluttershy would hear her. These villains didn't have to know. "By keepin’ them here you put yourself in jeopardy!"

"It's okay, Applejack, I'm fine," Fluttershy assured, but her voice betrayed her. If Chrysalis' issues still persisted... Who knows... if she’d go too far...

Fluttershy sighed and led Applejack away from the foals, so they could talk in private. This issue was serious and children shouldn't be involved.

"Applejack, please, listen to me. I watched these foals and... they don't seem dangerous at all," she whispered to Applejack's ear, afraid the foals might hear her. They'd heard enough already today! "Twilight said they don't remember a thing about their past lives..."

"Ah... Twilight?"

"Oh..." Fluttershy turned red when she realized what she had said. Such irritation, such anger for herself filled her heart. How could she spill something as vital as that? Stupid, stupid, Fluttershy!

Mustering all her inner anger, Fluttershy pronounced the most offensive and horrible word she had ever said.

"Poo!" she whispered, afraid that the children would hear.

"Ah'm baffled by your lack of vocabulary, sugarcube," Applejack deadpanned. "So, Twilight's in this too... Experiments?"

"Yep."

"Called it! Twilight, experiments... is she already working on the way to fix this?"

"Yes..."

"Good... at least we're somewhat safe... " Fluttershy flinched visibly at her friend’s relief. "But still, Ah can't believe she would hide something like this... and endanger you, of all ponies! Sweet apples, Twilight, how could you!"

"Please, Applejack, don't be angry! It's nopony's fault!"

"No, it's Twilight's fault! She made this mess and dragged you into it, putting you in danger, putting all of us in danger! What if you don't succeed in handling them?" Applejack exclaimed and suddenly turned very quiet. "Don't get me wrong, Ah think you're the best when it comes to foals, but... you know who they are and yet you let them do what they want."

Fluttershy took a step back and closed her eyes, ears dropping. Listening to others criticize her always made her feel weird but, usually she could hide it. Not this time.

"It's just your very nature. At times, you're too kind," Applejack said and sighed once more. "Okay... I'm calm. Let's not bash the situation and try to resolve it instead."

Fluttershy didn't say anything and just looked at the two foals. Sombra was still staring at the ground and Chrysalis was glaring at the roof of the coop, which was covered in honey, which Fluttershy hadn't had the time to clean yet.

Was she really unfit to take care of three villains? Was she too soft for them?

"C'mon, sugar, don't be angry with me." Applejack said and wrapped her hooves around Fluttershy. "You know Ah only wish best for you."

"I know, Applejack... Thank you for your concern, but I am alright." Fluttershy hugged the earth pony in return. "I can handle it. Don’t worry."

For a moment, they just leaned against each other.

"Would you mind to stop cuddling and talk to us?! My companion doesn't seem too talkative ever since you... how do you ponies call it... ah, yes, 'busted' us!" Chrysalis exclaimed, flailing her hooves through the air in an attempt to get the ponies' attention.

Applejack backed away from Fluttershy and looked at Chrysalis.

"Ah'll be honest with ya, sugarcube: her butt's crying for some whoopin'," she said, much to Fluttershy's distress.

"Oh, no! Violence won't solve anything. You just have to give Chryssie some time! She's a changeling, she hails from another society. Give her time to adapt!" Fluttershy hurried to stop Applejack's train of thoughts. Once the earth pony got something in her head, there was no stopping her.

"No, Ah'm serious! Hey, Chrysalis, Sombra!" Applejack escaped Fluttershy's proximity and approached the two. "Just what were you two thinking causing so much chaos?! And no, revenge isn't a valid reason!"

"Bleh, you're boring. Can I have the pegasus back? She's nicer!" Chrysalis said nonchalantly. One could’ve heard Applejacks popping capillaries a mile away.

"Ya little brat! How dare ya talk like that to an adult?! Ah'll teach ya manners, Ah swear! Ah would land my hoof firmly on your backside, you little lady!"

"Blah-blah, not hearing it! Not hearing you!" Chrysalis covered her ears and kept babbling.

Applejack kept getting louder and louder, the little changeling pulling just the right strings. Fluttershy became scared of whatmight happen. Applejack was essentially shouting at the two, barely containing herself from showing the full extent of her colourful vocabulary, but the most worrying image was that of Sombra, who seemed to be getting tinier and tinier. He tried to hide his face behind his own mane and slowly started to shake.

"Please, stop this, Applejack! You're scaring Sombra!" Fluttershy exclaimed, approaching the earth pony. She couldn't believe she had just said that out loud.

However, Applejack didn't hear her and continued to argue with Chrysalis. Sombra slowly crawled towards Fluttershy.

Fluttershy felt incredibly sad when she heard him cry. He wasn't too loud, just occasional sobs, but the way he covered his muzzle with his forehoof and just quietly wept into it, as if afraid that somepony would see his tears, was just heart wrenching. One or two drops did slip through, looking like sparkling beads on his dark coat.

Fluttershy hurried to him and led him away from the yard and back to the house. He quickly forgot about his hoof and stuck his muzzle into her chest, sobbing bitterly.

"There, there, little one..." she cooed into his ear.

"I'm.. so- sorry... I did a bad thing, but... but I didn't want to do a bad thing... and now that apple pony is angry because of me-e-e-e!" he squeaked and once again descended into sobbing. Fluttershy gently leaned her head closer to him and closed her eyes.

Guilt. She remembered a time where she’d felt guilty. She cried through the whole night.

When feeling guilt, even if you weren’t technically guilty, one should always just let his feelings unwind and... cry a little. It’d ease the burden. At least, it always helped Fluttershy.

She snuggled Sombra closer to her body, letting him pour all his tears out. Here, in the house, nopony would hear him or harass him because he showed his weakness. Here, he could just unwind.

"It's okay, Sombra... You're not to blame," she cooed. "Nopony's blaming you."

"N- no... It's my fault... I threw that hive on the coop... And I lit the fire that put the bees to sleep... Please, Ms. Fluttershy, don't hate me! I don't want to be alone again!" Sombra begged, rubbing his nose against her chest. Fluttershy carried him to the couch and sat down.

"No, I don't hate you, Sombra. It's not your fault. You... just made a mistake. It happens. I forgive you!" She smiled at him, when he finally looked at her. His bright red eyes looked so big and watery she couldn't help but feel water gather in her eyes as well.

"You'll stay with us, I promise... But next time, don't do something that could hurt others, okay?" Fluttershy asked him gently.

"I promise, I won't! I won't hurt anypony else ever again. Just please... don't throw me out..."

"I would never!" Fluttershy said and kissed him gently on his cheek. It was wet and salty because of all the tears but… his tears would dry up and he would be smiling again soon.

She was disturbed by a quiet creak of the door and the sound of hoofsteps.

"Fluttershy, Ah- Is everything alright?" Applejack asked, approaching her from behind. "Ah- Ah'm really sorry, Ah just... couldn't control myself and he was there and... ugh."

"It's okay, AJ. Everything's okay, isn't it, So.." She was interrupted by a loud chomping sound and slowly turned her head to look at Sombra.

His eyes were closed, as he concentrated all his attention on chewing Fluttershy's mane. He tried to get as much of this pink flowing hair into his mouth as he could, but he just couldn't get enough. Applejack smiled when she looked at the little foal.

"Oh mah... Ah'm not usually the one to be touched by anything, but... That's so adorable," she said and gave Sombra a few gentle pats on the head. "Sorry, little one. Didn't mean to scare ya."

"He forgives you. Right, Sombra? Will you forgive Ms. Applejack?" Fluttershy cooed, and Sombra carefully peeped at Applejack.

Now, she didn't look scary or angry at all. Her gentle, simple smile looked welcoming and kind, her deep green eyes emitted honesty and kindness. She leaned a little closer to Fluttershy and patted Sombra on the head again.

He nodded at her, and continued to chew Fluttershy's mane, putting Applejack's mane as the next target in his hit list.

"He sure likes your mane, doesn't he?" Applejack commented.

"Yes, the little foal is real expert of manes," Fluttershy said, stroking his head. "I'll carry him upstairs. Poor foal had to go through so much worry; he needs to get some rest." She rose from the couch.

"Right. You do that... We still have something important to discuss." Applejack said, sat down on the couch, and closed her eyes.

Too many revelations in too quick succession.

"Mrrmmmrrm!" Sombra angrily murmured when Fluttershy put him in her bed. He tried to hold onto to her, like a small child would cling to its mother.

Fluttershy couldn't believe she had just made that comparison.

"Sombra, I have to go... Don't worry, I'll be back very soon. As soon as I'm done with Miss Applejack and Chrysalis, I'll come back up to you," she promised, gently stroking his head. He looked at her with his giant red eyes.

"Yhwu pwomish?" he asked, refusing to let go of her mane.

"I promise, Sombra..." Fluttershy said, and smiled. "So... could you... let go of my mane, I mean, if you really like to...?"

Sombra slowly stroked her mane, and then gave it such a warm hug it seemed like he was hugging his future marefriend.

"Owkay," he muttered and let go of her mane.

Fluttershy left him in her room, sparkling with happiness. It didn't matter, that her mane was dripping saliva or that her chest was sullied with tears. She was just happy that she could feel so much warmth from a pony she once considered heartless.

She quickly descended down the stairs, hushing Applejack in advance, asking her to stay as quiet as possible. They both proceeded to the couch and sat down.

"It's all fine. Sombra's okay. So, what did you want to talk about?" Fluttershy asked, leaning closer to Applejack.

"It's 'bout that changeling, Chrysalis. She's completely uncontrollable." Applejack stated worriedly. "She completely ignores authority."

"I never was... very authoritarian..." Fluttershy whispered.

"No, Flutters! Ah mean, she won't listen to anypony! Ah tried my hardest, but she keeps behaving like a darn queen, like everypony's indebted to her." Applejack turned her head to glance into her eyes. "Fluttershy, she'll eat you alive! Swallow you whole!"

"Ah know this may sound crazy, but... Ah could take Chrysalis to my farm. She can learn to follow rules and respect." Applejack finally delivered the punchline. To her surprise, Fluttershy didn't immediately refuse; instead she turned away and thought.

The pegasus didn't know what to do. If she let Applejack help her, she would fail to keep the little villains' existence a secret; it could easy spill out into the public. On the other hoof... She really didn't know how to handle Chrysalis. She was just... too unruly for her to just simply suppress. She was simply... stronger than Fluttershy.

However, whatever the problems were, Chryssie was her responsibility, and she shouldn't let Applejack suffer because she was too weak.

"Thank you, Applejack, but... I'll have to refuse... Chryssie is my responsibility, and I will handle her... Don’t worry," Fluttershy replied.

Applejack nodded in acknowledgement and laid a hoof around Fluttershy’s withers.

"Ah know how it feels, when you think you have to carry it on your own... but the thing is: you don't have to. I've been through this once..." Applejack said, and sighed, when it became clear that Fluttershy wasn't changing her mind. "Well, fine... but you know where you can find me if anything goes south. Ah'm always ready to help you!"

"May I come out of hiding now? The orange one looks like a friendly pony." Moonie's soft voice reached Flutters' ears and she turned red with a blush.

Applejack looked at Fluttershy, then at Moonie, then at Fluttershy again.

"Nightmare Moon... how cute," she said, clearly unimpressed. "Why am Ah not surprised?"

***

"Take care, sugarcube!" Applejack exclaimed, turning around and waving at Fluttershy. Little Moonie was standing near the pegasus, hiding from the sunlight in her shadow. From time to time she would peek over her body at the sun and immediately hide, afraid of getting hurt by the star.

"You too, Applejack!" Fluttershy replied. Suddenly, she felt something sturdy and pointy touching her belly. This something quickly ran under her and popped out from under the pegasus.

"I'll miss ya, sweetheart! Don't forget to write!" Chrysalis shouted, smiling slyly and waving her holey forehoof at Applejack.

"Chrysalis... Ah'm keeping an eye on you," Applejack warned, squinting at the changeling with gritted teeth.

"Looking forward to that! I could use more stalkers!" Another cynical joke almost made Applejack to rush straight at the changeling and give her a good slapping, but she held back. If Fluttershy said she could handle it, she would.

Though, Applejack had huge doubts that Fluttershy would be able to stand Chrysalis. Hopefully, she would realize the need of harsh treatment as soon as possible, before anypony would get hurt.

Applejack waved one more time and trotted away, back to her farm. Fluttershy traced the earth pony’s path with her sight, and when she disappeared, took a deep breath and looked down at Chrysalis.

"Young lady," she began in a tone as strict as she could muster, "we have a lot to talk about!"

Chrysalis turned her head to her and made a sorrowful expression.

"Did I do something wrong? Oh, please, forgive me, I didn't want to!" she uttered. Fluttershy felt a little sorry about being so harsh, but she quickly calmed herself and continued.

"Yes, you did!" Fluttershy exclaimed. "You destroyed the bees' home, tried to ruin the chickens' life, made Sombra cry and kept calling Moonie a cry-baby behind her back."

"She durst calling me what now?!" Moonie yapped and tried to get to Chrysalis, who quickly slipped from underneath Fluttershy to the road, where she was protected by the sunlight.

"A cry-baby!" she repeated and then noticed that Moonie wasn't coming out. "What, you're scared of me? You little chicken!"

She turned around, swung her backside and kept clucking like said feathered animal.

"Cheep-cheep-cheep! Cheepo-cheepo!" she kept chanting, which was driving Moonie insane. The little alicorn wanted to go out and hit the bad pony, but the sun would burn her again. Finally, she gave up and walked back into the house.

"Chryssie! Stop this behaviour immediately! You're making everypony sad!" Fluttershy exclaimed, and Chrysalis let out a hearty laugh.

"Chryssie? Hah. That's how my name sounds? Meh, what a bore! I should totally change it to something cool and awesome!"

"Get inside here this instant!" Fluttershy exclaimed and even managed to stamp on the ground with her hoof for once. "Now!"

"Pfff, fine! I'm coming!" She quickly slipped past Fluttershy and the pegasus closed the door.

Chrysalis jumped onto the couch and flexed her body, purring like a cat when her back popped audibly several times. "I think I'll be sleeping here tonight!"

"Thou hast no sense of dignity!" Moonie finally exploded at the display. "Thou insultest me! Thou insultest Fluttershy! And now thou takest the couch for thyself, even though thou wast perfectly okay with a camp-cot! Thou wilt cease this affront forthwith, else I shall be the first to say that thou art a meanie!"

Chrysalis raised an eyebrow at this sudden outburst. "Oh my, look who has teeth all of a sudden, Princess Pretty of Prettyland!" She jumped off the couch and approached Moonie, looking quite furious.

Fluttershy felt a shiver run down her spine. It felt like things were going to heat up.

"Fillies! Fillies, please, don't fight! I—" Fluttershy felt like she had to take action, pacify Chrysalis, do something, but... She couldn't!

"Please... Chrysalis... you can have the couch—" Fluttershy said helplessly, whereto Chrysalis smiled and put her tongue out in Moonie’s direction.

"Take that, you dodo!" she teased the alicorn and jumped back on the couch. Moonie turned to Fluttershy, a betrayed look on her face.

"Fluttershy, why wouldest thou let her—"

"Shhh, Moonie, please, be kinder to her. She’s a stranger, just like you. She just... has a very difficult time adapting to. Give her some time!" Fluttershy begged Nightmare Moon, after leading her further away from Chrysalis. "Please, Moonie. Just be patient."

Nightmare Moon looked at Fluttershy and took a deep breath.

"Okay, Miss Fluttershy," she replied curtly. Fluttershy knew she should be happy but... she felt like she was doing something wrong.

Something very wrong.

***

The moonlight was seeping through the window and Fluttershy could not stop staring through it. It looked so peaceful, so quiet. Fluttershy hoped it would make her fall asleep, but, no matter how many sheep she counted, she couldn't shut her eyes.

She kept thinking about the foals. and, the strangest thing was, she kept thinking about their future. What was to become of them? When would Twilight finish the counter-spell? Would Applejack really keep her secret?

Applejack would always keep a secret, Fluttershy was certain of that, but about everything else? — Not so much.

Fluttershy hugged her pillow. Surely, Twilight wouldn't approve of what happened with little Moonie. Giving her an ability to walk in the daylight and be just like any other foal really seemed like a silly and dangerous idea, but, at the same time, Fluttershy knew she had to do it.

Moonie was suffering. She was restricted to play alone in the house, or alone outside in the darkness, and Fluttershy just couldn't allow that, no matter what Twilight would say to this.

Thinking about Moonie made Fluttershy's mind ponder about a question: just how was she going to cure Moonie? A potion from Zecora? Some ritual from one of the books in Twilight's library? Or maybe there was an easier way...

Suddenly, Fluttershy felt creeped out. For some reason, a chill ran down her spine and the strange feeling of paranoia crawled into her mind. She wasn't alone in her bed.

Her theory was proven correct, when she heard the sounds of munching from behind her. She slowly turned around, thinking it was one of her critters who crawled into her bed in search of cover, but she almost jumped when she saw Sombra's big eyes, staring right back into hers.

"Sombra? What are you doing here?! I thought I put you to sleep downstairs," Fluttershy whispered, clearly remembering how she carried the little foal downstairs, put him on the camp-cot and even kissed him for the night. "What are you doing here?"

He chewed her mane some more and smiled. "I came here for you, Fluttershy," he mumbled, her pink hair stuck in his mouth. "I want to fondle you."

Now, that was a surprise. Fluttershy felt a tremor run down her back. Fondle her? What was that supposed to mean?! And how did he sneak up on her without her noticing?

"You'll do... what now?" Fluttershy squeaked, looking at him. "Fondle... me?"

"Yes," Sombra replied matter-of-factly and snuggled closer to her. He felt warm, and the sensation of Fluttershy's own mane tickling her made her giggle. "I like you... I like you a lot..."

"Umm..." was as far as Fluttershy came with her phrase. This foal was weird. At one second, he was timid, the next, he’d creep into her bed. "Thank... you...?"

Sombra ignored her confusion and just kept on greedily chewing her mane. He started rolling around in it, wrapping himself into it.

"Mmm... butterscotch..." he mumbled, licking a patch of her mane. Fluttershy felt very weird, but... she couldn't drive this foal out of her bed. She really didn't want to. For some reason, the feeling of a small, warm, breathing body near her own made her feel powerful and able. She carefully extended her hooves to Sombra and pulled him closer to her and delved her muzzle into his mane.

Never before had she felt so powerful, holding this little pony in her hooves. She felt that Sombra depended on her as he would depend on—

"Mmm... You're so tasty... and so kind...." Sombra kept mumbling as he snuggled closer to Fluttershy and touched noses with her. "Will you be my mommy? Please?"

—a mother.

"Mo- mommy?" Fluttershy mumbled, shocked to hear the word from Sombra. "You want me to be your...mommy?"

"Yes. You're the best mommy ever!" he chirped, kissing her on the nose. "You helped Moonie. You forgave me when I trashed your yard, and... you didn't shout at me when I cried... ponies would often shout at me when I cry, but you didn't... You're so kind and so soft."

He hugged her, his hooves only big enough to wrap her around the neck.

"You're the best mommy I've ever wished for... Please, be my mommy. Pw-eeease!" he begged her, rubbing his cheek against hers.

"B-b-but... why me?" Fluttershy kept on mumbling. "I'm- I'd not be a good mother... I- I can't even cook..."

"No, you can cook! That rice pudding was delicious!" Sombra exclaimed, looking at Fluttershy. "Pw-eeeeease, Fluttershy!"

Fluttershy looked at the foal and felt paralyzed. She was faced with a choice that would change her life forever. And not only her life, but the life of this foal... and the two others.

If she agreed to this, she would have to take all of them under her wing, take care of them, protect them, and teach them. That meant bye-bye friends and personal life and hello, three little foals, who couldn't sit in one place without breaking something.

Fluttershy looked at Sombra; he grinned back at her with a sweet, childish expression on his face, showcasing sharp teeth—a sweet, nice foal, so easily manipulated, as demonstrated by Chrysalis, and yet, Fluttershy had a feeling in her gut that this foal was full of secrets, and not all of them were pleasant—this mane thing of his, for example.

"Yum," was Sombra's quick reply to Fluttershy's thoughts as he gently chewed her mane, still staring at her. He reminded her a lot of Moonie, with her big, round puppy eyes.

Nightmare Moon, a little princess, at her best: picky, snobbish and fancy, and yet at the same time, so fragile and innocent. Fluttershy had promised to defend her from the sun, but... would she be able to do that?

Chrysalis. Fluttershy sighed. This filly seemed so impossible, and now that Fluttershy had nopony but herself to discuss her with, she realized that the little filly was a real rebel machine. Fight back! That was her motto. It didn't matter what to fight; as long as there was the possibility, she would continue to fight.

Fluttershy closed her eyes and asked herself the question once more: could she do it? Could she really do it? Her life would change forever; it would be riddled with difficulties, devoid of fun and filled with stress. She looked at colt Sombra once more. She’d made her decision.

"Of course," she replied. Sombra widened his eyes and smiled even more.

"Really? You really will be my mommy?! Thank you!" he exclaimed, snuggling to her. "Hooray...yaaaay! I have a home now! I have a mommy! My own mommy!"

Fluttershy felt a little weird. Little Sombra was so happy... in fact, too happy. Had he never known what having a family and home felt like? Fluttershy wanted to ask him, but his smile made her swallow her words. Such questions would surely invoke a negative reaction—and why ruin the foal's celebration? After all, he had just found his family.

Family... Fluttershy glanced at Sombra, who had curled up into a ball on her chest, with his hooves tucked under him and her tail still in his mouth. Could they become a real family, she, Sombra, Moonie and Chrysalis? It seemed so unlikely, but Fluttershy knew for sure: she might not be able to become friends with all three, she might not be able to take good care of them all, she might not be able to handle her responsibilities as a mother, but...

She had to try. It was her duty to at least try. Refusing the foal's call would be just as cruel as throwing him out.

Fluttershy closed her eyes and snuggled closer to the little ball of fluff that was so eagerly chewing her mane. She had promised to herself to at least try and try her best.

She wouldn’t be the Element of Kindness if she didn’t.

Don't touch it! It bites!

"Four hundred twenty one sheep jumped o’er the fence, four hundred twenty two sheep jumped o’er the fence..." Moonie whispered to herself, staring at the ceiling. Suddenly, she saw a small moth fly near the window. The little alicorn quickly shifted her attention to the moth and carefully watched its flight.

However, watching the moth fly was just as boring as counting sheep, so Nightmare Moon jumped off the camp-cot and looked around. Her eyes had already adapted to the darkness long ago—even before the hundredth sheep!—so she could see perfectly. Noting nothing of interest, she decided to take a stroll across the house and see if anything was happening.

Nightmare Moon slowly treaded through the house and inspected every nook and cranny thereof. She looked behind cupboards, hoping to find treasures, and snuck under the rugs, searching for ancient creatures.

Moonie approached the couch. A strange sensation filled her when she looked at its surface, soft to the touch, made out of linen, and yet... there was this feeling of... sinister evil.

Nightmare Moon walked around the couch, ducking and crawling under Chrysalis's camp-cot. The little changeling was already snoring, deep in her sleep; Moonie didn't want to disturb her.

Once finished walking around the couch, finding no trails of evil near it, she got down on her knees and gazed underneath it.

Goosebumps instantly covered her body and her legs started to shake as she stared into the void, the pure darkness. A heavy sheen of sweat covered her as she continued to stare into the lair of pure evil. The monstrous cloud of pure darkness, filled with nothing but convulsing rage, hatred, and desire to destroy and consume made her want to turn tail and run. It whispered things she couldn't understand, as they were far too evil for her to comprehend. It was the monster of the monster race that was banished from his world because it was too monster-ish. The little alicorn felt her insignificance, she felt like a complete nothing before this creature of pure, hellish evil.

That which was hidden under the couch... was the definition of evil.

Eventually, Moonie got bored of the definition of evil and continued to explore the house.

The filly felt so bored that she accidently wandered into the kitchen by accident. She knew visiting the kitchen at night wasn't nice, but there was nothing better she could do, so why not hang around the kitchen? Nopony was here to berate her anyway.

Nightmare Moon explored it with interest, looking at all the devices, knives and such, hanging far beyond her reach. She shuddered a bit at the sight of their sparkling surface, gleaming in the moonlight. They looked very sinister and she preferred to stay clear from those weapons of cooking. She opened a few cupboards, thankfully her magic had returned after the sunset, and looked inside, finding some forks and even some crunchy edibles, like bags of grain.

Nightmare Moon ignored them and kept on looking before she stumbled upon a very interesting closet. It reeked of a certain grainy, crunchy, delicious treat. Moonie's senses sharpened up and her belly rumbled, teased by the delicious smell.

"Don't worry, belly. I'll get my hooves thereonto, I promise!" she vowed to her rumbling stomach, eager for something delicious. She carefully opened the doors, using magic, and before her, a picture of pure heaven and bliss was present: A giant clay pot that clearly gave away the smell of crunchy cookies.

Moonie felt saliva gather in her mouth, and she immediately crawled into the cupboard and used her magic to open the jar. Eager to taste its insides, Moonie jumped and found herself hanging on the edge of this reservoir filled with delicious treats.

Finally, she had found her heaven. Nightmare Moon licked her lips before shoving her head down, chewing and swallowing any cookie that would fit into her mouth. She tried to pull herself up to get a better grip, and she had finally managed to put her forelegs on one edge and her hindlegs on another. This way, she could enjoy the delicious cookies without having to give her hooves a rest.

All hail me, Nightmare Moon, the princess of Cookie Land! she thought, shoving the delicious treats into her mouth. They had a mixed taste of delicious dough, sugar and the chocolate chips of their surface.

At first, Nightmare Moon wanted to eat just a few of the cookies, since eating at night was unladylike after all, but when she got to taste them, she couldn't stop. She stuffed herself full with them until she realized that she couldn't eat anymore.

Seconds later, when she decided to back to bed, she realized that she couldn't walk either. She couldn't even move, her belly was filled to the brim with cookies, and she could barely even flinch. She tried swinging her hooves, lost grip and fell.

Walking wasn't an option. However, what Moonie could do was to wrap herself in the magical aura and try to levitate towards her camp-coat. She gritted her teeth, gathered all her might and used the spell.

The magical aura engulfed her and she felt herself rising. In just a moment's notice, with simple manipulations, she managed to levitate out of the cupboard and towards her bed. When she was hovering above it, Moonie finally let herself go and fell on her bed, which creaked under her newly gained weight.

With her belly full of cookies and her mind of happy thoughts, she quickly fell asleep, lulled by the satisfied rumbling of her stomach.

And the best part was: the cookie jar wasn't even half-empty!

***

"Just a few moments, my dear ponies! Breakfast is almost ready!" Fluttershy exclaimed while rolling the toasts over, to fry them from another side.

"Mhmm," Nightmare Moon mumbled, looking at the pegasus and shuddering at the thought that she would have to eat even more. Sombra and Chrysalis, however, were both excited to taste the fried bread.

"Toasts! I had never tried toasts! But they smell delicious!" Sombra exclaimed, sniffing the air and clapping his hooves together. Chrysalis wasn't as eager as him, and, eventually, she switched her sight from the bread and to the sleepy alicorn.

"What's wrong, night stalker? Didn't sleep well?" she asked with a sly smile. Moonie squirmed under the changeling’s gaze, not just because she was a meanie, but also because she always behaved like she knew more than others.

"No, I slept quite well, thanks be thine." Nightmare Moon replied. Chrysalis snickered and turned away, obviously planning some sort of devious scheme! She could see it in her green eyes, her evil smile, the holes in her legs. She would have seen it even clearer if Chrysalis had a hole in her head, but, unfortunately, the changeling's head was whole.

After the nutritious breakfast, Moonie expected to spend another lame hour sitting on the couch, doing nothing, but, to her surprise, Fluttershy approached her and asked her to come upstairs. Moonie obeyed and followed the pegasus.

"What is wrong, Fluttershy?" Nightmare Moon asked when Fluttershy took her to her room and closed the door behind them. "Thou’rt not... going to do anything weird to me, correct?"

"No, no, Moonie!" Fluttershy exclaimed in reply. "It's about your sun illness. I think I know how to cure it."

Moonie's eyes widened. "Really? Thou know’st how to cure it?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure, but I think I know what will help. But, first of all, let me measure you," Fluttershy explained, scoured about in her cupboard, and finally found the measuring tape. "Nows, dowt moff."

Speaking with the measuring tape in her teeth proved to be difficult, but Moonie understood the message and ceased movement. Fluttershy proceeded to carefully measure her height, length of her every limb, the tail, mane, horn...

She started to get bored as Fluttershy continued to whirl around her, whispering numbers and constantly taking breaks to write down something in a notebook.

"Fluttershy, with all due respect, how is this supposed to cure mine ailment? Performest thou an ancient spell?" Nightmare Moon asked, finally losing her patience. "If so, it appears to be dysfunctional. I don't feel any different!"

"Well, it's not exactly a cure. It's more of a protection," Fluttershy said when her mouth was free. "Do not worry, Moonie, you will be able to play in sunlight. I promised you that."

"Okay... because I really want to play outside... and I really don't want Sombra to stick with Chrysalis. She's such a meanie. What if that's contagious?! What if he'll be infected with the meanie virus too? That would be horrible!" Nightmare Moon exclaimed, gasping. Fluttershy chuckled, though she realized that the little alicorn was partially right.

"Don't worry. You'll be able to play with him soon enough," Fluttershy assured her and looked at her notebook. All the measurements were taken. Now, she only had to gather all her courage and ask her friend to help her.

"Moonie, I'm going to go away for a while. I leave you as the caretaker of your fellow foals. Please, make sure that everypony stays in the house while I'm gone and... I'll give you some cookies!" Fluttershy said whereto Moonie smiled.

"A cookie! The peace and order shall be preserved. Thou may’st travel in peace, Fluttershy!" she promised and hailed Fluttershy as if she were a soldier.

"He-he... well... yes... Good luck, Moonie. I won't be away for long, don't worry," Fluttershy said, blushing, and flew out of the window, having grabbed the notebook along with her.

The preparations were complete. Everything depended solely on her courage now.

***

Rarity's boutique was just a few blocks away from Fluttershy's cottage. However, it took Fluttershy a few moments to concentrate when she looked down on Ponyville from above.

Yes, she had seen this picture hundreds of times: colourful roofs; dozens of ponies running on the ground like little busy ants; weather ponies, gathering or dispersing the clouds. This image was so usual, and yet, it was always impressive. For a moment, Fluttershy felt like she could just hang in the air and watch the busy ponies from above, but she had business of her own.

She gently flapped her wings, trying not to overstrain them, and headed for the bridge. She hated flying above the city, since that would disrupt the weather ponies' work and because that was Rainbow's turf.

When she landed on the stone bridge, Fluttershy folded her wings and continued her way on foot. Just as usual, the ponies didn't notice her figure among the blooming summer and other ponies, but...

Fluttershy felt like they knew something, all of them. When she passed by Lyra, the unicorn noticed her and waved her hoof, greeting Fluttershy.

"Hello, Fluttershy!" she said with a smile. Fluttershy returned the smile and the greeting, but the instant she turned away, she got the feeling that, by this simple greeting, she had exposed her entire agenda. A shudder ran down her spine, as Fluttershy felt like more and more ponies started to suspect something.

Scared by the thoughts of what they would do if they had found out who was currently living in her house, she increased her pace, intending to reach Rarity's boutique without being seen.

Usually, she could get anywhere and not get noticed. But today was not 'usual' in any way.

"Hi, Flutters!" She heard a kind voice from above, as Thunderlane flew past her. When he disappeared from sight, Fluttershy felt cold sweat running down her cheeks, neck and the rest of her body. Thunderlane wouldn't usually greet her. Why did he greet her now?

Did he know something Fluttershy didn't? What if he had seen the foals when patrolling the skies?

A brutal realization came to Fluttershy's mind that made her stop and shiver. The foals were outside. That meant they could have been seen by the pegasi, Including Rainbow Dash! And soon, a giant flock of angry pegasi, demanding Fluttershy to surrender the villains to them, would siege her house! And then, they would get their hooves on the villains! And then...

"No!" Fluttershy shrieked, and suddenly felt dozens of sights pinned only at her. Her fear of crowd kicked in and her cheeks turned crimson.

"N- no, I do not like chocolate-flavored cotton candy..." She tried to hide her sudden outburst and it seemed to work when most of the ponies resumed their casual routine. Fluttershy gulped and trotted to Rarity's, hoping to reach her before the paranoia conquered her completely.

Treading through Ponyville had never been so scary. Everypony seemed to notice Fluttershy, wave at her, greet her. Usually, she would welcome such behaviour, but right now, it scared the living feathers out of her. Her teeth chattering and the tips of her wings shaking uncontrollably, she slipped into a shadowy alley, jumped over a puddle of spilt water and galloped through the street toward Rarity's boutique.

Fluttershy knocked on the door and gulped, having little to no idea about how to explain her situation to Rarity. Though, probably, it would be better to hide the fact that Rarity would be making an outfit for the goddess of eternal night.

Fluttershy's plan was simple: after falling asleep with the question of how to help Moonie on her mind, an idea had graced her. Her theory was that the sunlight would not affect Moonie if her body was covered, like, in clothes, which would make perfect sense, since the parts of her body that had been in the shade when Fluttershy had found her appeared unharmed. So, maybe, clothes were the solution?

The door opened and Fluttershy was graced with Rarity's smiling face and half-lidded eyes. There were black circles under her eyes as if she hadn't slept during the whole night, and she levitated a cup of something steaming in her magical grasp.

"Fluttershy! Good morning, darling," Rarity livened up, blinking several times to clear away the sleep from her mind and sipped her drink—coffee, Fluttershy deduced by the smell.

"Oh, good morning, Rarity, um, I didn't wake you up, I hope?" Fluttershy said, blushing, afraid that she might have caused some inconvenience for her friend.

"Oh, no, not at all. I just... didn't sleep last night," Rarity said, yawning and sipping more coffee. "Let's not stand in the entrance. Come in!"

Rarity's boutique was as fabulous as ever, with everything looking orderly and cleaned up. Rarity led Fluttershy to a table whereupon few cups and a kettle were residing.

"Don't be shy, pour yourself some tea while I—" She yawned. "—get myself in order."

Fluttershy sat down and stared at the kettle, pondering whether she should pour herself some tea or be a good guest and wait until her host did so. After all, she could accidently break something... or pour more than Rarity would want her to drink... and that would all affect their upcoming conversation!

And Fluttershy knew that upsetting Rarity would not help her matter at all.

Rarity came back, looking refreshed. She must have put her makeup on and finished that coffee, Fluttershy figured, the only way she could have energized herself that quickly was by chewing an electrical wire.

Fluttershy chuckled at her own joke, which relieved the tension a bit. She took a deep breath and prepared to ask a favour of Rarity, but the unicorn spoke first.

"You won't believe what I had to go through this night, dear! I have so... so much to tell you!" Rarity explained, taking a seat and pouring herself some tea. "There has just been so much going on."

Fluttershy waited till Rarity went for another sip of her tea, but before she could open her mouth, Rarity started talking about her personal life. It seemed she had had a busy week and just wanted to share her problems with a close friend, so Fluttershy decided to hold back and just listen to her.

"You won't believe how difficult this Diamond Tiara is! I've tried over and over to talk to her and her parents, tried to get some sense into their head, but it never works! Filthy Rich doesn't listen to me at all, it just looks like he's listening!" Rarity hissed and made a very pompous expression. "Yes, yes, Rarity. I'll handle that. Yes, of course, my daughter will be punished for that. Of course, Rarity!"

Rarity gulped down her cup of tea and resumed her angry tirade.

"And then, next day, Sweetie Belle comes back saddened and angry because Diamond Tiara was teasing her again. All that conversation I had with Filthy Rich just went past his ears!" she exclaimed and then calmed down suddenly, relaxing on her chair. "I am so sick of this... I'm afraid that one day I'll just find that Diamond Tiara and beat some sense into her..."

Rarity sighed, took another sip of her tea, and blushed when she saw Fluttershy all curled up and confused.

"Sorry, dear, I shouldn't have bombarded you with my personal problems," she said and poured some tea into Fluttershy's cup.

"No, it's okay, Rarity, um, I'm glad you're calm now," Fluttershy said, trying to force out a smile. Rarity was clearly displeased. Asking for favours right now would be foolish... but she had no other choice.

Though, she could come some other time, but how would Moonie react to the fact that Fluttershy couldn't help her because she was afraid?

No, Fluttershy had to fight her fear! She had to prevail for the greater good!

"Um... Rarity, can I... ask you a favour?" Fluttershy said, and reached for the cup.

"Oh, sure, Fluttershy, I'm always glad to help a friend in need!" Rarity exclaimed, looking at her friend. “What is it?"

"I need... some clothes... a hoodie, preferably," Fluttershy sipped some tea, took a deep breath, and hoofed out her notebook to Rarity.

"Hmm, I suppose there's the size of the hoodie you want..." Rarity said, taking a long and careful look at Fluttershy's notes. "Err... Fluttershy, is it just me or do you want a foal-sized hoodie?"

She eyed the notebook a few more times and put it down. "Yes, this is definitely a size for a foal."

"Um..." Fluttershy bit her lip, thinking of an excuse. "It's for... my nephew! Yes... from Fillydelphia."

"A nephew? I thought you didn't have any sisters or brothers?" Rarity raised her eyebrow.

"Err... I did! She's just... never around," Fluttershy said, turning pale and blushing at the same time, her hooves turning cold and her heart pounding like an engine.

"Hmm... Okay... I hope you'll introduce your little nephew to us sometime," Rarity said, sipping her tea. Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief, feeling that her little white lie had worked.

"A hoodie... Glorious!" Rarity suddenly jumped up, throwing the cup away, which somehow landed without breaking and spilling everything inside. "Hoodie... How about a fiery colour scheme, with red streaks of flame on the side? Or lightning, showing speed and grace? How about... a tornado themed hoodie?"

"My nephew likes... nights... Can you make a night themed hoodie.. if you're okay with that... My nephew would not mind any other theme... I'm sure..." Fluttershy said, stuttering a little.

"Oh, a night themed one? That's even better! A moon on the back, the stars on the belly... Priceless!" Rarity exclaimed, looking at the material she had at her disposal. "Fluttershy, darling, I'll be pleased if you stay with me and oversee my work. I want the hoodie for your nephew to look... fabulous!"

Fluttershy sighed, and thought she had succeeded for a second, but then realized that there was another major detail she forgot. One hoodie wouldn't solve the problem. There was another part of the attire Moonie would have to wear to protect herself from the sun, something ponies didn't usually wear.

"Rarity, can I ask one more favour?" Fluttershy said, her voice getting quieter. "I also... need...a pair of p-p-"

"Oh, don't be shy, darling. You know I would never refuse," Rarity said with a gentle smile.

"I need a pair of p- pants." Fluttershy finally finished her sentence and her cheeks were set ablaze with blush. She couldn't believe she had just said that. In her whole life, she had seen ponies in pants four or five times tops, usually at parades.

"Pants? Huh... why does your cousin need pants, if you don't mind me asking?" Rarity raised an eyebrow.

"He... He's a part of this new... subculture... Nocturnes, I think. They like wearing full body clothing and dark themed... They're... weird like that," Fluttershy said, hoping that it would work.

"Ooh, Nocturnes? That sounds very fancy..." Rarity said, licking her lips and preparing herself for the upcoming work. "Maybe I should be a Nocturne too? Night theme suits me very well, don't you agree?"

Fluttershy nodded to Rarity's question. "So... will you help me with the... the pants?"

"Of course, I can make a pair of pants too, no problems. Night themed too?" Fluttershy nodded again and Rarity trotted into her workshop, gesturing Fluttershy to follow her. "Night themed... This is going to be fabulous! I might even make a series out of this... Nocturnal dresses, for the ponies treading in the darkness... Yes, that sounds great!"

Fluttershy felt relieved, seeing her webs of white lies working out. However, she wasn't a very skilful spider, so, if she went too far, she might get stuck in it, so she decided to keep lying to the minimum. But, at least, Moonie would soon be able to play outside, with her friends.

Hopefully.

***

"Attention, everypony!" Nightmare Moon exclaimed, jumping on the couch, clearing her throat and assuming a regal pose. "Our caretaker, Fluttershy the Kind, has left the hideout and left me in charge of taking care of you two!"

She measured Sombra, who was playing with a small ball on the floor, and Chrysalis, who tried to steal said ball, with her eyes.

"Sweet! No adults in the building means lots of fun for us! Come on, Sombra, let's go wreck something!" Chrysalis said, smiling and turning to Sombra.

"Um... I'm not sure if I want to wreck anything..." Sombra said, pushing the ball away from him and looking at Chrysalis with guilty eyes.

"Aw, come on. Just because we got caught one time doesn't mean we'll get caught the second time. Besides, have you seen them running around? Hysterical!" Chrysalis sung, approached Sombra and started whispering in his ear. "If you're still upset about that little inconvenience yesterday, it's all fine. I'm not angry at all."

"No, Chrysalis! No wrecking stuff!" Moonie declared, jumping off the couch. "I'm in charge, which means: thou hast to obey me! And I command thee not to wreck stuff!”

"Sorry, Moon, but I can't understand a word you're saying. Every time you open your mouth it sounds something like..." Chrysalis put her tongue out, squeezed her lips and blew, making a very immature sound that many foals and foal-minded adults found amusing.

Nightmare Moon's jaw dropped at the realization that this changeling had dared to insult her so. Her face flushed red as she grit her teeth, trying not to burst into anger.

"Cease this sound this instant; else I'll be forced to use force!" Nightmare Moon stomped on the floor, trying to sound as menacing as possible.

"Oooh, force!" Chrysalis stopped emitting the sound and leaned closer to Moonie. "I'm sooooo scared!"

"That's it! Prepare to taste the power of Nightmare Moon!" Moonie growled, and started gathering energy at the tip of her horn. For a moment, it seemed that she would finally cast a spell when suddenly a blast of green energy zapped a vase right behind her, smashing it into tiny shards.

"Oh, sorry, did I break your concentration?" Chrysalis asked with a smug grin on her muzzle. "I didn't mean to do that. Please, continue."

She started walking in circles around Moonie, like a preying vulture. "You were saying about... Nightmare Moon's power?"

Moon didn't reply, frozen in place, still shocked after the loud sound of cracking glass.

"Oh, you were finished?" Chrysalis spoke again, moving a little closer to Moonie. "I have to say, your 'demonstration of power' is lacklustre. So, let me give you a tip."

She looked Moonie straight in the eyes and smiled evilly. "I wreck stuff, you keep quiet."

"That's not exactly a tip—" Moonie noted and her ears were promptly being molested by the shameless sound again. "Aaah! Stop!"

"Chrysalis... could you please not do that to Moonie?" Sombra asked and Chrysalis looked at him slyly.

"She deserves this, the little crying princess that she is. But fine, you've asked nicely after all!" Chrysalis said and stopped, trotting carefully to Sombra's side. "Now, let's go wreck something."

Sombra gritted his teeth, gathered all his courage, and prepared to repel Chrysalis' charm that lured him to the dark side so much. He really, really wanted to go to the dark side with her, but at the same time, he didn't want to disappoint his mommy.

"Sorry, I'm not in the mood at the moment," Sombra replied and proceeded to escape the scene to the kitchen, hoping that Chrysalis wouldn't follow him.

"Huh... okay, then... I'll wreck some stuff on my own, then," Chrysalis was about to leave when Moonie stood in her way once more.

"No! Thou shalt not wreck anything! I was given a mission, and I shall make sure it is completed. That mission is watching over you!" Nightmare Moon said proudly, preparing to stand her ground.

"Oh, is that so?" Chrysalis grinned, losing her patience. "Well, let's see how you do your mission after I kick you in the teeth!"

***

"Aaand... done!" Rarity exclaimed, leaning back from her desk and admiring her work. "Come here and take a look, Fluttershy! I think your nephew will absolutely love it!"

Fluttershy approached Rarity and looked over her head. Her jaw almost dropped when she saw the beautiful composition of colours crafted by Rarity: a tight fitting hoodie with a wide hood big enough to obscure the whole face in the shadow it’d cast. The dominating colour was dark blue with various lighter hues of blue, which were only broken by the blood red lines of some strange pentagram that was enclosed by two crescent moons of a duller red colour. However, the hoodie wasn't as dark as Fluttershy thought it would be.

"I took some liberty and made it of slightly lighter colour—not black. The poor filly would get fried in this sun otherwise," Rarity commented on her work. "Do you like the pentagram on the back, dear?"

"Isn't it a little bit too... evil?" Fluttershy said, looking at the hoodie. Rarity chuckled a bit.

"For you maybe. But for the modern youth, such designs are considered cool and fashionable. Modern zeitgeist, what can you do?" she said and moved on to the other part of the attire. "I have to say: I've never made stylized pants before, especially in gothic style. So, this was a new experience for me!"

The pants were of the same colour scheme as the hoodie, but there also were some interesting design choices - like small stars just below the belt. They weren't too sparkly, but the light definitely made them noticeable. Fluttershy imagined how beautiful this would look in the moonlight.

"What do you say? I think it's pretty edgy! Just what a young, rebellious foal needs!" Rarity sung, admiring her craft. Fluttershy nodded silently.

"Definitely." Her feelings were mixed. To her, this attire seemed a bit too edgy and dark. But, on the other hoof, this was exactly what Moonie would want. These were her colours, her theme, right?

"Please, Fluttershy, if you have any more nephews from other subcultures, come to me! I'll be glad to make something new for them!" Rarity exclaimed, hoofing the packed clothes to Fluttershy. "This was simply fabulous!"

"Thank you Rarity. You really helped me out... I owe you one." Fluttershy said, and Rarity waved her hoof.

"Pfff, don't mind it, darling. I enjoyed this work, and you're my friend, after all! You don't owe me anything!" she said, smiling at Fluttershy. "Are you sure you don't want to stay for tea and biscuits?"

"No, no. I have to go, um, now," Fluttershy said. Rarity sighed, hugged her goodbye and waved as she flew away.

"Don't forget to introduce your nephew to me!" Rarity's voice reached Fluttershy from the distance. Fluttershy wanted to say something, but decided against it, afraid of entangling herself even harder in the web of lies.

The journey home took much less time than Fluttershy had expected. Maybe it was because the paranoia had finally subsided, or maybe because she was flying much faster.

Nevertheless, Fluttershy quickly escaped the busy streets and skies of Ponyville and found herself in the quiet grove. Having found herself alone, she took a few moments to look at Moonie's new clothes more closely. Maybe she was holding the little alicorn's only hope for a normal childhood in her hooves... or maybe she was holding just some fancy clothes. Her theory wasn't proven, and it made Fluttershy feel horrible, the thought that she might be wrong was devouring her mind.

Because if she was wrong, she had been lying to Moonie all along.

Fluttershy suppressed the dark thoughts, opting to fill her mind with some other problems instead: obviously, Moonie would need more than one set of clothes. Clothes tend to get dirty and wear down eventually. Fluttershy didn't have a single clue where she would get more clothes. Requesting them from Rarity seemed like a bad idea, as generosity was a trait easily exploited and Fluttershy didn't want to exploit her friend at all.

Maybe this was the perfect opportunity for Fluttershy to learn how to sew and knit. At times, in cold winter days, she would sit down and try to knit something, but this was more of a hobby.

Finally, she saw the outlines of her house on the horizon. Torn between the feelings of dread, of fear that she was wrong, and the excitement to see Moonie's reaction, she increased her pace and ran towards her home. She was very sure Moonie did a great job of overwatching her friends and that her house wouldn't look like it had just been used as a battlefield of some Great Pony War.

When she opened the front door and was about to greet the children, she realized what the phrase "Famous last words" meant.

Her house looked like a battleground. Nightmare Moon, who had fortified the couch with chairs and pillows, was protecting her sacred keep from Chrysalis, who intended to use vases, picture frames and dishes as makeshift catapult ammunition during this siege.

Nightmare Moon ducked behind a chair, fortified with pillows when another dish came flying at her like a deadly disk. The disk flew over her head and smashed against the wall. Moonie returned fire by throwing a pillow in a blind attempt to hit her enemy. By some miracle, the pillow hit its mark got skewered on Chrysalis' horn.

"Lucky shot!" Chrysalis growled. By her expression Fluttershy realized that this wasn't a game. Her tone, her face: everything spoke about the fact that Chrysalis was trying to beat Moonie down with dishes and vases.

Chrysalis threw the pillow off her horn—the poor victim spilt its feathery insides all over the floor—and prepared to launch another dish, but Fluttershy rushed towards the changeling and tackled her down, disrupting her spell.

"No!" Fluttershy shouted. She didn't care about the mess, or her property. The children could cut themselves on the shards. That was the only thing she cared about at the moment. "Stop it! Stop it now!"

Fluttershy wrapped her hooves around Chrysalis and kept her still. The changeling desperately tried to get out, constantly jerking, fighting and kicking, but no matter what, Fluttershy didn't let her go.

"This won't stop me!" Chrysalis snarled, her horn lightning up in green energies. Fluttershy watched helplessly as the last remaining dishes rose up into the air and dashed towards Moonie's flimsy protection. If all those dishes were broken, Moonie was bound to cut herself on the shards, if not worse. And if one of the dishes actually hit the target...

Suddenly, a crimson aura suspended the dishes in midair. Seconds later, they slowly drifted towards the table and carefully put each other on top of one another.

Sombra jumped out of his hiding, his horn glowing crimson. He looked at the chaos, Fluttershy and Chrysalis, and at Moonie, the filly he had just saved, and blushed.

"Thou... hast saved me," Nightmare Moon said, looking at Sombra with amazement. "Thank you, fair knight. I am forever in thy debt."

Sombra looked at Fluttershy questioningly and she replied with a gentle smile.

"She's right. Well done, Sombra!" Fluttershy said, and Sombra turned brighter than any sun. Not only had he not been berated for this mess, but he was actually... complimented!

"What the Tartarus, Sombra?!" Chrysalis growled, looking at Sombra with a scowl. "I thought you were on my side!"

"Um... I'm on your side, of course. But hurting ponies is bad, and you should never do that," Sombra piped, which made Chrysalis roll her eyes in annoyance.

"Whatever!" She continued to jerk around in Fluttershy's grasp. "Will you let me go already?"

The little changeling barely held back from hurling insults at her, Fluttershy knew that. In such a state, Celestia knows what she might do, and so, she decided to hold her in her grasp until Chrysalis calms down.

"No, Chryssie! You need to relax first. You're too frustrated at the moment," she explained, trying her best to keep her still. "How about a nice and relaxing breathing exercise? You take a deep breath and then you exhale. Rinse and repeat. It really helps you calm down!"

"I don't want to do your stupid breathing exercises! You're stupid! Moon's stupid! He's stupid, too!" Chrysalis growled in anger.

Sombra and Moonie ignored the changeling's petty insults, though Sombra still looked worried about his comrade. He stared at her with his big round eyes, begging her to listen.

"Please, Chrysalis, listen to Fluttershy. She's not stupid; she's actually very smart and kind," he begged, trying his best to persuade Chrysalis.

"Yes, unlike thou! Thou art a mean, silly and evil pony!" Moonie huffed angrily. "Though, I'm not even sure that thou art a pony!"

"I am a pony, you freak!" Chrysalis shrieked. She looked at Moonie once again, and the alicorn returned her look with the mocking gaze of a victor. Nightmare Moon knew she had won, and she wasn't afraid to rub it in her opponent's muzzle. Not with words, but with stance, tone, expression.

Nightmare Moon gazed at Chrysalis like Celestia would gaze upon anypony who would dare to challenge her and fail. And it was driving Chrysalis completely mad.

"Go to Tartarus!" Chrysalis spat, bared her teeth and sank them deep into Fluttershy's foreleg. The poor pegasus uttered a squeak, but she dared not scream.

Chrysalis felt Fluttershy's grip weaken, and she used the opportunity to get out. She pushed Fluttershy's hooves away without remorse, and jumped away, leaving a bad wound on poor pony's left foreleg.

After freeing herself, she dashed upstairs like a cat that had just touched water and disappeared from sight in seconds. Fluttershy looked at her wound and almost fell unconscious. Even though it was, in reality, not serious at all, there was a lot of blood and it hurt very badly.

"Aaah...." Fluttershy mumbled, tears filling her eyes and threatening to pour out.

"Mommy!" Sombra shouted and ran up to Fluttershy. She tried to gently push him away, unwilling to shock him with the sight of blood, but he was far too persistent.

To her amazement, when he saw Fluttershy's wound, he didn't cry, nor say anything. His face turned sickly pale and a few drops of sweat ran down his cheeks, but he didn't look horrified.

"Moon, can you get some bandages?" he told Moonie, his voice trembling. Nightmare Moon staggered for a moment, before running upstairs, remembering where the first aid kit was.

"Sombra... What are you d- doing?" Fluttershy asked, flinching from the pain in her wrist.

"Don't worry, mom! I'll save you! I know how!" Sombra said, trying to keep his voice firm. Fluttershy looked at him in the eyes, and saw determination and love that were suppressing all fears.

Moonie returned, carrying the first aid kit in her mouth. She carefully dropped it on the floor and Sombra immediately approached it.

"What wilt thou do?" Nightmare Moon asked, observing Sombra dig through the medicine in the kit.

"I'm going to save my mom!" Sombra said firmly, taking out iodine, some sterile tissues and some bandages. Nightmare Moon looked at him questioningly.

Sombra used his magical powers to rip the tissues into little squares, of which he applied some to Fluttershy’s wound with pressure of his small hooves. After they were soaked with blood, he took them away, drenched some clean tissues with iodine, and applied these, wrapping a bandage around it, in order to fixate them.

Fluttershy clenched her teeth, for the iodine was biting her like a hungry wolf, but soon felt relieved, as the medicine started working and the pain became weak. When Sombra was done, Fluttershy carefully tried stepping on the injured hoof, and found out that she could still walk—with a limp, but still.

"Wow... Sombra! How do you know how to apply medicine?" She looked at the little foal with amazement, and his dark coloured cheeks flushed.

"Oh... I had practice... here and there..." he mumbled, biting his lip. Fluttershy smiled at the foal and gently kissed him on the forehead.

"Thank you, dear. Thank you so much," she whispered into his ear.

Nightmare Moon looked at the two with confusion, then shook her head and decided to interrupt them.

"May I interrupt your little scene to ask a question: what should we do with Chrysalis now?" she asked, looking at Fluttershy. Sombra looked at her as well, eager to hear the answer no less than Moonie was.

Fluttershy felt disturbed by their glances. She saw expectation, they were expecting her to act. They needed Fluttershy to do something about it. Even Sombra, who seemed to have jumped on the same boat as Chrysalis before, had eyes screaming "Do something!" at her. And it ripped Fluttershy's soul apart to see these looks, knowing that she wouldn't be able to respond. She couldn't do anything about it. She just couldn't.

"I'll have a serious talk with her tonight, do not worry," Fluttershy replied, and the foals seemed to have bought that lie. Fluttershy's stomach churned, as she berated herself in her mind for this lie, but there was no other way. She couldn't tell them that she morally could not do anything harmful to a foal or filly, ever.

"But let's not get sad now! Moonie, I have a present for you!" Fluttershy exclaimed, trying to shield herself from heavy thoughts and cheer up the kids as well. Nightmare Moon looked at her with eagerly, raising both eyebrows.

Fluttershy slowly approached the bag of clothes she had dropped near the entrance and carried it to the couch.

"Come on, unpack it and put it on," Fluttershy said. Moonie approached the bag and tapped it a few times with her hoof.

"What is this? Some kind of magic robe?"

"Well, you could say that. Just put it on."

"So, how do I look?" Moonie asked, parading in front of Sombra and Fluttershy in her new hoodie and pants. "Wow... I had never thought before that wearing clothing could feel so good!"

"You look magnificent, Moonie!" Fluttershy complemented and Sombra nodded thereto.

"Yeah! You look super-duper-awesome!" he added. Moonie continued to trot through the room, constantly swinging her hoof at the hood which she’d drawn over her head. It concealed her face entirely, just as expected.

"Dah, the hood doesn't appear to be suited for the horn I possess!" she exclaimed. "But, nonetheless, I can make a hole any time I want to, no problem!"

In her glee over getting new attire, she was blind to where she was going. Fluttershy noticed too late that she’d step right into the cone of light emanating from the window.

"Moonie, don't..." Fluttershy was about to shout, but then just stared at the miracle.

Moonie rambled on. She didn’t notice the sunlight at all. Fluttershy... had been right! The clothes were protecting her from the sun that would otherwise be harmful for her.

"’Tis very fashionable, I cannot deny that!" Nightmare Moon said, and then finally noticed that she was sitting in the sunlight. "What's this? Is this... real? I- I-"

"I can finally go outside!" Moonie shouted, and stormed out of the room into the yard, completely forgetting everything in her life. Fluttershy proceeded to follow her, but found out there was no need for help; Moonie could handle herself just fine.

"I can go outside, I can go outside!" Moonie sung, jumping and running all over the place. "Take that, you stupid, big, yellow disk!"

She put her tongue at the sun, the hoodie covering her face in protective shade, and returned to running around aimlessly.

"I don't get it. Did she have a problem going outside?" Sombra asked, looking at the overly happy alicorn. "I never feel this much fun when going outside."

"Does it matter if she had problems?" Fluttershy replied, smiling. "All that matters is that her problems were solved. Go ahead. Go and play together."

Sombra nodded at Fluttershy, muttered a quick "Yes, mom," and then ran away to Moonie, to join her in her delightful game of jumping around. Fluttershy observed the two foals and, for a moment, she forgot about all the difficulties and troubles of this world. Finally, she had managed to make ponies happy.

And that was the best reward for her in the entire world.

Author's Note

I hope you enjoyed this update! And now, to some information: the next update may take a long time, since I'll be busy with my new fic, that will be released as soon as the second chapter is complete. Get yourself ready, bros, it's gonna get wild!

Flutterrage

"Tum-tum-tum...du-du-dum," Nightmare Moon sung a merry tune to herself, happily prancing in the moonlight. Everypony had already fallen asleep, but she, due to her nature, stayed awake to wear her new clothes a bit longer.

Though, it was a little uncomfortable for her to keep her wings wrapped around the body under the hoodie, it was but a little inconvenience. She didn't really need to fly when playing with Sombra; he was the very definition of a ground dweller.

Moonie sat down, still whistling the happy tune, and thinking of what game she and Sombra should play tomorrow. She would even go for a game right now, but Moonie didn't want to wake up the colt.

The night alicorn looked towards the three camp-cots, carefully positioned near each other: two of them were empty, as Chrysalis still hadn't come down from her hiding upstairs. Moonie's bed was empty for an obvious reason: the filly demanded more than a petty sleep!

"Trum-dum-dum..." Moonie sung, treading to the kitchen. Even though she was happy, her mood was still darkened with the memories of Chrysalis' unladylike behaviour.

The little alicorn couldn't understand that holey pony at all. Everything she did was to hurt someone, destabilize, destroy. What's the point? What was she trying to accomplish thereby?

Chrysalis was a pony—if a pony at all—beyond Moonie's logic. And maybe that was for the best. After all, who would want to understand the logic of an evil bully?

After trotting another circle around the couch, Moonie finally decided to take off her clothes and do something else. The night was in its prime, and it took her just a few moments to drag the hoodie and pants off herself, fold them together carefully and then put them away in a safe corner, using her magic. It really bothered Moonie that she couldn't use her magic during the day, but that was a problem to be resolved sometime else. Right now: the secret cookie stash.

"Nom-nom!" Moonie licked her lips and smiled when she approached the cupboard, where the cookie jar was, waiting for her queen to open and devour its insides.

Tonight, Nightmare Moon decided, I shall eat all the cookies! Maybe save some for Sombra... Likely... Maybe... Possibly... But none for that meanie Chrysalis! Not even a crumb!

Moonie climbed the jar and started lifting the cookies using her magic, like she was fishing at a lake. Sticking her tiny tongue out of the side of her mouth, with great care, she manipulated the cookies to float from the bottom of the jar right to her nose. After every eaten cookie, she licked her lips for any remaining crumbs, ensuring there was nothing left.

One by one, the cookies disappeared, and soon, there were only a few left on the bottom of the jar. Moonie lazily looked down into this abyss and yawned. She would quite love if those cookies would just float themselves right into her mouth. She felt too full to neither move nor use magic.

"Come here, little cookies! Come to Moonie!" she sung and leaned over the edge of the jar, figuring out the distance between her and the cookies. It didn't look too far; she probably could reach it with her hoof if she tried.

Two feelings were at conflict inside her: the laziness and the desire to eat all the cookies. Needless to say that the cookies won.

"Come hither, little cookies!" Moonie carefully shoved her head inside the jar, the air heavy with the smell of cookies, and carefully stretched out her hoof, trying to reach for the small, crumbly treats. "Grrr, how dare ye disobey the Queen of the Cookie La-"

Her sentence was cut short when she lost balance and fell into the jar. Before the ground of the jar could decide that it was terribly in love with her face and wanted to kiss it, she felt the pressure on her waist and discomfort in her back.

"Ouch!" she murmured and sighed. Well, she fell, after all. At least the cookies were in her reach at last. She quickly grabbed the cookie with both of her forelegs and dragged it to her mouth.

The jar was finally empty and Moonie felt the victorious satisfaction, accompanied by a victorious burp. How unladylike of me, she thought, but quickly excused that with a good reason: she’d won a struggle, after all. Not many ponies could eat a whole jar of cookies all by themselves.

Now, that her mission was complete, she was free to go to sleep. With a gentle flap of her wings, Moonie-

-didn't go anywhere. It surprised her. She tried flapping once more, even thought it was quite tight inside the jar, but still, nothing happened. She tried using levitation to get herself out, but the pain in her waist made her reconsider.

With great horror and despair, Moonie realized that she was, indeed, stuck in a cookie jar, or more precisely, her butt was stuck at the jar’s entrance.

No matter how much effort she put in rocking the jar, no matter how much she tried to push herself out, nothing helped. Moonie started to feel scared and lonely in the jar, as she succumbed to the centuries old habit that she thought she had abandoned: sucking on her left hoof. She couldn't remember where she got this habit from and why she’d tried to abandon it, but it was back, and her left hoof was being sucked on furiously.

"Hmm, so there is someplotty here after all." Moonie's blood turned cold, when she heard Chrysalis' voice. She could almost feel that poisonous smug on her face. "I knew those sounds weren't in my head!"

Moonie wanted to reply, forgetting that she still had her hoof in her mouth, so at first all she could mutter were muffled groans.

"Blah! Chrysalis? Why art thou here?" She finally got her hoof out of her mouth and was able to speak properly.

"Oh, my... In all the years of my life, I would've never thought that I'd meet a talking butt." Chrysalis said with notes of fake amazement in her voice. "Wow, meseems I’ve discovered a new species!"

Chrysalis graciously approached the jar and grinned, looking at Moonie's round bottom. "Pray tell, Nightmare Plot: how does it feel to be a part of the most annoying pony ever?"

"Chrysalis! Cease thy vulgar jokes now, thou foul demon!" Moonie cried, trying to somehow change her position or make the jar fall, but nothing helped.

"What's this? Did I hear a voice from inside? Aww, it's not a new species! It's just my old 'friend': Nightmare Moon, the butt-head," Chrysalis said, looking at Moon's rump. "Usually figuratively, but now, quite literally."

Chrysalis grinned, circling around the jar like a hungry vulture. Her vengeance was so close, so close!

"Chrysalis, thou’st made enough mistakes already! Please, do not make another one! Mocking a pony in need is beyond mean. It’s evil!" Moonie exclaimed, flailing her forelegs around in the jar. "Don't descend into the depths of evil!"

"Eh... You're right, Nightmare Moon. I really should change." Chrysalis' reply shocked Moonie. If she could see the alicorn's widened eyes, Chrysalis would die of laughter. "I... did some pretty bad things."

"R-really? Thou agreest with me?" Moonie asked, thinking for a moment that Chrysalis finally had a moment of realization of how mean, how bad she was.

"Yes, Moon. I do agree with you," Chrysalis hiccupped as if on the verge of tears. Then, she used her magic to apply pressure to Moonie's behind. "I'll help you in."

"Oh, I thankee! I thought you would never see the wrong of your ways and- Wait... Hast thou said I-" She couldn't finish her sentence as the two long-divided lovers that were her face and the jar’s ground collided in a fiery kiss.

"Yep. I said exactly that." Chrysalis guffawed at the sound. "Now, do you feel what it's like? To be trapped? Unable to move? Huh?! You feel it?!"

"Th- thou meanie," Moonie said in a sobbing voice after hitting her nose. In addition, she was now fully inside the jar. There was no way she could get out.

"I know, I know. I'm a meanie, I'm a bad pony, yatta-yatta-yatta. Learn something new, you lame-o!" Chrysalis sung and bared her fangs, probably just for the dramatic effect, since Moonie couldn’t see her. "I've heard words much worse than that. Now, let's go outside."

"W- wait?! Why go outside?" Moonie exclaimed, worry building up inside her.

"Because I don't want you inside this house. C'mon, don't be shy," Chrysalis said, and turned round swiftly, knocking the jar down with her rump. Moonie emitted a stoic 'ouch' when it hit the floor. Using her toxic green coloured magic, Chrysalis pushed the jar outside of the cupboard on the kitchen floor.

"Now, let's take a stroll or two around," the changeling decreed, jumped on the jar and tried rolling it forwards and backwards by running in the respective directions.

"Chrysalis! Don't do this! Do not do this!" Moonie pleaded, but Chrysalis only chuckled.

"Let's go!" she exclaimed and started moving the jar forwards, by running backwards. Using her awesome moving tricks, she managed to turn around the corner and continue moving towards the couch.

"Keep rollin', rollin', rollin', rollin'," Chrysalis sung, trying all kinds of tricks: running on her two hindlegs; running on her two forelegs. She giggled and smirked, knowing well that neither Sombra or Fluttershy would disturb them. They were both fast asleep, treading too deep in the realm of dreams to hear what was happening around them. "You alright in there, Moon?"

"Why... do... you... have... to... be... so... eeevil!" Moonie cried, getting tossed from side to side in the jar.

"I'm not evil, Moonie! I just want to show the world where it beloooo—" Chrysalis cried, turning to the window, noticing that it was open, and using a very complex trick to make the jar jump into the air, onto the windowsill, and then roll outside.

"—ooongs!" Chrysalis finished her battle cry, quickly jumped off the jar and used to magic to stop it from rolling forwards. "The world belongs to be in front of me, not behind a metal grating, not obstructed from my view by anything. I want to see the world in front of me, and there's nothing that can stop me!"

"But what does that have to do with me?!" Moonie cried, her head spinning around after such a trip.

"You? Hmm... As far as I recall, you said that you're not even sure that I am a pony, correct?" Chrysalis said, waddling towards the jar, grinning.

"Umm... But you don't look like a pony. You have insect wings, holes in your le-" Moon was interrupted by Chrysalis angrily hitting the jar, the tremor forcing the alicorn to stay silent.

"If I put some holes in your legs, will you stop being a pony, too?" She switched from her usual sly voice to an angry hiss. "I am a pony, and that's final!"

Chrysalis felt anger rising within, but a deep inhale helped her cool off. Besides, her vengeance was complete.

"Fluttershy will not help you now, Nightmare Moon. And, heh, a little advice," Chrysalis licked her lips and leaned on the jar, "don't trust adults. Ever. All they want is to shove you in a cage and keep you still. All of them. They're all the same."

"Fluttershy is not like that!" Moonie cried but a slight kick into the jar silenced her.

"They're all the same. One day you'll see that. And for now, nice to have known ya!" Chrysalis finished her speech and trotted back into the house.

Moonie scowled angrily and tried to free herself once more, but to no avail. Growling and mumbling bad things about the accursed changeling, she switching her position so that she would look outside of the jar, instead of staring at its bottom, but it wasn't wide enough for her to pull that out. Finally, she had decided to use the only remaining option she had available and use magic. Even though she had no idea what to actually do, she still tried using magic.

Maybe if she forced her way out of the jar, or somehow widen it, she would be able to get out. However, all hopes were crushed into dust when her horn spew out a couple of sparks and stopped responding.

"Oh no! Chrysalis! Chrysalis! Don't leave me! Please! It's almost dawn!" she started shrieking, trying to reach out to Chrysalis, but the changeling was far from her reach now. "No! Not the sun!"

The light changing from dim to dim-crimson made her aware of the rising sun. Moonie felt her blood turn cold and tried to curl up as much as she could, hoping that the sunlight wouldn't reach her deep inside the jar.

All she could do, trapped inside this prison of clay and sunlight, was sob bitterly and pray that somepony would come to her aid.

***

Fluttershy opened her eyes to the pleasant sight of two birds chirping their pretty songs and flying under the ceiling. Cottonwood fluff was floating in the air, probably because Fluttershy forgot to close the window in her room. The pegasus heard pleasant songs and the chatter of the insects from outside.

Getting up right now seemed like such a bad idea. She wanted to stay in her bed, wrapped up in her puffy blanket, while the songs of the birds lull her back into sweet dreams, but as big as the temptation was, she had things to do, animals to feed, little foals to take care of. So, Fluttershy flapped her wings, rising into the air, took a deep breath of sweet, warm morning air, spread her forelegs wide and greeted her room with a sweet loving imaginary hug.

She carefully made her bed, making sure there were no crinkles left and hurried downstairs, eager to share her good mood with the little villains. And also to make them breakfast.

Flapping her wings vigorously, Fluttershy swiftly flew downstairs. It felt like nothing, nothing could disturb her on this faithful bright day. She woke up so nicely, so the rest of the day should go just as nicely as well.

Avoiding collision with the walls, she landed by Sombra's camp-cot and tapped him on the cheek, to wake the sleepy foal.

"Wake up, sleepy head. Time to get up," she quietly cooed, while Sombra slowly opened his eyes and turned his head to her.

"Oh...is it morning already?" he muttered. "Can I sleep some more? Pleeeease?"

"If you want to miss breakfast, then okay." Fluttershy said, and Sombra was up in half a minute. They were starting to develop a connection, she thought. The little colt started to understand her quite nicely.

Then, Fluttershy turned to Chrysalis, who lay spread-eagled on her camp-cot, the blanket barely covering her frail body. Fluttershy felt a little ache in her bitten foreleg and cringed a little. But, at least, Chrysalis was back in her bed, and not hiding somewhere upstairs. Fluttershy had even been afraid she would run away into the woods, so it was relief to see she was here.

She wanted to wake Chrysalis up as well, but felt a little guilty for the incident that happened yesterday. After all, had Fluttershy not tried to grab the little changeling while she was so agitated, nothing would have happened. But, if she hadn't grabbed her, Chryssie might have done something stupid.

In any case, it was all in the past. The wound wasn't that serious at all. Sombra dealt with it swiftly and efficiently. Fluttershy poked Chrysalis on her belly several times before the changeling finally opened her eyes.

"Ugh... hi," Chrysalis muttered, blinking, desperately trying to drive away the sleep and dizziness that came from a disturbed slumber. "Err... whazzup?"

"It's... morning. Breakfast is... soon." Fluttershy stammered, unsure what to say. "If... you're hungry... that is..."

"Ugh... okay... thanks," Chrysalis replied. They stared at each other for a few moments and then looked away. Fluttershy tried her best not to worry, not to panic around Chryssie. What happened, had happened, there was no changing it. Finally, after a minute of consideration and awkward silence, Fluttershy decided to just forget about what happened and act as if nothing happened. That was a good solution. She would avoid a conflict with Chrysalis and wouldn't have to make her even more uncomfortable.

Finally, Fluttershy trotted to Moonie's bed, eager to wake up the little alicorn, dress her up in her fashionable clothing and come up with some fun and addicting game for all three of them to play, when she suddenly noticed that Moonie was missing. Fluttershy looked underneath the camp-cot, under the blanket, under the couch, but Nightmare was nowhere to be found.

"Sombra, did Moonie go outside?" Fluttershy asked, peeking at the drawer, where she noticed a patch of familiar clothing hanging. "But it's already sunrise. Where would she go without her clothes?"

Sombra just shrugged and so did Chrysalis. Fluttershy felt uneasy. Where would Moonie be without her clothes during the day? Did she run away? Or...was she foalnapped by evil cultists?

Fluttershy turned pale and started trotting back and forth, shivering at the images that were coming into her head. What could an evil cultist do to a poor filly? Torture her? Turn her evil? Or turn her evil while torturing her? The horror was unspeakable and unending!

Fluttershy quickly ran outside, looked to the left, to the right and then felt so lonely, so scared that she quickly lost her conscience and collapsed on the ground. The world was whirling around her like she was riding some crazy merry-go-round, and she felt sick in her stomach.

Horrible, horrible, horrible! How could she let Moonie run away? She was in her responsibility, Fluttershy was supposed to guard her, watch over her like the apple of her eye. And yet, she still lost her. Let her escape. She was such a bad, bad, bad Element of Kindness. So reckless, so irresponsible!

The Elements should have been another pony... like Cheerilee. She's pretty kind. Or Raindrops. Anypony but Fluttershy! Anypony!

Suddenly, in the fading image of her yard, she noticed a detail that just didn't belong. A small, minor detail that shouldn't have been there at all.

Why was her secret cookie stash lying in the middle of the yard?

The confusion and dizziness went away, and Fluttershy slowly got up, still reeling from side to side. Carefully and slowly she approached the jar, looking at it with care.

She held her breath for a moment, and, to her horror, heard quiet, muffled sobs from inside the jar. Those sobs she would recognize anywhere. No doubt, it was Nightmare Moon.

"Moonie! Moonie, are you in there?" Fluttershy immediately leaned towards the jar and put her ear to its rough surface. The reply she got were the same muffled sobs and a quiet 'yes'. The instant Fluttershy's suspicions were confirmed she grabbed the jar and carried it back to the house, trying to come up with a way of safely getting Moonie out of this disaster.

***

"It's all over, Moonie. Just relax, calm down," Fluttershy tried to comfort the distressed alicorn, while Nightmare Moon reached for the cup filled with hot cocoa with her trembling forelegs.

Half an hour had passed, but Fluttershy still couldn't get Moonie out of the state of shock. She’d tried everything: talking to her, shaking her, giving her belly rubs, tickling, feeding her, and now hot cocoa, but Moonie kept silent, the colour of her face, usually so dark blue, now ash pale, her eyes looking slightly shifty and muddy. Moonie almost spilt the cocoa while moving her shaking hooves to her face and Fluttershy tried her best to support her.

"You're safe now, Moonie. It's all good," she whispered, and Moonie looked at her, water gathering in her eyes and tears sparkling on her pale cheeks. Fluttershy gulped nervously and dropped another cube of sugar in the cup. "Just... relax."

"What... what happened to her?" Sombra asked, looking at the filly. Fluttershy turned to him and sighed.

"I found her in the empty cookie jar, trying her best to stay in the shadow. Had the jar been tilted even a little bit more, a little part of her body would have been exposed to the sun and... you know..." She sighed once again. "How did she get stuck inside a cookie jar? Just... how is that possible?"

"She wanted all the cookies for herself, obviously!" Chrysalis, who’d perched herself upon the couch, said. Moonie took one look at her and shrunk.

"Hmm?" Fluttershy raised an eyebrow. "You... know something about this?"

"Of course I do. I put her in that jar." Chrysalis stated matter-of-factly and dozens of shocked glances, Fluttershy's and Sombra's included, stared at her, in addition to all the animals that were inside at the time. The changeling smirked, noticing just how many eyes were staring just at her now.

"Yep. Let me tell you the whole true story of what happened this night," Chrysalis said, trotting towards Moonie, who quickly tried to back away. "The whole, ugly truth."

"So, after at least three hours of minding my own business upstairs, I started feeling sleepy. Without hesitation I went downstairs, expecting a good, healthy rest. I got in my bed, closed my eyes, and then suddenly..." Chrysalis put her hooves together. "Suddenly I heard the sounds of greedy munching and sinful satisfaction of gluttony. I decided to investigate, because it seemed strange to me that somepony would be eating at this hour. I followed the smell of murdered cookies and found Moonie, her butt sticking out of the jar. Most likely, she was eating and couldn't reach the cookies at the bottom. So, I... helped her out, because you cannot leave a dish unfinished once you start it, right?"

Chrysalis continued telling her side of the story, hiding nothing. She was completely honest, knowing well that no punishment would await her. When she was finally done talking, she wrapped Moonie's cup with her magic and levitated it to herself, taking a big sip.

"And that's how you solve this jarring mystery!" she finished, and put the cup on the table, baring her fangs at the ponies staring at her.

Fluttershy stood up on her hooves and looked at Chrysalis. Her cheeks turned crimson, her body shook and her eyes focused solely on Chrysalis's eyes.

"I can put up with many things,” she began her voice devoid of any emotion. “I can put up with you lying to me right in the face. I can put up with you causing damage to my house and belongings. I can put up with you causing harm to me, disrespecting me, completely ignoring all my effort to approach and help you—"

"Err... There were attempts?" Chrysalis interjected, but Fluttershy kept on talking no matter the cynical jokes.

"—but never, never in my whole life, never in my whole existence shall I let you threaten somepony's life! Especially if that's the life of a foal!" Fluttershy finally lost it, unleashing all her frustration in the angry, loud voice. "How dare you put Moonie in danger?! Because of you, she could have gotten injured... or worse!"

"You! Have! No! Shame!" She finished her angry speech in a loud scream, glaring at Chrysalis with fury in her little kind eyeballs.

The changeling looked quite shocked, her eye and left ear twitching from shock. Fluttershy took a deep breath and looked around. All the animals were gone, scared of her wrath, Moonie seemed to have reassumed her normal colour, and Sombra had disappeared, only the tip of his horn visible from under the couch.

"I admit: I've made too many mistakes ever since you arrived here. I ignored everything you did, thought you were just adapting to your new environment. But I was wrong. You are just a cruel child!" Fluttershy said in a firm, serious voice. "I admit: I am a horrible caretaker, and there's nothing more I can do."

Those words sounded like proclamation of her defeat, and Chrysalis slowly recovered from her shock, realizing that she had finally accomplished what she planned for so long.

"There's nothing more... but one thing!" Fluttershy exclaimed, looking at Chrysalis. She returned the glace, her eyes filled with resolve.

"Go ahead! Do your worst!" she taunted Fluttershy, grinning. Finally, she’d forced Fluttershy to drop the facade of a kind, loving pony and reveal who she was in reality: just another adult, hungry for control over the youth. And what was the best way to ensure control over the little ponies than...

"I'm taking you to Applejack's farm." Fluttershy declared.

"I- I beg your pardon?" Chrysalis's jaw dropped. She honestly did not expect that turn of events. "Taking me... where?"

"Applejack's farm. Since I'm no good at keeping you in line, maybe my friend can help me," Fluttershy said, her face finally turning kind again.

"She'll take good care of you, but will also discipline you, unlike me," she finished her speech. "Now, follow me. It’s a long walk between my house and hers."

Chrysalis followed Fluttershy angrily, and they both stopped in front of the door. The pegasus looked at her as if expecting something.

"What?!" Chrysalis asked. Fluttershy raised an eyebrow.

"You can disguise yourself, right? Assume the forms of other ponies?" She tilted her head. "You can't really walk around like that..."

Chrysalis gritted her teeth and turned away. "Yes, I can. But I’m not gonna." Her cheeks bloomed with colour as she spoke. Fluttershy tapped her chin, trying to connect the clues together.

"I guess you're too young," she murmured, and Chrysalis blushed even more. A quiet snicker reached the changeling's ears, coming from the recently restored-to-full-sanity alicorn. "But no worries. I've got just the solution."

Soon, Chrysalis was dressed in your typical 'clothing-for-a-pony-who-doesn't-want-to-be-recognized', complete with a fake nose, sunglasses and a trench coat that covered her entire body and legs. Fluttershy opened the door and went outside, expecting Chrysalis to follow her.

The changeling turned around and looked at Sombra and Moonie. She squinted her eyes and bared her teeth in expression of anger and fury.

"I'll be back soon. And you," she pointed at Moonie, "better be ready for me. Because when I return, there will be no mercy."

***

"Is it always so crowded in the plaza at this time of day?" Chrysalis asked, leaning over Fluttershy, who desperately wanted to obstruct her view of Ponyville. "Wow, that's a lot of ponies. Are they all just as annoying as you?"

"Umm... no." Fluttershy thought if she was annoying. Nopony seemed to call her annoying. But maybe they didn't say so to spare her feelings. Was she really annoying or was Chrysalis playing with her mind again?

"You... you think I'm annoying?"

"You wouldn't be annoying if you just get your tail out of the way!" Chrysalis grumbled, grabbing Fluttershy's tail and biting it. "Grrr! Nrrrghr! How do you like that, hmm?! I'm Sombra now!"

"Chrysalis, you should stop! We could be spotted," Fluttershy warned, trying to wrestle her tail from the angered changeling.

"Good morning, Fluttershy!" A pegasus flew by, waving her hoof at her. Fluttershy jumped in place, turned to Chrysalis and, before she could say anything, hugged her tightly, whispering "Stay still!" into the changeling's ear.

"Good morning, Cloud Kicker!" She smiled, her cheeks turning crimson and her heart pounding like the Friendship Express’ engine during peak hour.

"Oh, what do you have there?" Cloud Kicker landed in front of her and looked at Chrysalis, who displayed a retarded smile and stood completely still. She’d even stopped breathing.

"It's a plushie!" Fluttershy blurted out, her teeth chattering and sweat running down her brow.

"Oh... I've never seen this plushie before! What line is it?" Cloud Kicker hummed, touching Chryssie's exposed cheek. "Wow, whatever line that is, it's awesome! Feels like she's alive."

"Umm... It's the line... err... Don't-Want-To-Be-Recognized-Pony... You know, with fake nose and glasses... and stuff..." Fluttershy muttered and suddenly felt Chrysalis's chest trembling. It looked like the little changeling was about to move, or, even worse, scream. Without a thought, Fluttershy hugged her even tighter, squeezing the air out of her lungs.

"Oh... I've never heard of that line of toys. But still, it looks awesome!" Cloud Kicker exclaimed and tapped on the tip of Chrysalis's horn. "Oh, pointy. Foals might hurt themselves."

"Thanks... I guess... I really have to go now, bye!" Fluttershy cut Cloud Kicker short and hurried towards Applejack's farm, still holding Chrysalis's with her hoof.

"Fluttershy... please... let... me... go," Chrysalis uttered, slowly turning her head. "P-Please..."

"I know you want freedom, Chryssie! I know how badly you want it, but I ca—"

"Can't breathe, you numb...skull!" Chrysalis managed to pronounce and Fluttershy, once they were out of range of Cloud Kicker, let Chrysalis go. The little changeling collapsed on the ground, gasping for air like a fish outside of water.

"Yes! Yes! Air! I missed you so much, buddy!" Chrysalis yapped, filling her lungs with fresh oxygen. "Please, never leave me again! Ever!"

"S- sorry..." Fluttershy mumbled, and Chrysalis gazed at her angrily.

"Next time you need a plushie, buy a real one. Don't use me as such!" She huffed, swiped the dust off her coat and cleared her throat. "So, shall we continue our way to the place of my unfortunate and totally accidental demise?"

"Um... yes," Fluttershy said and resumed trotting towards AJ's place, Chrysalis trailing not far behind her.

"Um... Chrysalis... I hope... you're not angry with me... because... I didn't want to do this... you forced me to... I really didn't want to do this..." Fluttershy tried to resume the conversation. The guilt inside her was eating away at her and she could not not talk about it.

"Y'know, constant apologies are not making it easy. Now I feel like I'm being escorted to execution. Like, some super unicorn is going to fry me alive or something." Chrysalis sighed. "Truth, justice and the Equestrian way, after all."

Fluttershy gathered all of the courage that resided in her soul, or, more precisely, scrapped its pieces out of the corners, and knocked on the door. She waited for a moment, and then knocked again.

"Hmm, nopony's home. Probably for the best. Let's go back," Chrysalis blurted out, turning around, but Fluttershy stopped her by carefully turning her around.

"No. Applejack's home, I know that." She gulped, unsure of the truth of her statements. After a brief moment, she knocked again.

Finally, the sound of hoofsteps reached her ears and the door emitted a satisfying creak as a certain big, red pony stood before the frail pegasus.

"Oh, hello, Big Mac. Nice morning, isn't it?" Fluttershy smiled, when the huge stallion looked at her.

"Eeyup." Big Mac nodded and turned his attention to Chrysalis. Thankfully, the attire worked, and Mac didn't try to smash the little filly, instead tilting his head in confusion. Chrysalis tilted her head, just in the opposite side.

"Oh? This? This is... err... Applejack will explain. Can I talk to her now?" Fluttershy decided to get straight to the point. Big Mac hummed a bit and then replied with a positive 'e-yup', stepping out of the way to let the two pass. Measuring Chrysalis with a suspicious glance, he walked out and closed the door from the outside.

Walking quickly, Fluttershy quickly trotted to the kitchen, where she found Applejack performing her Applejack magic over an apple pie. The ingredients were flying in the air as if Applejack was a unicorn and manipulated them with simple nods of her head.

"H- hi, Applejack," Fluttershy mumbled. Applejack quickly turned around and gracefully caught the bowl with the fresh batter with her rump.

"Howdy, Flutters!" Applejack joyfully said, balancing the bowl. "Ya came at just the wrong moment. Ah was about to make an apple pie, so sorry, no treats for y’all."

"No, I'm not here for pies, I... err... it's... about... umm..." Fluttershy stumbled, took a deep breath and started her speech again. "I'm... not alone."

"Ah noticed," Applejack stated, raising an eyebrow when Chrysalis turned around, her mouth smeared in strawberry jam that Applejack had so carelessly left on the table.

"Not me!" Chrysalis exclaimed, jumping away from the bowl, now without the jam and tried to make the most innocent expression she could muster. It looked like horror crossed with nightmare fuel.

"So... Ah take it you finally made up yer mind?" Applejack hummed and Fluttershy nodded.

"I wouldn't have done this if I was absolutely sure I could handle her... Sorry, Applejack..." Fluttershy sighed, and AJ smiled, jerking her rump and sending the bowl flying into the air, before swiftly landing on the table.

"It's 'kay, ‘Shy. Ah'll handle everything from this point," she smiled. Fluttershy felt a little nervous.

"Won't your family mind? I mean... she's a changeling..." Chrysalis cringed at those words, but remained silent.

"It's okay, ‘Shy. Little changeling is going to fit right in!" Applejack exclaimed, approached Chryssie and swiped the jam off her lips. "Yummy?"

"Quite." Chrysalis replied. "Could use some more strawberry and less apples, though."

"Funny one, ain't ya?" Applejack noted and turned to Fluttershy again. "Ya can leave now. Ah'll handle your little menace."

"Th- thank you, Applejack, you're a real friend!" Fluttershy said and hugged Applejack tightly, burrowing her muzzle in her mane. "Thank you so much."

"Ya never change, sugarcube." Applejack hugged Fluttershy back.

"Ha! That's so ga—" Applejack quickly shoved her hoof into Chrysalis' mouth, muffling her speech completely.

"Oh, no-no-no. No more witty comments. Yer going according to my rulebook now."

"You have a rulebook?" Fluttershy wondered.

"It's a metaphor, hun." Applejack sighed, broke the hug and then turned to Chrysalis. "So, little troublemaker, say goodbye to Ms. Fluttershy, and I'll introduce you to the family."

"Meh. Bye." Chrysalis murmured in Fluttershy's general direction and she sighed.

"Bye, Chrysalis. I hope you'll have great time and make friends here..." Fluttershy slowly trotted to the exit, Applejack escorting her.

"Applejack, one more thing. Do not hurt her, okay?" She stopped in front of the exit and turned to Applejack. "Violence will not help. It never does."

"Don't worry, hun. Ah won't whip her... as much as Ah do Apple Bloom," Applejack snickered, but instead of a friendly giggle, she got an angry gaze. "Relax, suga'cube. Do Ah look like Ah can hurt a foal?"

Applejack opened the door and watched Flutters step outside.

"In all of mah years, Ah've never hit Apple Bloom once! Not even thought about it. So, relax and keep teaching your little villains," Applejack smiled and Fluttershy finally calmed down.

"Thank you again, Applejack... I'll go now. I hope I am not causing you any trouble by this request."

"Not at all, o'course. Have fun, sugarcube!" Applejack watched Fluttershy slowly trot away into the distance, closed the door and returned to the kitchen where Chrysalis, surprisingly, didn't eat everything that was left.

"So, little fella, yer in mah caring hooves now," AJ clapped her hooves together for emphasis. "Follow me and Ah'll introduce you to the family. Ah'm sure you'll make nicest of friends!"

"Oh I'm already ecstatic. Can't wait. Boo-hoo. Wow-wee." Chrysalis murmured in a dull voice and sighed heavily. This was going to be one long week. Or a month.

Or a day. Depending on how long Applejack could stomach her. Maybe even an hour.

Or a whole minute.

How not to be a jerk

It took Chrysalis a few moments and a poke to the side to realize that she was awake. Her eyes were shut, her body was numb and motionless, and her feelings weren’t yet functioning properly.

The rustling of the hay beneath her and the legs wrapped around her made her feel peaceful. Those were the best things to feel when waking up. Struggling with her own body, she managed to lift her eyelids, which were immediately greeted by the soft darkness of the caves. She forced some more efforts from her body and nudged the changeling who hugged her from behind a little. It was so annoying when they did that, but it helped preserve the warmth, at least.

The hay rustled softly when Chrysalis tried to lift herself up and sit down. Blinking away the dizziness, she turned her head to the ceiling and yawned. It was nigh time for breakfast: maybe she could find some delicious roaches while other ‘lings were sleeping — she would get the fattest ones!

A soft crack of wood was enough to disturb her thoughts. Blinking furiously, she slowly turned her head around, trying to find the source, but her muscles ceased to function and her heart skipped a beat when she saw something gleam in the sunlight and bite her eyes, reflected from teeth sharper than razors and bigger than stalactites.

The sound of dripping water, which she had assumed to simply be the spring somewhere above them, in her mind quickly turned into the sound of saliva; dripping from the mouth of a rabid monster. She was close, so very close! And she was hungry!

Chrysalis suddenly realized that she was the only pony in here, aside from the sleeping ‘ling. She didn’t like to eat the sleeping ones. She liked her victim to struggle for a bit. Chrysalis felt shivers throughout her whole body as the crunching of the teeth was getting closer with each passing second.

“No!” she screeched at the top of her lungs…

Chrysalis gasped for air, her heart pounding like an engine, several drops of sweat running down her brow. She looked around, scanning her surroundings for anything that would dare to threaten her, but found nothing more than a broken washbasin dripping water from its bottom. After a deep inhale she realized that, gladly, she wasn’t back home in the caves. She was in a barn, accompanied by a silently snoring filly just to her left.

Chrysalis turned to Apple Bloom and tapped the filly’s cheek. Warm, soft and just begging for a rub, like her whole body. Chrysalis took a deep breath, put both of her hooves on Bloom’s back and started stroking. Nopony would see them, nopony would tell, and this would remain her little secret for all eternity.

Chrysalis couldn’t quite grasp that she had spent the whole night being hugged by a pony. It was so… weird. She was used to groping in the caves, where it was always cold and windy. It wasn’t unusual for the changelings to gather closely to conserve warmth. But this was something different.

Besides, the fact that they were sleeping together just felt too… irky to let go. Chrysalis took a moment to question her own morals before resuming the stroking. The feeling of the fur tickling her hooves was too good to resist. Too tempting.

“Erm, Chrysalis… What’re ya doin’?” Apple Bloom’s voice reached her ears and she immediately jumped back, startled.

“I... I am not doing anything?” Chrysalis looked at Bloom with fake pride and got up, shaking her rump to get rid of the hay that was present everywhere. “I was… trying to wake you up, that’s all.”

“Well, I wasn’t complainin’!” She yawned and stretched out her body, arching her back and letting out such a loud moan Chrysalis had to cover her ears.

“You done?” she asked when Bloom closed her gaping maw and sat down.

“Yep. Let’s check on sis. She might have some work for us to do!” The earth pony filly exclaimed, jumping off the bed and making her way to the doors.

“Yeah… whatever.” Chrysalis trotted after her, ejecting her dismay orally with a current of air. “I’m so excited it’s literally pouring out of my ears.”

“Aw, don’t be like that! We’ll have fun!” Bloom smiled and tried pushing the door, but it didn’t even budge. She tried pushing it a few more times, and even gave it a strong buck, but nothing helped.

“What the hay?! We’re stuck!” Apple Bloom knocked on the door a few times, before proceeding to bang on it furiously.

“Come on now. Aren’t you excited about being stuck in a barn with a pony you’ve just spent the whole night with?” Chrysalis snickered. Bloom slowly turned to her, eyeing the changeling with utmost care.

“Ah, shoot! Ah totally forgot to tell AJ! And now we’re stuck here! Ah’m doomed.”

Realizing the grave situation they were in, Chrysalis approached the door, giggling, wrapped her hoof around the handle and pulled gently, prompting Bloom to back away as the barn door swung inwards to welcome the outside world.

“Do not worry. It’s just that this door does not swing both ways.” Chrysalis stepped outside and took a deep breath of the fresh morning air.

“Oh… Ah totally forgot ‘bout that.” Bloom looked around, taking a deep breath. “Please, AJ, don’t be mad. Please don’t be mad!”

She trotted away hastily, whispering something under her breath, while Chrysalis found a big pile of hay right by the barn entrance and put the weight of her troubles, and body, upon it.

This looked like a pretty nice place to spend the day. Soft, comfortable and a little tickly.

Chrysalis suddenly remembered yesterday’s event, and she started to feel a little… weird. Today, Applejack was bound to give them some work, and, after what happened yesterday, leaving Apple Bloom to work alone seemed kind of horribly evil.

Apple Bloom was like an open book, it was so easy to read her, and Chrysalis knew if she slacked off again, Apple Bloom would bring her cake in the evening. Again. She looked like a pony who would do that, her easily exploitable nature was like that.

Chrysalis’ emotional struggle was disturbed by Apple Bloom herself, who looked a bit happy for a pony who just got scolded, and, in addition to that, was carrying two salad sandwiches, each wrapped in a napkin, and two bottles of juice.

“That’s our breakfast, I suppose?” Chrysalis critically ogled the sandwiches, questioning their origin and the lack of apples in the recipe.

“Yep!” Bloom sat down and hoofed Chrysalis a bottle of juice and a sandwich. “There ya go.”

“Thanks” Chrysalis accepted the food. “So, what was your punishment? Six strikes with a whip? Seven? Or all fifteen?”

“What? No! She forgave me!” Bloom replied with joy. “Though, she did give us plenty o’ work to do. So we gotta get movin’.”

“Yeah… yeah, sure.” Chrysalis replied, finally surrendering to the voice that she rarely listened to - her conscience. She would do a little bit of work, just a tiny bit, to ease her thoughts and make it easier for Apple Bloom to carry on. Just to make that conscience stay quiet. And nothing more.

“Hey, don’t be such a downer!” Apple Bloom exclaimed. “Ah’ve got so much to show you!”

“Like? Apples? Trees? Oh, wait… it’s gonna be… don’t tell me…” Chrysalis held a dramatic pause. “Apple trees! Exquisite! I’ve never seen those before!”

“No-no. Ah’m going to show you that work can be fun!” Apple Bloom said, munching on her sandwich. “Ya’ll be left satisfied, one hundred percent guarantee!”

“And I take it you do not offer refunds?” Chrysalis opened the juice bottle and took a sip.

“What’s a refund?”

“Bah, forget it!” Chrysalis took another sip. “Let’s just finish our breakfast and get to work. We’ll see if your guarantee is any good.”

***

“Are you being serious? Gathering apples? Again? Is there nothing else you do on this farm?” Chrysalis groaned. “Apples are tasty, yes, but you’re really overdoing it. It’s getting old.”

“Well…” Apple Bloom hummed, picking up a small basket. “Ya did slack off most of the time. That’s why we couldn’t gather them in time.”

“Whatever.” Chrysalis rolled her eyes, looking at the ripe fruits hanging from the branches. They just begged to be eaten. Chryssie licked her lips and sighed deeply before picking up a basket and turning her attention to Apple Bloom.

Chrysalis’ jaw almost fell down when she saw Bloom juggle four apples at once. A silly smile spread across her face, the red tie in her braid and the soft blush across her cheeks made her look like a clown.

“What… are you doing?” Chrysalis blinked a few times, trying to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating. “I don’t think apples are meant for that kind of abuse.”

“Nah, don’t worry, they’ll be fine!” Bloom’s hoof flashed downwards, grabbing yet another apple and adding it into the juggling circle. She let out a giggle, before tossing one apple after another into the basket elegantly.

“Ta-daaah!”

Chrysalis clapped her hooves a few times. “Well done. You’ve just rewarded these fruits with physical and psychological trauma. Your sister must be proud of you.”

Apple Bloom burst into laughter. “Oh, silly! They’re fruits! They can’t feel a thing.”

“Wh- what? Oh, no! My childhood is ruined!” Chrysalis frowned, puffed up and tried to look sad, which made Apple Bloom laugh even harder.

“Yer so funny!” she managed to eject forcefully between fits of giggles.

“Yeah, I have that effect on ponies,” Chrysalis smiled. Apple Bloom finally calmed down, picked up three more apples and started juggling.

“On three, Ah’m tossing them to ya, and then ya try it!” she exclaimed.

“W-wait, I-I can’t juggle. Like, at all! This is certainly a bad idea. It’s the worst idea ever,” she rambled. “D-don’t. Just… don’t. It will end ba—”

“Catch!”

Chrysalis’ heart skipped a beat when the first apple got flung right at her. She staggered for a split second, then extended her hoof and caught the apple, immediately tossing upwards. This happened to the second apple, and the third one as well. Chrysalis gazed at Apple Bloom with a mix of confusion and anger, before all three apples, on their way back down, decided they were terribly in love with her jagged horn and never wanted to part with it again.

Chrysalis felt the sticky juice drip on her nose, while Bloom’s laughter echoed through the orchard.

“Yeah… that’s really funny. Splattering your juices all over my face.” Chrysalis groaned, catching a stray drop of apple juice with her tongue.

“Ah’m gonna teach ya how to juggle.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever strikes your fancy.” The changeling carefully removed all the apples from her horn and proceeded to gobble up each one. After munching on the delicious fruits, she noticed Apple Bloom doing something weird.

She quickly untied her ribbon, letting her mane loose. She shook her head, turning once a long and careful braid into a huge waterfall of hair. Chrysalis took a glance at her own mane, and then back at Bloom’s flowing beautiful goodness and felt jealousy almost choking her.

What was her measly green mane compared to that ocean of red color? One could bathe in Bloom’s hair while Chryssie’s mane would be just a puddle after a storm.

Chrysalis sighed heavily, deciding instead to turn her attention to what Apple Bloom was doing: she found the thinnest tree and carefully attached the basket to it, using the bow tie.

“Err, if you don’t mind me asking: what are you doing this for?”

“It’s a game. Ah call it Basketapple!” Bloom finished the construction and admired it for a bit. “The goal of the game is to throw the apples into the basket from as far as possible. Whoever manages to get the most apples wins!”

“This sounds stupid and childish.” Chrysalis rolled her eyes, almost yawning at such idea. Throwing apples in a basket, what could be more boring? Maybe just collecting them.

“It’s not stupid! It’s fun and addicting! Come on, let’s try it!” Apple Bloom felt mildly offended, but quickly cast those feelings aside in favor of forging new relationships. She picked up an apple and hoofed it to Chrysalis. “Y’go first!”

With an irritated grunt, Chrysalis accepted the apple and prepared to toss it into the basket. There was nothing else to do, she might as well play along.

The fruit rolled several times in its flight and landed firmly inside the basket. Chrysalis needed a full second to realize that she had actually hit the mark. Apple Bloom’s applause irked her at first, but the feeling evaporated when she saw the sincerity in her eyes; it filled her with pride and some kind of warmth. Somepony was genuinely happy for her.

It felt new...

“Well done! That was great, Chrysalis!” Apple Bloom exclaimed. “First try, and you land it!”

“Well… That’s skill, yo!” Chrysalis made a sly grin and assumed an awesome kick-flank pose. Bloom giggled in reply.

“More like beginner’s luck. Lemme show you real skill!”

***

“Ha! Yes! Yes!” Chrysalis shouted at the top of her lungs, after witnessing the apple-projectile land straight into the basket. “Chrysalis rules, Apple Bloom drools!”

“It ain’t fair! Yer cheating!” Apple Bloom crossed her forelegs on her chest and puffed up. Chrysalis let out a friendly giggle and pulled Bloom in a hug.

“Don’t be a gloomy pony, it doesn’t suit your pretty face!” She laughed, and her new friend brightened up a little, even giggled a few times. “Alright, whose turn it is now?”

The two ponies looked at each other and then at the contraption. It was almost falling apart due to the weight of apples inside of it. Bloom sighed, approached her masterpiece and gently put her head underneath the basket. Chrysalis’ horn sparkled green, untying the red ribbon and letting the basket rest on top of Bloom’s head. She carefully and gracefully carried it to the side, where at least five full baskets were sitting.

“Ahm… Ah think we ran out of baskets.” Apple Bloom scratched her head.

“Did we now? That’s a shame… But, well, we ran out of apples as well.” Chrysalis looked around at the ground, clear of apples.

“Wow, that was so fun!” Apple Bloom said, approaching Chrysalis and dropping on the ground from exhaustion. “This is the most fun Ah’ve ever had with Basketapple!”

“Can’t say I disagree.” Chrysalis replied and collapsed right by Bloom’s side. “That was some legit apple-throwing fun right there.”

Then, when there was nothing more left to say, they simply stared into the sky. It was surprisingly empty.

“Chrysalis, can Ah ask you a question?” Apple Bloom turned over, giggling as the grass tickled her belly.

“Shoot.”

“Why do y’all changelings need love? Like, do you eat it? And how exactly would ya eat love? Can ya make pies out of love?” Apple Bloom bombarded Chrysalis with questions, pausing only to wonder: “Pie made out of love? What does that taste like?”

“That’s such a silly question, no offense. That’s like asking: why do you need to drink? Or why do you need to eat? It’s natural for us, just like breathing or se—” Chrysalis’ speech was interrupted by a loud yawn. “Sheesh, all these games sure are tiring.”

“Oh, Ah get it now. Thanks for explaining.” Bloom replied. “But how do ya eat love?”

“I- I’d rather not talk about that. My Moth- I mean, the Queen of the hive would just put me in a cocoon, in which I am to sleep, and when I wake up, I’m all fed.”

“Wow… cocoons… What is it like to be in a cocoon?”

“It’s wet. It’s dark. And it’s really tight. Anything else you wanted to know?”

“Nah… Ah guess cocoons aren’t that cool.” Bloom got up and looked at the baskets full of apples. “Maybe we should carry ‘em back home, aye?”

“Most likely. Let’s get to it, then.” Chrysalis clapped her hooves before getting up and flexing her muscles.

Several minutes later, the duo had managed to divide the baskets between each other: three for Chrysalis, who carried one with her magic and the other two on her back, and three for Apple Bloom, who carried everything on her back.

“So many apples! AJ’s gonna give us some extra cake for this!” Apple Bloom said with excitement. Chrysalis looked around, doubting her words. It looked like soon would come the time to find out the truth: whether her earth pony friend was right, or delusional.

Chrysalis hoped for the former, before suddenly, she noticed that which shattered her hope in such a possibility completely: a pony, whom everypony here called Big Mac, carrying two baskets full of apples… while also dragging a big barrow filled with such baskets. Her jaw hit the floor.

So many apples… Too many, compared to what they had managed to gather. Something had to be done, else this big one would get all the cake with extra icing made of their tears on top.

“Psst, Bloom!” Chrysalis carefully put the baskets on the ground and nudged Apple Bloom to attract her attention. “Look over there!”

“Oh, hi, Big Mac!” Apple Bloom waved her hoof at Mac, smiling.

“Mornin’, sis!” Big Mac replied and continued on his merry way. Chrysalis squinted her eyes and moved very close to Bloom’s ear.

“Can you see all these apples? There’s no way we can top that!” she whispered.

“Yep. It’s Big Mac, alright. Ah’m not surprised.”

“Then, you’re probably aware that if Applejack sees all of that, we won’t get any cake whatsoever!” Apple Bloom tilted her head and looked at her companion.

“Where did ya get that idea? Why would AJ leave us without dinner?”

“That’s how it works, dummy. You’ve got to be the best of all to get your share of food… else you don’t get anything. Not zilch. No nothing,” Chrysalis licked her fangs. “So, here’s my idea: you distract him, while I tow away that barrow. Then, we can claim all the apples and all the cake for ourselves!”

Apple Bloom shook her head in denial. “Nu-uh. We’re not going to steal. There’s no reason to! Where’d ya get the idea that the best gets everything? They might get more, yeah, but we’ll not be left without dinner.”

She turned around, sat down, letting the baskets gently slide down on the ground. “We all work towards one common goal here. Every effort matters, and every effort will be rewarded.”

“You mean… One does not have to be perfect to be part of the family? You… don’t separate the weak from the strong?” Chrysalis’ eyes widened and her left eye started to twitch.

“Nu-uh! Nopony does that at all! Instead, the strong help the weak if they need help. That’s what makes us all a family!”

Chrysalis couldn’t believe her ears. Was that dogma that she had lived by for the entirety of her life nothing but an idea, adapted only by the changelings? Did she mean it wasn’t how life worked? Was there another way?

Chrysalis shivered a bit, as if a cold wind suddenly touched her skin. This entire get-along with Apple Bloom had got her much more than an ally in this cruel world. This little earth pony with crimson mane was shattering her perception of the world.

“Nevermind what I said. Let’s get all this done.” Chrysalis grunted, lifted the baskets into the air and continued walking towards the house. Apple Bloom scratched her head a bit, with the question ‘what was that all about’ floating in her mind. Nevertheless, she decided to oblige Chrysalis, picked up her baskets and followed her, hoping to find out more about this strange changeling.

Not that there wasn’t a changeling that wasn’t strange, though.

***

Applejack took a deep breath and put the knife away, having finished cutting the cake. The kitchen was once again filled with the aroma of fresh bread, the warmth of the working stove and the apple juice still sparkling on her hooves. It all felt so dear.

The dinner was to begin soon, and Applejack quickly put the slices on the dishes and set them on the table. Apple Bloom, Granny, Big Mac, herself — she didn’t forget anypony. Now, to finish off the picture of a welcoming family dinner, she put some fruits in the bowl and carefully placed it in the middle of the table. Just then, the door creaked and Big Mac came in, flexing his neck.

“Oh, Mac! I guess you’re done, right?”

“E-eyup.” The big pony nodded solemnly and inhaled the delicious smell he adored so much.

“Don’t forget to wash yer hooves,” Applejack felt like that phrase would be more accurately attributed to Apple Bloom, but Big Mac responded with a positive ‘e-eyup’ and disappeared from sight for a few moments, before returning with his hooves clean.

“Mac…” Applejack suddenly turned glum. “Do ya think Chrysalis will ever learn?”

“E-eyup.” His answer made her raise an eyebrow.

“Yes? Just like that?”

“We all learn, eventually.” Big Mac replied shortly and sat down at the table, awaiting for other family members. “Yer not exactly a paragon of learnin’ yerself.”

“Ah guess yer right.”

Applejack nodded. How was Big Mac doing it? Whatever he said was simple, and yet thoughtful at the same time. A philosopher to the core.

Applejack trotted towards the exit and just at the right time, since right when she was about to open the door, she was greeted by Apple Bloom’s muzzle, accompanied by Chrysalis. The changeling quickly passed by her, strangely untalkative. Usually, she would be saying at least one quip.

“So, just like usual, Apple Bloom?” Applejack spoke in a calm, quiet voice, expecting a dissatisfied sigh from her little sister, just like usual. However, Bloom responded with a bright smile and a shake of her head.

“If it wasn’t for Chryssie, we wouldn’t have gathered so much apples! Ya wouldn’t believe how good she is at Basketapple! Ah mean, she beat me at first try!” Bloom exploded in a charade of words. “Sis, she’s really not that bad! Ya just need to get to know her a little better; she’s an awesome pony!”

“Y-yeah, right… err… go ahead inside.” Applejack felt the blush bite her cheeks. She definitely hadn’t expected that.

Apple Bloom trotted past Applejack and sat down next to Chrysalis, immediately starting a friendly chat with Big Mac. Chrysalis looked at the slices of cake, sighed deeply and closed her eyes, leaning on the table.

Applejack felt humiliated. It was just this day that she thought Chrysalis would definitely slack off, but bam — now, she seemed like a heartless demon, even to herself. Why, out of all days, did Chrysalis decided to change on this one? Why so sudden?

In any case, there was only one thing left to do. Applejack approached the table and carefully moved her own dish towards Chrysalis. At first, the little changeling looked at her with the silent question: “For real?”. Several seconds later, she turned her sight to the cake, her expression changing to the one of shock and wonder. Apple Bloom displayed a friendly smile.

“Ya deserve it!”

Big Mac looked at Applejack and grinned slyly. She turned away, gritting her teeth from infuriation, amazement and happiness.

Big Mac, the darn philosopher of the Apple family who was also a seer. Applejack felt more and more insignificant with each passing minute.

After Granny Smith arrived, the family started their feast. Applejack watched the slices slowly disappear, keeping a close eye on Chrysalis. She ate slowly, carefully, savoring every bite.

The food well deserved always tasted the best.

***

Applejack gathered the dirty dishes and dumped them into the sink. Her stomach was rumbling, but she ignored the demands of her belly. Later, once the dishes were done, she would have something tasty.

Suddenly, she felt a soft pat on the back. She quickly turned around and was faced with Apple Bloom and Chrysalis. The earth pony was holding the changeling by her side, smiling, while Chrysalis looked a little displeased.

“Come on, can’t I go have a nap now?” Chrysalis grumbled, but Apple Bloom didn’t respond, and instead spoke to Applejack.

“Sis, can Ah ask you for something?”

“Err… sure. What’s it ‘bout?”

“Can Chrysalis sleep in my room from now on?” Bloom made her most effective begging face, staring at Applejack with her huge eyes. “It’s so lonely and boring in the barn! Pleeease!”

Applejack looked at Chrysalis, who was just as shocked as she was. The changeling was staring at Apple Bloom, her mouth open slightly, and something sparkling in her eyes. Either she was fascinated by the face Bloom made or… she felt something else.

“Well… Ah see no harm in that. Seeing as she’s clearly changing for the better,” Applejack said, much to Apple Bloom’s joy. She jumped in place a few times and then hugged her big sister tightly.

“Thanks! Yer the best big sister ever!”

“Ehehe… Ah’ll bring y’all a mattress.” Applejack smiled, hugging her sister back.

“That’s… a good idea.” Chrysalis tried one of her usual quips, but didn’t manage any cynicism or wicked joy; she just mumbled. Apple Bloom backed away and ran upstairs to prepare her room for a new guest. Applejack was left alone with Chrysalis.

“Is… everything alright?” she approached the changeling who responded with a deep sigh.

“Yes… it’s alright. I just don’t feel like making fun of you…” Chrysalis blinked a few times and rubbed her eyes. “No inspiration… so to say.”

“Ah see…” An awkward pause and silence set in for a moment.

“Chrysalis…”

Chrysalis raised her head and looked at Applejack with question.

“Mah sister seems to be quite fond of ya… Ah know it’s in yer nature to betray trust an’ stuff like that…. But please… don’t do that to her, okay?”

Chrysalis looked down again, sighing heavily. Applejack felt ashamed of asking that; she felt like it offended the little changeling. But she was too worried about Bloom’s wellbeing. She couldn’t do anything about it.

“Don’t worry. I won’t,” Chrysalis said in a voice so firm and strong that Applejack did not doubt her even a second. She smiled at the changeling and put her hoof on her shoulder.

“Y’know, if yer havin’ trouble, you can talk to me…. Yer part of our family, after all…”

Another moment of awkward silence. How Applejack hated awkward silences. Anything, but awkward silences.

Finally, Chrysalis looked Applejack straight in the eyes and smiled. She didn’t say anything, just smiled your casual everyday smile… and yet Applejack felt that it was the most honest thing this little changeling had put out so far.

A simple smile. No words were necessary.

Soon, Chrysalis went upstairs to visit Bloom’s room while Applejack continued her daily routine. Though, she couldn’t stop thinking about one thing: the promise she made to Fluttershy was being accomplished, step by step, but not by her. Applejack’s stern methods only served as a background for Apple Bloom, the real hero of this drama. Her little sister had outshone her, and because of that, Applejack felt nothing but pride for her.

“Well done, Bloomie,” she whispered while scrubbing the dishes. “Well done.

Evil Has Waffles!

“I don’t understand,” Sombra’s pensive voice startled Fluttershy a little bit, “Why do ponies eat only plants?”

“No, deary, that’s not the only thing we eat. We eat honey, we drink milk. Butter, cheese - all that is made by animals.” Fluttershy bit her lip, concentrating her mind on sorting the salad leaves.

“But we don’t eat animals — why?”

The question almost made her jump. She had always considered animals her friends. She heard of ponies that practiced meat eating, and, to her, that seemed deeply barbaric. Animals were friends, not food!

“Because it’s not right!” Fluttershy replied, trying not to let her inner struggle show. Sombra was just very young; it was logical for a foal to ask questions at his age. Nothing out of the ordinary. “Animals are living beings, and hurting a living being for a selfish reason is not right.”

“But… some animals eat other animals. Does that mean they’re selfish?”

“N—” Flutters started to reply strictly, but trailed off once his argument reached her. “G-good point, Sombra… Good point.”

“So, what should we do, mommy? Can’t we eat anything?”

“Sombra, we absolutely do need to eat, and there is nothing wrong with us eating plants. But please, do keep in mind: when you pick a flower, think about its feelings.” Fluttershy wanted to get back to sorting the salad leaves, but couldn’t help picking Sombra up from her head and kissing him on the cheek. “You’re such a clever and kind foal. I’m so proud of you!”

“Thank you, mommy! Now, can I go back to being a hat?” Sombra looked at Fluttershy with all the depths of his eyes. Such depths that Fluttershy, despite her neck feeling tired after carrying Sombra on her head for half of the day, durst not refuse.

“Sure, sweetie,” she said and put him back on her head. Sombra quickly set himself up in her head and burrowed his muzzle in her pink mane. “Though, could you pause being a hat in a few moments and tell Moonie that dinner is ready?”

“I can,” Sombra replied. “What shall we have today?”

Fluttershy pointed at the bowl full of a delicious salad she prepared, making Sombra almost squeal with excitement. He jumped off her head and ran outside, eager to get Moonie to dinner. The little colt surely had a gigantic appetite.

Fluttershy dropped a few more leaves into the bowl and put it on the table, sighing with satisfaction. The two little troublemakers certainly were a challenge to handle, but she enjoyed it greatly. Moonie and Sombra playing together, running around in the yard, chasing butterflies or being chased by Angel; it all soothed her soul and mind.

“‘Tis a delight to my ears and stomach, truly!” Nightmare Moon jumped into the room, unzipping her hoodie and throwing it on the couch. “Dinner is the best thing ever concieved by pony mind!”

“Oh, Moonie, you say that every time you skip breakfast.” Fluttershy giggled at the alicorn, who pouted in reply.

“I am not fond of peanut butter jelly. ‘Tis a fact, and I beg of thee to accept it. I just do not like peanut butter jelly.”

“But it was delicious!” Sombra exclaimed, earning an angry glance from Nightmare Moon.

“It might be, but it would ruin my figure!” Moonie gasped. “Canst thou imagine what it is like to be fat?! It’s not ladylike!”

Fluttershy stiffled a giggle. Nightmare Moon and Rarity would get along so well. All Moonie was missing was a passion for fashion and they would seem like exact copies of each other. Though, what would a creature of darkness and nightmares know about fashion?

The dinner was at its peak, and Fluttershy was about to open the bottle of juice to share with the foals, when she noticed Sombra staring at the bottom of his glass sullenly.

Sombra leaned on the table and gave his glass a bit of a push as Fluttershy was pouring juice into it. He enjoyed spending time with his new mother, and Nightmare Moon, whom he considered a sister. But he really, truly felt, that for all the great moments he had so far, there should be not two observers, but three.

“I wonder how Chrysalis is doing,” Sombra suddenly spoke up, picking up his glass and looking into the liquid. “I hope she is okay.”

“Sheesh! I hope that evil bully is having the worst time of her life!” Nightmare Moon took a sip from her glass. “Ponies like her need manners beat into them instead of taught!”

“Do not worry, Sombra, Applejack is taking good care of Chrysalis.” Fluttershy said in a rather surprised tone. “Though, why are you asking? It has not been that long, only a week and a half.”

“I still miss her… She was fun.”

“Fun? Thy definition of ‘fun’ is quite nebulous, my friend. There was nothing fun in what Chrysalis was doing. That pony is an evil monster!”

“I know you’re worried about her, Sombra, but it had to be done. She put Moonie in great danger!” Fluttershy leaned closer to Sombra. “She did a very bad thing, something that nopony should ever, ever do.”

“I know… but I really miss her.” Sombra sighed heavily, taking a tiny sip of his juice.

“Bwah, ridiculous!” Nightmare Moon pouted. “There’s nothing missable about her, and yet thou still missest her. Thou art an enigma, Sombra. Thy mind is convoluted beyond belief.”

Fluttershy leaned back. Of course, Applejack kept in touch with her, reporting about every little thing that happened with Chrysalis at the farm, but she hadn’t seen the changeling ever since Fluttershy put her in AJ’s care, and so far, the news hadn’t been great.

“Sombra… would you like to see Chryssie once more?” she pondered, and the colt brightened up and started smiling.

“Oh, I would! But how?”

“Well, we can pay her a visit. Today!”

The sound of a joyfull “Yoo-hoo” and a dissatisfied, angry “No!” filled the room. The usually peaceful dinner was now completely ruined.

“Visit her? Nonsense! That is complete and utter rubbish! I am not going. No! Never! Not in a million infinities times infinity!”

“Come on, Moonie! I am sure she changed, and she would apologize to you!”

“Apologize? Chrysalis would never apologize! Her brutish nature rejects the word ‘apology’ as if it’d be toxic!”

Fluttershy was confused on what to do. This argument was very minor, and yet she had never seen the kids fight about anything. There was nopony nearby to ask for advice. She could only depend on her own decision that she had to make herself.

Being an adult was so scary.

“Children, don’t fight…” she mumbled, the two ponies turning quiet. “Moonie, you really should go see Chrysalis. Maybe... maybe she really changed.”

“No, she did not!” Moonie crossed her hooves.

“But if you don’t visit her, how can you be sure?” Sombra argued, which made Nightmare Moon look around in confusion, unable to answer such a simple question.

“Alright, I concede to you, fine.” Nightmare Moon finally surrendered. “I shall visit the prison of the angry evil pony. But if she has not changed, do not be surprised when I tell ye all ‘I told you so!’”

Fluttershy nodded in joy. “Good! So, let us finish our dinner, and then we’ll visit Chrysalis!” Nightmare Moon replied with a stiffled grunt while Sombra clapped his hooves with delight. He seemed to be very eager to see Chrysalis, despite all the trouble she had caused even to him.

Truth be told, Fluttershy didn’t know how to feel about the idea of visiting Chrysalis. Even though what Chrysalis did was horrible, she didn’t feel any anger towards her anymore, only hope that she had abandoned her terrible ways. But at the same time, beside hope, fear was resting in her mind: what if she had not changed? What if she’d gotten even worse? It was highly unlikely, but it was still possible.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and remembered all her adventures and what they’d taught her. It was okay to feel fear, but not in a single instance was she allowed to fall under its control. She would go and visit Chrysalis — of that, she was absolutely positive.

What she would see when she’d actaully arrive was another matter entirely. How she would handle that matter was also up to a debate. Panic was definitely an option. The most likely option.

***

Sweet Apple Acres. While it might not be the most beautiful side of Ponyville, it was definitely the most refreshing and energizing part. The smell of fresh apples and grass floated in the air twenty four hours a day, filling you with vigor for the whole upcoming day.

The same thing happened to Sombra, who, after feeling the new unfamiliar smell fill his nostrils, started jumping around Fluttershy, humming some playful tunes. He got so excited that, for the lack of a better mane to chew, he started chasing his own tail, eager to find out how it tasted.

Fluttershy noticed a few fat, red apples, hanging right above her head. She felt grumbling in her stomach and her gums itched a bit. She stopped for a split second to admire the apples and slowly licked her lips, several drops of her spit dripping on the grass.

No! Not again! Not anymore! she angrily berated herself in her mind, swiped away the saliva and shook her head, driving the thoughts of sinking her teeth into the apples away. After that, she took another brief moment to breathe in and continued on her way towards Applejack’s farm.

“Would this be where Chrysalis is being held captive?” Nightmare Moon asked when the Apples’ humble farmhouse appeared in her line of sight. “But… where are the guards? Where are the dragons? Where is the giant, unclimbable mountain?”

“Putting ponies in giant, unclimbable mountains is mean!” Sombra exclaimed, taking offense to the notion that Moonie wanted Chrysalis to be imprisoned in such an evil way.

“Oh, I beg thy pardon, for I was wrong. It shouldn’t be a giant, unclimbable mountain. It should be a giant, unclimbable mountain on another planet! Or in the depths of the void!” Nightmare Moon huffed, still feeling humiliated.

Fluttershy said nothing, unsure that anything that she would say right now would help change Moonie’s mind. Hopefully, Chrysalis would show just a tiny bit of decency after spending week and a half at Applejack’s.

Before Fluttershy could rap on the door, she paused for a moment. She wondered if it was a good idea to show up in front of the whole Apple family along with her little foals. She looked around at the two.

They weren’t different from normal foals at all. Fully dressed, Nightmare Moon looked no different from anypony — except the fact that she was dressed, of course. Sombra was just a normal unicorn. His curved red horn and his and Moonie’s slitted irises could be passed off as birth defects.

The more Fluttershy thought about it, the more crazy ideas she got. With proper preparations and some explanation, she could even walk around Ponyville with her little friends! Maybe even take them to school!

“Why art thou leering at us like that?” Nightmare Moon tilted her head, snapping Fluttershy out of her dreams. She quickly turned back to the door and knocked, blushing heavily. Seriously, what was wrong with her? Sending a cruel monarch, a spawn of darkness, and a queen of a species that feast on love to school — ridiculous! Stupid, stupid Fluttershy!

Applejack opened the door, and her expression quickly changed to that of happiness and excitement. She stepped out of the house and closed the door behind her.

“Ah’m so glad ya came, Fluttershy! Ah’ve got some great news fer ya—” she stopped mid-breath when she noticed Sombra waving at her.

“Hello!” He smiled at her and she was forced to return it.

“Why did ya bring them here?” she whispered into Fluttershy’s ear, waving hello at Sombra and grinning forcibly. “Ah had trouble explainin’ to mah family ‘bout one changeling, and ya bring the rest o’ the crew?”

“B-but Applejack…”

“Besides, somepony could have seen ya on the way here!”

“Nopony has seen us… I think.” Fluttershy felt a little discouraged by such a greeting and Applejack replied with a deep sigh, finally dropping that creepy smile.

“Let’s go inside. Big Mac is working right now, and Granny Smith is having her after-dinner nap. We can talk safely inside.”

***

“Woooow!” Sombra’s jaw almost fell when the whole spectre of delicious smells invaded his nose. “Can… can you feel it too?”

“Y-yes… I can.” Nightmare Moon said, licking her lips. Together, they followed the delicious trail, leading them to the closed oven.

Inside, a freshly baked cake was waiting, tempting them, calling upon them to sink their teeth into it, devour it with no mercy. They sat down on their hauches in front of the oven and just stared at the baked delight.

“Ya better take a seat, ‘Shy,” Applejack poured some juice into a glass and put it on the table, “cause otherwise you’ll fall.”

Fluttershy decided to heed her friend’s words and took a seat. Applejack poured another cup of juice and hoofed it to Fluttershy.

“Ah think Chrysalis is finally changin’... He-he-he, changin’...”

“Are you sure? What happened?” Fluttershy put the glass on the table and focused her attention entirely on Applejack.

As Applejack was telling the story, Fluttershy felt a smile creep onto her face. She simply couldn’t believe it — Apple Bloom and Chrysalis became friends! If Chrysalis was capable of making friends, that meant she wasn’t evil! It meant that the ice in her heart was finally melting! It meant that she could take her back!

“Can I talk to her? Please, let me talk to her! Oh, this is so great! I knew you could do it! I knew it!” Fluttershy clapped her hooves. “What a clever idea, to get her and Apple Bloom to be friends! You’re a genius!”

“Actually, they became friends on their own.” Applejack scratched the back of her head. “It was never part o’ the plan.”

Fluttershy’s eyes turned round, and she barely resisted squeeing as loud as possible. That was even better than expected! Not only did it mean that Chrysalis now had a friend, but it also meant that she was capable of doing so by herself!

“That’s even better! I need to talk to her, right now!” Fluttershy exclaimed. Applejack finished her drink and stood up.

“She should be in Apple Bloom’s room right now. She said she had a headache or somethin’.”

“Don’t go anywhere, kids! I’ll be back!” Fluttershy said. However, she didn’t need to worry: the baked delight was enough to hold Sombra’s and Moon’s attention till the end of eternity.

“Apple Bloom! Open the door! Fluttershy wants to visit!” Applejack proclaimed loudly, after finding out that the door was locked. Soon, the door opened slowly and Apple Bloom leaned out and put her hoof to her lips.

“Shh! Keep quiet, please. Chryss is having the mother of all headaches,” she whispered, which made Fluttershy to explode into a barrage of quiet questions.

“What happened? Is she okay? Have you checked her temperature? Ha—”

“Fine, we’ll be quiet.” Applejack interrupted Fluttershy, and Apple Bloom took a step back, letting them enter.

Chrysalis was peacefully napping in Bloom’s bed, her head resting on the pillow and her body wrapped in the blanket. On occassion, she would twitch a little and turn around, but other than that, she was motionless.

“Bloom, was she sleeping in yer bed last night?” Applejack raised an eyebrow, while Apple Bloom’s cheeks blossomed fiery red.

“N-no…” Apple Bloom crossed her hooves and looked away.

While Applejack and Apple Bloom were arguing about their family matters, Fluttershy approached the sleeping changeling and sat down by her side. She was tempted to wake her up and find out just what kinds of effects Applejack’s farm had on her, but she looked so peaceful.

Fluttershy didn’t get to ponder that long as Chrysalis woke up on her own probably because of the bickering Applejack and Apple Bloom were emitting.

“So, she did sleep in yer bed?”

“Ah never said she did… but Ah never said she didn’t either… It’s, uh, possible that she did… but that’s not the case…” Apple Bloom blushed even harder.

“Oh… Hello, Fluttershy. You’re not a hallucination or an after-dream glitch, right?” Chrysalis yawned and flexed her neck a bit.

“Good morning! Are you okay? How are you feeling? How’s your head? Do you need anything?” The endless flood of questions made the changeling roll her eyes. Chrysalis let Fluttershy express her worry for a few minutes, before she finally stopped talking.

“No, thank you. I just felt sleepy, that’s all. And—” She stopped for a moment and took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself to say something she had never said before, and hopefully, would never need to say in the future. “—I wanted to say something… face to face.”

Fluttershy turned around to see Applejack and Apple Bloom too engaged in a conversation between each other, Apple Bloom desperately trying to explain the metaphysical concept of Chrysalis sleeping and not sleeping in her bed at the same time.

“Nevermind, then.” Chrysalis chuckled, but her face turned serious seconds later. “So… I wanted to say that… I’m sorry.”

Chrysalis paused for a moment, and, when no negative reaction from Fluttershy followed, she continued her speech.

“I know I’ve been a real thorn in your behind, going as far as to hurt you, and, let’s be fair, I did everything I could to make your life a living hell. Yeah… But, I think I… might have been wrong about you. So, I’m sorry.”

Fluttershy didn’t say anything, and instead just hugged the little changeling, much to her displeasure.

“Hey, I said I’m sorry! Why are you strangling me?!”

“I’m not strangling you. It’s called a hug. It’s when two ponies…”

“I know what a hug is, just stop doing it!” However, Fluttershy kept hugging her for a few minutes. Chrysalis tried to push her away, but her hooves drowned in the sheer softness that was her fur.

Fluttershy finally backed away, smiling.

“You’re so soft…” Chrysalis paused, before blushing hard. “I mean, eww, you’re so soft! Yuck!”

“I’m so glad that you have learned your lesson. Now, we can go home all together!”

“Oh… yeah…. home. Okay, then. Just… give me a minute, and we’ll go,” Chrysalis tried to hide sadness in her voice and slowly got up. Going back to the cottage didn’t seem all that bad now, except for Nightmare Moon, who would still hate her guts, which meant even more apologizing.

Leaving Apple Bloom behind was the worst, though. Out of all ponies, she was the best one. Without her, life would get so much more grey.

Fluttershy approached Applejack from behind and tapped her shoulder, trying to distract her from arguing with Apple Bloom.

“Uh, Applejack…”

“What is it, sugarcube?”

“I wanted to thank you for your help. Without you, I don’t know what would have happened.” She blushed. “Now, I won’t trouble you any longer and take Chrysalis back.”

“What?! Why?!” Apple Bloom leaned over Applejack, her huge eyes wide open and already sad. “D’ya absolutely, one hundred percent have to?”

Chrysalis slowly approached, and sat down by Fluttershy’s side.

“Bye, Bloom. I’ll miss our totally platonic cuddles—” Chrysalis sighed heavily, while Bloom blushed even harder. “—and applebasket as well.”

Fluttershy and Applejack looked each other in the eyes and nodded.

“I think it would be alright if Chrysalis could come here from time to time. I hope you’re okay with that, Applejack.”

“O’course Ah’m okay with that. We shouldn’t stop a blooming friendship.” Applejack said, prompting Apple Bloom to hang on her neck like a tie, muttering ‘Thank you!’ after ‘Thank you!’ in rapid succession.

Chrysalis expressed no such feelings, but Fluttershy still could tell that she was incredibely grateful by the smile she gave to her. Though, to be honest, Chrysalis’ fangs made the smile look a little creepy — like she was staring at her future dinner.

“Come on, Chryssie. Somepony downstairs is waiting for you.” Fluttershy said, unsure if calling Chrysalis ‘Chryssie’ would entice her to smother her in her sleep. Hopefully, all issues between them were settled, and they had no hard feelings against each other anymore. Fluttershy certainly didn’t.

But there was still a problem. A big problem.

***

“This is unacceptable! Inconcievable!” Nightmare Moon swiped away the remains of the drool from her lips and continued complaining. “No! No, no and no!”

“Chryssie!” Sombra sung and tackled Chrysalis, grabbing her in a tight hug, squeezing her so hard she uttered a squeak. “I’m so glad to see you’re okay!”

“I… I think I can hear my ribs cracking…” Chrysalis coughed a bit before Sombra finally let go of her. “Glad to see you too. And you as well, Moonbutt.”

“If thou call me Moonbutt once more, I shall smite thee on the cheek with the back of my right hoof!” Moon huffen and turned away.

Fluttershy sighed heavily, and looked at the small puddle of drool Moonie and Sombra had left near the oven, having stared at that cake for over ten minutes straight. Perhaps she should ask Applejack to give her that cake; maybe it would soothen Nightmare’s anger.

“Listen, Moon, I’m not in the mood for witty remarks right now, okay?” Chrysalis gently pushed Sombra away from herself, who was far too eager to lick her face. “Maybe later.”

“Remarks?! Oh, I shall show thee remarks, thou evil savage! Umm… Err…” Moonie paused for a moment to come up with something truly creative. Eventually, her eyes brightened up, and she even stuck the tip of her tongue, meaning she came up with something truly outrageous.

“Moon, seriously, I don’t—” Chrysalis barely opened her mouth when her speech was completely overtaken by Moon’s royal pronounciation.

“I wish not to talk to thee anymore, thou empty headed animal! I blow dust off my coat in thy general direction. Thy countenance is uglier than a thousand nightmares that fought in a ferocious battle to determine who is the ugliest of them all, and your mother was a cabbage!” To top off her incredibly mature and offensive insult, she slammed her tiny hoof into the ground and turned away from Chrysalis, showing her scorn, anger and indignance in one simply gesture. “Now, go back to your apple-sugared prison, or I shall taunt a second time!”

Sombra silently put his hoof to his lips, shocked by the sheer amount of imagination and anger Nightmare Moon put into that insult. He slowly shifted his eyes to Chrysalis, to see if she would react poorly. He was ready to jump between her and Moonie, to prevent a fight. He was ready to do anything to make them stop hating each other.

“Mhmm.” Chrysalis replied and slowly trotted to the exit. Nightmare’s jaw almost dropped. How? She just put out the worst insult of all, and Chrysalis didn’t even blink!

“I… umm… We’ll talk about this at home.” Fluttershy decided to deal with this issue as soon as they would arrive home. “Let’s go, children. We’re going home.”

Nightmare Moon followed Chrysalis to the door, and so did Fluttershy, but Sombra stayed behind for a moment. Besides Applejack, he noticed a shifty figure hiding near her. Soon, the figure came out of the shadows and he saw a small pony, as small as him, Chrysalis and Moonie, but much different.

Sombra felt intrigued by this new filly, so he quickly trotted towards her and sat down on his hauches near her. She carefully shifted her sight at him and their eyes met.

“Err… hi,” she said in a rather confused voice. Sombra didn’t say anything and only tilted his head, his glance drilling deep into her psyche.

“Hi… umm…. what’s yer name?” Apple Bloom asked, and finally, Sombra showed signs of life: he carefully extended his hoof forward and touched her bowtie several times.

“Who are you,” he said clearly, “and why are you in this pony’s mane?”

“Ehm, that’s mah bow tie… and it doesn’t talk, sadly.” She carefully fixed it back in its usual position.

“Oh… I see…” Sombra put his hoof back on the floor and looked at Apple Bloom. A short but awkward pause followed.

“Sombra! Come on, hurry up!” Fluttershy called upon the foal, and he obeyed, but before going, he smiled gently at Bloom.

“Goodbye. I hope I’ll see you again, bow tie pony.” He quickly trotted away, chasing after Fluttershy and the others.

“Ehm, bye…” Apple Bloom tapped her chin. “Wait… Sombra?”

Immediately upon saying those words, she looked at Applejack, who was doing the same contrariwise. An awkward silence claimed dominion in the house of the Apples.

“It’s a long story.” Applejack finally spoke up. “Ah’ll tell ya after dinner.”

***

Oh, home sweet home. You could walk a thousand miles, see the most beautiful places in Equestria, and yet, nothing could replace the feeling of homecoming.

Fluttershy pondered quite often why she felt this way every time she came back home, even if she was absent for only a short amount of time. It might seem like a small thing, but feeling like you had been absent for a millenia after coming back from a shop felt beyond embarassing.

Chrysalis sat down in the centre of the room, looked around and yawned loudly. Several birds who were peeping through the windows lost all colour and barely escaped when they saw her monstrous maw which looked a bit like a huge abysm with teeth.

“Fine, fine! I may allow thee to sleep in the same universe as I am, but thou shalt sleep far away from me, In the basement, most likely.” Moonie, who refused to settle down no matter what Fluttershy said to her, approached Chrysalis and looked at her with scorn.

“Whatever, rapper-master. As long as I get to sleep now, I’m fine even with a relatively soft filly.” Chrysalis yawned once more. Nightmare Moon looked at her with her eyes as round as saucers. It wasn’t the fact that Chrysalis was going to sleep with some ‘filly’, no. Moon knew exactly what Chryssie preffered as an appetizer. It was the strange word she called her.

“A… rapper? Excuse me, but nopony had insulted me in such a strange manner before! I don’t produce rapping noises!”

“It’s not an insult, you dummy… What, you don’t know what a rapper is?” Moonie shook her head. “Seriously? Urgh, fine. Let me show you how it’s done.”

Chrysalis slid closer to Moonie, grabbed her by the forelegs and crossed them together.

“That’s your main stance. You’re gonna be assuming this position most of the time. Now, the rap.” She then started moving Moonie’s hooves up and down, while singing with a strange fake accent.

“Go go go go go go go Moonie, it's yo’ birthday.

We gon' party like it's yo’ birthday.

We gon’ sip Bacardi like it’s yo’ birthday...” She closed her eyes, dancing to the beat of the music that was playing in her head.

“B-but it’s not my birthday today… and what’s a ‘Bacardi’?”

“Silence, Moon, don’t kill the beat! Hum-hum…” Chrysalis mumbled some words before resuming.

“My flow, my show brought me the dough.

That bought me all my fancy things.” She obviously was skipping most of the verse, since her memory was failing and she couldn’t remember the words of that funky song she heard once.

“W-what dough? What say’st thou? Which fancy things?” Moonie kept pestering Chrysalis, and finally, she gave up.

“Argh, I’m done! You killed the beat. You ruined it! No cookies for you!” She threw her hooves into the air and left Moonie alone. “You’re the worst rapper in the world, Moon.”

Nightmare Moon stayed silent, watching quietly as Chrysalis limped towards the couch. Sombra approached her, sat down beside her and smiled.

“Dough is what cookies are made of! Which means, fancy things are cakes!” he exclaimed. “It’s easy!”

“B-but what’s a rapper?” This question made Sombra hum for a moment, before his mouth widened in a smile.

“If it has somethign to do with dough, and fancy stuff, which is cookies, that means a rapper is a baker!” he concluded, solving the mystery of the century. Nightmare Moon tapped her chin, connecting all the little details together, and deduced that Sombra was actually correct.

Fluttershy, however, was not exactly fazed by the notion that Chrysalis knew what rap was, even though she herself didn’t. She was far more concerned with Chrysalis’ wellbeing - the way she spoke and the way she limped the whole way made her worry greatly. But first things first.

“Kids, I think it would be a good idea if you went outside and played a little.” She approached the two foals. Nightmare Moon immediately nodded to that remark, while Sombra didn’t look too enthusiastic.

“Chryssie is very tired, she needs to rest.” Fluttershy wrapped her hoof around Sombra and pulled him closer. “Come on, dear.”

Sombra wanted to protest, but Fluttershy’s gentle smile and big eyes were able to break even his childish rebel spirit. He nodded several times, and then followed Nightmare Moon outside.

Fluttershy carefully approached the couch, where Chrysalis had nested, and leaned over it. The little changeling was already curling in a ball on the pillow, and it seemed incredibly evil to disturb her, but Fluttershy felt that she had to do it.

“Chrysalis, are you feeling well?” Chryssie twitched a little before turning her face to Fluttershy and opening her eyes.

“No, I’m just tired,” she mumbled, while Fluttershy felt her wings shiver at the sigh of Chrysalis’ eyes. They looked swollen and red, like she hadn’t slept for countless days. Maybe she had insomnia at Applejack’s farm… or maybe…

“Chryssie, Applejack didn’t do anything bad to you, did she?” Fluttershy walked around the couch and climbed it, sitting down near Chrysalis. “Like, wake you up at late night to work?”

“Wha- No, no, she did nothing like that,” she yawned loudly, before continuing. “Relax, your pretty, yellow head, I’m perfectly fine. Just give me a moment to catch some z’s, and it should do it.”

Fluttershy nodded nervously. Maybe she really worried too much, and Chrysalis was perfectly fine, but her inner voice was telling her that something was off… very off.

“Do you want a blanket? I could get you one. A pink, puffy one if you want.”

“Mhmm, if only you could get me a filly pillow, then that would be totally rad,” Chrysalis burrowed her muzzle in the softness of the couch pillow and tried to fall asleep. For a moment, she even felt her mind drifting in the viscous weightlessness of the dream, but then got rudely pulled back into the land of the sleepless. The sounds of hoofsteps irritated her enough for her to open her eyes.

“What in the—” Her sentence was over, never to be accomplished, as the sight of Fluttershy holding a rather heavy plushie. The plushie looked like a pony, an alicorn, rather, with white coat and mane that reminded Chrysalis of sherbet. But the most interesting thing about it was the cutie mark on its behind: a sun.

“Umm… I don’t have a filly pillow, but I have this plushie. Will it do?” Fluttershy blushed as if she had just shared some naughty secret.

“Oh… this one will do… Who is it?”

“It’s Celestia. She’s the princess of the sun…” Fluttershy stuttered a bit, wondering if she should tell Chrysalis about Celestia.

“Looks kind of like Nightmare Moon. Hmm… Is she, like, anti-Nightmare Moon?”

“Umm… yes?” That question confused Fluttershy even more, but her uncertainty didn’t seem to have any effect on Chrysalis.

“In that case, I love her already. Gimme that!” she said, and Fluttershy carefully hoofed Celestia over to her. Chrysalis placed the plushie underneath her head and nuzzled the soft belly with her cheek.

“Mmm, comfy!” she exclaimed, grabbing the plushie tighter and burrowing her face in its fur.

Fluttershy watched as Chrysalis cuddled the plushie some more and then finally fell asleep. Part of her — the most childish and silly part — was a bit sore about giving Chrysalis her most treasured toy.

This big, fluffy Celestia plushie was her most loyal cuddle buddy: her father had bought it for her at a fair one day, and each night, whenever her parents had to leave for some reason, Fluttershy would grab Celestia, or Celly, as she used to call her, and hug her very, very tightly. She could feel the living warmth coming from this inanimate object, and quiet inspirational words being whispered into her young ears from Celly’s mouth. She had passed her exams after consulting with this plushie, and now, her Celly was being held by little Chrysalis.

Fluttershy drived away the jelousy and childish anger with ease, for a much more pleasing feeling replaced it: she felt glad, glad that her old toy was now dear to somepony else.

Fluttershy carefully leaned closer to Chrysalis and planted a small, swift kiss on her forehead. The weird feeling of lips touching chitinous skin made her shudder, but before she could even compare it to anything else…

“Sorry for ruining your moment, but could you please stop salivating all over my forehead?” Fluttershy quickly backed away, her cheeks aflame, realizing that she’d kissed her a bit too sloppily. “Thanks.”

Fluttershy sighed and gave Chrysalis a goodnight pat on the head. She still didn’t know whether she was ill or not. It would probably be wise to grab a thermometer and some medicine, and then get to it when she woke up, but Fluttershy still had so much to do.

But, the needs of the little ponies were most important, so she ran upstairs to get her first aid kit.

She only had to make a single step towards Chrysalis when somepony knocked on the door. Fluttershy put the medkit away and immediately felt shivers running down her spine. What if it was Rainbow? Or Rarity? Or, Celestia almighty, Pinkie? There were dozens of situations where it could go wrong. Reluctanctly, she approached the door and took a carefuly peep outside.

“It’s me, Fluttershy, don’t worry.” Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief at the sound of Twilight’s voice. She took a step back and let her inside.

“I’ve got plenty of news… Mostly bad news…. Ah, let’s not kid ourselves — I’ve got a whole array of horrible news,” Twilight grumbled after Fluttershy closed the door behind her. “The world is coming to an end. It’s the apocalypse. It’s Ragnarök!”

“Please, Twilight, calm down,” Fluttershy felt startled by her friend’s negative attitude, and how much more negative it would become if she told her that now more than two ponies knew about the existence of the villains. It was this moment when Fluttershy thought that asking Applejack for help might have been the wrong choice.

“I can’t calm down! I can’t! Not after this!” Twilight grit her teeth and growled silently, before finally letting go of her anger. She sighed heavily and leaned on the wall.

“I’m not going to sugarcoat it — things are pretty grim. After all calculations and research, I managed to figure out what a counterspell would need to do.” Twilight paused for a moment and then trotted to kitchen. “Fluttershy, do you mind if I have some water?”

“Oh, Twilight, I’ll make you some tea instead!” Fluttershy exclaimed and got to work, while Twiligth sat down at the table.

“I don’t know how to say it… so I’ll be blunt: it’s going to take months until I figure out how to reverse everything… maybe even longer!” Twilight took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “I’m sorry, Fluttershy, but I’m afraid they’ll have to live at your place for… quite a while.”

Fluttershy swallowed nervously upon hearing those words. She didn’t know why, but she felt both saddened and happy at the same time. Why was she sad? Why was she happy? She couldn’t tell. And it was scaring her.

“Quite a-a while? How long would t-that be?” She felt a shiver run down her spine and she almost dropped her cup full of tea.

“I can’t say,” Twilight rubbed her temples. “But it’ll be a long time before it is ready… I hope they’re not causing you much trouble. If anything, I always have my magical cage ready.”

“No, no, no need for that!” Fluttershy put the cup on the table and Twilight gently grabbed it with her magic, uttered a quiet ‘thanks’ and took a sip. “I’m doing quite well… They’re not that bad.”

“Thank Celestia. At least somewhere it’s going good.” Twilight took another sip, and then got up, holding the cup aloft with her magic. “If there’s anything wrong, ask me. I’ll provide you with everything necessary.”

While passing by the couch, she noticed Chrysalis, who was fast asleep, her muzzle buried in the plushie’s bright mane. Twilight froze in place, staring at Chrysalis with a shade of shock on her face.

“For a moment I thought it was real Celestia,” Twilight sighed with relief. “She’ll banish me to the sun if she’d find out.”

“B-but… the sun would burn you…”

“That’s the general idea.” Twilight approached Chrysalis and hummed. “She looks… strangely calm.”

“I think she’s ill… She’s been very inactive lately… and went to bed early, as you can see.” Fluttershy approached the couch and looked at Chrysalis. “I’m a bit worried.”

“Yeah, we can’t have them go ill. There’s no telling what will happen to the universe and the world itself if something bad happens to them.” Fluttershy felt a bit terrified at how cold Twilight sounded.

Chrysalis twitched a little when Twilight touched her side. “P-please, don’t wake her up…” Fluttershy murmured, but Twilight paid no attention to her mumbles and held Chrysalis still with one hoof, while carefully opening her mouth with another.

“W-what are you doing?” Fluttershy turned pale and was about to gently push Twilight away from Chrysalis, when the inevitable happened, and the little changeling woke up.

“Gugh… wha… waaah…” Chrysalis opened her swollen eyes and stared at Twilight. “Bad touch. Bad touch!”

“Stay still, I need to examine you! It’ll only take a minute.” Twilight grumbled, but Chrysalis continued to resist, swinging her hooves at her slowly and weakly.

“‘Shy, help me out here! Just keep her still for a few moments!” Fluttershy quickly approached Chrysalis and started stroking her head, hushing quietly at her. Then, she started humming a relaxing song, and Chrysalis ceased her resistance as if the song had hypnotized her.

Twilight inspected Chrysalis’ body, mostly concentrating on her eyes and mouth, murmuring some sciency stuff while Fluttershy kept the changeling docile. Her horn sparkled brightly, as the cup of tea landed on the table, so she could focus all her attention on Chrysalis.

“Tee-hee-hee… it tickles,” she babbled when Twilight started pressing on her belly. “He-he…”

Fluttershy took her hooves off Chrysalis’ head, and, after making sure she wasn’t fighting back anymore, simply observed the procedure. Her heart was beating faster and faster with every sigh Twilight let out. Eventually, she just started shivering as all kinds of bad thoughts entered her head, like they usually did. All kinds of what if’s crawled into her head and bothered her.

Fluttershy jumped when she heard the door creak. Twilight shivered a little, but the expression of worry was replaced with that of relief when she saw Sombra and Moonie standing at the doorstep.

“There you are! I was wondering if you’d ran away!” Twilight stated. Sombra blushed a little when he saw her.

“H-hi…” He blushed even harder when Twilight didn’t reply.

“What art thou doing with Chrysalis if I may ask?” Moonie stepped forth and asked. Twilight turned to her and barely managed to stiffle a chuckle before her face turned serious.

“Fluttershy, why is she wearing that?” Fluttershy blushed heavily and rubbed the back of her head.

“Well… you see…”

“Moonie couldn’t play outside because the sun hurt her! So Fluttershy brought these clothes, so she could play!” Sombra interrupted Fluttershy, jumping in place from joy.

“I… see… Well, I don’t think it will do any harm. As long as they stay out of sight.” Twilight shrugged, before stiffling another giggle. “Though, why you thought a rapper costume is a good idea is beyond me.”

Nightmare Moon sighed heavily and trotted inside after closing the door behind her, muttering something about rappers and meanings. Sombra followed her, and when he noticed what Twilight was doing, immediately slipped close to her.

“Mommy, what is she doing? Is Chryssie alright?” He looked up at Fluttershy, whose face almost burned at his words.

“Err, erm, of course, S-Sombra…”

“Mommy? He calls you mommy?” Twilight’s eye started twitching and her hooves shaking.

“Yes! My mommy’s the best!” Sombra sung, and was about to sing more praise to Fluttershy before she shoved a hoof into his mouth.

“I’ll explain later! Please, tell me, what’s wrong with Chryssie.” She smiled awkwardly, hoping that Twilight would forget about this incident shortly, that the amount of information in her brain would push out this little slip up and make her forget.

Which was unlikely.

“Hmm...” Twilight murmured, rubbing her chin and remembering dozens of pages read and written on the subject of changeling anatomy. So many theories had been proven and refuted after the changeling invasion, and it was time to put them to good use. “Judging from what I learned about changelings, this state is not uncommon for them. It’s not an illness, for sure…”

“What is it, then?” Fluttershy shivered a little, knowing that the knowledge would scare her.

“She’s not sick - she’s hungry. As you are well aware, changelings eat love — and in this state, she hungers for that.”

“Oh… But how do we feed her?” Fluttershy felt a little relieved. After all, simply hunger was better than sickness.

“I… don’t know.” Twilight rubbed the back of her head. “I’ve read a lot of literature on changelings, but none of them described how they eat love.”

Fluttershy looked at Twilight and then at Chrysalis. She felt her legs getting weaker, and then she fell on her rump, her eyes filled with water. She couldn’t believe it was happening.

“Mom!” Sombra shouted and dashed to his beloved mommy. “Why are you crying? What’s wrong?”

“Fluttershy, no need to worry!” Twilight’s cheeks turned pale. “I’ll check through the records, I’ll find a way! Just please, don’t cry!”

“B-b-but… she’s… she’s going to…” The room turned silent when Fluttershy grabbed her own tail and started weeping into it, constantly muttering something.

Twilight felt a soft bump to the side and noticed Nightmare Moon who was looking at her with worried eyes.

“Thou canst soothe her, right? Sombra does not like when she is sad. It makes him sad too.”

“I, uhh… I think I can. Just give me a moment.” Twilight replied and took a deep breath. She had been in this situations before. Fluttershy had assumed the worst possible outcome before. Twilight could handle it.

Treading carefully and slowly, Twilight gently wrapped her wings around Fluttershy and caressed her wet cheeks. “Don’t be so negative, Fluttershy! I’ll figure out a way, it’ll all be fine. Just please, don’t give up so soon.”

“B-but… without love she’s going to…” Fluttershy tried to mutter but Twilight quickly covered her mouth.

“No. She won’t. I will find a way. Pinkie promise.” At last, Fluttershy stopped sobbing and sighed deeply. Twilight backed away from her, and couldn’t help but turn away — the sight of Fluttershy in tears was enough to make anypony’s heart ache.

“Here, mommy!” Sombra, who disappeared just minutes ago, popped up, holding a handkerchief.

“T-thank you, d-dear.” Twilight barely opened her mouth to ask about Sombra, when her inner self told her not to. After a short pondering, she figured out this was the worst moment to ask such questions. Maybe later, when everything had settled down.

“Keep her in bed and watch over her.” Twilight regained her composure and dashed towards the exit door. “Feed her with soup, or anything liquid. Do not apply any medicine, and do not try to reduce the temperature without me or it might get worse. I’ll report back to you as soon as I have anything!”

Twilight was about to leave the cottage when a tiny unicorn popped up in front of her and stopped her advancement. She lowered her head and looked at Sombra, who was staring back with pleading eyes.

Something was very eerie about seeing the eyes that used to glare at you with pure anger now sparkle with water in them, filled with sadness.

“Miss Twilight, I know you don’t like us very much, but please, help Chryssie. She’s a good pony, she just doesn’t want to show it. Please…” His gaze seemed to drill right into her soul. “Please help her.”

“Y-yeah… I will… Don’t worry.” Twilight mumbled evasively and moved past Sombra. However, she stopped right at the doorstep and turned around.

“Fluttershy… you know that when the counterspell…”

“What?” Fluttershy looked at her, her eyes still a bit wet.

“Nothing… Nevermind… I’ll report to you as soon as I can.” Twilight sighed heavily and shut the door behind her.

“Wargh…” Chrysalis finally closed her mouth, chewing on her own saliva. “Wah… Did ya know that when you keep your mouth open like I did you get a ton of saliva? It’s like an ocean in your mouth… gargh…”

The whole bunch gathered around Chrysalis and looked at her with such compassionate eyes that, despite fevering, she couldn’t help but notice. She displayed a silly smile, drool flowing from the side of her mouth. “Wha- do I have something on my face? Whoops…” She touched her own nose and went cross-eyed for a moment. “I’ve got cheese for legs!”

“Will… will she be okay?” Nightmare Moon expressed her worry. “‘Tis a great shame to see her in such state…”

“I hope she will, Moonie… I really hope she will.”

***

“Waffles!” Chrysalis roared, while Fluttershy was carrying her upstairs to bed. “I can see the… waffles! They’re everywhere! And they’re evil! Evil has waffles! Waaaaaaaaah!”

Nightmare Moon sat down by Sombra and joined him in observing Chrysalis being carried away. For some reason, all bad thoughts about her were gone now, and the only emotion left was worry.

“I really hope this mean pony makes it through…” Moon spoke her thoughts outloud and rubbed the side of her leg. “I mean… so I can deliver my vengeance upon her, of course.”

Sombra looked at the lonely plushie, which Fluttershy seemed to have forgotten to take. To clear his mind of the heavy thoughts, he dragged Celestia with his magic towards himself and gave her a nuzzle.

“She looks a bit like you. Just less black.” He gently showed the plushie to Moonie. She tilted her head and looked closer, trying to spot a difference between this silly smiling plushie and her.

“Thou couldest say that. We do share some similarities…” She took the plushie and examined it, taking a close look at her rump, where there was a sloppily embroided image of Celestia’s cutie mark. “I take it she’s in charge of the sun… Does she hate me, I wonder?”

“Why would you think that?” Sombra looked at Celestia’s smiling muzzle. “She doesn’t look like a pony who would hate you.”

“Why does the sun burn me, then? If she liked me, she wouldn’t have let that happen.”

Sombra nodded his head. Moonie was speaking the truth. But did that mean that this smiling, happy mare was capable of hurting such a sweet, good friend as Nightmare Moon? No, that was impossible.

“Maybe… maybe she just hasn’t met you yet!” Sombra exclaimed, pulling the plushie away from her. “She just doesn’t know what a great pony you are. When you meet, you’ll get along just fine!” He stopped for a second to eye the sun on Celestia’s behind. “What does this little thing show? What is it, even?”

“I-I don’t know… Maybe it shows a pony’s affinities towards something… Fluttershy has one too, but with butterflies…”

“Does that mean that she’s the butterfly controller? The queen of butterflies?”

“Maybe.”

Sombra’s jaw almost dropped. His mommy was the queen of butterflies. How awesome! He should definitely ask her to teach him how to control butterflies.

“What if I paint something on my butt? Will I be able to control it? Can I control water? Earth?.... Can I control ice cream?!” The possibilites were endless. Sombra ran away, probably to find a pencil. It was amazing how easily he could change his mind about things, how easily he could be distracted. Nightmare Moon sighed heavily, wishing she could be capable of such a feat. Finally alone with her thoughts, she rested her body on the couch.

Soon, Sombra returned, all covered in ink and with a disappointed expression on his face.

“It doesn’t work that way! How?!” He fell on the ground and plead to the sky. “How do these butt-pictures work?! I have to know!”

Nightmare Moon chuckled, but this funny moment was completely ruined by her thoughts of Chrysalis. After all that happened between them, she really wanted to feel some kind of demented joy for what was happening to her, and yet… she couldn’t.

Hopefully, the purple one would find a way to help her. Because Chrysalis, while a major meanie, was still… sort of needed for Moonie. Without bad, there wasn’t good. Without Chrysalis’ ‘assistance’, she would have never bonded with Sombra so much. Without her assistance, she would have never found out that eating cookies and not sharing would always lead to bad outcomes.

***

The sudden sound of knocking startled Nightmare Moon, who had had almost slipped into daydreaming by that point. She shook her head and jumped off the couch.

The desire to run and open the door right away was quite powerful - it might be the purple pony with good news. And yet, there was this odd feeling of danger. Nightmare Moon took a few steps towards the closed door, feeling the anxiety in her growing with each passing second.

“Who goes there?” She drove away the fear and assumed a bold position, as if preparing to charge at the door. If no answer was to follow, she would blast the door down with powerful spells…

If she could use her magic during the day, that is! Being magic restricted was not something Moonie enjoyed very much. Maybe she should ask Fluttershy to do something about it…

“Err, it’s me, Twilight.” Upon hearing the words, Moon immediately opened the door, but, before she could utter even a word, Twilight raced past her and ran upstairs, without even saying hello.

“How rude!” Moon exclaimed, but Twilight was too far away by then. Nightmare grumbled angrily and trotted back to the couch, hoping that she at least might have brought some good news.

It would be a good idea to go upstairs and check on Chrysalis, she thought, but decided against it — who knew what that crazy purple pony would suggest. It might be something very nasty. Besides, she should find Sombra, before he would draw anything else on his butt.

“I have it!” Twilight exclaimed. “I found it!” Fluttershy almost jumped through the ceiling when she burst into the room.

“Twilight, please…” She took a step to the side and pointed at Chrysalis, who was peacefully drooling into the pillow. Twilight immediately blushed and muttered a quiet apology.

“I found it, Fluttershy. I believe I found a way to feed her!” She approached Chrysalis, remembering the overly complicated text of Star Swirl’s Of Ponies and Other Miraculous Creatures. “You’re going to be shocked but Star Swirl actually found and studied changelings for a while! I have no idea why he decided to encrypt that text, maybe to hide the existence of changelings… Maybe he actually got in contact with the changelings, but they asked him not to reveal their existance, and…”

“Twilight, what did you find out?” Fluttershy asked rather rudely, and immediately bloomed with red color. “If… you’re okay.. with that… otherwise continue… It’s very interesting.”

“No, sorry, my mistake. Anyway…” Twilight took a deep breath and looked closely at Chrysalis. “Changelings absorb through different means; one of them is by placing their victims in cocoons, which drain the love essence from them. This method is used to feed massive swarms of changelings. Also, there’s the leech spell. It also serves as mind control — Chrysalis used it to control Shining Armor…”

“I see him! My waffle in shining armor!” Chrysalis suddenly growled, raising her hooves to the sky. “He’s here for me! My waffle!... Why am I made of outdated cheese?!”

Twilight waited till Chrysalis smashed her head into the pillow and resumed drooling. “So, where was I… Ah, yes. There’s this leech spell, but I doubt Chrysalis knows how to cast it..”

“So… there’s no h-hope?” Fluttershy’s eyes became wet again, but Twilight rushed to calm her down.

“No! No, Fluttershy, there is hope. There’s a third way, but it’s quite difficult as it requires the love donor’s complete willingness to share their love.”

“I’m ready! What do I need to do?” Fluttershy took a step forth.

“Well… you have to let Chrysalis draw some of your blood, and then let her drink it. Blood can carry many different magical energies, including energy of love, so, it should work but… I don’t know how much blood is needed. What if… too much?”

Fluttershy turned pale, but this didn’t shake her resolve. Of course, this would be scary — blood had always scared her. Whenever she went to donate blood, she would pass out. Whenever she cut herself, she would pass out. And now, there was the possibility that Chrysalis would drain too much of her blood. But she was ready, still.

“Still, I have to try.”

“No, Fluttershy, don’t rush it. I can study a little bit more, maybe I could magically transport it, without bloodshed, maybe…”

“Twilight, look at her. We don’t have time! I have to do this, now!” Fluttershy pointed at Chryssie, who was chewing the pillow. Her condition was getting worse and worse, her eyes were practically crimson and her body was as hot as fire.

Twilight opened her mouth, but realized, that Fluttershy was right. There was no time to lose, and even though she felt disgusted by the idea that her friend could get terribly hurt by a mistake she had made, she had no choice but to let Fluttershy have it her way. Twilight looked down into the floor and sighed deeply.

“Fine, Fluttershy. But please, stay safe, I beg you. I’ll never forgive myself if something happens to you.”

“It’ll be okay, Twilight… I think.” Fluttershy smiled at her, and then, Twilight reluctantly walked out of the room and closed the door behind her.

Now, there was no way back. She had to do it - Chryssie’s life depended on it. Fluttershy took a deep breath and lied by Chrysalis’ side.

“I-I know what we have to do now… and I’m ready… Y-you can go ahead…” She mumbled, imagining Chrysalis sinking her teeth into her flesh, going deeper and deeper, before reaching the most tasty parts. Fluttershy glanced into her mouth for a moment when she yawned, and was staggered by how big her fangs were. At least, right now they seemed big.

“A-any time now… I’m… I’m ready.” Fluttershy closed her eyes and prepared for the worst.

Chrysalis slowly tore her eyes open, her eyes swollen and red, her ears pounded like drums by even the quietest sounds, and her mouth full of drool. But she felt that finally her hunger was going to be sated, as she felt that distinct aroma of delicious love that she used to smell only when the bell in the hive rung dinner time. Shaking and shivering, Chrysalis lifted her frail body and took a few steps towards Fluttershy, before collapsing on top of her, burrowing her muzzle in her fur.

Fluttershy eeped when she felt Chryssie’s hot breath over her neck and grit her teeth, preparing to feel unimaginable pain. But she was ready to stand it, and not even scream. Not even flinch. She was ready.

“Eeep!” Fluttershy squeked when she felt a sudden sting in her neck, and prepared herself for the true pain, but none came. She slowly opened her eyes, scared to see herself mutilated but she only saw Chrysalis hungrily licking her neck. Had Fluttershy been able to twist her neck, she would have seen a tiny wound on her neck that produced blood in tiny drops, which Chrysalis licked with passion.

Minutes went by. Fluttershy felt her worry disappear, but she was a bit uncomfortable — the growing wet stain on her fur made her dream of taking a shower, and yet, there was something satisfying in it.

“Nngh… urgh… bleh…” Fluttershy flinched when Chrysalis spoke something that wasn’t insane babbling. “Ouch…”

“Chryssie! You’re okay!” She brightened up and gave Chrysalis a loving hug. “I was so scared! So scared that something horrible might happen to you!”

“‘Shy, you know… I kinda have this killer headache and you’re not helping…” She mumbled, and Fluttershy quickly let her go.

“So, you’re not completely over it. But, I hope the worst part is past is.”

Fluttershy got up from the bed and helped Chrysalis settle in. “Sleep, Chryssie. You should feel better in the morning.”

“Yeah, probably…” An awkward pause set in for a moment.

“Sleep well, Chryssie. Sleep well and get better,” Shy kissed Chrysalis on the forehead and left, feeling glorious. She couldn’t wait to deliver the good news to Twilight, Sombra and Nightmare Moon; they were sure to be excited as well!

But, most of all, she was glad that this whole ordeal had come to an end, and Chrysalis had gotten better — both in her health and her behavior. Though, the latter remained to be seen.

Author's Note

Good beware - evil has villains. My Little Villains.

Camping Trips and Ghosts Stories... Sorta - Part One

When Chrysalis opened her eyes, it seemed she was floating. The feeling was liberating, as if the was being carried. Chrysalis tried to touch the ground underneath her and heard the rustling of the blanket. All of it vanished when she opened her eyes.

Compared to the sky, Fluttershy’s room didn’t look as beautiful and open, but in Chrysalis’ opinion, it was more than alright. Struggling with her own body which begged her to stay in bed for just a little longer, she sat up, rubbing her eyes to drive away the haze of sleep.

“Ugh, what did I drink last night?” she mumbled, jumped off the bed, and trotted towards the door.

She didn’t exactly know what she would say to Fluttershy once she’d see her. The shy pegasus did save her life, after all. A chill ran down her back at the memory of the rejuvinating warm liquid dripping into her mouth.

There were only a hoofful of fancy ways she could come up with to circumvent the word ‘blood’. She never liked the word; it sounded far too… blunt. Maybe she’d heard it far too often when she’d visited the Queen’s chambers and had gotten sick of it.

As her thoughts strayed further and further away from the subject, she made her way out of the room and trotted downstairs. Chrysalis could hear cheerful chatter: Fluttershy, Sombra and Nightmare Moon. The little changeling hesitated. Do I belong here? Should I even go to them?

Brushing the unecessary pondering away, Chrysalis boldly trotted onwards. Useless thoughts would never help. Thinking about whether or not she’d fit in would never increase her chances. Actually doing something to show everypony she was no longer a butt would. So, less thinking, more friend-making. Or what could be considered as such.

Chrysalis quickly trotted downstairs completely, the sound of a rather casual conversation getting closer and closer.

The happy trio was having a calm breakfast: cornflakes, with a single drop of honey. Fluttershy and Nightmare Moon were casually eating and chatting, while Sombra looked really immersed in making pictures out of cornflakes. Chrysalis took a deep breath and finally announced her presense.

“Hi!” She raised her hoof and waved as all three turned to her and stared. The eerie feeling of being judged by several ponies at once gripped Chrysalis and she shrunk a little. The team didn’t seem happy to see her. Well, Fluttershy displayed a gentle smile, but Nightmare Moon and…

“Chryssie!” Sombra’s loud exclamation staggered Chrysalis, and him rushing to her and tackling her down in a tight hug didn’t help. “You’re alive! You’re okay! You’re back!”

As Chrysalis was about to say something in reply, Sombra, like a puppy who had found its long lost owner, started licking her face in an absolutely adorable yet slobbery fashion. Chrysalis’ eyes shot open and she desperately tried to push Sombra off of herself.

“I missed you! I missed you so much!” Sombra managed to exclaim in between licks. Finally, Fluttershy persuaded him to leave Chrysalis be with a soft pull. He obeyed and got off the changeling to be immediately confronted with her saliva-covered angry face and rather furious eyes.

“That was uncalled for,” she deadpanned, obviously struggling to not shriek in outrage. Sombra responded with a slight blush, biting his left hoof out of embarrassment.

“Sorry,” he mumbled. “I was just… very happy to see you.”

Chrysalis relieved him with a gentle smile and a pat on the soft head. “It’s okay, little helper. But next time you want to salivate all over me, at least warn me.” Sombra brightened up immediately, seeing as Chrysalis was no longer angry at him.

“Of course! Next time, I’ll certainly tell you!”

Chrysalis nodded and turned her attention to the pony that was likely to refuse her offer of peace the most: Nightmare Moon. The alicorn slowly approached, looking at her with a mixture of prideful snobbism and sympathy. Moon’s face was remarkable for being able to contain and express so many emotions at once.

“Umm... “ Chrysalis hummed briefly, taking a look at Fluttershy in hopes of getting moral support. She nodded quietly and her smile just screamed ‘Go on. Do it.’ Chrysalis flexed her semi-translucent wings, fixed her stance and prepared to say the words that would be written in the annals of history.

“Nightmare Moon, I know we had a rough start. I didn’t exactly treat you very nicely, and also said things I shouldn’t have said… which, let’s be fair, was pretty much everything I said.” She took a moment to rub the back of her head, a blush that she knew would be green creeping on her face, causing discomfort. “I wanted to.. err.. I… wanted… to…”

“Oh, I prithee, do go on,” Moonie said pompously, trying to make it seem like she didn’t even care about the whole ordeal. Chrysalis gulped, losing her mind over the myriad of words she knew, yet none of them being suited for an apology.

“I...wanted to… to say…” She could feel the temperature in her body rise to abnormal levels. She could say sorry to anypony — Flutters, Sombra, Appleajck, Apple Bloom — but not Nightmare Moon! Her pride was still too strong to allow that.

“I… wanted… to… to say… so-”

“Soooo?” Nightmare Moon displayed a villanious grin. Chrysalis regretted her decision to change; she would totally put Moon in the cookie jar again and seal her there. Permanently.

“So...So...So...rrow grasps my heart…” Chrysalis looked up, trying to remember the words. “But I must say thee… that I indeed love another mare…”

Dead silence claimed dominion as all three ponies stared at Chrysalis. The poor changeling bit her lip, desperately searching her thoughts to find something at least half-sensical to say.

Maybe the good old trick of ‘What’s that behind you?’ could work? No, that was a stupid idea. Nopony would fall for that.

“I’m not sure if that was really an apology, Chryssie…” Fluttershy bit her lip and blushed.

“If that was what she was supposed to be doing, I am not impressed in the slightest. This is the poorest attempt at an apology… ever!” Nightmare Moon wrinkled her nose.

“Erm… let me try again! Ehm…. Excuse me?” Chrysalis tried to make round begging eyes, but Moon was adamant.

“No! Never!”

“Please?”

“No!”

“Pretty please?”

“Never!” Moon shook her head. “Why should I forgive thee at all? Thou hast done nothing but hurt me all throughout our stay here!”

“I, umm, of course, do not approve of that decision, but… oh… maybe you should try a tini-tiny bit harder… Your attempt was good, but… a little bit of improvement can make it perfect.” Fluttershy tried to encourage Chrysalis however she could.

“Fine, fine. One more try…” Chrysalis took the deepest breath she’d ever taken and then…

“I did a lot of things. Some of them were pretty indecent. When I first saw you, I considered you to be a stuck up self absorbed pretty-princess-type of pony whose only concern was her own well being. And it was foolish to think so, since… I’m not that good at telling one archetype of pony from another. I guess I have a habit of judging ponies on first glance. For example, there was this pony who I thought was a real nasty butt… but, in the end, she turned out to be good. She was just doing things her way… Just like I do. So, I guess I made a mistake by treating you as I did, you know, bullying and… shoving you into a cookie jar and stuff… So, I promise I will change my ways. Getting rid of the ‘all who oppose me are enemies’ mentality is now my primary goal in life… So, peace?”

Chrysalis let out the remaining air in her lungs in a loud sigh of relaxation. This was the longest speech she had ever given in her entire life — and, moreover, it was an apology!

“I… I am indecisive…” Nightmare Moon, after a long pause, finally broke the silence. “I have not expected that thou, of all ponies, say’st something so… profound and thoughtful.”

“I think it is a lesson we should all learn.” Fluttershy patted both fillies on the heads. “So, are all our differences settled?” The two ponies nodded in unison. “Very good! Then how about doing something fun?”

“I’m in! I’m totally in!” Sombra exclaimed immediately.

“I shall join in the amusement as well!” Nightmare Moon exclaimed. All three ponies looked at Chrysalis.

“Oh, sure, count me in.” She nodded, earning a hearty smile from both Sombra and Fluttershy.

“We’re glad to have you along!... Just… don’t drop any hives anymore, okay?”

Chrysalis giggled at the mention of that awkward scene. “Of course I won’t. I’ve learned my lesson: do not mess with the coockoos. They’ll mess you up.”

***

“Alright, team, we’ve got a lot of things to do: some fences to fix, some animals to feed, and a lot of grass to shorten!” Chrysalis sung happily, looking around the yard. Many animals, upon seeing her, ran back into their homes and hid, the memories of the ruckus she’d caused still fresh.

“Why do we have to do this as well? We have committed no crimes against Fluttershy! Thou art the sinner! And yet we are obliged to help thee? For what reason?” Nightmare Moon puffed out her cheeks, when Chrysalis suddenly popped up right in front of her and pressed her hooves on them. The air was forced out through her mouth, creating a rather amusing, yet shameless sound.

“Because teamwork is overpowered, my dear Nighty. Together we can do my chores much faster! Come on, let’s hurry!”

“Woohoo! I love feeding animals! It’s so fun!” Sombra grabbed one of the big bags of animal food and started dragging it along. Nightmare Moon, though really liking to feed animals, was still dissatisfied with Chryssie’s actions.

“Fluttershy has tasked thee to take care of the yard. That is thy punishment for all the crimes thou hast committed! Thou must atone!”

“Pff, semantics, we just share sisterly! Get to work, rapping princess, you’ve got a lot of manure piles to clean up,” Chrysalis sang as she trotted away to Sombra. Nightmare Moon gritted her teeth and turned away, trying to hide her angry face under the hood. Though, several seconds later, she relaxed and trotted towards her favorite part of the yard: an anthill in the shade of a tree.

“Hey, Sombra, whatcha up to?” Chryssie hollered just for the sake of it, casually walking up to Sombra who was leaning on the fence and looking outside.

“I want to get wet,” Sombra stated in a rather thoughtful voice staring at a tree outside the fence

“Wet?” Chrysalis raised an eyebrow. “For what exactly?”

“There’s one particular hole I want to explore. And I can’t—” He leaned on the fence more and it gave away a rather pathetic creak. “—can’t quite get inside it.”

Chrysalis bit her lip, a single drop of sweat running down her brow. “Do you… often want to get wet to slide into holes?”

“No, just this one time. You see, my head cannot really get through, otherwise I would fit in just nice… I think!” Sombra turned around and faced Chrysalis.

“I can relate to your problem.” Chrysalis nodded and looked at a gaping hole in her leg. “It’s rare, though. I normally don’t stick things in them.”

She swiped the sweat off her forehead and sighed. “Darn, is it me or is it just so hot today?” A few drops fell off her nose and mixed with morning dew. “Ugh… look for me in the shade if you need me. Good luck getting wet.”

“Thanks!” Sombra smiled at Chrysalis as she walked away, then turned around and continued looking outside. Whatever he was doing there, Chryssie didn’t want to know.

***

Sugarcube Corner was loud and obnoxious, just as always, and yet Fluttershy enjoyed its atmosphere. So many times she and the rest of her friends had gathered here to discuss recent events, weather and stallions, if Rarity felt the need to bring it up. Again. They would often order a big cheesecake, and then have Pinkie eat most of it in one big bite. They also had such delicious cacao that Fluttershy would never even hope to match it in its sugary, yet soft taste.

However, today Fluttershy felt extremely uncomfortable entering it: her head was full of thoughts, and most of them went along the lines of ‘This is a bad idea!’, and it seemed like everypony was staring at her every step of the way, judging her… like they all knew what secret she had to bear!

“Oh, good morning, Fluttershy!” Ms. Cake waved at Fluttershy the instant she’d closed the door behind her. “Glad to see you here! You haven’t paid us a visit in a long time.”

“Yeah… I’ve been rather... busy lately.” Fluttershy blushed, approaching the counter. Ms. Cake’s gentle smile relieved her a bit; there was something highly relaxing about this mare’s smile.

“It’s okay. We’re always happy to see you around. So, anything you want? — muffins? — cupcakes?”

“Actually, I want…” Fluttershy stumbled for a moment, trying to remember what kind of cookies Nightmare Moon preferred. “Chocolate chip cookies. Sixty of them…”

“Wow, sixty?” Ms. Cake raised an eyebrow and smiled. “That’s quite a lot. Even by Pinkie’s standarts. You’re having a party tonight?”

“No… Uh, yes… A party for my animals…” Fluttershy couldn’t muster anything but mumbling after that.

“Alright, then. Your cookies will be ready in a while. Take a seat while you wait.”

Fluttershy nodded and sat down in furthest corner, trying to hide herself from stray sights. Maybe she would manage to get her cookies and leave without bumping into anypony. Perhaps, her plan would succeed, and she would finally disco—

“Fluttershy!” Her hopes for solitude came crushing down like the pink body on her with the sole intention of hugs.

“Gakh! Pinkie!” Fluttershy started to fight back, wiggling around, trying to force herself out of Pie’s grip. Finally, the crazy party pony loosened her grip and let her go. “You- you startled me… I thought I was going to have a heart attack!”

“That’s the whole point of surprises, you silly! — Getting startled! It’s like being scared for fun!” Pinkie Pie hopped over Fluttershy and landed on the opposite chair. “Sooo, I heard a rumor that you’re organizing a party for your animals…”

“Pinkie, I said that just two minutes ago…”

“And that I, of all ponies, wasn’t invited. That makes me cranky!” Pinkie pierced Fluttershy with a questioning, one-eyed gaze, trying to drill through her facade. “And when I get cranky, my mane flattens!”

Fluttershy gulped nervously, unable to look into Pinkie’s eye anymore. Making Pinkie angry was a difficult feat to achieve.

“P-please, Pinkie, don’t be c-cranky…. It’s a, uh, very special party… for my animals and me… It’s so special nopony else must be present there… Please, don’t get mad…” Fluttershy’s cheeks turned crimson and she tried to hide her eyes. There was no escape now.

“Pff, I’m not mad.” Pinkie smiled broadly. “Why should I be mad? It’s your party, and if you want to organize it on your own, I’m okay with that! What, did you think I haven’t learned anything from that time when I talked to flour and a rock?”

Fluttershy looked around, not quite sure about what Pinkie was talking about. Though, when was she ever sure about what Pinkie was talking about.

“Come to think of it, Mr. Rock was a nice fellow. I should find him and have a chat. I think we have a lot in common.” Pinkie mused, and then suddenly turned back to Fluttershy. “Anyway… Can I please take a teeny-tiny look at your party? Just a little glimpse?”

“Erm… I’m terribly sorry, Pinkie, but I doubt that is possible… My animals asked me… for a really… special party… just for them…” She could feel herself sweating and her hooves turning cold.

“Aww, I really hoped to see your super-duper-awesome animal party… Oh, wait, I’m not invited… Then it’s super-duper animal party instead!” Pinkie clapped her hooves together and got up. “Well, if I cannot look at it, then I’ll at least help you prepare. I shall carry those cookies for you!”

“Th-thank you, Pinkie. You really don’t have to do this, I… I can carry it on my own…”

“Of course you can, silly! But how can we have a conversation if I don’t have an excuse to stay near you?” Pinkie Pie smiled kindly and tilted her head. “Friendship is not only parties and fun, it’s also conversations! About stuff!”

Fluttershy nodded, biting her lip. It had only occured to her that she hadn’t left her cottage too often nowadays. Well, she used to stay there most of the time, but she would always dedicate some time to her friends. But not anymore, now that she has three troublemakers to take care of. My friends must be really worried, she thought to herself and felt a slight bite of guilt.

“Sixty chocolate chipped cookies!” Ms. Cake’s loud voice boomed through Sugarcube Corner, along with the ring of a bell. In a moment’s notice, Pinkie dashed to the counter and placed the whole box full of cookies on her head.

“Mmm-haaa!” She sniffed the air, inhaling the smell of freshly baked cookies. “Super-magni-licious!” Pinkie tossed a few golden coins on the counter and trotted towards Fluttershy, who immediately sprung up in worry.

“No-no-no, P-Pinkie, you shouldn’t have… I’ve got just enough here… You didn’t need to…” Fluttershy stopped mumbling when Pinkie placed her hoof on her lips.

“Hush, Flutters! If I cannot organize my friend’s party, I’ll at least help it to be the bestiest party as much as I can!” she exclaimed happily, and when Fluttershy was about to say something, pressed on her lips again. “And paying for your cookies is the least I can do!”

Fluttershy didn’t object anymore, and just smiled as the happy, no more cranky pink party pony bounced her way out of the Sugarcube Corner in the general direction of Fluttershy’s cottage. Pinkie escaped her sight so quickly she almost started to panic, but quickly regained her composure and quickly galloped after her, trying not to lose sight anymore.

When Fluttershy finally caught up to Pinkie, she was bombarded with dozens of songs about chocolate-chipped cookies, animal parties, and animals eating chocolate-chipped cookies at parties. Looking at the pink pony constantly bouncing up and down, and the box of cookies that mysteriously was stuck to her head as if glued, Fluttershy wondered if what she was doing was right. Was her idea even possible to accomplish?

Ever since the little villains were put into her care she was wondering who they really were. Were they what Twilight thought they were: the foalified versions of their worst enemies who would eventually become the ponies she and her friends had fought, or were they just kids? Was it possible that they were simply destined to become evil, or was it a choice? Having watched them for quite a while, Fluttershy started to believe the latter in both cases, and yet, her fear would not allow her to act according to her mere belief. So, she’d devised a plan.

Today, she would gather the little villains in a circle and ask them questions about their lives before Twilight interfered with it. Of course, she doubted that they would tell her willingly — but that’s what the cookies were for.

Her plan was to finally hear their side of the story and listen closely and attentively. Fluttershy hoped that through their story, she would manage to see their true nature. What they really were…

However, now there were even more questions in her head than before. And they all demanded an immediate answer.

“Pinkie…”

“Yes?” Pinkie Pie slowed down her advance, so Fluttershy could keep up with her.

“Erm… I have a… friend who has a friend who… erm… has a bit of a problem.”

“Oooh, you never told me about your friend’s friend!” Pinkie’s ears perked up. “Is he like your friend’s other friend? Or that friend of the other friend’s friend?”

Suddenly, she stopped bouncing, her face expression thoughtful. “Wait… If your friend’s friend knows your friend’s other friend, and that friend is a friend of that friend’s friend, then who’s the friend’s friend of the other friend? Hmm…” She narrowed her eyes. “If a friend’s friend is a friend of a friend, what does that make him? And if a friend of your friend of your other friend knows me… Would that make me your other friend’s friend of your another friend who is a friend of a friend of yours?”

“Erm…. yes.”

“Oh! This makes perfect sense now!” Pinkie resumed bouncing, feeling great after resolving another mystery. “So… what was your friend’s friend’s problem?”

Fluttershy took a deep breath. Every fiber of her body was screaming to end this monstrous torture, and just pour her soul out to Pinkie, reveal the secret, tell about the experiment, the villains, and her crazy plan. And yet, Fluttershy gathered all her strength and forced herself to lie.

“My friend… Erm, my friend’s friend has a rather… embarassing secret that he has to keep. His own dignity and the dignity of his f-... b-brother depend heavily on that secret…” Fluttershy made a long pause, to gather her thoughts together. “B-but that secret could… could be dangerous… I’m not saying it is dangerous, I just… think it might be dangerous… There’s a slight chance of them… I-I mean it… being dangerous…”

Fluttershy shook her head, trying to hide her sudden tears. She would travel to any far away land, meet any dragon no matter scary and ferocious — all of that would be better than having to lie to her friends.

Pinkie was surprisingly quiet, letting Fluttershy take her time, and not interrupting her at all.

“So… That friend’s friend feels like he’s about to… break a promise and tell this secret. He just… cannot take it anymore — it’s too hard for him to lie to everypony, especially to his best friends…” Fluttershy sighed heavily, feeling a small part of the mountain fall off her shoulders. At least now, she got to tell the truth, even if in an unclear way, and that made her feel a little better.

“Hmm, that’s a trickyfull situation.” Pinkie Pie’s bounces sped up again as she thought. Suddenly, her face started to beam with happiness. “But the answer is so simpleriffic! Your friend just needs to tell about it — to his friends first!”

She jumped a little closer to Fluttershy.

“That’s what friends are for; they listen to you and help you overcome troubles! And if your friend is in trouble, he should definitely talk to his friends! No matter how embarassing the secret is, we’re always there to help you in times of need!... I mean, your friend’s friend, not you.” Fluttershy’s heart skipped a beat at Pinkie’s correction. “But that advice extends to you too! If you ever have an embarassing secret, tell me! I’m the best secret teller in Equestria!... I mean, keeper.”

Fluttershy stiffled a chuckle. Even when giving friendly advices, Pinkie Pie always stayed Pinkie Pie, but now, her words felt as powerful and wise as if they came from Celestia herself. Fluttershy felt a warm feeling sweep all over her, so she came closer to Pinkie and gave her a tight friendly hug.

“Thank you, Pinkie. My friend’s friend will appreciate your advice,” she said softly while making an imaginary checklist of the lifemaking decisions she would make in the near future. “He will really, really appreciate it.”

“Pff, no biggie! I’m always happy to help a friend’s friend in need!” Pinkie Pie hugged her back happily, feeling her super-duper-awesome-incredibly-amazing day get even more awesome. Another pony smiling is yet another step to Pinkie Pie’s ultimate goal: to make the whole world and every single being in it beam and laugh.

Fluttershy broke the hug, smiling at her crazed yet wise friend. “So… let us go.”

“Oh, yes! You’ve got your animal party! Let’s not keep the poor critters cookieless anymore! Onward!” With quick and agile bounces, Pinkie made her way forward, while Fluttershy followed her, this time beaming like a second sun. She was finally making up her mind about this whole situation. Soon, everything would be clear — clear as the day in Ponyville.

***

Chrysalis yawned loudly, wrapping her tail around her hindlegs and shifting around a bit in an attempt to make herself comfortable. Her eyes were closing on themselves, with a crazy amount of sweat covering her entire body. Every limb was as heavy as if it was filled with lead.

It was almost like she had a fever. Only this time, she enjoyed it.

Never before had she felt so good. Chrysalis remembered feeling that way after taking her monthly dose of love back in the hive, but never before had it been so powerful. It felt like a big pond of cold water after three weeks spent in a lifeless desert.

Chrysalis yawned once more and thought about quietly leaving the yard, going back upstairs and slipping into Fluttershy’s bed, but felt too lazy to do something as complicated as walking. Besides, the bark of the tree was soft enough to use as a pillow. Though, she would definitely prefer Apple Bloom.

“Chrysalis! Chrysalis!” she heard a voice in the distance. Unbelievable — she was already slipping into dreams. Usually it would take her at least some time, but now it was instantly!

“Chrysalis! Thou evil monster, wake up already!” Chrysalis’ eyes shot open when she felt a light slap on the cheek. She saw Nightmare Moon shaking her hoof frantically.

“Oh, by the moonlight, why art thou so sweaty?! Eww!” she screeched, wrinkling her nose as if she had just touched a cockroach. Chrysalis suddenly got an urge to lick Moon’s hoof — cockroaches were delicious.

“That’s what you get for slapping me, fool.” Chrysalis grinned, rubbing her cheek. “Slapping a pony while she’s asleep — most dishonorable.”

“Bah, thou deserv’st it! Now enough chit-chat! Thou must save Sombra!”

Chrysalis yawned. “From what? The only thing that’s even remotely dangerous in this yard is the rooster. I doubt Sombra would mess with a rooster.”

“He got stuck in a hole.” Nightmare Moon pointed her hoof in the direction of a nearby tree, and Chrysalis saw Sombra’s behind sticking out of what was presumably a hole in said tree. Upon closer inspection, Chrysalis concluded it to be a squirrel’s hole or something like that.

“Huh… so that’s the hole he had in mind,” she mumbled and got up, stretching lazily.

“Come on, hurry! He looks very distressed!” Nightmare Moon looked at Sombra, who was bashing the tree with his hindlegs in a desperate attempt to pull himself out. Two fillies could also hear muffled screams, ocassionally disrupted by sobs.

“On my way.” Chrysalis was about to set out, but stopped and looked at Moonie warily. “Wait, why didn’t you help him? You’ve got magic and wings — care to use them?”

“I cannot! ‘Tis the sunlight!” Nightmare Moon angrily pointed at the glowing ball of gas in the sky while keeping her face in the shade of her hood. “‘Tis hazardous to me, hence the outfit.”

“Ooh, so the rapper hoodie’s not for show? Huh… that explains a lot,” Chrysalis mused. “Well, then, time to save Sombra from a ‘hole’ lot of trouble!”

Nightmare Moon put her tongue out in disgust over such a horrendous attempt at a joke, but something else bothered her way more

Why didn’t you help him? Those words made her feel helpless, useless. Chrysalis was right: she had both wings and a horn and yet she couldn’t use them — not during the day at least! However, the day was when she was needed the most — and she was useless!

Nightmare Moon’s mood worsened significantly. Just in the morning, she thought she made peace with her worst enemy, and now, that ex-enemy reminded her of her most fatal weakness. Unintentionally, maybe, but it still hurt a lot.

It took Moon a few minutes to notice that her mouth was still open and her tongue was still out. Ashamed, she closed her mouth, blushing as if the animals surrounding the yard would start laughing at her. She swept away the saliva on her lips and took a deep breath. There was no point in getting sad; that wouldn’t help anypony. However, if she were to inquire of Fluttershy about possible ways to change the situation...

Then maybe she would find a way to be a full member of their little society! The idea was so great Nightmare Moon almost let the emotions take over, but before she could start hopping in place, she swiped a little sweat from her brow and trotted towards the tree where Sombra was stuck. Overreaction was not befitting of a lady like her, and also, it would seem weird to cheer when somepony, especially Sombra, was in trouble.

“Hey, squirrel pony! You feeling alright?” Chrysalis knocked on the tree, trying to get Sombra’s attention. It clearly worked, since Sombra started waving his legs more frantically than before.

“What? What? I can’t hear you!” The muffled shouts were barely understandable, and Chrysalis looked at Moon for moral support and/or a possible translation. Nightmare just shrugged. “Okay then… I guess you’re not feeling alright. Hold on, I’ll get you out of there.”

A loud buzz resonated through the air when Chrysalis took off. With the beauty and grace of a huge bug, she approached the helpless foal, who continued to desperately hammer the tree with his hindlegs.

“If you stop that just for a second, I can get your butt out of this mess!” Chrysalis shouted, hoping it would reach Sombra’s ears. In reply, she heard a couple of muffled sounds and his legs finally stopped maltreating the tree. Inhaling deeply, Chrysalis grabbed Sombra by the waist and pulled, buzzing her wings wildly in order to gain some kind of momentum.

“Come o-ooon! Pull your belly in or something!” Chrysalis’ sweat and Sombra’s body covered in water made it extremely hard for her to keep a good grip. “Come o-”

Her complaints were cut short when Sombra finally flew out of the hole like a cork out of a bottle. Flung back by the sudden loss of a counter-force, both ponies did at least a few somersaults in the air before hitting the ground.

“I’m… I can see again!” Sombra opened his eyes and exclaimed, after making sure the delicious feeling of his eyes being bit by the sunlight affected him once more. “You saved my life, Chryssie! You saved me!”

Before Chrysalis could say anything in reply, Sombra hugged her so tightly it made the poor changeling’s chitin squeak. “Thank you so very much!”

“Y-yeah… you’re welcome… Could you please get off of me now? I-I had enough of hugs for today…”

Sombra let her go and they both got up. Chrysalis looked at herself and couldn’t help but feel rather disgusted; being covered in sweat and water really made her feel rather uncomfortable. It felt as if she was covered in a thick layer of crust that impeded her movement. That and the smell wasn’t too good.

“Urgh… yuck… Your curiosity will be your doom one day, I swear it.” She looked around for anything to wash away the grime with. After spotting a small bucket of water, she quickly trotted off in its direction.

“Thou hast worried me, Sombra. Thou couldest have been in real danger.” Nightmare Moon walked up to Sombra looking at him with concern. “Thou couldest have been hurt.”

“I could have… But Chryssie saved me! I told you she would change!” Sombra stretched out and shook his entire body, from tip of the horn to the tip of the tail. He’d picked up this little trick from his new animal friend, the fox, helping him get dry quickly and efficiently… even if a bit messy.

“Eww,” Moon said tonelessly, looking at her splattered hoodie. “Thou couldest have warned me, at least.”

“Sorry.” Feeling clean and happy, Sombra turned around and looked upon the tree where he’d been so unfortunately stuck. It felt a little disheartening to feel that he never got to see how a squirrel’s house looked like. Everything was left to his imagination.

“I wonder when Fluttershy will return. Seclusion and solitude are nice things, but we require her presense.” Nightmare Moon looked into the distance, eeping as a little bit of sunlight managed to bite her cheek. “I shall head indoors. Once thou and Chrysalis are done cleaning yourselves, I recommend you join me.” She hastily retreated into the cottage.

Sombra wanted to head over to Chrysalis at first, but something made him head to the fence and look over it. Maybe he was a seer, or maybe he just got lucky, but he noticed Fluttershy and a strange pink pony walking down the narrow road. The pink pony was partially coated with dust she had raised by hopping around, and there was a large basket on her head.

Sombra leaned a little bit closer, hoping to catch at least a glimpse of their conversation. A new pony meant something exciting — possibly a new friend! The orange pony was very nice and this pink pony looked nice too. Especially her mane. The instant Sombra saw her mane, he started drooling profusely. It looked like candy — delicious, sugary, pink candy.

After some brief words, Fluttershy and the pink pony exchanged hugs, and the pink one left, leaving the basket to Fluttershy, who took it and quickly trotted to the front door and entered. With the speed of lightning, Sombra dashed away from the fence and hurried inside, eager to see his beloved mommy.

“Mom!” he exclaimed happily, upon seeing her locking the door behind her.

“Oh, hello, Sombra. I hope you had great time while I was away. Where are th-”

“Who was that pink pony? Why does her mane look like a candy? And what’s in that basket?” Sombra approached the basket, sniffing it carefully. The warm, sugary scent filled his nostrils, making the foal shudder.

“I will gladly tell you… later. Right now, I’d like to gather all of you and play a very interesting game.” Fluttershy picked the basket up and put it on the nearby cupboard. “Where are Chrysalis and Moonie?”

As if on cue, Nightmare Moon leaned over the couch. “I am right here. Thy promises of interesting games have intriguied me greatly. Wouldest thou be so kind to elaborate?”

“Moonie, it’s not polite to eavesdrop.” Fluttershy smiled, picking the basket back up and carrying it to the kitchen.

“Is it? Excuse me in that case.” Nightmare Moon climbed on the couch and made herself comfortable. “So, wilt thou elaborate?”

“Of course I will, I just want you all to hear it. Where’s Chrysalis, by th-”

Her sentence was cut short by the most horrifying scream of all time. It resonated through the air, piercing eardrums like a long sharp nail. Fluttershy’s face distorted in fear and worry; she just couldn’t fathom what made such a scary sound. As seconds passed and the pain resonating in her ears abated, she opened her eyes and looked around, afraid to say a thing.

“Was that… Chrysalis?”

***

“I swear, this is the last time I am ever using water!” Chrysalis finished her rant with a loud sneeze. Fluttershy hastily approached her and carefully cleaned her nose with a hoofkerchief.

“Thy body consists of eighty percent water. Does that mean thou hatest eighty percent of thyself?” Nightmare Moon stiffled a chuckle, while Chrysalis glared daggers at her.

“Ha-ha, very funny, smartbutt,” Chrysalis hissed at Moonie, baring her fangs. “I wonder how you would feel if I splashed your face with water this cold! Probably cry like a little ba- achoo!”

“You poor little thing.” Fluttershy cleaned the changeling’s nose once more and this time let her keep the handkerchief. “Are you feeling okay? Maybe you should go to bed and rest for a while.”

“Nah, I’m good,” Chrysalis asserted with a stern look on her face. Fluttershy sat down by her side and leaned closer, wanting to share some of her warmth with the little changeling.

Sitting on the floor was probably not the best decision, especially with Chrysalis’ nose running this badly, but Fluttershy tried her hardest to create an atmosphere that was friendly, and she figured sitting around a campfire was quite friendly. So, the basket filled with cookies became a campfire, the middle of the guest room became the Everfree and they became the wanderers. At least that was what Fluttershy was going for. She even put out the candles to make it feel like a real forest — an unthinkable deed for her. Good thing it was still the middle of the day.

“I feel like I’m on a camping trip. Brings back some good ol’ memories.” Chrysalis looked at her surroundings. “I and… Okay, it was actually just me.”

“Why? Why were you alone?” Sombra leaned closer to the basket, inching closer to his ultimate target: the cookies.

“All other lings in my hive never felt like hanging out. It was boring as heck.”

“Dost thou mean ‘changelings’ or whatever species thou belong’st to?” Nightmare Moon smiled suavely at Chrysalis, who immediately perked up.

“Hey, I don’t go around pointing out races! I mean, who are you supposed to be? Pegasus? Unicorn? Pegacorn? Unigus?” She tapped her chin. “Wow, that sounds dumb.”

“Wa- How rude! I am an alicorn — I possess both wings and a horn! ‘Tis an inborn gift!”

“Uh-huh, sure. Inborn gift of being dumb!” Chrysalis chuckled, and Nightmare Moon was about to lunge at her when Fluttershy intervened.

“Kids, please, don’t quarrel. Don’t ruin each other’s mood; it’s such a good day. Please, let it stay that way.” She sat between the two fillies, hoping it would ease up the tention.

Moon and Chrysalis both murmured something and turned quiet. Fluttershy kept silent for a moment, waiting for atmosphere to ease up, and finally started talking.

“I have gathered you here for a very specific reason. Despite the fact that we had been living together for quite some time, um, we still don’t know much about each other. Am I correct?” The three nodded in unison and Fluttershy continued. “So, I decided that we should play a little game: we sit in a circle — like now — and take turns telling stories about ourselves. For each told story, you get a cookie from the basket!” While Fluttershy looked happy, inside she was incredibly scared. What if they’d refuse? What if they got offended by it, even? What if she’d find out something she did not want to know?

“Wow, this has to be the lamest camping trip ever! How bad can it get when the only thing you can do around a camp fire is talk?... It’s just like every camping trip I had!” Chrysalis curled up, covering her head.

“Come on, Chrysalis. Don’t you want to find out more about me? Or Fluttershy? Or tell us more about yourself?” Sombra inched closer to her and poked her to the side. “Please, Chryssie. I’ll save an extra cookie for you!”

The ball of changeling unrolled and Chrysalis showed herself once again. “I’m doing this for the cookies,” she groused.

Fluttershy patted her head lovingly and clapped her hooves a few times to get their attention. “Alright, everypony, let me begin.” She felt a chill run down her spine when the dead silence settled in the room. However, she mercilessly beat down the fear of silence and the fear of her own voice, took a deep breath and began, recalling the sweetest memory of her childhood.

Camping Trips and Ghosts Stories... Sorta - Part Two

“It happened a long time ago. I was a little filly then, maybe even younger than you three! I lived in Cloudsdale, a city built out of clouds. It’s a little scary to live so high above the clouds at first, but you get used to it… eventually.

So, all throughout Equestria, there is a tradition of celebrating Nightmare Night. In Cloudsdale, the residents would gather in the town square at night, dressed in scary costumes, and then try to scare everypony else. The pony who had the scariest costume would win a lot of candy and a title of “Scariest Pony of Cloudsdale”. After that, there would be a big banquet for everypony present that would last until sunrise.

The promises of candy and fun made me exctatic when I was old enough to stay up for it. Unfortunately, I somehow missed the part about scares and being scared. My first Nightmare Night ended when I saw a huge zombie, opening its maw to gnaw on me… Then, I ran away and hid under my bed. For three days...

Since then, I dreaded Nightmare Night. This horrible, horrible night when everypony dresses in horrible, scary costumes and goes out of their way to give other ponies a fright… It made me cringe even to think about it. But it was a tradition and… I never had too many friends either. I was always scared of large groups — I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m a little shy.”

“You don’t say,” Chrysalis deadpanned, before Moonie gave her a little shove.

“Do not interrupt. ‘Tis rude,” she scolded the irritated changeling. Fluttershy coughed to get back their attention.

“Back then, I had only one real friend: Rainbow Dash. She’s a wonderful pony — brave, strong and very caring about those who can’t protect themselves. Maybe one day you’ll get to meet her… I hope.” She fiddled a bit with her hooves before continuing.

“So, Rainbow Dash wanted me to attend Nightmare Night. Two years she would come to me and outright beg me to go. The first time, I declined and she left, and the second time I wanted to as well. I was afraid of what she’d think of me if I told her I was too scared to go; I might lose my only friend in the entire city… maybe, the entire world if I couldn’t do her even this small favour, so I agreed.

When Nightmare Night came, we put on our costumes — I was dressed as a bunny — and we hurried to the town square…”

“Then, you had a lot of fun, made a lot of friends, and became the bestiest pony in Cloudsdale!” Sombra suddenly interrupted her, beaming like a torchlight.

“Well… actually… no. It wasn’t like this.” Fluttershy sighed heavily, biting her lip. It made her feel slightly hurt when she saw Sombra turn slightly sad.

“When we arrived, I couldn’t believe my eyes; there were so many scary monsters: Hydras, vampires, zombies, demons, even a dragon… When I saw all of that, I- I screamed and ran away. I didn’t even say anything to Rainbow. I just ran without looking back. Maybe I even knocked down some lamps while I ran… It’s hard to remember.”

Fluttershy’s hurt grew as she saw the faces of the three. What were they thinking? Their expressions seemed disappointed. She pried her eyes from theirs and continued.

“Only when I slid under the bed, I realized what I had done. Not only had I humiliated myself, but... I’d humiliated Rainbow in front of everypony! It felt so horrible that I actually cried… a lot.

I thought I’d lost the only friend I ever had and that I would live alone forever. Nopony would ever speak to me again, because… who wants to be friends with a coward?”

Fluttershy gave a start when she felt Sombra curl up against her, nuzzling her.

“These thoughts made me feel even more horrible, and I cried even harder… I think this was one of the saddest moments of my entire life. However, I suddenly heard a voice... Rainbow’s voice.

‘Come on, Shy. This is no crying matter.’ I hadn’t heard her come in, but there she stood, knocking on the nightstand to get my attention. I swiped my tears away and listened — listened to her. Rainbow did not come to shout at me for embarassing her… she came to offer support. I slipped from under the bed and looked at her, straight in the eyes.

I can’t quite recall what exacty I asked, but it was along the lines of: ‘Why did you come here? I’m a horrible friend…’

To which she just replied: ‘No, Flutters, you’re a great friend. It was my fault — I knew you were easily scared, and I insisted that you should go. I’m sorry.’

I tried to tell her that there was nothing wrong in her actions, but she was persistent. As an apology, she organized a special Nightmare Night just for me: we made ourselves a tent consisting of a chair and a blanket and read spooky stories till we fell asleep…”

Fluttershy closed her eyes for a moment, remembering the moment when she’d woken up, and saw Rainbow Dash peacefully sleeping beside her, her face burrowed in the book. That morning she’d realized what it meant to have a true, true friend.

She looked at the three villains, awaiting their reaction. Her hooves started shaking a bit.

Suddenly, Sombra’s face widened in a smile and the silence was broken by clapping of his hooves. “This is such a sweet story! A bit sad, but still sweet! I loved it!” He stretched upwards and nuzzled Fluttershy’s chin with his nose. “I’m so happy you have a friend such as Rainbow.”

“I agree with Sombra: thy story is indeed very sweet.” Nightmare Moon nodded sagely, looking at the warm cuddles between the two. “Thou hast, indeed, deserved a cookie.”

“Wait, does this mean that all our stories have to be sensually-feelsy?” Chrysalis grumbled, sniffing. “Ah, blast it. Now, I’m going to catch sugar poisoning or something.”

“No, not necessarily. But it would help us bring each other together.” Fluttershy reached for a cookie and put it in her mouth. The dough almost immediately dissolved into pure bliss of sweetness and sugar, creating a heavenly mix. The Cakes certainly knew their stuff.

“My turn! My turn!” Sombra finally disengaged from Fluttershy and moved to his original position. He practically oozed eagerness to share stories with his friends.

“Of course, Sombra, go on.” Fluttershy nodded with an assuring smile and Sombra, after taking a deep breath, began.

“My story is very similar to Fluttershy’s. Though, it’s not about Nightmare Night, or Cloudsdale. That sounds very fun, but my story isn’t about them.

I used to live in a place that was called… err… Cry-sta-llic… something, I don’t remember. But I do remember that it was a horrible place! The food was horrible, my bed was rough and the roof was leaking!” He accented everything with wide gestures of his hooves that were more or less related to the things he told about.

“Even ponies were nasty. Nopony wanted to be my friend no matter how hard I tried. They would either ignore me or tell me to go away. I felt so lonely for so long… But, one day, I found a friend — a true friend!”

“Liar, you didn’t even know me then,” Chrysalis chirped.

Everyone looked at her.

“What? Ugh, fine, I’ll keep quiet.” Quietly grousing to herself, she let Sombra continue.

“Err, where was I?” He looked questioningly at Fluttershy.

“You found a friend, dear.”

“Oh, right! His name was Choppy. When I met him, he didn’t look too good — sick and hungry. But with my help, he got back on his hooves and we became best friends! We would never separate; we were together everywhere! Believe me or not, at times, he would beg me to let him in my bed; he showed me that his pillow had bugs in it! Hah, what a silly pony.”

Nightmare Moon coughed delicately: “Excuse me, but why has he not told thee? I cannot help but notice.”

Sombra puckered his lips while he thought. “I guess he never was much of a speaker; he didn’t talk too much.”

Seemingly satisfied with his answer, Nightmare Moon nodded, gesturing for him to continue. Fluttershy said nothing.

He took a deep breath. “One day, during our game of tag, he said that he hated this place with a passion and asked me to aid him. He said that he wanted to run away forever and never return to that place of big meanies. At first, I wanted to talk him out of it, but then… I felt that I didn’t like that place, too. I was only happy when Choppy was around — and he was going to run away regardless… so I decided to run away with him.

Next night, when everypony was asleep, we sneaked out of our bed and slipped away through the basement. We almost got caught, but thanks to my agility and Choppy’s smarts, we escaped successfully. When we found ourselves outside of Cry-sta-whatever, we discussed where to head next. Choppy said that he had a good friend somewhere far away and that we could go there, and I… I didn’t have anything to offer, so I agreed.

When we left that horrible place behind, I felt such relief and happiness! I thought that I would finally find friends and family, away from all those mean ponies. Though, little did I know that our journey would be long and hard. When we made our way out of the town, we entered a big, dark forest. I couldn’t take a step without getting my face scratched by some branch.”

He paused to tap his chin as if contemplating something, but continued on moments later.

“The further we went, the darker it got. There were creepy sounds — whispers, scratching, hissing, everywhere! Then… I… erm… I got scared… very badly. I hid near a rock, closed my eyes and tried to imagine myself somewhere else. It was so scary there, I didn’t want to be there.”

Fluttershy couldn’t help but notice how calm he was despite telling about a no doubt harrowing experience for him. Could he be making that up? It seems far too cohesive to be false...

“I don’t know how long I was there, but after a while, Choppy spoke to me. He said that giving up was not the way and that I should press onward, no matter what. He said that I could achieve everything I could ever wish for if only I got up and kept pressing onward.

So, I got up, opened my eyes and walked onward! I ignored everything, no matter how scary it was, because now, I was no longer afraid. I wasn’t afraid of anything, because my friend was near me, and his support was all I needed!“

Sombra beamed with happiness as he finished his glorious tale. “Then, we finally got out of the forest and reached a big bright field! Choppy and I celebrated our successful escape from the mean place with tasty flowers! The end.”

Brief silence claimed dominion over the room as the listeners pondered about what they heard just now. Fluttershy looked the most confused out of all; for a moment, she even forgot to congratulate Sombra for telling such a story.

“You didn’t like it?” He looked at Fluttershy with his eyes quickly turning wet, snapping her out of the pondering.

“Of course I did, sweetheart. It is a very touching story, and the lesson you had learned was very important too.” She gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Take a cookie, you deserved it.”

Sombra licked Fluttershy’s nose in reply and proceeded to grab a cookie and munch on it with glee and vigor. Fluttershy felt content to see the little foal happy, though his story still confused Fluttershy to no end. What was the mean place he was talking about? Had it been night when he fled from there and had he therefore spent an entire night in that forest before he’d reached that field? And who was Choppy? If Sombra remembered him so well, why wasn’t he concerned about his fate after he’d been transported here? Those were questions Fluttershy would have to answer on her own, it seemed.

“So, who wants to go next?” Fluttershy turned to Moonie and Chrysalis, smiling brightly. So far, everything had been going very good.

“Bleh, I think I’ll let Moonbutt have a go first. Achoo!” Chrysalis barely managed to cover her nose before splattering its contents all over the room.

“What is wrong, art thou scared of sharing thy secrets with us?” Moonie snickered. “Art thou a chicken?”

“Hey, don’t mess with the coockoos. They will mess you up… Achoo!”

“I am unaware of any cuckoos in this residence.”

Chryssie moved her face until she was nose to nose with Moonie. “Do not mock the coockoos! They will mess you up…”

“Alright, alright, I got thy message,” Moonie said hastily, probably to get Chryssie out of her face before there was another nasal discharge.

“Very well, then, make yourselves comfortable and let me tell you my story.” Nightmare Moon adjusted her position, cleared her throat and lifted her foreleg as if she were about to recite a poem.

“Before I was magically transported into this beautiful realm by your purple friend, I lived in a vastly different world. The main difference was that it had no sun. Or any source of illumination for that matter.

Of course, I didn’t live in complete darkness. I could illuminate my path with magic, but that was about it. However, I rarely travelled outside of my secret hiding place: the bud of a flower. You see, that world had a lot of nasty things in it. Creepy-crawlies, slithering slugs, swarms of bugs which were very different from those in your yard, Fluttershy — or Chrysalis.”

“Hardy-har-har,” Chrysalis deadpanned expressionlessly.

Moonie coughed. “As I was saying: the bugs in your yard, Fluttershy, give you flowers, and those other ones usually hissed and tried to catch me. I normally passed my time with dreaming. ‘Twas a scary place… until something miraculous happened. I was resting in my flower, when suddenly I felt a rather unfamiliar bite on the eye…

“It was a spider that crawled into my bu… Achoo!” Chrysalis unsuccesfully tried to interrupt Moonie with a rather crude joke, but common cold played its part. “Sorry, something crawled into my nose.”

Moonie looked at Chrysalis with scorn. “Have I told thee that thy jokes are not amusing in the slightest?”

“It’s a special kind of humor. C’mon, Moon, I’m just playing arou-Achoo!” Chrysalis covered her nose with a handkerchief, but even despite the daze caused by the sneeze, she could see Nightmare Moon shrug and turn away from her, resuming her tale.

“A mysterious foreign light was seeping through the walls of my botanic home. At first, I thought this to be just a trap, set by a very imaginitive nasty, however I remembered, that none of those nasties could even emit light.

I know, it was a foolish thing to do, but I crawled out of the bud to see what was going on outside. I was far too gripped by curiosity; I just wanted to see what this strange light was and what brought it into this dark domain… Oh, it is rather sweet to remember — my first meeting with my dear friend Selena.”

Moonie fiddled a bit with her hooves as if struggling with what to say next.

“She was… she was different, different from everything I had ever seen. She was not nasty; she wasn’t ugly. In fact, she was quite pretty — her light was quite pretty. Everything she illuminated underwent an incredible metamorphosis. From nasty, big creatures, they turned into small, sweet and rather fluffy… things. Drawn in like a moth to a flame, I approached this mysterious being…

She seemed quite confused when she noticed me… and when I spoke, she almost fainted. If it wasn’t for a big fluffy ex-creepy crawlie that immediately aided her, she would have fallen.

She asked me a lot of questions: who I was, why I could talk, why I didn’t look nasty like other creatures there. If only I knew the answers myself…

Oh, poor Selena… What if she decided to return there this very moment and discovered that I was not present? How would she feel? What would she do?...

How would she a—”

“I’m sorry to interrupt your mental downpour, but please, could you get to a more interesting part? Purple prose is nice to listen to, but it’s putting us to sleep.” Chrysalis interrupted Moonie, before going for a big yawn. Nightmare Moon turned to her, about to express her indignance over being constantly interrupted, but suddenly realized that she had indeed gotten carried away.

The sight of Fluttershy’s closed eyes and rather peaceful breath clearly indicated that Chrysalis was correct. The little changeling sighed and gave the sleepy pegasus a bit of a poke to the side.

“Oh? I’m not sleeping. Please, continue.” Fluttershy shook her head, trying to drive away the sleepiness.

“I am deeply sorry. I shall try to make my story more engaging. Ehem… when she was done questioning me, I decided to return the favor and ask questions myself. Her hesitance felt rather strange, but, step by step, I managed to find out a little about her. Her name, as I mentioned earlier was Selena. She came to my world, which she called the Nightmare Plain... to tame the nightmares inhabiting it.

What I found strange was that Selena found my appearance rather strange. She said I looked very pretty for a nightmare. To be fair: I still cannot figure out whether that was a compliment or not.

When I exhausted my supply of questions, I looked around, seeing the once ugly and darkened landscape turn and shift in the white light that Selena was emitting. It was truly a fascinating sight…

As we traversed the changing land together, Selena expressed her concern for my presense there — she said that I didn’t belong there, and that I was a mystery that she yet had to solve…

I did not understand what she meant by that, and I still don’t understand. I honestly did not care for my origin, so I asked if, instead of solving my mystery, she could give me some of the light she emitted. Selena giggled at my request and replied that ‘light could not be touched nor smelt, it could only be seen or felt’. Instead, she promised to visit me as often as she could.

I wish not to bore you with the details of our meetings. If I would to sum them up, I’d say we got pretty close. Whenever she was close, I felt safe and protected — her light would keep me safe from any creepy things, and her presense was comforting and soothing to me.

However, one time, her visit came… rather late. She never explained it, though; I never questioned it as well. I just figured that she had her own important business to take care of. But then, her next visit came even later… And this trend continued. I would spent so much time without her that, at times, I would even forget how her light felt.

I know not what I had done, whether I’d offended her or not. She just stopped visiting me… Maybe she got lost? All I could do was sit in my flower… and wait.”

Nightmare Moon cleared her throat once more and sneaked her hoof into the basket, grabbing a single cookie.

“Wait, that’s it? What happened next?” Chrysalis perked up, turning her sight to Moonie.

“I appeared in the library, along with thee and Sombra,” Nightmare Moon replied before chewing on the delicious cookie. “Oh, goodness gracious, ‘tis magnificent. May I have more?”

“Sorry, Moonie, but we should abide the rules of the game…” Fluttershy said in a sad voice. “But, if you are really hungry, you can take another one…”

“Say no more. The rules of the game are sacred and are not to be broken.” Moonie interrupted her in a rather stern voice. However, she looked quite saddened over this, Fluttershy almost felt guilty about it.

“Well, that’s a rather unsatisfying ending,” Chrysalis stated before blowing her nose into the handkerchief.

“I would like to see how thou wouldest try to create a story with coherent narrative. I bet thou wouldest have difficulties even remembering any events with that tiny brain of yours.”

“Moonie! It’s not nice to say that!” Fluttershy perked up, but Chrysalis only laughed in reply.

“Tiny brain? That’s something new! Good to see you are learning, Moon.” Her reply left Moonie rather confused. This compliment seemed to come out of nowhere. If it meant that Chrysalis wasn’t trying to purposefully spite Moonie, then what was she after?

“Well, it seems like its my turn…” Chrysalis took a moment to carefully look at everypony present in the room. Spilling her soul out was not something she had on the agenda — but telling some sugar coated fairytale seemed rather… unfair. Fluttershy, Sombra and Nightmare Moon all had such pure and honest eyes that taking the easy way out was like kicking a puppy: cruel, heartless and not funny in the slightest.

“Alright, then… Just a second… give me a second.” She took a deep breath and began her story.

“Before your purple friend transported me here, I lived in a changeling hive. Not just any hive,the elder hive. It was humongous — thousands upon thousands of twists and turns in an endless labyrinth of tunnels beneath the earth. I’ve had ages to explore it, yet I’ve never seen more than a half of it.

My life there was.... boring. Extremely boring. Like, atrociously boring. Since the day I hatched, all I had to do was to crawl between the nymph caverns and the cocoons, where we would get fed. Occasionally, some drones would come to look if we were healthy.

Though, just because it was boring doesn’t mean it was easy. We had this delicious liquid to drink in the cocoons, but when it came to other sustenance, we were on our own. I hunted for insects in the caves. Don’t know what the others did. Didn’t care too much.

I did help out those who were starving, though. Not all were able to go hunting on their own — some had trouble moving or couldn’t speak — birth defects. That wasn’t unusual. Heh, I guess things like that are never unusual when you see next to no light.

What else is there?... The other kids, yeah. They were all nameless, so I gave them all names while other changelings just called them nymphs. Most of them looked the same, and yet, they all had a personality to remember… Wow, I remember one I’d called Blimp. He was — and I’m not using this term lightly — fat, and we would all pile up on him and he would fly us around the cavern.

He left quickly, though… All nymphs grew very fast. And when they grew up, they would lose the only thing that made them any fun — their personality. The features of their eyes would fade, replaced by a blue glow, and they would just stare at you with soulless eyes, muttering nothing but orders… Yes, Sombra?” Chrysalis interrupted herself, since Sombra had started pointing up his hoof, like one would in class.

He fidgeted a bit before he asked: “Ehm, I’m sorry, but I don’t understand. How is that possible?”

“I agree. What is the cause for such a drastic behavioral change?” Moonie asked.

Chrysalis sighed and massaged her temples. “It is… hard to explain. From what I heard from other nymphs, they had been integrated into the hive mind. I don’t know what it is, as there really was no way of getting information other than from the nymphs, since the drones never spoke, except to convey their orders to us.”

“That’s sad,” Sombra said redundantly, derailing the conversation mercilessly in the process.

Coughing to break the silence, Chryssie went on: “As a result of that, I had to catch changelings while they were still little. I visited the hatcheries every day to check for any newly hatched nymphs. Heh, they made such funny squeaky noises when I pressed their belly a bit. They would also bite if they liked you. Too bad all those beauties would eventually grow into mindless, stupid adul-... drones… Yeah, drones.”

For a moment Chrysalis thought she had hurt Fluttershy, but saw that she didn’t seem upset, only thoughtful.

“All these drones, however, proved to be of no use when I finally managed to break free and escape from the hive. You probably won’t believe me, but the first time I saw the sun was… breathtaking.

It turned out that our hive was located inside a mountain, overwatching a huge valley filled with interesting stuff: lakes, creeks, woods and a small pony village located at the root of the mountain. I couldn’t wait to explore this new, miraculous world. The possibilities seemed endless.

Once I took step into this big world, I realized that I would never want to go back into that cramped cave. Who needs those drones when you had a huge, beautiful world all for yourself?

Things started to get even more exciting when I came across the small pony village, and that was when I first encountered ponies. They looked incredible… not as incredible as me, but they still looked incredible. The colors, the fur, the voices — everything was perfect. As I watched from my cover, I noticed that ponies, just like us, would divide into two groups: kids and adults — nymphs and drones.

At first, I wanted to come out and greet the young ponies, but suddenly… this feeling of… unease struck me. I thought: ‘I haven’t seen them before. What if even their young are dangerous?’ So I kept to my cover… Well, that was the initial plan. The kids that I was observing were kicking a small leather ball around, and suddenly, one of them kicked it towards the bushes right where I was hiding.

As the laws of nature say: anything that is inflatable and emits funny sounds when deflated must fall on something sharp — in this case, my horn. So, several seconds later, I was faced with three pony nymphs who, at first, were horrified by the demise of their ball and then by me.

At first, their faces turned pale as if they saw a ghost. Then, one of them, with a pale green mane, approached me.

It was clear he was scared, scared but he didn’t show it. I felt a little nervous when the foal removed the remains of the ball from my face and looked straight into my eyes. I had never seen eyes so deep and colorful… Until recently, but that’s another story. So, he looked at me, and then said… he said that I looked weird and asked what my name was.

His friends approached as well. They were all suddenly interested, asking me questions… all kinds of questions. I took a deep breath, and answered them as fast as I could, though… I had a little bit of a speech problem. Had a really quiet voice. You know, when you live in caves, you got to keep quiet — the darn ceiling was just waiting to collapse.

This was my first time talking with ponies… and it went so well. Those nymphs asked me a lot of questions, and my appearance did bother them a bit, but not too much. They were friendly to me, and I… I kind of started to feel at home… Like I belonged there…”

“I feel compelled to tell thee that pony young are called foals, not nymphs.”

“Thank you kindly, dear Nightmare Moon. May I continue now?”

“Thou may’st.”

Chrysalis facehoofed. “After we were done questioning each other, one of them offered to go to the creek — perhaps to discreetly indicate that I was quite dirty, having literally crawled out of a cave. Everypony agreed, and I decided to tag along too... Heh, the water was cold as ice, but it was so worth it to get clean from all that dirt. I rarely got to bathe in the caves — water was normally something you’d want to get away from as quickly as possible. Anyway, now I was sure I wasn’t going to return — this... this was the life I wanted to have. Surrounded by nymphs, away from all those drones… Oh, wishful thinking.” Some of the fondness left Chrysalis’ voice.

“Things started to go downhill just as the sunset came. The foals told me that they had to go home and asked if I would like to go with them… We weren’t too far away from the village, so it was a short walk, and then…

Then I realized that my caves weren’t that different from the rest of the world — just darker, tighter and less pretty. Otherwise, they were alike.

When their adults saw me, I almost went deaf because of the screams. Then the chaos began. Everypony ran after me with nets and sticks. The foals tried to stop them, but when did adults ever listen to kids? In mere second, my friends had been taken away and I had been captured.

I could hear how they mocked me. ‘Monster’, they called me! And then, they threw me into a cage, like I was some kind of a dangerous beast!

It felt bad to realize that I traded one picture for the same one only with a different frame. The foals were the nymphs, and the adults were the drones. Stupid, mindless, driven only by the will of one really nasty individual… Adults…

Oh, don’t be worried, I didn’t stay in that cage for too long. In the middle of the night, several changelings snuck into the camp and brought me back to the caves. I can’t really call that a rescue… after all, I was returning to my original place of imprisonment.

Then…"

Suddenly, Chrysalis paused. She just stared into the floor, her mind wandering off into a completely different direction.

Fluttershy already felt a massive lump of emotions in her throat and Chrysalis’ sudden silence made her feel even worse. Everything she’d said so far felt like a personal attack — even though she knew Chrysalis didn’t mean to insult her, and that she no longer believed in those morals, but Fluttershy still felt like she was responsible for what happened to her.

“Chryssie… I know you feel angry, but… those ponies, they didn’t do that because they hated you. They were just… scared…” She carefully wrapped her forelegs around Chrysalis, comforting her and, to her shock, felt the little changeling… shiver. “You don’t have to tell the rest of the story if you don’t want to.”

Moonie and Sombra nodded in unison, both feeling rather uneasy about Chrysalis’ story and her current condition. Moonie looked the most anxious; she hadn’t taken her eyes off Chrysalis all throughout her story.

“No… No, I’m good.” Chrysalis took a deep breath. “I just needed a moment to… gather my thoughts.” She swiped her nose with a handkerchief and continued her tale, everypony present turning quiet as she spoke.

“The changelings brought me into the main room, also known as… the Queen’s quarters. The Queen was humongous, bigger than any drone or adult pony, at least twice their size… At least, I think so. I had never seen her upfront — she was always hidden in the darkness. She hated light, and she rarely left her cavern.

When the drones led me through the tunnels to her, I could feel the darkness slowly devour me until I saw no more… I stood still for a couple of seconds, and then, I saw something sparkle in the dark: a huge maw filled with razor sharp teeth, distorted in a wide, mocking smile was hanging right in front of me. I couldn’t make out anything else.

Then, she started speaking. She sounded calm, and yet the words she spoke oozed poison. She said that it was foolish and dangerous of me to escape the hive, that I’d put our entire colony at risk of being discovered. That I was a fool, an idiot, that I didn’t deserve to be a part of the hive… and she spoke so fluently, so calmly… It was really freaky… Then, she said that if I were to repeat such a deed again, she would dispose of me. She hissed and dissapeared… I can’t recall what happened next.

I woke up in the nymph chambers, like nothing happened…”

Chrysalis finally fell silent as her listeners pondered over her tale. Sombra shrunk, shivering a little.

“That was really scary…” he murmured, imagining the monstrous maw like Chrysalis had described it. Frightened by the image, he snuggled under Fluttershy’s wing and turned quiet as if the monster were around.

However, Fluttershy was the one who was affected by all of these stories the most. Only Chrysalis’ story seemed quite straightforward, but that didn’t make the others any less horrifying.

Each of them had such deep tragedies hidden within. It hurt Fluttershy to even think about it. The place from which Sombra had escaped, the loneliness Nightmare Moon endured, friends they both would never see again, and Chrysalis, who lived in literal hell, guarded by monsters of Fluttershy’s wildest nightmares.

“It’s okay, little one. It’s just a story.” She hugged Sombra with her wing, tickling his side with the fluffy feathers. “Chryssie… Thank you for your story. Everypony, thank you. You’re free to have as many cookies as you want.”

Moonie perked up and was about to lunge at the basket, but immediately stopped herself. “Nay, Chrysalis has shared her story with us. She should be the first to begin our humble feast.”

Chrysalis leaned closer to the basket and picked up a cookie. She gave it a long, hungry stare, licked her fangs and… gave it to Nightmare Moon.

“I’m not hungry. You can have my share if you want.” Nightmare Moon stared at Chrysalis with the expression of complete shock. It took her a minute to finally accept the cookie.

“I- I thank thee. I am grateful.” She mumbled and Chrysalis gave her a friendly bump to the side.

“No problem. Friends have to share… And I didn’t feel like cookies anyway.”

When the two fillies inched closer to the basket, Sombra, too, crawled from under Fluttershy’s wing and joined Nightmare Moon in her little feast. He offered his share to Chrysalis, but she gently refused.

After a few minutes, the basket was empty, and the foals started discussions about their stories.

“And how long did you live on that field you managed to reach?” Chrysalis asked Sombra, while the latter was polishing his hooves with his tongue.

“Mmm? Eh, not much. We were found and sent back to that awful place. I and Choppy tried escaping a few more times, but it didn’t work… But that doesn’t matter anymore! I’m here now!”

“What about your friend Choppy?” Nightmare Moon hummed.

“Oh, he’s okay. He said he has been through worse.” Sombra smiled in return and then yawned. Fluttershy gave him a pat on the head and gently rubbed his ear.

“Feeling sleepy?” Sombra nodded a few times in return. “Go upstairs, you can have a nap on my bed.”

Sombra and Fluttershy trotted upstairs, and Nightmare Moon saw this as an opportunity to finally resolve her problems with Chrysalis. She inched closer to the changeling.

“Erm, Chrysalis… I have a question for thee.”

“Shoot,” Chrysalis replied daringly.

“Thou hast made fun of me during my story… but, when I made fun of thee, thou took’st no offense… and then, thou gavest me thy share of cookies. Why? Why hast thou done that?”

Chrysalis looked at Nightmare Moon and snickered. “Well, you did say that you were all alone. You see, when you make fun of your friend, you never mean it in a serious way. You just point out some funny stuff, and you both laugh at it. That is what I was going for at least.”

“So… you think we are friends?”

“Well, yeah… sorta. You did forgive me for what I did, right?”

“I…” Moon paused for a moment, remembering her thoughts throughout this day. Did she really forgive Chrysalis, or did she just say it in order not to disappoint Fluttershy?

“Yes, I did. So, it is okay for me to make fun of thee from time to time?” What were her thoughts? They were just thoughts, and nothing more. Nightmare Moon felt much easier now that she knew that her conflict with Chrysalis was finally and truly over.

“Of course. Just don’t make fun of my looks. Especially the holes.”

“Certainly. Thy holes shall remain unmolested; I promise that with my life.”

“Magnificent. Let’s celebrate with hugs.” The offer somewhat surprised Moonie, but Chrysalis was unstoppable. She quickly leaned in and wrapped her forelegs around Nightmare Moon. “Not as soft as Bloom, but you’re good too.”

“I know not whether that was the fun thou spokest of or a legitimate compliment, but I thank thee nonetheless,” Nightmare Moon replied and hugged Chryssie in return.

***

“There you go.” Fluttershy finished fluffing the pillow and Sombra hopped into her bed, sliding underneath the blanket. He quickly made himself comfortable, resting his head on the pillow and curling up into a ball.

“Thanks, mommy,” he chirped, wrapping the blanket around himself. “The cookies were very good… Though, Chrysalis’ story was scary… and Moonie’s story was sad.”

“There’s no reason to be scared; they’re just stories,” Fluttershy spoke softly, noting that she should learn this lesson too and stop shivering every time she heard the words ‘scary story’. “I’ll wake you up for dinner.”

“Thank you, mommy… Can you give me your big plushie?” His request was quite sudden and it took Fluttershy a few seconds before she managed to remember what plushie he had in mind.

“Oh, of course. Just a second.” She quickly dived inside a closet, looking for the plushie. “Here it is!”

The big Celestia plushie still looked as good as new. When Fluttershy passed it to Sombra, he quickly wrapped his hooves around it and squeezed it tightly.

“Mmm, it’s so soft… Just like Choppy.” Fluttershy raised an eyebrow and was just about to ask Sombra about it when it struck her like lightning.

“Sombra… how did your friend Choppy look like?” she mumbled.

“Well, he was half as tall as you, just a bit smaller , he had a grey mane and grey coat… He also had a sloppy stitch on his stomach. Some very bad pony teared at him once.” He replied and hugged the plushie even tighter, while Fluttershy sighed deeply.

“I… see…” She scratched her chin in confusion. Sombra yawned loudly, and Fluttershy, unwilling to tire him any longer, kissed him goodnight. “Sleep well, sweetie.”

Feeling uncomfortable, she left the room and slowly trotted towards the stairs, still feeling unsure about Sombra’s supposed friend. No matter which theory she came up with, it did not sound good at all.

Fluttershy stopped and sat down to analyze the things she had accomplished today. She found out a lot about the three foals — perhaps even a little too much. However, they all served to make her realize the most important thing about them: they were no villains.

Whatever Twilight’s spell caused, it did not transport the three most dangerous villains the Equestrian history had ever known to this time and place. It had transported three little foals,foals, that had not a sliver of evil in them.

Well, maybe except Chrysalis. She had a few tini-tiny drops of slightly evil, but still good in her.

But the most important thing about them was that they were lonely. Lonely and sad — the worst possible thing to happen to a foal.

“As long as you are here, I’ll make sure not a single drop falls from your eyes.” Fluttershy whispered a quiet oath. “I will do everything in my power to keep you happy, my little dearies. I Pinkie promise!” She finished her speech with a tap on her chest, sealing the deal with herself.

Although, happiness was not the only concern she had now. What do little foals need? Oh, yes, private space. She should definitely get to adding three more rooms to her cottage! What else? Toys! Her old toys would not do, they needed new ones, something for themselves.

Although, that wasn’t the most important part. If they were to live like normal foals, they’d need to develop a social life.

Fluttershy stopped for a moment to analyze her idea. It sounded ridicilous… mad… insane… impossible… and totally crazy. But for the good of the kids, she was ready to be deemed a madmare if need be. So the decision was made. Fluttershy should borrow some glasses from Twilight — just to look smart — and prepare Nightmare Moon, Sombra and Chrysalis for school. However crazy that might sound.

Definition of Insanity

What a strange coincedence, Fluttershy thought to herself. Usually at the start of the week most ponies would wake up exhausted and grumpy, unprepared for a long and tiring week of work and other unfun stuff. But this Monday Fluttershy woke up with a warm feeling in her chest that fueled her body with strength to tackle anything the day would throw at her.

With the morning sunshine pouring gently into her bedroom, Fluttershy turned to her side to bid the peacefully sleeping changeling good morning, only to find out the peacefully sleeping changeling was now peacefully absent.

Slightly worried, Fluttershy got up and looked around her room, finding nothing that would indicate Chryssie’s whereabouts. Skipping her morning aftersleep stretches, she left the room and walked downstairs.

Fluttershy felt a shiver run down her spine when the distinct smell of fire assaulted her nose, causing her to quicken her pace. When she finally arrived in the smoke-screened living room, she started coughing. She could hear coughing and grumbling further away from her, and then a loud, happy “Yipee!”. Stumbling and rubbing her teary eyes with her wings, Fluttershy walked up to a window and pushed it open.

The current of fresh air swayed over her, washing the noxious fumes away into the outside. Fluttershy rubbed her eyes a little bit more and turned around.

The three foals were standing in front of her, all smeared in soot and flour, each with a dish resting on the head.

“Good morning!” They all said in unison, each smiling brightly, though Chryssie’s smile looked more like a grin. Which toothpaste would one use for these fangs?

“Oh… morning, children… Are you all okay?” She replied with a slight touch of worry in her voice. They didn’t look hurt, but Fluttershy preferred to double check on things like these.

“Yep. We feel like sunshine and rainbows!” Chrysalis exclaimed. “But that’s not important right now. What is important is that we, by our mutual agreement, have started a constest.”

“Whoever makes you the best breakfast wins!” Sombra gleefully said, shaking with excitement. The dish on his head looked like it was about to fall off.

Fluttershy’s mouth formed a perfect o; it wasn’t every day she got somepony cooking breakfast for her. Then she actually looked at the contents of the dishes.

Whatever hunger she had had, it packed its things, tidied its room and smashed the door behind itself, screaming ‘nope!’ all thoughout the process. It didn’t even leave a note behind.

Now, Fluttershy understood the smoke. The contents of villains’ dishes represented a smelly, charred goo covered in spices of different color. By looking at Sombra’s dish alone, she saw salt, pepper, mustard and ketchup. The other villains’ works of art were probably not much better.

“Umm… thank you all very much. I appreciate your concern a lot, but… but I’m not hungry… if you’re okay with that.” Fluttershy blushed heavily. It was one of those rarest times she refused a gift in favor of self-preservation. Hopefully, the kids wouldn’t be too disheartened.

“Oh… okay, then.” Sombra replied in a rather saddened voice. Other two didn’t look too pleased either. “I’ll just put it over there… if you get hungry you’re welcome to try it.”

It never took much to break Fluttershy’s resolve. Sad faces made by foals and fillies were especially good at it. The instant the three villains turned away to put their concoctions away, Fluttershy felt a sense of guilt so strong it literally hurt.

“Wait! I just thought about it… and yes, I’m hungry,” she said with a tiny dash of dismay in her voice, as the three rushed to her, gleefully offering their creations. There was no way around it: she had to try all of them.

Fluttershy took the dish from Sombra and eyed it closely. The black mass was bubbling, for a moment it made Fluttershy worried that whatever served as an ingridient was a living creature and was still alive, but upon closer inspection it turned out to be just the temperature.

“Looks… lovely.” Fluttershy commented, when suddenly a black bubble bursted, spraying a small amount of liquid in her eye. “Ouch!”

A quick swipe solved the issue, but it couldn’t delay what she was about to do. Fluttershy took a deep breath and licked a small portion of the concoction, swallowing it shortly afterwards.

“Do you like it? Do you love it?” Sombra chatted unstoppably.

“Of course she loves it! Just behold that lovely shade of green,” Nightmare Moon reassured Sombra.

Chrysalis floated her dish near her face, looking a bit suspicious. The sickly green colour on Fluttershy’s face was not a good sign, so she decided to test her creation before further actions. The instant she touched ‘food’ with her tongue, she felt a burning desire to drink endless amounts of water.

“I think that’s quite enough!” She exclaimed, grabbing Sombra’s dish right from under Fluttershy’s nose.

“Hey! Stop that, Chrysalis, she ate nought of our dishes yet!” Moonie exclaimed indignantly.

“Overeating for breakfast is bad for health. You don’t want Fluttershy to get sick, do you?” Chrysalis asked, snatching Moonie’s dish as well. The confused alicorn nodded in reply. “Good. Then let’s put it away till…” She mumbled something that sounded like ‘never’, “it would be even better then.”

As Chrysalis carried the dishes away, she saw sincere gratitude on Fluttershy’s anguished pale-green face.

***

“Change is good, but you have to agree: there is nothing better than waffles,” Fluttershy cooed, pouring syrup on a huge plate full of waffles. The villains, sitting behind the table and staring hungrily, all nodded in unison. Carefully, Fluttershy filled each plate with an equal amount of waffles.

Her stomach quickly settled down after a cup of herbal tea, but the lesson was learnt: she needed an alarm clock. One more meal like this and she would never be able to eat again.

Looking at the three eating, she smiled. It made what would come easier.

Today, she planned to take her first steps to educating the little villains. Finding a piece of chalk was not difficult at all, and she already had a blackboard somewhere in the attic. But the toughest part would be convincing her friends of the idea of them visiting a school. Even telling them would be a problem. Fluttershy always had a tough time revealing secrets, and when it came to secrets. She already had Applejack at her side; surely she would back her up. But others might be harder to convince. Especially Twilight.

She didn’t know if she would manage to convince her other friends, too. Rarity might support her, if she wouldn’t immediately go berserk when she would see Nightmare Moon wearing the hoodie she made, and because of the simple fact of Fluttershy lying to her. Rainbow Dash would be a tough nut to crack, but underneath that blue armor she had a big heart, and Fluttershy knew how to reach it.

Pinkie Pie… Fluttershy didn’t want to make assumptions about her. She knew she would be wrong whatever she had in mind.

“Thewse wawwfles arw twe bewst!” Chrysalis mumbled, her mouth filled with the crunchy delight, the syrup dripping right on the table. Just as always, Chrysalis left quite a mess.

“It would be even better if Chrysalis stopped stealing mine!” Nightmare Moon rolled her eyes and was about to bite the last remaining waffle on her plate… when it suddenly splashed some syrup in her face and started articulating, obviously taunting the alicorn.

Fluttershy’s heart stopped beating for a moment and her cheeks turned pale as snow.

“The waffles are alive!” Sombra exclaimed in excitement as his waffles came alive as well and joined the waffle already on the table. “They’re alive! Alive!”

In horror, Fluttershy watched the entire patch of waffles she recently baked sprung up from their place and jump across the room on the table.

Chrysalis quickly swallowed what she had in her mouth and stared silently at the gathering crowd of waffles in the middle of the table. Her face was getting more and more pale as she watched their numbers grow. When suddenly…

“Hold on a second! Waffles can’t be alive!” Chrysalis exclaimed loudly; the loud proclamation of solid fact whipped Fluttershy back into her senses. Almost immediately she dashed to the foals, grabbing all three of them and carrying them away from the growing mass of waffles.

“Waaah! What’s happening, mom?” Sombra asked, really curious about the living waffles.

“No time to explain! You need to hide! Now!” Fluttershy replied, hastily running to the cabinet at the further end of her cottage. “You need to hide and keep quiet!”

“Why? Is somepony really bad coming?” Moonie managed to utter.

“You don’t even know, Moonie. You can’t even imagine!”

Finally, the cabinet was within her reach. Fluttershy quickly opened the doors, and, with all three villains inside, slammed it shut and turned around.

The waffles formed a big squad, standing tall, like soldiers, while a tall slim figure formed from the remains of syrup. It twisted and turned as it slowly turned from liquid into solid matter.

“Hail Generalissimo Discord!” The waffles suddenly shouted, hailing their commander, who stood in front of them in an expensive general coat covered in medals, ribbons and orders.

“At ease, Captain Crunch.” Discord took off his tricorn and gracefully nodded to his troops. “You have completed your task with outstanding results. You and your troops are now dismissed.”

“My General, we also spotted…” The commanding waffle was unable to finish its report as Discord quickly snatched it with his claw and swallowed it in one bite.

“Nu-uh. Don’t spoil the surprise. Mmm, crunchy.” He snapped his fingers and the waffles fell down, drained of chaotic magic. He turned to Fluttershy.

“Fluttershy, my most truest of friends, I’m so happy to see you!” In a flash, he was right near the cabinet, embracing her in a tight bear hug. “You won’t believe how much I missed your screams and squeals of terror and horror!”

“I’m… happy… to see you… too… Discord…” Fluttershy gasped for air as she was being crushed in his embrace.

“Now you can kiss boredom goodbye! I’m back and it’s time to make your life exciting.” Discord smiled as he let her go. Though, it was more of a mischievous smile of a villain, planning something cunning. “Just let me hang my coat first, I’m so tired from the trip.”

“No!” Fluttershy eeped and covered the cabinet’s doors with her own body. “Erhm… I mean… not in the cabinet. It’s, uh, new.”

“Oh, come on, Fluttershy, the last time my coat exploded in your house was entirely not my fault. You should ask your pet rabbit; I’m sure it was him who put that stick of dynamite inside my pocket.” Crossing his arms on the chest, Discord tried to express his indignance. “That rabbit has a stash of explosives, I’m sure of it!”

Suddenly, his expression changed from indignance to surprise, and then to a raptorial grin. He scratched his chin with his lion paw.

“Are you hiding something from me, Fluttershy?” Fluttershy felt cold sweat run down her neck, her legs were shivering, she could barely stand. “Or rather somepony?”

“Wh-what? N-no… No, I’m not… hiding anypony.” She swallowed nervously, feeling her cheeks turning bright as ripe red apples. “I’m… not…”

“Hey, stop poking me with that thing!” Suddenly, Moonie’s muffled voice sounded from inside the cabinet. “It hurts!”

“It’s not my fault it’s so big!” Chrysalis angrily hissed in return. “Now be quiet, we’re supposed to be hiding!”

“May I ask a question? If ponies don’t usually wear clothes, why is there a cabinet?” Sombra’s question made even Discord lift an eyebrow.

“That’s… actually a good question.” Chrysalis replied. “We’re gonna have to ask Fluttershy about that… But really, why does she need a cabinet?”

“I wonder that too.” Discord giggled, gently moving Fluttershy, who lost all will to fight, and opened the doors, revealing three little villains bunched up in the corner of the cabinet. “My….oh my….”

Fluttershy was about to lunge and cover the villains with her body, in vain hope that Discord would just suddenly forget what he had just seen and do something else, but the draconequus acted first. Laughing joyfully, he quickly lifted Sombra by the nape and looked at him closer.

“Aah! Help! I’m being foalnapped!” Sombra tried to wrestle himself out of Discord’s grasp, blindly swinging his hooves at him.

“Sweet goodness, Fluttershy! I thought I only left for a couple of months! Foals these days grow up so fast.” The draconequus swiped a tear away from his eye. “I can’t believe it. It doesn’t happen often… well, it never happens at all, but it happened just now… I’m amazed! Shocked! Amashozed!”

He let Sombra go and the foal quickly ran to Fluttershy’s side and hid behind her. Chrysalis and Nightmare Moon followed his example.

“My Fluttershy isn’t so shy after all! At least three times not shy!” Discord smiled and scratched Fluttershy behind an ear. “You naughty filly, you!”

“Discord, stop this! It’s not what you think!” Fluttershy pushed his claw away from herself. “It’s not what you thi—”

“Is that a changeling?” Chrysalis tried to bite Discord’s paw the instant he pointed at her. “My, my, that is a changeling. You cannot not notice the holes.”

“Racist!” Chryssie angrily shouted in return.

“A unicorn, a changeling… and an alicorn! Fluttershy, I never knew you had it in you!... Well, you obviously did. At least three times…”

“Discord!” Fluttershy roared slash spoke without whispering , prompting him to turn silent. “It’s not what you think! I’m not… ehm… I never had it in me…. Not in that way…”

“But in what way?” Discord smiled slyly, leaning closer to Fluttershy. “Tell me all your dirty secrets, my not-so-shy friend.”

“Discord, stop it! I don’t have dirty secrets, and I never had anything in me!” Her face turned crimson red as Discord’s muffled giggles became louder. “I mean, I do have something in me. Talents…”

“Yeeeeeah, you have quite a ‘talent’ swaying with every step.” He giggled even harder, as Fluttershy almost cried in shame.

“What’s your problem, you… whatever you are!” Chrysalis suddenly stepped up, shielding Fluttershy. “Leave us alone, jerk!”

“A feisty one, huh? We’ll make the greatest of friends!” Discord clapped his hands. “I hope your brother and sister will be like you.”

“Enough!” Fluttershy’s suddenly loud voice made Discord stagger backwards a little. “They are Nightmare Moon, Chrysalis and Sombra, Discord! They’re not… not… what you thought!”

“Oh…” Discord eyed the three foals carefully. “Oh… Ooooooh… I see. Let me guess, Twilight tried experimenting?”

“Yes…” Fluttershy sighed heavily. “Please, my sweeties, go upstairs. I and Mr. Discord need to talk.”

“Thy name is Discord? Selena mentioned thee once. She said thou wert quite the hellion.” Nightmare Moon looked at Discord with a bit of scorn, but Chrysalis prevented any more words from her.

“Let’s just get going, Shy needs to discuss some adult business. Come on,” she said, even though curiousity was urging her to find out more about this weird Discord. What business could he possibly have with Fluttershy? Nevertheless, she, Sombra and Nightmare Moon quickly left for the upper floor.

“Yes, you’re correct. They appeared when Twilight was experimenting with the box we found under the Tree of Harmony. She left them in my care while she’s devising a counter-spell.” Fluttershy tried her best to summarize the situation in as few words as possible.

“So, that’s why they look like the villains’ small copies. Psshh, Twilight’s such a doofus.” Discord crossed his arms angrily. “She left out the best ex-villain. Blah.”

“I’ve been taking care of them for quite a while now. They’re all really sweet, once you get to know them.” Fluttershy looked out the window, her ears dropping. “But I feel like I’m robbing them of their childhood by keeping them locked up here. I must be an eyesore for them.”

“My poor, poor friend.” Discord floated to Fluttershy, his face distorted in a grin. “Your motherly feelings are indeed strong. I’d rate three Celestias out of five. So, what kind of idea are you nursing in that brain of yours?”

Fluttershy blushed furiously at the compliment and it took her a second to compose herself and speak. “I want them to feel appreciated. They are no different from any other foal, so I decided to prepare them for school.” Terrifying silence engulfed the room for a whole minute, and for Fluttershy it felt like a minute of endless torture.

“Hold on a second, I need to drop something.” Discord landed on the floor, walked to the kitchen, picked up a small glass and proceeded to drop it on the floor, smashing it into thousands of tiny pieces. “Okay… No, wait, I need one more.”

It took Discord three glasses and one plate — which he broke by accident if he were to be trusted — to get him back to his senses. After he was done, he bursted into maniacal laughter.

“Oh my, oh me! And I called myself mad! Sending an insane demigod, a tyrant and an overgrown bug to school!... It’s a recipe for disaster. I absolutely love it!” Discord gasped for air as he spoke. “I could never come up with anything like this even if I tried!”

“Umm…. thanks?” Discord threw another laughing fit at Fluttershy’s reply.

“I love it! Absolutely love it. Ten Discords out of ten.” He clapped his hands together. “And I’m ready to help out carry out this insane idea. For the greater good.”

Fluttershy sighed with relief. Already, she had one supporter. The only problem was that it was Discord, and his support was the number one symptom you needed to see a psychiatrist. However, Fluttershy was still convinced that her actions were just and that her little villains deserved to be treated like any other child. With a just cause like that, she couldn’t not be victorious.

“If I want to convince Twilight to let me send them to school, then I need to convince everypony. We should see my friends as soon as possible.” Fluttershy felt herself full of energy and ready for action. “But first, I think it’ll be a good idea to give my little villains something worthwile to do, and I know exactly what it is.”

“Neat. I’ll fetch the glow sticks.” Discord smiled. Flutershy stared. “...What? What else would they do?”

***

“I don’t like where this is going.” Chrysalis mumbled as Fluttershy approached the blackboard. “I think this weird draconeqi… draconeqa…. whatever, is controlling her mind!”

“Oh, Chrysalis, I am deeply saddened by the fact that I have to question thine intellegence at this point.” Nightmare Moon giggled when Chryssie glared at her with fiery eyes. “This set up is nothing more than that of an establishment named… schooooool.” She warbled the word as if it was something magical. “Aaaah… Selena used to tell me a lot about this place. This shall be glorious.”

Nightmare Moon lovingly adjusted the pencils on her table and put her papers in order and looked in excitement at Fluttershy, who turned to the villains, beaming happily.

“I hope you are all comfortable with the tables my friend Discord so generously provided.” She smiled as the three foals tried to make themselves comfortable. The tables Discord conjured out of thin air were almost identical to those one would see in school, but the draconequus also put extra effort into it by naming each table after the villains. Even though he mispelled all of them.

“So… So… Sombrero…” Sombra struggled to read the letters carved on his table.

“Oh, I would be even more comfortable if you let us know why we need them,” Chrysalis groused.

“You’re about to find out.” Fluttershy exclaimed, grabbed a piece of chalk with her teeth and started writing on the blackboard, which, too, was provided by Discord. (At least she wouldn’t need to fetch the one in the attic). Once she was done, Fluttershy put the chalk down, turned around and unfolded her wing to present what she wrote to the foals.

“Every pony in Equestria possesses a great range of skills. However, there are quite a handful of which we all share. One of them is knowledge of written language.” She looked back at the board on which she’d written her name in capital letters. “What I want you to do now is to write your names!”

Chrysalis’ jaw dropped once she saw the word. “Oh my… It is so long!” She tilted her head, trying to look at the board from a different prospective, to see if there’d be less letters, but to no avail. “So… long...”

“I’m going to do my best!” Sombra exclaimed, levitating a pencil towards himself and starting to work right away. Nightmare Moon followed his example. Only Chrysalis was left staggered and unsure of what to do.

“It’s really easy, sweetheart. Let me show you.” Fluttershy hurried to Chrysalis’ aid, picked up a pencil and tried to explain the basics of writing.

The whole scene was so charming that Discord could not help but feel a little jealous. He only wondered why Fluttershy had not started with teaching them which sound belonged to which letter (or just asking whether they could write); he kept quiet.

“If it wasn’t for Twilight being a doofus, I would be sitting there too. But who wants to be a kid again, to have an excuse to do all sorts of crazy chaos-causing shenanigans? Grr, stupid Twilight.” He angrily crossed his arms. “I’m so exploding her tree one day.”

Just a few seconds later, Nightmare Moon and Sombra were ready. Fluttershy whispered a few more hints to Chryssie and quickly collected the papers. The results were quite surprising.

Nightmare Moon had very pretty script that reminded Fluttershy of old manuscripts from Twilight’s library, probably a result of Selena’s tutelage. At times, the strangely woven letters would look confusing, but this seemed like a good start. Sombra’s writing, however, was most peculiar.

The letters were all weirdly shaped; bent and turned in weird angles, they resembled geometrical shapes more than they did letters. They felt rough and alien, like some kind of ancient dead language. Then, it finally hit Fluttershy.

Sombra’s from Crystal Empire! He was writing in his native language. Well, that made things much more difficult.

“Did I do well?” Sombra focused his eyes on Fluttershy, expecting an immediate answer.

“You… erm… did great, sweetie. But there’s… something I have to tell you.” She walked up to Sombra and put his paper on the table. “Here, in Equestria, we use different letters than you do. It’s… complicated.”

“But I don’t know any other letters.” Sombra lost spirit and hung his head in sadness.

“Fret not, my dear friend. I shall teach thee the alphabet… if our caretaker would allow it.” Nightmare Moon gently bowed her head to Fluttershy, who blushed furiously, realizing she’d forgotten the very basis.

“Oh, umm… of course you can! It is a great thing when you can help a friend in need.” The colour on her cheeks fading, she moved to Chrysalis.

The changeling filly looked quite furious as she was writing, and then her pencil slipped, leaving an ugly line on the paper, she angrily threw the pencil on the table and pouted.

“This is stupid!” She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes. Fluttershy quickly leaned over her shoulder and looked at the paper — it was filled with sloppy, barely recognizable letters, and there was a ton of them.

“I’ll never get this done,” Chrysalis growled quietly.

“Don’t say that. With every failure, you improve a little bit. Keep trying, and you’ll succeed.” Fluttershy gave Chrysalis a sweet hug. “I know you will. I believe in you.”

“But I tried a million times already! I’m just not cut out for it.”

“It’s okay, Chryssie. Let me do it with you.” As Chryssie wrapped the pencil in toxic-green magical field, Fluttershy guided it in correct directions, trying to show the mistakes in Chrysalis’ writing and correct them.

“Ah, please, Flutters, you’re going to give me sugar poisoning.” Discord sarcastically noted. “Besides, we have some dummies to converse with… I mean, your friends.”

“Hold on. It goes there… and here… Done!” Fluttershy backed away and looked at a sloppy, but complete word: Chrysalis. “You did great, Chryssie! I’m proud of you.” She gave the changeling a rub on the head, and a barely noticeable crimson color seemed to invade Chryssie’s cheeks.

“Alright... Sweethearts, attention please.” Fluttershy approached the blackboard and knocked on it a few times. The knocks were so weak they were quieter than her own voice, but it still seemed to attract the attention of the three foals. “I’ll have to leave to do something important… We’re going to have guests.”

“Guests? That’s awesome!” Sombra exclaimed. Other foals seemed to share his excitement.

“Finally! I hope I get to see Apple Bloom again,” Chrysalis noted.

“Meanwhile, you should keep writing. Moonie…” she pointed at Nightmare Moon, who quickly stood on attention. “I leave you in charge. Help your friends with learning the alphabet.”

“Thy will be done!” Nightmare Moon exclaimed.

“If you have any questions, you can ask Discord.” As Fluttershy said that, draconequus quickly appeared in front of her.

“What do you mean? Am I not coming with you?” he queried, crossing his arms.

“S-sorry, Discord, but I don’t think it would be a good idea for you to walk around Ponyville… ponies are still… erm… doubting your reformation.” Fluttershy smiled awkwardly as she spoke. “Besides, I can’t leave my sweethearts all by themselves.”

“I feel like you just simply don’t want me around anymore. Do you have another spirit of chaos?” Another flash later, Discord was dressed in a fancy tuxedo, with a rose attached. “Well, fine, then! You’re not the pony that reformed me!”

“Discord…” Fluttershy rolled her eyes, and Discord quickly changed back to normal.

“Bwah, fine. You’re too good at convincing. Go, run, do what you have to, before I change my mind.” He turned away from her, trying to look offended. “I’ll stay here. Alone. With no supervision. I won’t cause any trouble. No trouble at all.”

“I’m sure of that.” Fluttershy smiled and went out the door. As she distanced herself away from the cottage, Discord slowly closed the door leading outside.

“So, my little friends… Time to receive your education. Oooooh-ha-ha-ha, I’ll give you a degree in epic shenanigans, bwa-ha-ha-ha!” Discord rubbed his claw and paw together, laughing maniacally. “This will be the greatest time of my life!”

***

The longer Fluttershy floated over Ponyville, the bigger her desire to turn back and give up grew. This terrible feeling of everything going south was following her everywhere she went, but when she set her eyes on a big cloud above the skies, the feeling reached its peak.

“It will all be fine. It will all be fine.” She kept chanting to herself as she approached Rainbow Dash’s napcloud. It was an unusually big cloud that Dash used specifically for napping. She even shaped it differently each time.

Fluttershy figured that if she was able to persuade Rainbow Dash that sending a trio of villains to school would not end in a catastrophe, then winning over the rest of the crew would be a piece of cake. After all, Rainbow Dash was the most stubborn out of her friends, right after Applejack — and she was already at her side.

Fluttershy swallowed nervously and carefully landed on the cloud. Strangely enough, Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be seen. Strange. Usually she would nap at this time of day. Where could she b—

“Boo!” A sudden shriek escaped Fluttershy’s ears as she collapsed face first into the cloud. The soft, cotton-like surface accepted her face as its own and formed an imprint of her terrified expression. Fluttershy barely managed to keep her hooves from shaking uncontrollably and slowly turned her head around.

“Ha-ha! Got ya good, didn’t I?” Rainbow Dash hopped onto the cloud, stiffling another laughing fit.

“That wasn’t nice, Rainbow Dash! How could you?” Fluttershy put her hoof to where her heart was and closed her eyes.

“Soory, I just couldn’t resist.” Rainbow Dash approached Fluttershy and quickly put her back on her shivering hooves. “You can’t believe how happy I am to see you, Flutters. Honestly, it seems like we don’t talk that much anymore.”

Rainbow Dash gave Fluttershy a friendly hug, and that made the poor pegasus feel just a little bit better.

“Y-yeah… Sorry about that. I was very busy… with important stuff…” Fluttershy murmured, looking for the best place to start her story from.

“Found a new critter, eh? How long have you poked around the bushes to find it?” She giggled, sitting down on the soft cloud. Fluttershy followed her example.

“Actually, it’s… not a critter. It’s… something else entirely. Or… rather someponies.” A streak of cold sweat started running down Fluttershy’s neck. “Some small ponies.”

“Huh? There’s a new kid in town?” Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. “Interesting.”

“Yes… and no. A certain pony did… uhh…. something… and… now I… have to take care… of… ehm… them.” Fluttershy suddenly realized that she just didn’t know what to say. She just spoke whatever came to her mind, and that was bound to end in something terrible. “I mean… it’s not that hard, but it is… time consuming.”

“You were pregnant?” Rainbow Dash’s question was like a thunder in the clear sky. If Fluttershy wasn’t already sitting, she would have collapsed. “Who is he? Tell me! I’ll break his face! His bones! His… everything!”

Rainbow Dash’s cheeks turned crimson red, as she got up, her eyes burning with hellish flames. “Nopony dumps my friends when they’re pregnant and gets away alive!” She roared like a demon straight out of Tartarus.

“No, no! Rainbow Dash, I wasn’t preg….pregnant! I just… Please, calm down!” Fluttershy cursed silently at her shyness. Had she been just a little bit bolder, she wouldn’t be dealing with an angry Dash right now.

“Oh, don’t try to cover up for him. I know you’re kind and all, but this matter requires sheer merciless brutality!” Rainbow Dash bumped her hooves together and flexed her neck. “And I’ve got aplenty of it!”

“I wasn’t pregnant!” Fluttershy cried out in desperation. “Please, listen to me! I’m taking care of three kids, but they’re not mine!”

Fluttershy’s desperate cry seemed to have attracted Rainbow Dash’s attention, as she turned around in confusion.

“I mean… uhh… It’s a long story.” Fluttershy exhaled, partially with relief, partially with regret.

“We’ve got a lot of time. I’m listening.”

Fluttershy was surprised that, throughout the whole whole story, Rainbow Dash hadn’t interrupted her once. She just sat there and looked attentively. Her emotions were incredibly easy to read on her face, and at times her expression of irritation and anger scared her greatly.

“That’s all…” Fluttershy gulped nervously. “Please, Rainbow, don’t be mad. I’m sorry about not telling you before… or any of my friends. I was just… scared.”

“Scared? Scared of what?” Rainbow Dash looked at her seriously. Fluttershy hated when Dash looked serious — it was incredibly unnatural.

“Scared of what you would say… I feared that you might get angry at them…” Fluttershy sighed heavily.

“And for a good reason. Have you forgotten what they did? But that’s not the worst part: Twilight just loaded them off to you!” Rainbow’s cheeks turned crimson again. “Each of them is dangerous!”

“No! They’re not dangerous!” Fluttershy yelled. “They’re not evil, they’re just… weird. But they are very sweet, once you get to know them. Please, Rainbow, trust me — they are just foals. Not villains, foals!”

Rainbow Dash sighed heavily, and Fluttershy knew that this sigh signalled her complete and utter failure. Despite telling her every single important detail, she’d still failed to persuade her.

For a moment, a weary grave silence claimed dominion over the small napcloud.

“So… you said that Applejack knows about this whole ordeal?” After a long pause, Rainbow Dash was first to break the silence. “Don’t get me wrong, I trust you wholeheartedly, but…”

“You want her to prove my words?” Fluttershy brightened up significantly.

“Y-yeah… I mean, I trust you, but…”

“Great! Let’s go at once! We’ve got no time to lose!” Fluttershy exclaimed, quickly pushed Rainbow Dash off the cloud and took to the air herself.

“Waaah!” Dash quickly spread her wings, elevating herself back to Fluttershy’s altitude. “Something tells me I will not like what I’ll hear.”

“Don’t worry, you will!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “And now, to Applejack! No more time to waste!”

***

A sudden spark of energy jumped out of the box as Twilight’s magic struck it. The small yellowish spark slowly grew into a big ball and hung above the box as if expecting something.

“Did I… do it?” Twilight bit her lip, slowly inching closer to the ball. Meanwhile, Spike had taken cover behind the couch which he had, in advance, nailed down to the floor so it wouldn’t be flung away.

“Twilight, every other orb exploded six seconds and a half after appearing, I suggest you get in cover, right about—”

His voice drowned in a clap that reminded of thunder as the ball exploded, leaving its surroundings scorched, and Twilight covered in ash.

“—now.” Spike finished his sentence and leaned over the couch. “Huh, that was a bit too early. At least a second and a half earlier.”

“Yeah… go figure,” Twilight murmured, scrubbing the grime off her muzzle. She looked around and sighed heavily; the entire library was now more reminescent of a magic battlefield: the floor was scorched and at places still smoking, the bookshelves were empty, with all the books safely hidden upstairs and all furniture was either destroyed or close thereto. “Maybe I need to decrease amount of magic?”

“Maybe you just need to take a break? Seriously, you’ve been at it for far too long. Take a break.” Spike quickly approached Twilight with a towel he hid behind the couch in advance (as well) and wiped the rest of the ash off her face. “Keep still, your muzzle isn’t going to clean itself.”

“Break? I can’t go on a break! I’ve got things to fix!” Twilight exclaimed just as Spike was done. She rushed to the box, gazing angrily at it as if that would help her solve the magical puzzle. However, when she noticed her reflection on the sparkly surface of the box…

“By Celestia! Why am I black?!” Twilight’s eye started twitching from shock.

“You see, I kind of wanted to tell you that about three explosions ago, but you never gave me a chance.” Spike threw the now black-as-tar towel on the couch. “So, what will it be - tea or coffee?”

“I”ll… Tea. Add some sugar.” Twilight mumbled in reply and Spike quickly rushed upstairs, shouting something. Perhaps, her caring assistant was right and she was in need of a break. Maybe even a nap.

Sighing heavily, Twilight trotted followed Spike upstairs, to the undamaged part of the library. There, she sunk her face deep into the pillow while Spike was busy heating the teapot with his own breath.

“When I’m done with this counterspell, I am so taking a vacation.” A flash of her horn and the rest of the ash dropped to the floor, leaving her almost spotless.

“Sounds neat. Where to? Baltimare? Las Pegasus?” Spike smiled as the water started to boil.

“Baltimare. A few days on the beach do wonders to a tortured mind.”

“Sounds like something they’d put on advertisement posters.” The teapot started proclaiming its discomfort with the boiling liquid inside; Spike dispensed some of it into a cup. “Here you go.” He handed Twilight her cup, and she took a few sips.

“Aahh… delicious.” She cooed happily, taking another sip, seemingly oblivious to the temperature. “Best tea in my life.”

“Hehehe… By yours truly.” Spike blushed slightly. “I hate to brag, but even Rarity says my tea is amazing.”

Their peaceful tea time was interrupted by knocks on the front door. Spike carefully looked at the door and raised an eyebrow.

“Apparently somepony heard the explosions. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,” he assured and quickly ventured downstairs, around the box and straight to the door. With a quick swipe of his claw, he unlocked all three of the inside locks and opened the door.

“Princess Twilight is conducting a dangerous experiment and is not to be distu-oooh, hello, Rarity!” His scaly cheeks turned pale pink with blush when he met eyes to eyes with Rarity.

“Why, hello, Spiky. We have some important topics to discuss with Twilight, I hope it wouldn’t be any trouble for you to let us in?” She winked at Spike from under her luscious purple mane and, like geas, it made the dragon obey.

“Oh, of course! Come on in… wait, did you say ‘we’?”

Before Spike could ask any further, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy quickly entered the library. It would take Spike a whole minute to finally remember to shut the door.

“Wow-wee, what happened here? Explosion party? I love parties with fireworks!” Pinkie Pie clapped her hooves once she noticed the devastation the library was in. “Can I bring my own?”

“Girls? What are you doing here?” Twilight put away her tea and trotted downstairs, but once she noticed Fluttershy, her face fell. “Oh, by Celestia, please tell me it’s not what I think it is.”

“Umm… I’m sorry, Twilight, but… I thought it would be better to let our friends know…” She slowly trotted backwards into a corner as Twilight approached her. “I… thought it would be… better…”

“Fluttershy, it’s going to be a catastrophe if this slips into the public! You cannot even imagine!” Twilight angrily scolded her, when suddenly Applejack jumped in the way of her advance.

“Now hold yer gryphons, Twi. Fluttershy made the right choice —Ah mean, we’re the Elements of Harmony! We’re supposed to work as a team. Ya should have told us from the very beginning.” Slowly, Twilight was surrounded by her friends, and now it was her who slowly inched backwards into a corner. Fluttershy looked over Applejack’s shoulder with a very guilty expression on her face.

“And what did you think when you just left them with Fluttershy? You knew they could be dangerous and you left them with her of all ponies!” Rainbow Dash flew into Twilight's face, staring her down.

Twilight shrunk under her friend’s angry glare, but didn’t utter a word.

“I’d have to agree with Rainbow Dash, dear. That was really irresponsible.” Rarity at least had the grace to remove the chromatic pegasus from Twilight. “Whatever were you thinking?”

“Why didn’t you tell us that you brought the villains back as foals?! It sounds so cool!” Pinkie Pie beamed brightly. “Can I throw them a welcome party?”

“No! No welcome parties! You wouldn’t throw the Cerberus a party if it was to attack Ponyville, would you?” Twilight, who had regained her composure, exclaimed, glancing at her. Pinkie immediately sulked.

“I wouldn’t. But three little kiddies are not Cerberus… though they would look like one if they merged bodies… Eww, that sounds gross.”

“Ah can’t speak for all, but at least Chryssie seems alright. She’s been at the farm for a while,” Applejack tried to steer the discussion back on topic.

“She did what?!” All ponies backed away from Twilight in fear. “You let Chrysalis outside?!”

“T-Twilight, I’m honest, we were not noticed! Nopony apart from the Apples knew… I think…” Fluttershy felt her entire body shiver. The chances of her plan working out were quickly rolling down the hill.

“Ah’m telling ya, it worked out fine. She and Apple Bloom even became friends.”

“Friends?! Are you two mad?! She’s a changeling! A changeling!” Twilight cried out in anger, veins on her neck about to burst. “If anypony finds out that there’s a changeling in their neighborhood, they’ll quickly round up a mob and come to your house with torches and pitchforks!”

“There’s no reason for that! They’re harmless!” Fluttershy finally gathered enough courage to speak up. “Believe me, Twilight, they are not dangerous at all. They are little foals, they wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

Twilight sat down on the floor, rubbing her temples furiously. She was about to say something, when suddenly Spike appeared in the middle of their little circle, holding a plate of cupcakes and tea.

“I know you’re all arguing and stuff, but how about a break?” He smiled awkwardly, hoping that hot tea and just slightly burnt cupcakes would ease the situation.

“Yay for cupcakes!” Pinkie exclaimed, grabbing one, tossing it into the air and then catching it with her mouth. “Yummy!”

Friends agreed to take a break and Spike, elevated by such news, quickly pushed a round table in the middle of the room. As his pony friends were sipping tea in complete and awkward silence, not interrupted even by Pinkie, Spike looked around and, with heavy heart, went to fetch the broom.

“Not that I’m still not furious with you, Twilight, but every time you try to interact with the box, it explodes?” Rainbow Dash put down her cup of tea and looked around. “Not even I could make such a mess out of my own house.”

“Well, not every time, but… at least five times out of six.” Twilight replied, levitating a cupcake to her mouth.

“You know, dear, I recently moved all my things from the attic. You could perform your experiments there. As long as you don’t burn down my house, that is.” Rarity noted, prompting a surprised ogle from Twilight.

“Really? Thank you so much, Rarity. I… I probably need to put a protective dome over the box. That should solve the problem of collateral damage. I hope your neighbors won’t mind the sounds, though.”

“Oh, do not worry, they got used to weird loud sounds. Ever since Sweetie Belle moved in, they hardly got any sleep.” Rarity smiled gently, looked at her tea and sighed. “Just like me.”

“So, Twilight, would you finally care to clarify whether the villains are dangerous, or whether we should worry more about ponies burning down houses if they find out?” Rainbow Dash finished her cupcake and looked straight at Twilight. “I’ve got to know for sure.”

“Of course they’re dangerous! I mean, I… think they are… Urgh…” Twilight started rubbing her temples again. She seemed to have developed a habit of doing that whenever she was stressed. “From what I have seen, they are no different from normal foals, except for some quirks, but… they can’t be normal. They just can’t.”

“They aren’t normal. They’re unique. But they are far from dangerous.” Fluttershy perked up her ears. “Of course, they might misbehave at times or do something dangerous… but all foals do that.”

“You tell me.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, smiling. “You won’t believe how many times I had to rescue Scoots from trouble. Or their entire Crusader team. I lost count.”

“There’s no guarantee that they have no dark secrets, Fluttershy. There’s a reason why they became evil.” Twilight looked Fluttershy straight in the eye. “Destiny, Fluttershy. Mine is to be the Princess of Friendship; theirs we’ve already seen. If it were not so, it’d go against everything I’ve learnt.”

Fluttershy did not avert her eyes. “Yes, and it was because of the way they were raised. They told me everything they remember about their past lives, and it was no funny business. At all!” Seeing the doubt in her friends eyes, she asked: “Would you have become an alicorn if Celestia hadn’t taken you under her wing? Destiny isn’t static, we shape it with every opportunity, every choice.”

“Ah believe Fluttershy is right. If there’s any danger, then it won’t be comin’ from them.” Applejack intervened as Twilight turned away, staring blankly at something. She sighed heavily.

“Perhaps you’re right. After all, I haven’t been with them for that long, although I should have.” She cast an apologetic glace at Rainbow, then at Fluttershy. “If Applejack agrees with you, I’m willing to trust your judgement here, Fluttershy.”

The air felt lighter and much more fresh after those words. Fluttershy felt like a boulder had just rolled off her back; it felt great to be relieved of carrying such burden as hiding a secret from the closest of your friends.

“Th-thank you… I just thought it would be easier for all of us if our friends knew.” She blushed a little when Twilight nodded to her words.

“You’re right. It does feel much better,” she said right before pouring some more tea for herself, all the while looking at Fluttershy expectantly.

“Oh, also, I had a little… idea.” Fluttershy rubbed her hooves together to relieve the rising tension.

“I thought there’d be more. What’s on your mind?” Twilight asked once she was finished.

“The summer is going to end quite soon, and… I think that… the foals should… “ She swallowed nervously. “...go to school…”

At first, Twilight didn’t seem to react. Then, she looked at Fluttershy and deadpanned: “What?”

“I mean, they are foals… and all foals should receive education… I already have them studying basics, they’ll get to the required level in no time!” Fluttershy tried to brighten up the mood, as her friends slowly turned their sights to her, most of them looking quite shocked. Even Applejack was surprised. Only Pinkie didn’t look the part.

“I think Fluttershy is right. All foals have to go to school. I mean, I went to school. My sisters all went to school! All of us went to school! It’s only logical if Fluttershy’s foals go to school too.” Fluttershy was a little startled at Pinkie calling the villains ‘her foals’ but she didn’t pay much attention to that, as there was a more serious conversation coming — probably even tougher than the previous one. But at least she had Pinkie by her side.

That was two crazies by her side now. Maybe Fluttershy did need the professional help, after all.

“One insane idea after another.” Twilight sighed heavily. She looked much older when she was dissapointed. “We need to keep them hidden, Fluttershy. You might as well parade with them in Central Plaza; that would have the same effect.”

Everypony nodded to her words and even Fluttershy couldn’t help but admit that she was right. And yet her resolve was still there, she felt able to do anything to prove her point. She just didn’t know how.

“Twi has a point. Also, I’m pretty sure they’ll have a hard time fitting in. Chrysalis is a changeling, she probably can’t even read!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “Though… the expression on Cheerilee’s face would be priceless.”

“It would be her last expression ever before a heart attack.” Rarity looked at Rainbow. “You should be ashamed for even thinking that, Rainbow Dash!”

“Oh, come on, she has probably seen a lot worse,” Dash replied with a gentle smile. “Cheerilee’s very tough. She can stop a dragon and then send it back home to do its homework.”

“Yeah… sure.” Twilight sighed. “Anyway… Sorry, Fluttershy, I’m afraid you’ll have to abandon your plans for school. They are too risky.”

“We can make disguises for them! I can even make them on my own, if you want. They won’t look apart from the crowd, I promise!” Fluttershy clinged — even to her it sounded pathetic.

“Hmm…” Rarity hummed sagely, looking at the wooden table with some deep thoughts happening in her mind. “What if I help her? Hypothetically, of course, I could make something fashionable for that age.”

“Except that we don’t even wear clothes. Have you forgotten that part?” Applejack lifted an eyebrow, prompting Rarity to pout.

“Well, I suppose not — in Canterlot or Manehattan, maybe.”

“Y’know, Rarity’s idea is actually really awesome!” Rainbow Dash butted into the conversation. “Fluttershy could say that they’re her foreign relatives and that it’s a tradition in their country to be fully dressed all the time.”

“Or that they’re preparing for a masquerade!” Pinkie sprung up from her seat. “Oh, oh! Imagine them during Nightmare Night! They would definitely win the award for scariest costumes by just being themselves!” She clapped her hooves happily.

Fluttershy felt her inner spirit rise. She was so close. So close. Her friends needed just one solid argument, and they would support her idea.

“Ugh, this is not going to work. Even if we do make their disguises solid enough, there’s no way they would fit in! Normal foals or not, they’re not like the rest — Fluttershy said so herself. They would become pariahs, outcasts.” Twilight and Fluttershy went for another staredown, but this time, Fluttershy had way more confidence, even for her own good.

“Believe me, they will make a lot of friends. I will teach them. Besides… why won’t we just go and take a look?” She looked at her friends, sitting around the table and smiled. “Come with me. I’ll show them to you.”

“We get to see them! Yipee!” Pinkie Pie sprung up from the chair and started jumping up and down in joy. “Oh my, oh my, I can’t wait!”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go! I want to see myself some sun-eating fillies!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, heading for the door. But before Fluttershy could take the lead, Twilight signalled her to come over.

“Uhm… you all go ahead, we’ll catch up to you.” Fluttershy waved at her friends. “We just… had some things to discuss.”

“Secrets again? Seriously, guys, haven’t we been over this already?” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, but Rarity urged her to move onward and pay no attention to it.

“Let it go, Dash. We all have secrets we’d like to keep unknown... What kind of toyline one prefers, for example.” Rarity allowed herself a sassy grin, which made Dash’s cheeks turn bright pink.

“You keep quiet about that.” Once their little dialogue had moved too far away to hear, Twilight looked Fluttershy in the eyes.

“Be honest with me now: are you doing this just because you feel responsible for them?”

“Uh, what do you mean?” Fluttershy tilted her head in confusion.

“I should have foreseen this. Of course the element of Kindness would feel the need to watch over little foals and guide them. Mothers have been symbols of kindness for ages, after all,” Twilight said, leaving Fluttershy a little lost. When she said nothing, Twilight continued: “Why does good have to be so senseless at times?! Fluttershy, even if, by some insane miracle, you manage to persuade our friends to support your crazy idea, I can’t just stop working on the counterspell!”

“I… I know… I’m not asking you to.” Fluttershy felt vulnerable and ashamed and Twilight could feel that. “I know you won’t stop your work… I really am convinced of what I said. They really are dear to me. I want to care for them.” Twilight sighed heavily and put her hoof on Fluttershy’s shoulder.

“Just know that, in the end, all wrongs have to be corrected one way or another.” Twilight withdrew her hoof, nodded and trotted towards the door. ”Sometimes we have to step over our pride and ideals to do what is right. So… in the extreme case… just be ready.”

Twilight left the house but Fluttershy didn’t follow her right away, instead taking a few moments of pondering. An extreme case… As much as the thought terrified her, Fluttershy opted to hide it in the darkest corners of her mind and do her best so that the ‘extreme case’ wouldn’t happen. With her mind cleared, she hurried after her friends.

“The further it goes, the better it gets.” Spike grumbled, as he twisted the keys in the keyhole. “But at least it cannot get any worse…” When he was done locking the doors to the Golden Oaks Library, he quickly ran after his pony friends, thinking to himself that he might regret those words sooner or later.

***

“Okay, everypony, before we go in…” Fluttershy was standing in front of her own house, feeling all tingly. Her friends’ meeting with the foals was seconds away, and she wanted it to go as smooth as possible. Which wouldn’t be that much, since Discord was there. To say that she was worried was an understatement. “Please, do not act rashly. You might scare Sombra.”

“Wow. Somehow this sounds even sillier coming out of your mouth, Fluttershy.” Rainbow Dash deadpanned. “Scare Sombra… this is comedic.”

“Can I play with them? Can I? Pleeeease?” Pinkie Pie shoved her muzzle into Fluttershy’s and smiled widely. “I will be careful, I promise!”

“Well… no, I’m sorry, uhm, not yet.”

“Aww!” Pinkie planted her butt on the ground and looked sullen.

Rarity rubbed her hooves together and swallowed. “I don’t know what to expect.”

“We all do, Rarity. We all do.” Twilight sighed.

“Okay… alright… Let’s go.” Fluttershy took a deep breath and knocked on the door. “I’m home!”

Sounds of footsteps could be heard from inside, then the clicking of the locks and finally the door slowly opened. Fluttershy closed one eye, ready to turn away and shield her sight from the chaos Discord might have caused, but instead of complete wreckage, she saw the three cuties all bunched up on the pillow, sleeping, while Discord was drawing away at the blackboard, apparently enjoying the sound of his own voice.

“—as I have already stated, magical synthesis — or alchemy — is the process of creating new elements through bombarding arcana with different essenses.” He was wearing a long white labcoat, huge glasses and had a pencil tucked away behind his left ear. When he finished drawing a schematic, he slowly turned around and grinned when he saw the three sleeping foals. “Aaah, delightful. Now, where did Shy put those cookies?”

“Umm… what’s going on?” Fluttershy stepped inside and Discord suddenly screeched and turned around, holding his chest.

“Ah! Don’t sneak up on me like that!” He took a deep breath. “I almost had a heart attack.”

“Discord? What are you doing here?” Twilight asked, suddenly teleporting behind Discord, probably in an attempt to see what was going on.

Discord suddenly turned pale white, as a big red heart shaped cloud of smoke appeared not far from his head and then delivered a overwhelming strike right in his face — a literal heart attack.

“Ouuuuch,” he whined, holding his nose. “You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you!” Pointing his lion paw at the cloud, Discord quickly blew it away. Then, he got up, swiping the dust away from his labcoat.

“Oh, I see you brought friends. Hello!” Discord waved to everypony, only receiving angry glances in return. “Oh, geez. You guys are no fun. Fluttershy just asked me to watch after her sweet little foals until she comes back. So, have you taken care of your toxemia yet?”

“W..what?!” Fluttershy’s jaw almost dropped. “What… are you saying?”

“Relax, Fluttershy. Relax. You mustn’t worry in your state — it’s dangerous for the foal.” Discord grinned, picking Fluttershy up against her will and tickling her belly. “Who’s a good kiddie, tookie-tookie-too..”

“Don’t bother, Discord, we already know the truth: they’re not hers,” Rainbow Dash said bluntly. The draconequus looked extremely dissapointed.

“Awww… You ruined a perfect running gag, Fluttershy. Have I told you that you’re no fun?” He put her down, tickling her a few times just for the sake of it.

“So… now that everything has been taking care of, can we see the foals?” Rarity approached the couch, Fluttershy quickly followed.

“Oh, of course, they should be he—” She was cut short when she noticed that the villains were absent. “Oh no…”

It seemed that their bickering woke them up, and there was no way to tell where they went.

“Umm… I swear they were there a second ago…” Fluttershy mumbled, looking around in fear. “Everypony… watch your back. Especially your back.”

“Huh, why?” Rainbow Dash lifted an eyebrow.

“Because Sombra always comes from behind.” Twilight murmured. “I had a taste of it myself. If you hesitate even for a moment, he’ll mount you and you’ll never get the saliva out of your mane.”

“What is that supposed to—” Rarity suddenly eeped when she felt her tail being pulled. Carefully and slowly, she turned around and watched silently, her face distorted in horror. “By… Celestia.”

“Ah, darn it, Sombra!” Chrysalis popped out of the closet like a boogeyfoal and rushed to Sombra, who was gleefully chewing Rarity’s tail, seemingly unaware that he was being watched by other ponies. She grabbed him and tried dragging him away, but to no avail. “Let go of her, you’re blowing our cover!”

“Mnaw-nawm…” Sombra murmured, dilligently chewing the purple hair. Finally, he let it go and started scrubbing his tongue. “Gakh, ew-ew-ew! It’s gross!”

“What is the meaning hereof? We might be spotted!” Nightmare Moon jumped out of the same closet, approaching the duo. Only halfway through it occured to her: “Oh, we already are. Nevermind then.”

“Uhm… friends… meet my foals.” Fluttershy smiled awkwardly, quickly shifting behind them. “I’m pretty sure you can… figure out who is who. But I can… tell you, if you want…”

Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie all stared at the three, unable to close their mouths or make any movement. Sombra tried to snuggle closer to Fluttershy and hide under her wing, feeling uncomfortable under the gaze of two ponies at once.

“They’re… they’re…” Pinkie’s eyes were as round as saucers and her hooves started to twitch. “They’re…”

“They’re adorable!” She suddenly shrieked, rushed forwards and grabbed Chrysalis, who happened to be the closest foal to her, in a tight bear hug. “Ooooh, my, you’re so small and you feel so warm! I want you as a pillow! And a blanket! I wish there were more of you!”

“Aaaagh, why is it always me?!” Chrysalis desperately tried to wrestle out of Pinkie’s hug. “Don’t you have any grasp of personal space?! My personal space?!”

“Uhh, Pinkie, could you please… uhm… let her go? Chryssie doesn’t know you, she needs some time…” Fluttershy tried to talk some sense into her overreacting friend, but to no avail.

“Pinkie, I think Fluttershy has a point. Can you see those fangs?” Rainbow exclaimed. “She’d eat you up and not notice you were even there!”

“Don’t be silly! Fluttershy said they weren’t dangerous!” Pinkie tightened her hug, trying to feel every inch of Chryssie’s face with her cheek. “Soooo cuuuuute!”

Nightmare Moon and Sombra watched in confusion as their helpless friend tried her best to free herself from the pink partymaker’s mighty grip. When they noticed Rainbow Dash slowly walking towards them, they quickly tried to retreat back to the closet. Fluttershy just barely managed to hold them in place.

“Pinkie, I really suggest you let her go. She might get really… angry when she’s nervous.” A small itch on her foreleg reminded just how angry she could get.

“Let me gooooo!” Chrysalis outright roared, feeling unwell in such a tight hug. “Just let me go!”

To everypony, it seemed like a normal reaction to an unwanted hug, but both Fluttershy and Twilight focused their attention on the little changeling. Just one glance from the alicorn was enough for Fluttershy to see that Twilight would take serious action if something bad was to happen to Pinkie.

“Let! Me! Go!” Chrysalis growled angrily, but, before Fluttershy rushed forwards and freed her from Pinkie’s grasp, the changeling’s body burst into green flames.

Pinkie eeped and immediately backed away, but the fire didn’t affect her at all. In fact, it didn’t even leave a mark. The entire room was now gazing solely at the green firestorm. Even Rarity took notice and left her saliva-soaked tail to drip on the floor for a second.

Chrysalis’ silhouette twisted and reeled inside the fire, as it grew smaller and smaller, eventually growing into a size so small it was barely noticeable. The fire was gone as suddenly as it had appeared and where the changeling once stood… a tiny humming bird now sat — a tiny humming bird with very weird color scheme, too: the body was toxic pink while her left wing was yellow, and the right one blue.

“By Celestia… Amazing!” Twilight quickly approached the humming bird, but it swiftly dashed across the room and flew up right under the ceiling.

“Tw-Twilight? What happened? Where’s my Chryssie?” Fluttershy watched the humming bird carefully, feeling every inch of her body shaking.

“She’s here. She just transformed.” Twilight turned to Pinkie. “I need a pencil, a notebook and Spike.”

“Sure. But I don’t have any spare Spikes.” Pinkie pulled a pencil and a notebook out of her mane and hoofed them to Twilight, who, in turn, levitated them to Spike, who was standing right behind her.

“Somedays I wonder if I really need to grow into a fifty feet tall dragon to be noticed around here,” he groused and started scrambling on the paper. “Go wild, Twilight.”

“Chrysalis has displayed her ability to transform into creatures different from equines. This disproves my previous theory about changelings only being able to transform into ponies and creatures of similar physiology. Judging by the situation that provoked the transformation and… a questionable colour scheme, it happened unintenionally, which also suggests that the skill to shapeshift is not inborn.” Twilight spoke quickly and unclearly; it was ambiguous whether Spike even understood what she was saying or just got used to it.

“Twi, maybe ya should…” Applejack tried to get her friend’s attention, but was shut down by a loud shush from Spike.

“She’s doing her scientist thing. Don’t disturb her when she’s doing her scientist thing. It ticks her off.” He quickly got back to copying Twilight’s words on paper. “Which might not seem like a thing to you, but when she’s ticked off, I have to sleep downstairs.”

The humming bird jittered all around the room, from one corner of the ceiling to another, never staying still. Its tweets echoed throughout the cottage, strangely loud for a creature that small.

“My… Oh my.” Fluttershy covered her mouth in worry. “Oooh… my…”

“What she sayin’?” Applejack carefully trotted around, thinking that she might be able to catch the bird. “If that’s her, that is.”

“All that I can say is that she’s scared. Very scared. The rest… I’d rather not translate.”

“Hold on, I’ll catch her.” Rainbow Dash said, flapping her wings and taking to air but Fluttershy quickly jumped in her way.

“No! Humming birds are small and fragile, you might hurt her if you touch her!” Rainbow Dash puffed her cheeks and landed back on the ground, watching as the helpless changeling turned bird dashed around, tweeting helplessly.

“Please, you’ve got to help her! She needs our help!” Sombra exclaimed, jumping on the couch. “Chryssie! Can you hear me? It’s okay! We’re here! Don’t panic!”

The bird just tweeted and kept flying around. It looked as though nothing could calm her down or stop her. However, soon a thin layer of green fire started to form around the small bird.

“I think… I think she’s about to transform!” Twilight exclaimed. “Somepony, anypony, get a pillow or something!”

“Wait, do I have to write that down too?” Spike shouted, but nopony seemed to care as the room descended into pure madness — everypony was running or flying around, looking for something.

The green fire completely engulfed the bird and, in mere moments, Chrysalis was back, rocketing down at a breakneck speed straight into the foor. Worried tweets shifted into loud yells as she plummeted down to her doom.

There, at the last moment, a small pillow, engulfed in blue energy, got right in the way of Chrysalis’ fall. Her razor-sharp horn pierced the pillow like a lance, but the soft surface saved Chrysalis from an impending head trauma. As the dust and feathers settled down, Chrysalis raised her head, looking around lazily.

“Chryssie!” Fluttershy immediately dashed to the changeling, took the pillow off of her horn and threw it away. “Chryssie, are you okay?”

“As okay as I can be.” Chrysalis murmured in reply. “But I think I’ll lie down for a moment. See ya.” She nodded sagely before passing out.

Everypony were silent as Fluttershy carried Chrysalis away on her back. Rainbow Dash rubbed her neck. “It just keeps getting better and better. By the way, nice job, Rarity.”

Rarity nodded in reply and picked her poor tail back up and tried to squeeze the wetness out of it, until she suddenly noticed Sombra standing right beside her.

“Please, no more! I put at least an hour into this mane, I don’t want it ruined!” She immediately started panicking, but Sombra didn’t seem to be interested in her tail or mane.

“You saved Chryssie.” He said before gently hugging her. “Thank you.”

“Oh… uhm… You’re welcome.” Rarity patted the foal on the head, smiling awkwardly. “Ehm, darling, would you be so kind as to give me a drying cloth or anything… and not chew my hair anymore?”

“Of course! Right away!” Sombra exclaimed and soon, Rarity was already cleaning her tail with a white piece of cloth.

“Much obliged. You’re a good foal… you just need to consider your diet.” She patted him on the head one more time.

Fluttershy finally came back down and was immediately assaulted by a barrage of cries from Pinkie.

“I swear I didn’t know it would happen, please forgive meeeeeee! Pleaaaaase!” She looked at Fluttershy with tearful eyes. Just one word would be enough to drown the entire cottage in tears.

“It’s okay, Pinkie. Chryssie’s okay and she forgives you. She just got too stressed out and now needs some rest. It’s all fine.” She gave her friend a pat on the shoulder, which seemed to calm her down.

“This was… more intense than I had expected.” Rainbow Dash rubbed her neck.

“Now you certainly see why they cannot be allowed outside of Fluttershy’s cottage.” Twilight exclaimed, turning to Dash. “Nopony knew Chrysalis could transform. Who knows what else she’s capable of? What if she turns into a snake and bites somepony? What if Nightmare Moon would react poorly to something and then turn it into a statue?”

“I beg thy pardon, lavender unicorn whose name I convinently forgot, but I do not, I repeat, do not, in any case, turn ponies to stone!” Nightmare Moon, enraged by such statement, stepped forth and gazed at Twilight.

“Unlike somepony!” Discord’s voice resonated from the couch.

“I would never do such a monstrous deed! Therefore I demand apologies!” Nightmare Moon slammed her hoof down and stared at Twilight.

“Is that so, missy? Do you really think you can keep your cool if somepony crosses you?” Twilight returned the gaze, looking at Moonie haughtily. “What if I don’t apologize? What are you going to do about that?”

“I… I… I shall call thee names!” Nightmare Moon narrowed her eyes. “And thou shalt be mildly inconvenienced!”

“Oh, then go ahead!”

“Thou… thou… thou art a behind! A… very dirty behind! And also… the smell that is coming from thee signifies that thou hast abstained from bathing for quite a prolonged period of time!” Nightmare Moon had to surf through her entire naughty lexicon to come up with that insult.

“What? That’s idiocy, I don’t smell!” Twilight exclaimed angrily.

“Actually, Twi, you’ve been exploding the chest for quite long time. You kind of smell like ash and burning.” Spike put the pencil and flexed his fingers. “A bath wouldn’t be too bad for you right now.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that before?! Ugh, nevermind, that still doesn’t change the fact that they cannot be allowed outside.”

“Actually…” Rarity was finally done with her tail and put the cloth away. “From what I have seen here, they do not seem that dangerous. I mean, it was clear that Pinkie was holding Chrysalis against her will, and had Chrysalis been violent, it was well within her capability to injure her.”

“Yeah! I mean, have you seen her fangs? They’re enormous! You can grill bunnies on those.” Rainbow Dash, who flew upside-down under the ceiling, stated, making Fluttershy cringe.

“It’s not only about being violent, it’s also about having hidden powers they might be unable to control!” Twilight didn’t back down. “Who knows what kind of crazy powers they have! Would you allow your little sister to go to school knowing that there might be a foal who can open a black hole and suck the entire town into a different dimension where everypony is a carrot?!”

“But Twilight… didn’t ya have an uncontrollable power that only Celestia managed to suppress?” Applejack interjected and her rebuttal hit Twilight like a huge boulder falling down a mountain.

“I… Ah… Erm… That’s…” she stuttered and stumbled, unable to retort.

“If these foals are properly taught, they will be as peaceful as any.” Rarity concluded. “I mean, you saw how worried Sombra was for his friend. I am pretty sure he will not harm anypony unless something extremely crazy happens. I’d be willing to give them a chance.”

“And Nightmare Moon, too. What you said has been pretty hurtful, and had she had some kind of pride issue, she’d blast you right away.” Rainbow Dash continued the point set by Rarity. “Yet all she did was call you a butt… hehe, a smelly one.”

Twilight looked like a boiling kettle as she turned crimson red with rage.

“As my friend, who is not present here, would say...” Nightmare Moon flapped her wings and elevated herself until she was at the same level as Twilight’s head. “Owned.”

“Fine! Fine, then! If you’re so confident about this, then go ahead!” She suddenly screamed, aiming her anger at nopony in particular. Then, she turned to Fluttershy. “You’re making a huge mistake, Fluttershy. Mark my words, this will backfire on us all badly.”

With those words, she stormed out of the cottage, trotting away, spewing angry comments at anything in her sight.

“I think I’ll go with her. Don’t worry, she’ll calm down, eventually. See you!” Spike exclaimed, running after Twilight, but not before blowing Rarity a kiss.

“I… I think she’s very mad at me.” Fluttershy swiped the sweat from her brow and sat down on the couch.

“She’ll get over it.” Rarity said. “A few cups of coffee, a little beauty session and she’s calm as a kitten.”

“What’s truly important right now is that now you can get your cuties ready for school!” Pinkie Pie clapped her hooves together. “Ooh, I’m so excited!”

“But remember: we’ll be watching.” Rainbow pointed at her eyes, then at Fluttershy’s. “If they cause any trouble…”

“They won’t. I promise that by my life!” Fluttershy put her hoof to her heart.

“Good. Very good.” Rainbow Dash smiled. “Well, we should get going there. Today has certainly been an expierence.”

“I agree. I’ll totally take a nap after so much stress!” Pinkie yawned. “Or I won’t. I don’t know yet. I’ll find out once I get home.”

“Fluttershy, visit me when you need to make these disguises. I’ll be wating!” Rarity brushed her tail one final time, frowning, and all three ponies trotted to the exit.

“Goodbye, friends. Thank you so very much.” Fluttershy smiled as they left.

“So… what will happen now, mommy?” Sombra sat down by her side and leaned closer to her.

“Now? Now, I’ll get you all ready for school.” Fluttershy smiled in reply. “Go upstairs and check on Chrysalis, will you?”

The two foals dashed upstairs. She was about to go upstairs herself, too, but suddenly heard zealous munching sounds from the kitchen. She went to investigate at once.

“What’s that sound?” She thought to herself, peeking into the room and spotting Discord munching on the sugar-coated cookies she’d hidden in a jar specifically for the foals once they were done studying. “Discord!”

“Oh? Everypony already left? Well, gosh-darn.” Discord slowly put the jar away while Fluttershy leered at him menacingly. “I’m in trouble, right?”

“Yes, quite.” Fluttershy frowned. “I’m going to need help while I’m preparing my darlings for school. I won’t be able to do all housework in time so I need you to help me.”

“Fine, fine, fine.” Discord got up and snapped his fingers, the chaotic magic immediately dressing him in a maid outfit. “But I’m still not doing windows.”

Pick a team

Author's Note

Kept you waiting, huh?

Thank you for sticking around for so long! After the university started, I didn't have nearly as much time to write as I thought I would. But I'm getting used to it, and soon, I'll be able to make writing time whenever I need do. Once again, thank you for your patience and enjoy!

Pick a team

There had been many times in which Cheerilee pondered whether her wage was big enough compensation for all the effort she put into her work. At times, she wasn’t sure any wage would be big enough, and right now, Cheerilee was one hundred percent sure that even if Celestia came crawling to her begging to fill in just one document in exchange for princesshood, eternal life and an endless supply of strawberry flavored milk shakes, she’d send her back to Canterlot with an almighty kick to the behind.

The mountain of papers on Cheerilee’s desk was so huge that a dragon could probably build its nest atop of it, and it never seemed to shrink. With a loud sigh and the satisfying rustle of paper, Cheerilee tossed a small note at the base of the mountain. Breathing in the warm air, she almost wanted to open the window, but her teacher’s experience suggested that, in doing so, she would doom herself to hours upon hours of picking up and sorting scattered paper all across the room. With a saddened look on her face, she yawned, dropping the pencil and leaned on the back of her chair.

Cheerilee always felt weird when she looked at her office. She spent here so much time she should have learned where everything was long ago, and yet she kept losing stuff in here. She was more than sure that an archaeologist with plenty of time and effort could find ancient artefacts behind the couch located right to the left of her desk and in the bookshelf seated on the opposite side.

For a moment, Cheerilee allowed herself a moment of weakness and closed her eyes. The sense of unfulfilled duty stubbornly pestered her mind, demanded to open those eyes and use them for the good of all ponykind, but her inner voice was telling her that it was okay. A short shut-eye never hurt anypony ever. Just a few minutes of the so long desired sleep…

A sudden creak of the door almost made Cheerilee jump out of her chair in a feat worthy of a martial arts legend.

“Hello?” she asked. “You may come in.”

She didn’t expect any visitors at this hour. In fact, she wasn’t expecting any visitors at all. Cheerilee watched the door with interest when a familiar muzzle slowly leaned inside.

“Umm… hello… It’s me, Fluttershy…” Fluttershy muttered, her eyes looking at a spot behind Cheerilee.

“Oh, Fluttershy. Come in, have a seat.” She gestured for her shy friend to come in. Fluttershy carefully pushed the door open, whispering something under her breath, and entered, followed by two incredibly weird looking fillies.

“No, thank you… I’ll stand…” Fluttershy smiled shyly as the two fillies started looking around the office, eyeing everything with great interest. Cheerilee observed them shortly, before she noticed that her mouth was wide open. “Oh… if you’re wondering, these are my… nephew’s…”

The fillies turned their attention to Cheerilee. One dressed in long white and yellow striped socks and wearing a loose sweater looked at Cheerilee with great distrust through the pair of nerd glasses on her nose and squinted.

“Ehm… Hello there. My name’s Cheerilee. What is your name?” She asked them, smiling invitingly, but none of them responded. Fluttershy spoke in their stead.

“Oh, nevermind them. They’re a bit… shy. This is Snake Smile,” Fluttershy patted the weirdly dressed pony. “And this is Nightshade.” She gently rubbed the other filly’s head, who was fully dressed in a stylish hoodie and pants.

“Oh, I see… So what brings you and your little cuties heeeee….?” Cheerilee tried to turn her eyes away from the weird crown-esque thing on Snake Smile’s head but just couldn’t resist. Before Fluttershy could say a word, Cheerilee, as if controlled by powers beyond her understanding, leaned over the table, using the chair for support, reached out and touched the weird crown thing with her hoof.

“Uhm… Is this normal? Should I panic?” The weird filly turned to Fluttershy, who started making weird gestures. Cheerilee didn’t notice; she had to touch the thing. “I really feel like I should panic.”

“Meseems ‘tis an eldritch ritual of sorts! Try touching her.” Nightshade suggested and Snake Smile followed her advice. It was then that Cheerilee was released from her hypnosis.

“...Eeere?... Huh… What am I doing? Why are you touching my nose?” She looked at the weird filly.

“Why are you touching my… my… thing! Why are you touching my thing?”

Cheerilee blushed when she realized that she was indeed touching Snake’s… thing, and carefully crawled back to her chair. “Uhm… Sorry about that. I wanted to ask what brings you and your cuties here, Fluttershy.” She rubbed her temples, just to make sure there was no desire to touch the thing left.

“Oh… right… I wanted my cuties to join school... “

“You do? Did you get the power of attorney from their parents?”

Fluttershy suddenly turned pale and backed away slightly. “Umm… the what?”

“Their parents’ permission. They aren’t your children, are they? If not, you need the permission to do this in their parents’ stead.” Cheerilee tapped her chin and kept on speaking. “Oh, but you’re also going to need their certificate of birth, their medical cards…” She kept talking, tapping on the table with each document mentioned. Fluttershy kept getting paler and paler.

“Uh… I… erm… Can I bring them later? After I signed them in to school?”

“Well… it’s not permitted; I’ve got to fill in their personal files before I let them visit school, but… I think I can let this one slide. Bring the documents whenever you can, okay?” Cheerilee quickly picked up the pencil she dropped earlier and started scribbling down on a clean piece of paper. Fluttershy waited patiently, flexing her legs from time to time. Once Cheerilee finished her work, she turned her sight to Fluttershy only to feel a shiver run down her spine.

“Fluttershy… why is your mane… watching me?” she mumbled, staring at a single set of crimson eyes, looking at her from within the pinkness of Shy’s mane. When noticed, the eyes tried to conceal their existence, but it was made even worse when a strand of hair shifted, revealing a curved horn.

“Oh? Ah, this is… emm… this is Sombrero.” Fluttershy suddenly flinched as if somepony had hit her and started constantly whispering the word ‘stupid’. Cheerilee tilted her head.

“May I look at him?”

Fluttershy bit her lip at that request, a sight of emotional struggle present on her face. Finally, she poked the pony in her mane, signalling it to come out.

The foal that jumped out of her hair looked a little out of place with his curved horn and crimson eyes. Never before had Cheerilee seen anything like this, although she still decided to blame the foal’s appearance on genetics; curved horns weren’t unheard of, after all.

“Huh… he looks… cute.” Cheerilee rubbed her chin, looking at the little foal with interest. “Nature can truly be creative at times. I assume you want him signed in too?”

“Yes! I mean…. yes… if that’s okay.” Fluttershy brightened up, the paleness disappearing in a matter of seconds. Cheerilee nodded and started scribbling again.

“Okay then, I’ll try to get all of your foals in a single class. You should bring me the documents as fast as possible, though — just to make sure. Inspections aren’t that common, but they do happen. Oh, and one last question: do you really have to wear all these clothes? They aren’t necessary…”

“They are! They’re absolutely are!” Fluttershy interrupted rather forcefully, but her fighting spirit quickly died down and she took a step back. “I mean… it would be most appreciated if they could… wear clothing at school… most appreciated.”

“Very well. As long as their clothes aren’t impeding the education process for them and other students, I’m okay with them.”

“Oh, worry not: clothes are not necessary to impede Chry... Snake’s education!” Nightshade quipped and immediately got a poke to the side by Snake Smile.

“Pff, nerd.”

Cheerilee put the pencil down and allowed herself a moment of relaxation. “Other than the document problems, I can only say: welcome to Ponyville Elementary School, where little foals and fillies prepare to ma…” She didn’t finish her sentence as she felt something pulling her mane.

“Oh no, So- Sombrero! Not again!” Fluttershy cried, facehoofing, while the little foal steadily chewed the ends of Cheerilee’s mane.

“It tawtes like riwce!” he loudly proclaimed, while Shy and her two fillies desperately tried to pull him away from Cherilee, who had no idea what was going on.

***

“Remember: if there is any trouble, you should tell Miss Cheerilee.”

“Yeah, we got it the first thirty times you told us that. Relax, Flutters, we’ll be a-okay!” Chrysalis smiled at herself in the mirror - the ridicilous outfit she had to wear now seemed much cooler when she applied her own style. Green socks and green sweater really went along with her eyes. That was, if the darn enchanted glasses wouldn’t alter them. They’d been requested by Fluttershy from her white unicorn friend — Chryssie always forgot her name — because her eyes were so distinctly different from a normal pony’s. A hat would have been nice as well, but her oblong horn kept getting in the way.

For a moment Chrysalis stopped looking at her clothes and smiled widely, eyeing her teeth with interest and slight displeasure. “It looks nowhere near like a snake’s smile,” she murmured, slightly angry.

“Do snakes even smile?” Sombra tilted his head, while Fluttershy kept gently combing his mane. “I’ve never seen them smile. They all seem to have a bad day when I’m around.”

“I believe they are not able to smile at all. Perhaps life was just too cruel to them. Perhaps, they dislike being ropes.” Moonie mused, carefully brushing off what little dust her hoodie had collected with one hoof. Fluttershy looked at her, eyebrow raised.

“Ropes?”

“They sure look like ropes… I wonder if I could wear a sash made of snakes. That’d be great.” Chrysalis interrupted their conversation, making Fluttershy chuckle slightly.

“Alright, little ones, I think we’re ready to set off.” She put the comb away and took a good look at her little villains. They all looked incredible; their coats’ cleaned and almost sparkling, their manes gently combed and flowing. Even Chryssie had to go through this process, which she hadn’t been too happy about at first.

The foals quickly bunched up together and followed Fluttershy outside. Discord, who was busy watering the flowers with a miniature raincloud, waved them goodbye, smiling. He had been strangely tame lately — he even did windows for a change.

Soon, the school’s roof appeared in Fluttershy’s sight, and slight worry began to overtake her mind.

“Go now. Run along, and don’t be shy. Act naturally, but maintain your identities. Do you remember your names?” All three foals nodded and Fluttershy sighed one more time. “Then go. Just follow everypony else, you’ll find the classroom.”

As the little villains ran into the school, Fluttershy looked at them one more time. For so long she had been keeping them in her cottage, teaching them everything a young pony would need at school, and now, they were on their own, without her. She suddenly felt like she was missing a limb.

“Good luck.” She smiled at her children, watching them walk to the doors, and once they were in, she turned around and slowly trotted back home. She still had a lot of things to do: animals to feed, flowers to water, Discord’s pranks to foil.

***

“I’m very glad to see you all in good health, my dear students.” Cheerilee clapped her hooves together, smiling at her young pupils. Everything was just how it always was — Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were listening to every word coming out of her mouth, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were engaged in a fiery discussion about yet another attempt at getting their cutie marks, and Rumble was peacefully napping on a pillow of books. Some things would never change.

However, some change was indeed in order as Cheerilee continued her speech. “I welcome you all back and wish you a pleasant school year. However, before we begin our lesson, I’d like to introduce a new addition to our family.” At that point, all ponies present focused their attention strictly on her, waiting and listening for her next words very patiently.

Gesturing the three foals who were waiting just outside the classroom to come in, Cheerilee took a deep breath and announced loudly. “Please welcome our brand new students! Come on, tell us about yourselves. Don’t be shy.”

The class stared in slight disbelief at the trio present in front of them. Cheerilee could understand their reaction; it wasn’t every day they came upon foals who looked a little odd, but maybe it would be a good opportunity to teach children to accept ponies that were severely different from others.

The first one to introduce herself was Snake Smile, who took a step forward and eyed the class with great interest. Apple Bloom started to fidget around for no particular reason, all of a sudden.

“Hello, everypony. My name’s Snake Smile. Yes, I know it is a weird name — snakes don’t smile. But after you see this…” She suddenly widened her mouth in a savage smile, baring her impressive looking fangs. Foals, sitting in the first rows, backed up slightly. “You’ll see where the name comes from.”

She took a step back and looked at her friends, who both seemed to struggle with the fear of the audience. Cheerilee was just about to step in when Nightshade began speaking, her tone and countenance as stoic as she could muster.

“I bid you good morning, my future fellow pupils. My name is Nightshade and… err… my name is… that of a flower. You could have encountered such a family of flowers in the wild. Do not eat it, however, it might be poisonous…” She turned quiet for a little while. “Oh, no-no, I am not poisonous; do not think that. You can eat me… but… I would not like that… so please refrain from it.” She took a step back and now it was Sombrero’s turn.

He didn’t look too talkative at all, though. His eyes were all over the place, and Cheerilee even noticed how he was shuddering. The entire class was staring at him and he did not know how to act.

“Everypony, this is Sombrero. He doesn’t talk much but he’s a really nice colt, so be kind to him.” Cheerilee approached the foal and gave him a gentle pat on the head. He seemed a little reluctant first, but then eased up. The situation was saved. “Now that we’re all introduced to each other, I suggest you three pick your seats and sit down. The lesson is about to begin.”

Quickly, the trio trotted deeper into the class, looking for free seats, and Cheerilee could finally take a moment to swipe the sweat off her brow. Introducing new ponies was always stressful — first impressions were key with children, but this one went decent. No open hostility for the new foals, which meant they were off to a good start. With these heavy thoughts out of her mind, Cheerilee began the lesson on a high note.

Just as Chrysalis expected, the lesson was incredibly boring. The sheer amount of written language and, ugh, numbers Cheerilee wrote on the blackboard was enough to drive her mad. Thankfully, there were things to do besides learning, like napping on her book, for example.

While napping, she kept one eye open and looked at the other ponies, in hopes of finding out something interesting about them. The funny thing she noticed was that the other ponies would sometimes look back with weird looks on their faces. The same looks were directed at Moonie and Sombra, who were listening to Cheerilee attentively. These looks included two fillies, who, as Chrysalis gathered, were Apple Bloom’s friends.

On one side, it would be rather interesting to meet new pony-pillows. The one with the wings seemed particularly fluffy, if a bit too lively. One couldn’t be a good pillow if they kept jittering around all the time. The white horned one looked cuddly too, but Chrysalis took notice mostly of her mane.

Finally, the bell rang and Cheerilee invited all children to play outside and relax after a long lesson. Chrysalis decided to use this break for a little rendezvous with her old friend.

“What’s up, Bloom?” She approached Apple Bloom from behind, leaning over her shoulder. Only then, she noticed her two pony friends, staring at her. “Oh, hi.”

“Umm, Apple Bloom, you know this pony?” The pegasus narrowed her eyes, looking at Chrysalis in distrust.

“Oh, relax, Scoots. This is mah friend ah told you about! She lived at our farm for some time.” Apple Bloom turned around and gave Chrysalis a hug. “Long time no see.”

“I missed you too, pony-pillow. Care to introduce me to these other pony-pillows?” The one named Scootaloo and the unicorn looked at her with suspicion.

“Pony-pillow? I’m not sure I want to get a cutie mark in that,” Scootaloo murmured to herself. “Wouldn’t hurt to try, though.”

“Mah fellow crusaders, Ah’m happy to introduce Chry… err… Ah mean…”

“It’s fine, if you trust them, I’ll trust them too. But… shhh…” Chrysalis put her hoof to her lips. “It’s a secret.”

“Alrighty then. Chryssie, this is Scootaloo and this is Sweetie Belle. Mah friends, Ah proudly present to you: Chrysalis, the changeling.” Apple Bloom beamed like a beacon amidst the sunless sea for about half a second before Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle started laughing. “What are y’all laughing about? Ah’m serious!”

“No offense, Apple Bloom, but that’s ridiculous. Have you ever seen a changeling? She looks nothing like one,” Scootaloo giggled. “A real changeling is huge, has three rows of sharp fangs and weird insect limbs!” Sweetie Belle just nodded to that.

“Who told you such nonsense? Changelings don’t have insect limbs… Well, they do, but there’s not that many!” Chryssie exclaimed.

“I read a book about them. That was the only picture it had — and it was creepy! And you’re far from creepy. More like… weird.” Scootaloo eyed her glasses for a second.

“Very well then. If you don’t believe me, you might believe your eyes. But we need a more private place...” Chrysalis smiled, pointing at a small door with a sign reading ‘Janitor’. “That one will do. Just try not to soil yourself.”

“Hah! We’ll see who’ll soil who. Let’s go!” Scootaloo looked at her challengingly; Chrysalis replied with a sly smile. “Lead on.”

Together, they walked to the door and snuck inside. The room was badly lit and was filled with different brooms, long sticks and differently colored pieces of soap. Chrysalis wasn’t sure who would like to clean this place up, but, since the room was empty and devoid of any sentient life, the answer was obvious.

“Show your proof. Come on.” Scootaloo challenged Chrysalis, looking at her with a crackling fire in her eyes. Smiling in reply, Chrysalis raised her right hoof and pulled the sock off, using her magic.

“By Celestia! This is so awesome!” Scootaloo gasped, her eyes widening in a state of pure amazement. “I mean… She’s…. aaaaah! So cool!”

“It’s like straight out of that scary novel I once read! Unreaaaal!” Sweetie Belle added.

The two ponies started circling around Chrysalis, nearly drooling with amazement. Never before had they seen anything as cool, bizarre or weird as this.

“You like that? Cus’ I ain’t done yet.” With great care, she took off her glasses and pulled her sweater over her head, revealing her wings and multi-iris’ed eyes. “How about this?”

“W-wow.” Scootaloo tilted her head in disbelief. “Somepony, pinch me. I have to know this is not a dream!”

For a moment, they were just staring at Chrysalis, and she wondered if they ceased to function and there was some button in need of pressing. She was about to reach out and touch Scootaloo, when suddenly both she and Sweetie Belle bombarded her with questions.

“Can you actually fly with these rags?”

“Do you have, like, night vision with those eyes?”

“Can you transform? Like, become one us?”

“Do me! Do me! Do meeeee!” The exclamations were flying so fast one after another Chrysalis could barely make out who was speaking. Thankfully, Apple Bloom stepped in to save her from being squashed — she quickly pulled Chrysalis away from Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.

“Wow, this is… this is so awesome!” Scootaloo cried, once the raging excitement inside her settled down a bit. “We’ve got a changeling friend! A changeling friend! We can be Cutie Mark Crusaders Changeling Befrienders!”

“Yeah… eh… how would a changeling befriender cutie mark look like?” Sweetie Belle took a good look at Chrysalis, probably trying to find a hint at how her cutie mark would look like if she were to get it.

“Does it matter? I bet it’s going to look awesome!” While Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle got busy discussing the endless possibilities, Chrysalis turned her attention to Apple Bloom.

“Gotta tell ya, that was the reaction Ah expected.” Bloom smiled. Chrysalis smiled in return.

“Then wait till they see the rest of my crew. This will totally knock them off their duff.” She rubbed her hooves together, eager in anticipation.

“Oh, ya mean Nightmare Moon and Sombra?... Hehe, Sombrero. Anyway, shall we go find them?” Apple Bloom looked around, flinching. “Let’s just find a better hidin’ place. This closet gives me the creeps.”

“Sure, scaredy cat. Once your friends are done being excited, we may go.” Chrysalis quickly put on her sock, sweater and glasses. “Try to contain your excitement, this time. We don’t want unneeded attention.” She winked as she approached the door.

“By all that is gracious, Sombra, didst thou not hear a single word I spoke?” Nightmare Moon hung her head in great sadness as she cast her eyes upon Sombra’s grammar. “The commas are in the wrong places! You keep missing letters! ‘Your’ is not ‘you’re’!” Her voice was shaking; she could barely contain the mighty enraged roar she’d mastered while playing teacher back at Fluttershy’s cottage. Sombra dreaded it like a plague.

“I’m sorry…” He looked down, feeling ashamed and discouraged. Noting that, Moon immediately gave him a pat on the head.

“But otherwise, thou art conducting pretty well. There are less spelling errors than before, I can congratulate thee therefore. Also, thy writing looks very, very neat.” She smiled at him and Sombra smiled right back at her.

Moonie had wanted to check Chrysalis’ work as well, but she’d ran away so fast she couldn’t even speak a word to her. And checking the pupil’s work without their awareness seemed like a dishonourable thing to do, so Moon decided to wait.

The classroom was completely empty, save for Moonie and Sombra. As the hooded alicorn began explaining to the foal his mistakes and the difference between an adjective and an adverb, the wind from the open window blew, swishing right by Nightmare Moon, as if teasing her. She told Sombra to keep checking his work, approached the open window and looked outside.

A small playground, filled to the brim with foals and fillies, playing and laughing — some were striking bets and competing against each other, others played in roles, one being a hero, the other’s a villain. They looked like they were having a lot of fun.

Out of curiosity, Moonie started walking through the rows of tables, looking at the papers and words scribbled on them. What she saw was terrifying.

So many mistakes! So many misspelled words! No commas! Confusing your with you’re was just the beginning — the amount of monstrous violence committed against the language was to rival any villainy ever committed! And yet the ponies who would violate the language did just play as if nothing had happened, as if they hadn’t demolished, completely burned down the careful structures of sweet sentences that wise ponies of old had crafted in order to portray speech in just a few scratches of a pen against paper.

She had broken the rule she set for herself, yes, but Moonie could not care less for that now. The biggest horror awaited her at Chrysalis’ table; the only thing she could see when she looked upon the sheet of paper was the hellish, devastating, consuming white void.

“The horror! The horror!” Moonie cried out in agony. Sombra looked at her with slight worry on his face. “Sombra, we’re in one classroom with criminals!”

“Criminals?” He looked around with worry. “But… what kind of crime would they commit?”

“Crime against the language!” Moonie approached his table and struck it with her hoof. Her table was too far away and striking somepony else’s table would be most impolite. “This will not stand. We must act, Sombra, act immediately.”

She continued to ramble on, and Sombra lost interest in her fiery speech aimed to inspire him to start a revolution rather quickly and instead focused his sight on a small butterfly that found its way into the classroom through an open window. Carefully treading through the air of the classroom, it flapped its multicoloured frail wings, looking for a safe haven. Eventually, it decided that Sombra’s nose was enough of a haven to land on.

“Ugh, where is thy mind? Certainly not with me!” Moon cried in despair and anguish. The grammar revolution was crumbling before it even began. Leaving Sombra to his own devices, she started walking around the classroom once more, this time looking at the works of other pupils’ more thoroughly. With each passing moment, she felt more and more miserable.

That was until she noted a very special copy-book. It was medium-sized, notable for by its flashy colours and the tiny tiara in the corner of each page. The most noticable thing about this copy-book was the mesmerizingly low amount of mistakes. The text Cheerilee dictated to them was written here almost perfectly, aside from a few missed commas, that Moonie herself had trouble with. Other than that, this copy-book needed to be framed and put on display.

Moonie reached out and was about to turn a page to see more of this copy-book when suddenly she was rather rudely interrupted. The book was slammed shut by a light-pink hoof. Nightmare Moon shuddered and staggered back a little, looking up immediately. She was met with the furious glance of a blue-eyed pony wearing a fancy tiara.

“Didn’t your parents ever teach you not to touch others’ things?” she hissed maliciously. “Especially if those things are mine!”

“Oh, I am terribly sorry; I was not intending to lay hoof on thy possessions… I merely wanted to see what else was writ in this copy-book.” Nightmare Moon kept her voice cold and collected. She couldn’t allow emotions to overtake her and make things worse — after all, she had been touching things that weren’t hers. The tiara pony didn’t look convinced.

The tiara pony raised an eyebrow. “You talk weird. Gah! If you’re so desperate to copy, you could have at least asked!” She measured Moonie with a contemptuous glare. “Not that I’d let you copy, anyway.”

“I know I am not in a position to, but I’d like to ask that thou abstain’st from accusing me of cheating.” The injured pride started speaking instead of reason, as Moonie took a stance, slightly turning her head to the side to express displeasure. “I would never stoop so low! Not even in the direst of circumstances.”

“You wouldn’t? Then why would you be looking through my work?” Moonie took a split second to look at Sombra, only to see that he was still busy with the butterfly flying around him, and thus of no help.

“I only wanted to take a look, nothing more — to compare, so to say. Thy written language, out of what I have gathered so far, is one of the best in this class.” Nightmare Moon put up a genuine smile as the pony’s expression softened a bit.

“Oh, so you’re just going around checking the others’ work? Interesting. Pretty interesting.” She took a step towards Moonie and extended her hoof daintily. “My name is Diamond Tiara. Nice to meet you.”

“Oh… Nice to meet you too. I’m…”

“Nightshade, I know. Unlike some, I don’t sleep in class.” Tiara and Nightmare Moon shook their hooves. “And that pony — that’s Sombrero, right?”

She looked over Moonie’s shoulder to look at Sombra, who was still busy with the butterfly. Upon noticing a stranger’s glance at him, he shuddered a bit, looked back and blushed.

“Yes, you are right. He is my friend, and, one could say, my pupil.” It was true, after all. It was something to be proud of as well; she might also win her new friend’s respect with it.

“Oh, is that so?” Diamond Tiara raised an eyebrow when all of a sudden Sombra popped out right behind her. “That’s rather unusual. Then, I take it you’ve already got a cutie mark.”

Moonie stuttered for a moment, desperately searching her mind for the meaning of the word cutie mark. She remembered talking about it at one point, but it was an event so minor it completely escaped her memory. Then, she recalled the images on the ponies’ butts that varied in shape and colour.

“Actually, no. I possess no such mark.” She felt a little blush filling her cheek. “Is that of much importance to thee?”

“Bah, of course! A cutie mark is one of the most important things in the world for a pony. It determines their best talent, what they excel at. It is a first step to success!” Tiara exclaimed, looking at the hooded Nightmare Moon, who sulked at that remark. “But the success comes with time and hard work, they say. And as it seems you’re not doing much in regards to hard work, if you haven’t gotten it already?”

“Oh… That is of most concern—” Nightmare Moon looked back with a worried glance, but Tiara smiled.

“But I suppose I could let you and your friend stick around with me. Some ponies need to be taught directly — but some can just watch others succeed, and then succeed on their own.” She watched Sombra with the corner of her eye, so she knew he was listening in their conversation from now on. “I trust you are one of those ponies, am I right?”

“Yes!” Sombra and Moonie cried out in unison, exchanging confused looks for a split second, and then both turning back to Diamond Tiara.

“We’re ready to work hard. Aren’t we, Sombrero?” Moonie winked at Sombra.

“Hooray for hard working for butt pictures!” Sombra shouted in excitement, earning a confused look from Diamond Tiara.

“Eeh… yeah, whatever. Let me just grab my comb and we’re ready to go…” She started digging in her bag, when suddenly, she turned to the two ponies. “And one more thing: if you ever meet ponies who call themselves the Cutie Mark Crusaders: run! They claim they’re looking for their cutie mark, but in fact they do nothing but slack off for days and annoy me. Stick around with them, and you can kiss your cutie mark goodbye!”

“Oooh… that sounds really harsh.” Sombra mumbled. “So, one can never get a cutie mark at all?”

“Exactly, if he or she doesn’t work hard to get it. Such a pony will forever wander Equestria in search of anything he or she can call his or her talent, but usually, they end up as criminals!” She returned to digging in her bag.

“I don’t want to be a criminal…” Sombra whispered into Moonie’s ear, who nodded solemnly.

“Neither do I. But that’s a good reason for us both to work hard. Even harder than before.” A certain non-pony character crawled into Moonie’s mind immediately when she thought of working hard. “Let us hope our lazy friend takes Diamond Tiara’s advice to heart when they meet.”

***

The search for Moonie and Sombra took far longer than Chrysalis had anticipated. They looked outside, but noticed no hooded figures or foals with weird horns; neither were they in the classroom. Her friends started to worry.

“If they really are who I think they are, they might have vanished! A cloaking spell of sorts,” Scootaloo theorized as they headed outside into the school’s yard once more.

“Cloaking isn’t that easy, y’know. I tried doing it once — cloaked my own mane.” Sweetie Belle shuddered at the memory. “I look so weird without my mane.”

“Where could they have gone?! Gah, and when I need them the most!” Chryssie grumbled, eyeing every foal and filly with utmost meticulousness. Neither looked very Sombra-ish or Nightmare Moon-esque. Perhaps she should put bells on both of them — maybe then they’d be easier to find.

Finally, she managed to spot a slight glimpse of a curved red horn.

“Over there, follow me!” Chrysalis exclaimed, waving at the Crusaders to follow her. They had to bump their way through a small crowd of fillies and foals before reaching the outskirts of the school’s yard, where a small gang was residing at a small wooden table.

“There they are! Hey, Ni—” Chrysalis couldn’t finish her sentence when Apple Bloom suddenly covered her mouth and pulled her backwards.

“Shh! Can’t ya see who’s standing there?” she hissed with a slight touch of anger in her voice.

Chrysalis looked at her friends and noticed two other fillies she hadn’t noticed before. She recalled seeing them in the classroom, but that was about it.

“That’s Diamond Tiara and her suckerfish, Silver Spoon,” Scootaloo grumbled. “What are they up to this time?”

“And why are they talking to your friends — probably setting up another mean prank, I bet,” Sweetie Belle added her own comment.

Chrysalis eventually managed to wrestle out of Apple Bloom’s grip and went on straight ahead, ignoring the Crusaders’ comments. Scootaloo tried to block her way, but Chryssie sidestepped her.

“Where have you been hiding, guys?! I’ve been looking for you everywhere! Leave a note next time, will ya?” Chrysalis loudly exclaimed, drawing the attention of all four ponies before her.

“Weren’t you ever told that it’s rude to interru—” Diamond Tiara began, but Chryssie cut her off.

“I almost got scared for a moment. But, oh well, it can happen. On a positive note, I wanted you to meet my friends!” She grabbed Sombra and Moonie, both with rather confused looks on their faces, and forcefully dragged them towards the Cutie Mark Crusaders. However, halfway there, she felt a tap on her shoulder.

“Excuse me, but what is your problem?!” Tiara scowled at Chrysalis, who turned around to face her. In the corner of her eye, Tiara noticed the trio standing not too far, and her expression eased up a bit. “Oh, now I see the problem.”

“Have fun with that.” Chrysalis was just about to turn away from Tiara when she suddenly adressed Sombra and Moonie.

“See those ponies? They’re the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Those are the ponies you should be avoiding — and so should your friend here… Snake Smile, if I recall correctly?”

“Avoid your face, Tiara!” Scootaloo shouted, offended by her remark.

“When you spit upwards, you’re going to hit yourself in the face, Scootaloo. Don’t forget that.” Silver Spoon took it upon herself to distract the three friends. Crusaders started bickering with her, with varying degrees of success, while Tiara continued her speech uninterrupted.

“This is no good — just butting in when I and my friends were having a pleasant lunch break.” Tiara was looking straight into Chrysalis’ eyes, unafraid and even with a hint of challenge in her blue eyes. “You ought to show more respect to other ponies.”

“Sorry, pumpkin, but you’ve got to earn that first.” She turned to Sombra and Moonie. “Come on, you’ve got no business talking to this loser.” Chryssie proudly walked past Tiara and continued nudging her friends forward.

“Loser?! Who are you calling a loser?!” Diamond’s cheeks turned crimson with rage. “Nopony dares call me a loser!”

“I just did. Whatcha gonna to do about it?” Chrysalis didn’t even turn around this time as she spoke. “Come on, hurry up, we’ve got lots of things to discuss.”

“Unhoof me at once!” Moonie finally recovered from the initial shock and spoke up. “Thou may’st not just take us away! We were not finished talking with Diamond Tiara; she was just introducing us to her friend.”

“Pff, that can wait. I’ve got some real meeting right over there. Now, less talkie, more walkie.” Chrysalis nudged Moonie onward, but she didn’t budge. Instead, she sat down on the ground and crossed her forelegs. “What is this garbage now?”

“This gesture may roughly be translated as: I shall not move onward. Your behaviour is outrageous, Snake; this is well past a joke!” Moonie said coldly and firmly before turning to Sombra. “I suggest you follow suit. We must not allow her to just tell us what to do.”

“Uhhh…” Sombra looked just as confused as he did at the beginning of the entire mess, if not more. “Eeeh…”

“Look at it this way: do you want to be an uncivilized brute that just trash talks ponies she barely even knows—” Diamond looked at Chrysalis with unconcealed contempt. “—or do you want to actually be a good member of your family?”

“What are you playing at?!” Chrysalis’ teeth made a painful screeching noise. “Are you saying I’m a bad member of my family?”

“If I am to be blunt, yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying.” Tiara smiled at her own remark as she watched Chryssie turn all kinds of reddish-green.

“Are you done, Tiara? I’m running out of quips!” Silver Spoon approached her friend, while the Crusaders joined Chrysalis’ side.

“And they weren’t any good, too.” Sweetie Belle smirked. “I could come up with better insults in my sleep!”

“Perhaps, but it doesn’t even matter anymore, because we are about to leave. And by we, I mean myself, Silver Spoon, Nightshade and you, Sombrero.” Diamond Tiara smirked haughtily, while everypony’s eyes turned to Sombra, who kept staring into the ground, still rather lost about the current situation.

“Come on, Nightshade, stop acting up and let’s go. Our little argument has been going on for long enough!” Chrysalis exclaimed in reply, adjusting her glasses. “You too, Sombrero. Come on, get packin’.”

Subjected to all their voices, Sombra’s legs began to shake. “Oh! I forgot something in the classroom! I need to go! Now! And quickly!” With the swiftness of a rabbit, he quickly ran away and back into the school.

“Well done, Crown-Butt, you scared him with your ugly face!” Chrysalis looked at Diamond with a mix of anger and sadistic satisfaction at witnessing the proud pony turning crimson like brimstone.

“You’re certainly the one to talk about beauty!” Silver Spoon stepped forth, while Chryssie’s guard was low. “What’s up with the sweater? And socks? What are you trying to hide underneath that?”

“Yes, exactly!” Diamond Tiara joined in on the offensive. “While you’re at it, put a bag on your head! I mean, what’s up with your teeth, blegh!”

A few seconds later, Cutie Mark Crusaders were engaged in a test of courage, tenacity and strength as they desperately tried to stop Chrysalis from lunging at Diamond Tiara and doing unthinkable things to her.

“I think we’re done here. Our opponent is obviously not ready for further discussion.” Diamond Tiara smirked, watching Chrysalis roar and growl at her. “Let’s go — break’s about to be over anyway.”

She and Spoon, both sharing an insidious smile, started trotting back to school. Only a few seconds later did Tiara turn around and look at Moonie, who was just sitting and watching them leave.

“When I said we, I meant all of us. You are part of the team, right, Nightshade?”

Nightmare Moon sighed heavily, then looked at Chrysalis, who was still pushing away her friends, spilling saliva all over the place, her eyes burning devilishly green. Deeply disappointed in Chrysalis, she got up and followed her newfound team back into the school.

***

The rest of the day flew by like nothing. Fillies and foals were collecting their books, copybooks and pencils, smiling, talking and chatting. There was still a long day ahead, and not even a heap of homework could ruin it.

Most were beaming with excitement and happiness; the only black sheep in this crowd were Moonie and Chrysalis. The instant the bell rang they gathered their bags and headed off in separate directions, Sombra couldn’t even speak a word to them. Not wanting to leave his friends behind, he settled down outdoors, right near the entrance, and waited patiently until they would come out the door.

When the two finally appeared in the hallway, instead of happiness Sombra felt worry; Chryssie and Moonie were staring each other down, as they walked. They walked at the same pace, both in a straight line, eyes focused on each other.

“Hello!” Sombra tried walking between them, to disrupt their visual contact and provoke at least some kind of reaction from them. It was to no avail, as they had just kept on walking. Sombra wanted to try poking, but there was no need for that — the doorframe made sure Chrysalis lost the staring contest.

Muttering a disgruntled ‘ow’ Chrysalis got up from the floor and watched Nightmare Moon walk out the door, leaving a note of prideful celebration in the air with a short snicker. Grinding her teeth, Chryssie shook her head to get rid of dizziness and hurried outside.

“I thought we were all friends now…” Sombra let out a deep sigh, fetched his bag and followed the two fillies outside.

The yard was crowded beyond belief. The voices of fillies, foals and their parents all mixed into a loud cacophony, ranging from ‘what did she give you for your homework’ to ‘no, I didn’t put the cat into the aquarium’. Moonie took a rather unusual interest in watching all this action unfold. She stopped and looked at foals talking to their mommies and daddies: occasionally, her ears twitched under her hood, as if catching the escaping sounds.

“How was your day at school, honey?” A plump, smiling mare said, hugging her little foal.

“It was great, mommy! I—” The rest of his words were lost to the cacophony. It was unclear to Sombra why Moonie got so captivated by the sight, but he didn’t question it; all that mattered right now to him was finding Fluttershy.

And there she was, standing and looking around with a nervous look on her face, probably looking for them. When she finally noticed Sombra waving at her, she hurried over to him.

“Oh my, you were so hard to spot there — just too many ponies.” Fluttershy led her foals onto the road that would take them back home. “So, how was your first day at school? Did you enjoy it?”

“Yes!” Moonie exclaimed.

“It was okay,” Sombra said.

“If you write ‘horrible’ on every tiny piece of sand in the entire world, then multiply the number of those pieces by a million, that still wouldn’t come close to how my day went.” Chrysalis gritted her teeth, sulking down, her mane almost sweeping the ground. “In short: no, I didn’t like it.”

“Of course thou wouldest not like it — thou’st slept for most of the day!” Moonie remarked, not even turning to Chrysalis, which made her even angrier.

“Oh, excuse me for not being a total nerd! Not to mention a traitor!” She snarled back, and yet not seeing the reaction she’d expected; Moonie just ignored her.

“Uh… oh… what happened?” Fluttershy looked confused and scared. Just this morning it seemed they were the best of friends and now they were at each other’s throats again? Were they back on square one again?

“Nothing,” Moon and Chrysalis spoke in unison, their voices firm. Fluttershy got the hint and kept silent for the rest of their walk, only occasionally throwing a few worried glimpses at the two.

The cottage welcomed them with the loud clanking of dishes and the shredding of a guitar. The blast of air was so strong it almost blew Fluttershy and the foals away when she opened the door.

“Discord! What are you doing?!” she shouted, sure that it was Discord’s doing. She wasn’t wrong.

One after another the dishes were throwing themselves into a huge pot where they were washed by animated brooms and towels, while Discord was standing on the sofa, rocking on a guitar with his claw. The music roared and boomed throughout the entire cottage, but didn’t penetrate the walls, for some eldritch reason.

Angel Bunny was hanging under the ceiling, strapped by several ropes that now resembled snakes, and was squeaking unruly words that Fluttershy would only ever hear in places that ponies like her would never visit.

“And here she is, our wonderful Fluttershy! Say hello and bow down to the queen of the masquerade!” Discord bellowed, forming a sign of the horns with his paw. “Kneel before Her Imperial and Royal Majesty!”

“I just asked you to do the dishes! Why do you have to turn everything into chaos?” Fluttershy shouted, making the angriest face she could muster.

“Dear, it’s the name of the game. I’m the Spirit of Chaos! Wherever I go, chaos follows! Oh, gotta write that down; it’ll be my new album!” Discord exclaimed and snapped his fingers. The guitar disappeared, and all the dishes quickly formed pretty stacks near the dishwasher. With loud squeaks, Angel fell down from the ceiling and started showering Discord with bunny insults.

“Angel, stop! There are children here!” Fluttershy flushed red, despite knowing the foals probably couldn’t understand a word Angel was saying.

“’Tis a sorry sight to see an angel fall.” Discord smiled, kicking Angel right out of the cottage through an open window, much to Fluttershy’s horror. “But the deed is done; the dishes are clean and sparkly, just like you asked.” He briefly glanced at the foals. “So, how’s school? Regretting your life choices already?”

Sombra preferred to stay silent, while Chryssie and Moonie exchanged angry glances and trotted right past Discord, each heading in a separate direction — Chryssie went upstairs while Moonie decided to take a stroll into the backyard.

“Ah, they’re already ignoring adults! Soon, they’ll start swearing, then abusing illegal substances and then...” A wet towel thrown by Fluttershy hit Discord right in the muzzle disrupted his train of thoughts, probably for the better. “Okay, okay, I get the hint. You don’t need to throw things at me.”

“Just go do something non-destructive. Something happened at school and I need to look into it.” Fluttershy sighed heavily. “I just hope it’s nothing serious.”

“Pff, like anything serious ever happens in this town. Not that I’m complaining or anything.” Discord grabbed the towel from his face, squeezed it to the point it was completely dry and threw it in the drawer. “Serious stuff is boring. Bringing a little chaos in never hurts. Anyways, I’ll be outside — haven’t taken a walk in a while!”

With these words, he disappeared into a puff of smoke. Fluttershy sighed heavily and looked around; the dishes were clean and nothing was broken. At least Discord did what he’d promised to do. Though, the windows still had water stains.

“Mom…” Sombra’s poke woke Fluttershy from her temporary hypnosis and she turned around to face her little darling.

“Oh. What is it, Sombra?” She looked at him, smiling.

“Moonie and Chryssie quarrelled again…” Sombra looked distressed and worried. Why wouldn’t he be?

“Yeah, I think I noticed.” Fluttershy hummed, looking at the stairs leading on the upper floor. She definitely needed to talk with Chrysalis and Moonie after they had calmed down a little. “Can you tell me how it happened? Or what you think happened?”

Sombra was quiet for a moment and then began recounting the events of the day exactly how he remembered them. Fluttershy listened attentively all throughout. Eventually, they decided to rest on the sofa, with Sombra resting his head on Fluttershy’s lap.

“And for the rest of the day, they didn’t even talk to each other,” Sombra finished his tale, while Fluttershy was stroking his head. “Why did it happen? Was it because of me? Was it because I couldn’t pick a side?”

“No, sweetheart, not at all. It has more to do with… with them having different friends.” Fluttershy sighed, realizing what kind of trouble her children had run into.

“But why? Can’t we all be friends?” Sombra asked meekly. “You should talk to them; you’ve got to tell them! I know you can make them friends again!”

“No, sweetie, I’m afraid I can’t…” Upon seeing Sombra’s confused look, Shy sighed again. “This is something Chryssie and Moonie have to settle on their own. Who you want to befriend, what kind of friends you make is entirely up to them. I cannot tell them who can be their friend and who can’t. It’s not okay if I just try to control them in such a way.”

“Can’t we do anything?” Sombra’s voice shook. “Will they… never get along now?”

“I don’t think we can do something about it. Perhaps, it’s only a matter of time.” She looked Sombra deep in the eyes. “And what about you? Have you made any new friends?”

“I?” Sombra looked around in surprise. “Uh… no. Not yet… I think.”

“I know, it may seem difficult and scary to approach other ponies on your own, but believe me: ponies are kinder than they look. Some may already be willing to be your friend.

All you need is just to say hello.” Fluttershy smiled, ruffling Sombra’s mane. “Just approach them and try to start a conversation.”

“Okay. It sounds easy.” Sombra nodded.

“Good. Now, go and rest a little. I’ll call you all when it’s dinner time.” She pecked Sombra on the cheek and let him run away to do his things.

Closet Relationships

Author's Note

We're back

Closet Relationships

“Remember, Discord, you have to refrain from your usual antics, at least for a few minutes,” Fluttershy spoke the mantra she had been repeating for the last few hours. “I know how hard this must be for you, but…”

“You don’t say,” the spirit of chaos grumbled in reply, putting on yellow sunglasses. “Can’t believe I had to call upon this form! It’s the most disgustingly orderly of my collection.”

‘Orderly’ was really unfitting in this situation. If anypony could consider a pony with long, greasy, blue, yellow and toxic green hair and short ragged coat coupled with an unnaturally thin physique and ocular heterochromia orderly, that pony had really weird standards.

“Believe me, I will make it worth your while.” She smiled at Discord, who replied with a disgruntled huff.

“Not only do you drag me into my opposing element, you’re making it seem like I was bribed! Puh-lease, Fluttershy, I am doing it only because of our friendship!” he said with an honest expression of pride on his face that was marked as such with a crayon caption spelling out ‘honest’. “But as compensation, I would pretty much love to get a chance to strangle this petty bureaucrat!” His sight shifted to the expensive looking wooden door, with a sign reading ‘Lotsa Paperwork — Main accountant, Birth Control Service.’

Discord’s indignation was understandable; they had been sitting in the waiting room for at least two hours, and each minute away from the children made Fluttershy more and more worried. How were they doing? What were they doing? What if they got into trouble again? Too bad she couldn't go to school with them - unfortunately, she had already got her final grades a long time ago.

Fluttershy took a deep breath, trying to distance her thoughts away from the subject as much as possible. It would all be okay. She and Discord would get the documents for her children, present them to Cheerilee, and everything would be fine. They just had to get them.

Thankfully, they didn’t have to bring children along — only the documents, which took Fluttershy forever to obtain. The constant lying and begging was tiresome on the long run, prone to stressing out the yellow mare, and sitting here didn’t make it any better, which was why Fluttershy was glad for Discord’s company. Discord was an adult — at least in terms of age — he could take it.

The door was opened by a grumpy looking mare who quickly trotted away, murmuring something worthy of censorship under her breath.

“Next,” sounded a voice from inside the room.

Discord jumped from his seat, every fibre of his being resonating relief and happiness. This torture was about to end! Never before had he been so excited to hear a monotonous, bored voice. Fluttershy followed suit, though not as eagerly.

The office was pretty much what one would expect from a pony with such a name: a huge mess of papers, documents and files. The clingy smell of old paper was tickling the nostrils. Right upon entering, Discord made the mistake of taking a deep breath, which he usually did before erupting into welcomes. This time, it resulted in an abnormally powerful sneeze, which sent a tower of parchment off a table. Lotsa Paperwork, a pale, thin mare with — what a coincidence! — sheets of paper as her cutiemark, sighed.

“Thank you very much,” Lotsa intoned with neither annoyance or anger, but with extreme boredom. “A little workout was all I needed right now.”

As she dived into the piles of paper, Fluttershy tried to give Discord a firm slap on the head, but could not bring herself to cause the dose of pain necessary to educate him. Instead, she opted to push him towards the chairs, urging him to sit down.

“Uh… we need some documents… you see…”

“Of course you do. Everypony needs documents. That’s why they come here,” Lotsa murmured, piling the fallen papers into one big pile and dropping it on her table. “Could you be more specific in what documents you need? I doubt either you or your husband have the patience to wait while I look through all my stashes.”

“Husband? Oh, no-no-no, he is not my husband, he’s…” Before Fluttershy could finish her speech, she found herself in a wedding dress.

“You know, it does look good on you.” Discord’s already creepy face hit a new record in creepiness with the grin her currently displayed.

“He’s… just a good friend of mine.” Fluttershy’s cheeks bloomed red as she desperately tried to hold her train of thought on tracks. “Y-you see, he...he…”

“A glass of water, perhaps?” Even now, Lotsa’s face stayed as bored and lifeless as before.

“No, thank you. I’m… I’m okay.” She took a deep breath and nudged Discord, who discontentedly dispelled the wedding dress. Thankfully, Lotsa didn’t seem to notice his antics or didn’t care to. Likely the latter. Fluttershy wondered which sort of torment this poor soul had gone through. “You see, I’m taking care of three foals this pony is a father of…”

“Does this pony have a name?” Lotsa blinked, so slowly that Fluttershy started to feel sleepy.

“This pony’s name is Swag Master, nice to meet you!” Discord bowed as gracefully as he could in this alien body. Fluttershy should have picked a name for him in advance. This was just embarrassing.

“Uh-huh… Swag Master…” Lotsa immediately scribbled it down.

“Yes… But at school they told me I need his power of attorney in order for them to be enlisted. You see, he has a lot of work and can’t look after them properly, so I do it in his stead.”

“If you need his permission, you could ask him to write it and verify it at the notary. I’m not necessary for that.” Lotsa turned to the door, about to shout for the next person to come in.

“However, there’s a bit of a problem… His children don’t have birth certificates…” Fluttershy’s heart bled when she saw a dash of great disappointment on Lotsa’s face.

“Uuugh!” she growled neutrally. “Let me guess: Appleloosa?”

“Uh… y-yes?” Lotsa sighed neutrally at Fluttershy’s reply.

“They might as well declare independency with their lack of officials. Very well then. We’ll make the birth certificates right now.” She dived underneath the table, before jumping out with a scroll. “I’ll need you to answer every question in this list. Every information you put here will be recorded, so don’t make any mistakes.”

“Huh, this doesn’t look too bad.” Discord rubbed his chin in joy. His expression, however, changed immediately when Lotsa unrolled the scroll. It was at least a few meters long, with every question written in incredibly tiny letters, in order to fit them all onto as small space as possible. Twilight would love to meet the maker of such a list.

“Are you serious?!” Discord exclaimed, his muzzle turning into an expression of sheer horror. “We have to fill in all that?!”

“Do you have three foals?” Fluttershy noddded silently at the question, and Lotsa pulled two more scrolls out of the desk. “One for each foal.”

In a fraction of a second, Discord’s face changed colour six times, and then he started weeping. With a heavy sigh, Fluttershy asked for a pen. They were in for a long stay. Hopefully, the foals were having better time at school than she did here.

***

“And as of that point, Equestria, freed from the tyrannical rule of currently reformed Discord, began its journey to its current state.” Cheerilee closed the book and put it down on the table, sighing contentedly. “Wow… what a journey that was.”

Indeed, Discord’s rule was the most difficult part of Equestrian history. Probably due to the fact that Discord changed the land’s name, his own title and landscape every second he got bored and forced the historians to write it all down. But at least it entertained the pupils. It wasn’t every day they got to call Equestria “Dotonamapia”.

Nightmare Moon carefully put a dot at the end of the sentence and put down her pen. She couldn’t help but facehoof at the many names Discord came up with. Some truly creative, some not so, and others just plain dumb.

Suddenly, she felt a slight bump to the head and a small ball of crumbled paper fell down on the floor. Intrigued, she levitated and unrolled it, only to see ‘ur a butt’, letters twisted and jumping. Speaking of dumb, Chrysalis seemed to lust for attention once more.

The class was getting louder, the pupils began to discuss their plans for today and for the upcoming weekend. Loudest of all were the four Cutie Mark Crusaders, unsurprisingly.

“The bell hasn’t rung yet, what’s all the commotion about?!” Cheerilee exclaimed loudly, calming everyone down. “Before the lesson ends, I have a special announcement to make. There will be a class trip to Canterlot, due to a celebration of its foundation. So please, inform your parents about this, I’m still dealing with foalnapping lawsuits from last year.”

A loud burst of shouts and excited screams filled the classroom and Cheerilee sighed heavily. “Sometimes, I feel like the only teacher in this school.” She whispered to herself.

Nightmare Moon sighed in unison with her. Poor Cheerilee. What a brave mare she was. When under everypony’s gaze, she looked strong and wilful, and only when others were busy did she allow herself moments of weakness and respite. Moonie just wanted to approach her and give her a big, big hug.

“Love letters, I see.” Moonie didn’t notice Tiara’s approach, who was already standing by her side and reading the contents of Chrysalis’ message. “So who is this secret fan of your… ehem… posterior?” Moonie slightly nodded towards the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

“Figures. I always knew they were a bit… odd.” Silver Spoon grinned, looking from behind Tiara. “I guess you can add that to the list.”

“Cheerilee said something about a trip to Canterlot…” Moonie murmured, and both Tiara and Silver Spoon suddenly got excited.

“Indeed she did! This is going to be terrific! I had my mind set on this one particular dress, but it’s only sold in Canterlot. Finally, I’ll have a chance to get it!”

“But Tiara, I thought we were going to pick earrings for me!” Silver Spoon interjected into Tiara’s monologue.

“Yeah-yeah, that too. I’m just recalling things from the top of my head - there were a lot of things we wanted to do, after all.”

“Will we visit the palace?” Moon interrupted her, drawing their surprised eyes to her.

“Royal Palace? Why’d you need to go there?” Tiara tilted her head.

“I… uh, desired to see the princesses. Even for a little while.” Tiara and Spoon exchanged confused looks.

“Well, we have a princess of our own, right here in Ponyville.” Silver Spoon pulled her glasses down a bit, looking at Moonie as if she was a complete doofus. “Don’t tell me you haven’t met her.”

“Of course I have, but… I would really like to see… the princesses.”

“Then I guess you have your chance. Princesses never miss out on a good lecture opportunity.” Diamond Tiara finished Spoon’s thoughts for her. “But in all honesty, you should be more concerned with visiting a beauty shop. Don’t get me wrong, perhaps you enjoy this mysterious creeper look you’ve got going, but I believe you can do much better.”

A few moments of calm silence passed, before Tiara looked back at the crumbled the butt letter.

“You call Snake Smile your friend, and yet there’s quite a lot of bad blood between you. Like… a bad bloodbath, even.”

“It is… complicated.” And that is to say the least, Moonie thought to herself. “Our personalities do not match.”

“Figures. Some get the brains, others get the muscle.” Diamond Tiara hummed, as her head slowly turned in a different direction. “And others get the looks.”

Sombra, who was too busy to notice the stares directed at him, carefully watched a small bug crawl on the wall. This spectacle had engulfed him since the start of the lesson, so his copy-book was pure white, not even a hint of ink.

“Ugh, I told him so many times to focus! Why does he never listen?” Moonie groaned. “I’m trying my best to help him, Tiara, but sometimes my words just fall on deaf ears!”

“Then perhaps you need some help?” Silver Spoon suggested, rubbing her hooves. “Been so long since I’ve done any tutoring. I’m actually quite good at tutoring, you know! Tiara’s the witness. Right Tiara?”

“Pretty much true. Excuse me, I forgot, what was your favourite way of tutoring?... Ah, yes, cold blooded torture.” Tiara giggled, receiving a poke to the side from Silver. “Don’t hesitate to ask for help — another scratch on Silver’s count! Muahahaha!”

Meanwhile, their cheerful banter was carefully observed and analysed from the back rows by Chrysalis. If one could call coming up with variations of the insults involving ‘dumb’ analysing.

“I don’t think calling her names will make her see Diamond Tiara for what she truly is.” Sweetie Belle once again repeated herself, commenting Chrysalis’ fondness of sending insults via Crumbled Paper Aero.

“Yeeeeah… you’re right.” Chrysalis groaned out a reply, but immediately added in a whisper. “Feels good though.”

“Perhaps if we gather evidence and show it to her! We’re not the only ones she bullied.” Scootaloo offered a rather ingenious idea. “We could ask our classmates to confirm our words.”

“You don’t know Moon. She’d even dismiss plain truths if agreeing meant that I’m in the right. Long story, but… we’re not really getting along.”

“Gee, Ah wonder why.” Applebloom looked with a shade of scorn as Chrysalis swept away over thirty sheets of paper containing either ‘buthed’ or ‘dummi’ in various forms.

“Pfft, I’m going easy on her. She should be thankful. My skills in verbal beatdowns are unmatched,” Chyssie boasted.

“Well, yer ain’t gonna beat ‘er down into liking you, Ah’m sure. We need an actual plan if we want a demigod on our side.” Applebloom barely finished her speech when Sweetie grabbed her muzzle, trying to cover her mouth.

“Shush, you! Not so loud. Somepony might hear us,” she hissed angrily.

“Oh my, it still feels like a dream. Chrysalis, Sombra and Nightmare Moon learning math in the same class as us! Pinch me, please, this is too cool to be true.” Scootaloo whispered, her wings shivering with excitement. “And when we’re all Cutie Mark Crusaders… We’ll be a Cutie Mark Order! The Cutie Mark Inquisition!”

“Sounds stupid. I’m loving it.” Chrysalis said quickly, writing something down. Once she was done, she raised her hoof. “I got it. I have a plan.” The crusaders quickly huddled up in a bunch and perked up their ears. Chrysalis pointed her pen at Sombra.

“See that foal? He’s our only chance. If Moon ever concurs that I am right, it’ll be him who’ll convince her. We must have him!” Chrysalis concluded her thought with a firm stomp on the table. “He must join our side, or the war is lost.”

“We’re at war now? Gosh.” Applebloom sighed. “But Ah guess yer right. We must make him our friend.”

“He’s cute.” Sweetie Belle’s cheeks turned bright-red as the three other fillies stared at her with eyes wide open. “W-what? I’m j-just saying… Not implying anything.”

“Ladies, let’s keep our priorities straight. We need him as a friend, not a coltfriend!” Chrysalis hissed angrily.

“Now that yer mentioned it…” Applebloom tapped her chin while setting her sights at Sombra with a sly smile, which immediately earned her an indignant gaze from Chrysalis.

“Here Ah thought our night together meant something!” Apple Bloom's eyes sparkled with hellfire, much to Chrysalis' delight. Bloom turned to her, shaking with rage, but fought back the violent, ultragory desires.

"Let's just pretend ya never said anythin' and Ah heard nothin." She said, barely holding back her screamy voice.

“You can sort all your behind-the-door, closet relationships later. Let’s get back to business already.” Scootaloo exclaimed, pulling Chrysalis, who was still reeling from the punch, up from the floor. “What’s our plan?”

“Simple. You go to him, enable your mare charm and convince him that Tiara is a bag of dookie.” Chrysalis replied, with a confidence befitting of a mare in complete safety.

“We? Are you not going to do anything?” Sweetie Belle raised an eyebrow. “He is your friend, after all.”

“Well, you see…” Chrysalis turned silent, remembering every instance she tried to convince Sombra to join CMC. At the dinner, after the dinner, in the free time, during homework, late at night, early in the morning, in the shower… Her efforts only served to make him avoid any topics regarding this entire debacle like the plague. “Turned out, I wasn’t a good pony for the job.”

“Very well, then. Cutie Mark Crusaders coercers. We’re back in action!” With a smile, Scootaloo prepared to blast right off. “Come on, let’s build some bridges!”

Just when they were about to head over to his table, Sombra left a classroom, probably in pursuit of a pretty butterfly, or the smell of fresh salad emanating from somepony’s lunchbox. Guessing the time was right for a little jog, the trio headed out.

“Bloom… can I ask you a thing?” Sweetie Belle said suddenly in a loud whisper.

“Fire away.” After a few deep breaths and some not-so-fresh air in the hallway, Bloom calmed down after her outburst.

“That… thing Chrysalis was talking about. I mean… uhhh… did you really…” Sweetie’s cheeks turned red as she struck her front hooves together, making the unfortunate implications. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that, of course…”

“Long. Story.” Bloom replied, again frustrated and angry. “Ah’ll tell you sometime later.”

“Oh… okay. I mean, you did mention making a special friend… but… if it’s THAT special…”

“That’s not what ah meant! Ugh, can’t believe Scootaloo is not the one making things more awkward!” Apple Bloom stared angrily at Sweetie. Scootaloo smiled smugly.

“I’m biding my time,” she whispered just to herself. “And when the moment is perfect, I shall strike!”

“Any of y’all got any idea how to approach Sombra? Chryss completely forgot to mention his likes and dislikes.” Apple Bloom tried to veer away from the awkward subject and get back to the point.

“Chill, alright? Just go with the flow. We approach, we make some small talk, non-invasive, non-threatening. He’ll recognize us as friendly. Then we go in for the kill! Pow-pow and we’ve got a new member.” Scootaloo looked pretty energized about the whole endeavour. “I cannot wait to see the look in Tiara’s eyes — pure, utter defeat!”

“Sounds fine to me. Let’s get this show on the road!” Apple Bloom exclaimed. Soon, they were outside, looking for any traces of the foal. They spotted him casually lying on a bench, while watching ants carry somepony’s lunch leftovers.

“Hey!” Scootaloo said, interrupting Sombra’s trance. “I believe we’ve already met, not a long time ago.”

“Y-yes…” Sombra nodded unsurely. “I think so…”

“You probably got quite a bad first impression that time, I bet? Y’know, with arguing, shouting, bad puns, tearing your family-friendship-thing apart… And for that, we’re deeply sorry. Right, girls?” Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle joined Scootaloo.

“That we are. And don’t worry about yer identity. Chryss told us everything. You can trust us.” Apple Bloom reassured, and Sombra’s face brightened up.

“Really? Oh, that’s great. I mean, I like my other name, but my real name is my favourite.” Sombra got off the bench and on his hooves. “Chrysalis’s been telling me a lot about you. That you have your own guild!”

“Ehm… Actually, it’s not a guild… more of a club really.” Bloom rubbed the back of her head, but her thoughts were derailed by Scoots’ shout of excitement.

“You are a genius!” She dashed in and leaned on Sombra, wrapping her wing around him. “We’ve been talking for a couple’a seconds, and you’re already producing gold! You will be the best foal friend ever!”

She then looked at her friends and proudly announced. “From this day onward, we shall be known as The Guild of Cutie Mark Crusades! And our clubhouse will be the guildhouse! This is a glorious day, all thanks to our newly acquired member.”

“Come to think of it… that does sound more awesome.” Apple Bloom nodded in agreement.

“Uh… eh… you’re welcome.” Sombra murmured, as his cheeks turned bright red. “But… I am not sure about being a member…”

“What about it?” Scootaloo turned to him, still keeping her wing wrapped around his torso.

“Well, my other friend, Night… Nightmare Moon wants me join her guild too. She says it’s going to help me a lot in my studying… But Chrysalis says that she’s wrong, and they fight a lot about it.”

Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at each other and mentally steeled themselves. This was the moment. The kill.

“I guess Moon’s ‘guild’ is Diamond Tiara and her friend Silver Spoon? Oh, we’ve got a lot to tell you about those two. We know them firsthoof, and believe me, they are…” Sweetie Belle began, but a cold voice from behind interrupted her.

“They are who?” Diamond Tiara, as unexpected and undesirable as a sudden urge to visit a privy, cut in with a cold and menacing voice. “Don’t you think discussing anypony behind their back is rude?”

All three Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at Tiara and noticed Nightmare Moon and Silver Spoon hurrying to her aid. Likewise, Chrysalis was trotting to their side. Apple Bloom let out a sigh of despair, her mind tracing back to the day they first tried to forge the bridge with Sombra.

“Here we go again.”

***

“See, Discord? It wasn’t that bad. At least now it’s all over and we can go home.”

“Never in my life have I been this bored. I’m currently torn between this and being a statue… No, no, this was more boring.” Discord floated beside her, the bag with the papers hanging on his tail. “That pony must hate her life with a passion if she works in a place like this.”

“Somepony has to do it. She is pretty brave for choosing this.” Fluttershy took a deep breath, hoping the fresh air would cleanse her lungs of the dust accumulated throughout their long stay in the office. The time was just about right to meet her foals from school. “Could you go home without me? I’ll get to your reward as soon as I’m back, I promise.”

“Yes, yes, you get all the fun stuff while I get some more tête-a-tête with Angel. How unfair, really! I ran out of places to clean. Do you really want me to do windows?” Discord swung his tail and tossed the bag over his head and caught it with his claw. “I guess I’ll just reminisce about my reformation days with Angel. Y’know, spinning your house around and stuff. See ya later!”

He poofed away, only the sound of his laughter gracing Fluttershy’s ears. Trying to suppress the thoughts of the possibility of having to pick up beds from the ceiling again, she turned away from the withering smoke and followed the familiar path.

The trees and ponies seemed to blend into a single blurry mess as her mind turned on the autopilot that guided her to the destination while Fluttershy was deep in thought. Unfortunately, her autopilot seemed to be a young Rainbow Dash, as it usually led to her crashing into any unexpected obstacle.

“Ouch!” Shy reeled back on impact, her mind desperately trying to process what just happened, in a manner of an absent-minded construction pony who went out for sandwich without realising he was driving a construction crane into a house. In this case, the house was Zecora, loaded with tons and tons of bags.

“Oh! Z-Zecora! I’m so-so-so very sorry!” Fluttershy felt her soul shrivel as she saw oranges, apples and some fruits of unidentifiable nature roll on the ground. The zebra, however, did not look upset in the slightest.

“Oh, a dear friend of mine! I haven’t seen you in a while.” She displayed a friendly smile, while pushing the escapee fruits back into the bag. “How have you been? Are you feeling fine? I wonder: what forced our paths to intertwine?”

“Oh… I was just going to pick up my…” Fluttershy almost uttered the words, but they quickly crawled back into her. How could she forget that not everypony yet was aware of her foals’ existence? She didn’t know if Twilight would approve of her taking this secret outside of the inner circle, so she decided to play it safe. “My books! Yeah, I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately.”

“A commendable feat, I applaud. However, the library is on a different road.” Zecora’s smile changed slightly, and a sinister light sparkled in her eyes. Did she see through Shy’s lies? Fluttershy felt a shiver run down her spine.

“Umm… yeah! True… But I needed some specific books, not found in the library. So… I was going to fetch them!” Fluttershy tried to finish up with a smile, but it looked crooked and forced. To her relief, the sinister fire faded away as quickly as it appeared, meaning the danger had passed.

“I see. For these books you must have looked worldwide, if they were so rare that even Twilight could not provide.” Zecora glanced around herself, eyeing each fruit as though it was her sworn enemy. “Alone it is hard for me to pick up all this load. If you’d be so kind, help me take it to my humble abode.”

“O-of course! No problem at all!” Fluttershy was glad to make up for the trouble she’d caused and together they began collecting the scattered fruits. Lacking any magical tools to pick them up with, it took a while.

“So, how are you doing? Anything new in the Everfree?” Fluttershy asked, after half of the fruits were back where they belonged. Zecora shook her head.

“When you live in the Evefree, just like I do, you will eventually forget there can be something new.” She said with an unusually saddened expression. “As much danger as the forest has, that makes some ponies pale, if you know how to trespass, life becomes rather stale.”

“Oh… I understand…” Fluttershy always felt that she and Zecora were somewhat similar in terms of socializing — not big fans. But Fluttershy never felt alone, because she always had company of her animals. Zecora, however, only had a company of creepy masks and bubbling brews. “Maybe you’d like to come over to my place, some time? I’d make some tea, buy some pastry and we could have a bit of fun… if you’d want that… you can come over to anypony, really, they’ll welcome you at any time.”

“Ha-ha, I appreciate your concern, only good is on your mind. Friends like you are one of a kind.” Zecora laughed, and when all of the bags were refilled, she, with Fluttershy’s help, put them all on her back. “But I’m afraid I will have to decline; I have some work I must complete in due time.”

“Then… maybe you’ll let me help carry the bags?” Fluttershy muttered, but Zecora shook her head as she trotted away.

“I am indebted to you as it is, friend of mine,” she said, as the distance between them grew more and more. “I will see you some other time.”

Zecora faded into the distance, leaving Fluttershy with a smudged mood and a sense of guilt. This seemed unfair. She must be feeling so lonely, living so deep in the forest, yet they rarely visit her that often, if at all.

As Flutters continued on her way to the school, she pondered about other daily grievances Zecora had to put up with. Having to travel a respectable amount of distance just to visit shops, nopony who’d help with housework — it was worthy of a Twilight-sized checklist.

To try to take her mind away from such thoughts, she pondered about what kind of stories her darlings had accumulated for her. Surely, they would be joyful and interesting.

***

Fluttershy had a weird relationship with silence. To specify, it was on and off. Sometimes she’d prefer the peace and quiet of her home, and sometimes she was terrified of long, awkward silences. This was the latter case.

Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis did not exchange a word throughout the entire trip and now were too busy with their plates to engage in any conversation. Sombra, while as quiet as both of them, wasn’t interested in his food and just stared at it, as if hoping to see some deeper meaning in it.

“Uh… So… How was school?” This was the most obvious question she could ask, and probably the worst.

“It was okay.” Chrysalis murmured. This was a bad sign. Whenever Chryssie didn’t explain in great detail why having her stay still for even a short period of time was the worst idea ever meant something was horribly off. Moonie nodded silently, confirming Fluttershy’s suspicions.

“And how was your day, Sombra?” She sought for good news anywhere she could, but clearly there were none to be found within him. He looked at her with a slight shade of sadness in his eyes and shook his head. “Oh… Not good, then…”

“Nonsense. Everything went smoothly. Sombra was just, uhm, over-impressed by Chrysalis’ antics, is all.” Nightmare Moon smirked, carefully tasting every bite of her hayburger. Chryssie was mid-bite, her eyes immediately focusing on Nightmare Moon.

“Ha...Ha-ha-ha.” She laughed slowly, enunciating every ‘ha’ like it was its own sentence. “Yes, I admit, I am often up for some hijinks. But at least I’m not making friends with bullies.”

“They are not bullies!” Upon seeing a small shred of anger on Nightmare Moon, Chrysalis knew she pushed the right button. “It’s called elitism! It is well deserved.”

“Is that another word for an uptight jerk?” Chryssie dropped that line casually, but it seemed to have exploded like a bomb. Even behind Moonie’s stoicism, she could hear her battered pride screaming in agony.

“Uh… girls… you shouldn’t…”

“To hear something like that from, ehem, a jerk! Hypocrisy at its finest! Thou art the foulest individual I ever had the displeasure to meet!” Nightmare Moon was boiling with anger. It wasn’t visible, but one could feel it in the air. Sombra slowly crawled under the table, hoping to avoid the storm.

“Oh yeah? And whatcha gonna do about?” Instead of feeling suppressed by the aura of anger, Chrysalis felt bolder than ever. She jumped onto the table, breaking every rule of etiquette and slowly walked towards Nightmare Moon.

“I… I shall strike thee with a spell!” Nightmare Moon put her forelegs on the table and stared right into Chrysalis’ soul with fiery intent to scare her. “Do not provoke me! I am serious!”

“Girls! Y-y-you have to stop this! N-n-now…” Fluttershy tried to give her voice a little bit of an oomph, but all that came out was a barely audible whisper. Her confidence was leaking like soup out of a cracked cauldron.

“Ooh, frightening. Did your bully-friends teach you that? Don’t waste your breath! Empty threats won’t work on me!” Chrysalis smiled smugly, but then immediately jumped back as a puny cloud of sparks crackled in the air and disappeared just as suddenly as it appeared. Rather shocked, Chryssie looked at Moon, whose horn was alight, crackling with the same colours as the cloud of sparks, which had already dissipated.

“No threat I make is empty.” Nightmare Moon said, frowning.

“Oh… Well… In that case…” Chrysalis bared her teeth, but never got to finish her retort.

“Enough!” Fluttershy suddenly slammed the table so hard the dishes and cups almost flew off into different direction. The room had suddenly gone silent. “I will not allow any more fights in my house! From now on, no mild cussing, no pranks, no sarcastic overtones and… whatever Chrysalis does! You’re both grounded! Now go to your rooms...room.”

It sounded more coherent and firm in her head, but little slip ups were expected. Besides, it worked perfectly. Both fillies stopped bickering and stared in terror at her, silent and motionless. Suddenly, Fluttershy was overwhelmed by guilt.

“Uh… you… you probably don’t know what grounded means… ehm… Just… be good next time, alright?” She put up a weak smile, and the two replied with slow nods. Then they carefully backed away to their seats. For a moment, they were sitting completely still, and immediately when Fluttershy opened her mouth they ran away, upstairs, right where she told them to go.

“Oh my… I think Iron Will’s influence is still showing… Ehem… “ She cleared her throat turning to where Sombra was supposed to be, and found him peaking from under the table.

“Is it safe? Can I come out?”

“Yes… yes, you can.” Fluttershy sighed heavily and slumped down on her chair. “Do they… do this often? Fight, I mean…”

“Yes…” Sombra suddenly blushed.

“And how often?”

“When they don’t see each other, they don’t fight.” Fluttershy sighed at that reply. And the day started so well. What else could go wrong?

“Mom… Is Canterlot far away from here?” Sombra’s question broke her concentration.

“Mhm… Well, a couple of hours by train… Wait, why are you asking?”

“Miss Cheerilee said that there will be a class trip to Canterlot, and told us to tell our parents so she didn’t get accused of foalnapping anypony like last year.“ He turned silent, checking if his phrasing was correct, and then nodded approvingly to himself. “Yes, that’s what she said.”

“A.. class trip to… Canterlot?” She felt a chill run down her spine. No, she could not let them go there, not in a million years. Letting them that close near the princesses was like approving your own execution, and besides Twilight wouldn’t let her do that anyway. “Oh, I see. Could you tell Miss Cheerilee that you, Moonie and Chryssie can’t go?”

“But why?” He tilted his head. “I want to go.”

“I understand, honey, but… let’s just say, it is very important for you all to keep yourself hidden and in Canterlot… that’d be difficult to do.” She finished her speech, and Sombra lowered his head in disappointment. “Don’t be so sad. You’ll get to go there… eventually.”

“It’s okay… I’ll tell Cheerilee, then.”

“Thank you, sweetie.” She gave him a rub behind the ear. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll have to go talk to our troublemakers.”

“Okay…” He nodded once again, and Fluttershy left the table and went upstairs. Sombra looked at his now-cold food and wondered how would Canterlot look like. Maybe it was big, with buildings reaching the sky? Or maybe it looked like Ponyville? Or maybe it was like Crystal City? He shuddered at the thought of ever going back to Crystal Empire and brushed it off. However, while he was brushing off thoughts, somepony gave his hayburger eyes.

“That was some legit scary stuff, I tell ya.” The burger said, as if an unseen force was moving the two pieces of bread like a mouth. “But at least she didn’t give them the Stare. Believe me: you don’t want to see the Stare!”

“Uh… Uhm….” Sombra looked around in confusion, in desperate search of answers. He hoped this was somepony’s prank, as he didn’t want to admit he was eating living burgers all this time. “T-this isn’t funny! Come out!”

“Bleh, you really do take after Fluttershy.” The burger turned lifeless and Discord poofed into the room right on the opposite side of the table. “Unfortunate implications make you as dull as rocks.”

“Oh… hello… Mr. Discord. Nice to see you.” Sombra tried to smile, but the draconequus’ weird appearance still unnerved him. “How… are you doing?”

“I’m doing just fine, thank you very much. But our mommy dearest doesn’t seem to be doing as well as we do. I mean, the shouting and the angry voices - not her thing. Your filly friends are really acting out.” Discord paused for a moment then picked up Sombra’s burger and threw it upwards, letting it fall right into his mouth. “While I find their behaviour extremely inappropriate, it is no reason to take away a trip to Canterlot from you.”

“Do you think she doesn’t want us to go because of Moonie and Chryssie?”

“Of course! Have you seen what they’ve been doing? They’re at each other’s throats! And you’re the one suffering, in the centre.” Discord smiled when hints of doubt appeared on Sombra’s muzzle. “And that is unfair, don’t you think?”

“It is! But… I don’t know what to do… or what to say.” He averted looking into Discord’s eyes, mainly because he was too deep in his own doubts. “And it’s now because of me that we can’t go to Canterlot… because I can’t make them friends again…”

“Well… partially. But! But I can do something about it.” Discord smiled even wider and floated to Sombra’s side. “Let’s make a deal: I get you your trip to Canterlot…and you keep your filly friends from tearing each other to shreds. At least for the time of the trip.”

“B-b-but mommy said we can’t…”

“Tshhh.” Discord placed his clawfinger on Sombra’s lips. “I’ll convince her because it’s for the greater good. You want to do good, right?” The foal nodded in reply.

“Beautiful. Now go do something fun. Let me handle the Canterlot business. And remember: we had a deal. Show them who’s boss!” Sombra nodded once more, slipped out of his chair and headed outside, most likely to feed animals. For some reason, he found it fun.

“You’ll thank me later for this, Shy.” Discord snapped his fingers, and green flames covered him, concealing his transformation. Once it was complete, he looked exactly like Fluttershy — only his eyes remained the same color. “I hope.”

Fluttershy was upstairs, desperately trying her best to rebuild bridges between the two fillies. Obviously, it would not succeed - with the path she had chosen, she came to a screeching halt. Discord pulled a small mirror out of thin air and looked at his reflection, looking for any possible slip-up he might have done with the morphing. No, the only remaining part of him were the eyes. But instead of a problem, Discord saw it as an opportunity. In a second, a pair of sunglasses descended from the heavens itself and landed right on his face.

“Best Fluttershy ever. Deal with it.” He smiled at himself. While Flutters was busy upstairs, he had time to practice his impression of her. But even a brief practice would be enough to fool Cheerilee. She wasn’t the brightest of ponies in the town. Considering she bought those dumb nicknames.

Life gave me a lemon

The sky was covered in clouds, painted crimson by the setting sun. The wind was cool and refreshing and the birds' songs started to turn quiet. Many of them were already planning to fly away to their nests and take a well deserved nap.

Fluttershy swung her wings, lifting herself up into the air, and added her own note into their goodbye song.

Her melodic voice filled the air, making all the animals in her yard stop for a moment and listen. She closed her eyes, fully embracing the role of a lead singer in this chorus, as birds accompanied her tunes with their knocks and clicks.

The wind played with Fluttershy's mane in the light of setting sun as she rose higher and higher, her magnificent singing pouring out, hypnotizing even insects that flew past her.

Alas, their magnificent chorus turned silent just to allow all the animals to applaud the singers.

"Thank you! Thank you!" Fluttershy gracefully bowed her head to her crowd. "We make a great team!"

The birds chirped with joy in reply to her compliment. Several of them flew closer to her and melodiously uttered something in their language.

"Oh... oh, you shouldn't.... I'm flattered,” Fluttershy replied, a slight blush appearing on her cheeks.

After saying her goodbyes to the birds, she landed back on the ground. The soft grass welcomed her; several butterflies carefully whirled about in the air before they landed into her puffy, luscious pink mane.

"Angel? Angel, where are you?" she calmly called for her favourite friend and he quickly sprung out of a bush and approached her. "Oh, there you are Angel! How did your time off go? Did you enjoy it?"

Angel smiled, raised his head proudly and squeaked several times, showcasing his joy. He’d had a good time, alright. Fluttershy smiled heartily.

"I'm glad to hear that! Now, then, let's go have supper. I made you your favourite dish: cabbage with carrots! Isn't that delightful?" she sung and they both went towards the entrance of Fluttershy's cottage.

The instant Fluttershy entered her home, she swept the sweat off her forehead and took a deep breath. Taking care of animals was her most favourite task, and yet it was incredibly tiresome. By the end of the day, if she didn't take any breaks, Fluttershy could barely move her hooves forward. In that case, Mr. Bear would always carry her to her bed. He was such a sweetheart.

"Now, Angel, you wait for me, I'll be back in a millisecond!" Fluttershy said, patting her little bunny on the head. "And then, we'll eat!"

She still had a minor problem to take care of: light the candles in every room before nightfall. This was just a precaution, for she was afraid of the dark; and walking through a quiet house with a lantern hanging on your hoof while she had to carefully measure every step, afraid of the shadows that reminded her of all sorts of dangerous creatures wasn't something Fluttershy was a fan of.

Taking extra time to run around the house and light the candles was certainly worth it. Fluttershy approached the drawer, looked through her endless packages of seeds, and finally found the matches.

One candle, two, three, four, and soon her house was prepared for the upcoming night. With the satisfied grin of a victor, Fluttershy put the matches back in their place and went to the kitchen.

On her way, however, she was disturbed by a rapid, yet silent knock on the door. Fluttershy staggered for a moment. Who would want to come for a visit at such time? It felt a little strange. However, she couldn't just ignore the knocks, so she quickly trotted to the door.

"One second, Angel! We have guests!" Fluttershy announced. Angel grumbled something under his nose, but didn't try to stop Fluttershy; she was tired, it was better to leave her be for the time now. She was always calm, but at the end of the day, she was very easy to offend. So Angel always kept his remarks for the morning and the midday.

"I'm coming, wait just a moment!" the pegasus exclaimed, approaching the door. She quickly opened it and was relieved to see her friend Twilight standing on her threshold.

The young princess looked a little strange, to say the least: her mane was completely dishevelled and her wings were spread wide, as if she was about to take flight. Her face had several black ash stains and her fur looked quite uncouthly, as if she’d just broken through a thorny bush.

"Oh, Twilight! I- I wasn't expecting you... not like this, anyway," Fluttershy said, looking at her friend. "Twilight... you look... worried."

"Fluttershy," Twilight exclaimed, swiping the ash from her forelegs. "We are on the verge of destruction!"

"Wha- wha- what?" Fluttershy stumbled, her stomach churning from fear. "Verge of destruction of what?"

"Of me, Fluttershy! Of me!" Twilight exclaimed, feverishly looking around. Fluttershy couldn't comprehend her friend’s distress, but before she could ask, Twilight put her hoof to the pegasus' lips.

"Not here. Not outside. Will you let me come in?"

Fluttershy hummed in response; that was practically all she could do with a filthy, purple hoof in front of her mouth. Twilight accepted that as a yes.

"Spike! Come here!" she turned around and shouted at the closest bush. The young dragon quickly appeared out of the thicket, dragging some kind of a wagon behind him. It wasn't too big, but Fluttershy could remember the Cutie Mark Crusaders had a wagon like this. Scootaloo would drive around on a scooter with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle sitting in the wagon — quite a clever construction.

Spike looked very exhausted; sweat was running down his scales, with his tongue stuck out of his mouth. With every pull, he had to take a deep breath.

"Oh, does it have to do something with Sweetie Belle?" Twilight shook her head. "Apple Bloom? Scootaloo?" Twilight shook her head again in response to the guesses.

"Not here, Fluttershy," Twilight repeated once more. "Come on, Spike, before anypony sees us!"

"I'm trying my best, jeez! They're not that light, you know!" Spike grunted in reply, struggling to pull the wagon, the top of which was covered with a white towel.

"Can I... help you?" Fluttershy hesitantly asked whereto Spike nodded eagerly, when Twilight suddenly pierced him with an angry glare.

"No, Fluttershy, Spike can handle it... just fine!" she enunciated the last words slowly, winking at Spike and jerking her head to the right. Spike let out an annoyed groan and pulled as hard as he could. Fluttershy felt bad for the poor baby dragon.

Finally, Twilight quickly entered Fluttershy's house, urging her to come first, and, the instant Spike had dragged the wagon inside, she closed the door and started looking for locks.

"Grrrr... Don't you have any locks on this thing?" Twilight growled. "Come on, come on!"

"I... don't have locks... I prefer bolts," Fluttershy said, but the princess's horn was already coruscating in purple as the door was tied with arcane chains and locks. "Well... I could have just asked Mr. Bear to guard it... but okay."

"Okay... Doors are shut... windows are shut, too... We're safe!" Twilight exclaimed, while Spike collapsed on the couch, breathing heavily.

"Next time, you drag this thing! I am your assistant, but I'm not a draft dragon!" he groused, between pants.

"I can make you a cup of tea, if you want," Fluttershy offered, and Spike brightened up.

"Oh, I would love to—" Spike readied his claws, when Twilight interrupted.

"No. Business first," she said strictly.

"Oh, sorry! Is somepony threatening you? Is that somepony in that wagon?" Fluttershy pointed at the wagon, suddenly turning pale. "It's... a little small for an adult threat..."

"No, no. I meant destruction of a different kind," Twilight relieved her. "You see, I was conducting experiments—"

"Come on, Twi, what's the point of telling the rest of the story?" Spike chuckled. "Everypony knows that when you conduct experiments, things always go wrong."

"Not always.... just pesky 90%, that's all... And I'm not talking to myself! If you were in my horseshoes, you would be worried too!" Twilight replied, even sounding genuinely offended. "But, anyway, I was experimenting with quantum mechanics of magic energy fields, the perpetuum, arcanum vitae aeternae, you know, the lame stuff. I wanted to test my theory about calamity fields and the electromagnetical impulses of..."

"Twilight, translation, please!" Spike interrupted her and Twilight sighed heavily.

"Anyway, I fiddled with those fields that I shouldn't have fiddled with. I think the elements have affected those fields," she finished lamely.

"Wow, really? You were looking for a way to open the box?"

"Sort of. It doesn't matter in the long run. You see, I tried to amend these fields... just a little, a tiny, little bit of experimentation, then... boom!" Twilight swung her forehooves around in a wide arc while standing bipedal. "A big explosion. Thankfully, nopony’s gotten hurt, but... what I discovered afterwards... was horrifying."

"What? What is it?" Fluttershy asked. Even though she was afraid... she really wanted it know. "What was it?"

"Show her, Spike," Twilight said and Spike jumped off the sofa and approached the wagon.

"Brace yourself, Flutters. This is not a sight for weak minds," the baby dragon warned her and harshly pulled the towel off it. He quickly turned away and closed his eyes.

"Spike."

"I'm not looking!"

"Spike!"

"I'm telling you: I'm not looking!"

"Spike! Where are they?!" Twilight screamed loudly, making Fluttershy shiver. Spike quickly gazed into the wagon, to see that it was empty.

"Oh, horseapples!" he swore.

Fluttershy looked at these two with confusion and anxiety. What had they been hiding that was so horrifying? And why was the aforementioned horror gone? What was going on?! Would somepony just explain?

Suddenly, she heard Angel's muted squeaks and loud chewing from behind herself. She slowly turned around, scared and terrified.

"Thy food befits my stomach not! I demand a proper feast, thou vagabond!" a dark-blue filly with wings and horn as well as a mane covered in stars that reminded of a night sky in general, groused. Beside her, a very familiar helmet, made of shining silver, was lying. It was quite big, but not bigger than the filly herself.

She was sitting in some slippers, which were seemingly made of the same silver as the helmet, that were twice as big as her hooves. Her face expressed a childish, but very serious infuriation.

"Thy expression fazes me not! Bring forth proper food at once; else thou wilt feel my wrath!" the filly demanded, looking angrily at the poor bunny.

This mane, this armor, this manner of speech... There was no mistake: it was Nightmare Moon, a filly Nightmare Moon.

"Twi...light... Is that who I think it is?" Fluttershy mumbled, turning as pale as chalk. Twilight only nodded with regret.

"I’m afraid so, yes," she informed.

"Wait... you said 'them'... There is more than one?" Fluttershy shuddered at a thought.

"Yes, and we still have to fi- Wah-aaah... Spike... Is that you?" Twilight asked as she felt something on her back.

"No..." Spike muttered.

"Is it him?"

"Yes."

"He's on my back?"

"Yep."

Twilight gulped nervously... and then let out a terrified screech. Fluttershy felt pain in her head after the ringing in her ears subsided.

"Get him off me! Get him off! Aaahh!" the alicorn shouted, jumping around, trying to shake off whatever had grabbed her. "Get him off my mane!"

"Stay still, Twilight!" Spike commanded, preparing himself to lunge forwards. He kneeled down, touching the wooden floor with his claws. "Hiiya!"

He dashed forwards, jumping up and hitting whatever was sitting on Twilight's back. This 'something' let out an irritated groan as both 'it' and Spike plummeted down on the ground.

The landing wasn't rough, for they landed on the soft rug, but Spike's hostage was majorly annoyed.

The dark colored foal, with grey fur and black mane, swung his hooves wildly in the air, opening his mouth full of sharp teeth.

"Ayeeee! Let me go, you scaly weirdo!" he cried, trying his best to wrestle out of Spike's grip.

Fluttershy took a closer look at the foal: he was a unicorn, with a weird, red curved horn and crimson red eyes. Still having a few doubts, she looked around the room, finally noticing the crucial evidence in the wagon.

The red royal mantle, outlined with white fur and a helmet made of black metal, which Fluttershy didn't recognize, and also served as a crown.

"Is that... King Sombra?" Fluttershy asked, turning to Twilight.

"Yes... Aaah, no!" Twilight cried, looking at her mane. Fluttershy noticed that its end was completely wet and frayed. Had Sombra... chewed on her mane?

"Let me go!" Sombra cried, waving his little hooves through the air. "Help me!"

"Nopony's helping you, Mr. Big Black Cloud of Doom!" Spike said, holding him firmly. "You're not getting off this rug as long as I still draw a single breath!"

Sombra gritted his teeth, and then, suddenly, his horn lit up with red waves of energy. Seconds later, Spike shrieked in terror as the end of his tail was engulfed in a red aura and lifted him up into the air.

"Put me back! Put me back! I like the ground better!" Spike said.

"This is a nightmare! Such horror! I'm totally done for! Celestia will brutalize me!" Twilight exclaimed as Sombra freed himself and turned to Nightmare Moon, who still tried to order Angel to bring her food.

"Hey, I'm here!" he shouted, running towards the table.

"Oh, not thou again! Why wilt thou not leave my mane alone? I shan’t allow thee to chew thereon, no!" the nightmare alicorn exclaimed haughtily.

"Aw, but it's so yummy! Like rice pudding!" Sombra pleaded. "Please, help me get up there!"

"Argh, fine, thou fiend. But no more chewing this mane of mine — that includes the tail," Nightmare Moon said, engulfing Sombra in an energy field and lifting him up. He gracefully landed beside her.

"Thanks!"

"Mention it not!"

Fluttershy stared blankly as Sombra joined Nightmare Moon in demanding food from Angel. He lost concentration and Spike crashed back into the ground.

"Ugh!" Spike groaned, getting up. "Not nice... but I guess that's better than helping Twilight learn to fly."

"Hey!" Twilight shouted. "I'm learning, okay?"

She took a deep breath, trying to calm down her nerves.

"Okay, alright. Let's get them all back into the wagon, before they break something. We'll have to find—" Her speech was rudely interrupted by a loud squeal.

"Ya-hooooo!" A loud voice reached the poor princess, and she looked up. Right under the ceiling, a changeling filly was using the candelabra as climbing frame. She gracefully hopped from branch to branch. Her holey hooves were surprisingly strong as she sprang back and forth, pulled up and jumped.

Fluttershy looked scared for a moment, holding her breath when the dark filly did three back-flips, but the young acrobat unfolded her transparent wings, akin to those a fly would have, and flapped them. A buzz, as if a bee flew into Fluttershy's cottage, filled the room, as she carried herself over to the next branch of the candelabra and grabbed it.

The filly swung around, screaming with glee and joy, as the candelabra gained speed and started to spin round. The little changeling supported the process immensely, using her own magic.

"Yaaaay!" the filly shouted as the candelabra turned into her own little merry-go-round that was spinning faster than any merry-go-round in Equestria. "Woo-hoo!"

"Stop! Stop! It can't hold on much longer! It will—" Fluttershy suddenly shouted, but it was far too late, for the frail chain, which connected the candelabra to the ceiling, broke and the construction was sent plummeting down to the ground.

It hit the floor with a noise so loud Angel jumped, making the chair he had been sitting on fall, dragging the bunny along with him. Twilight shut her eyes to shield them from the dust that was raised.

When the dust subsided, a picture of despair was revealed to all: the candelabra had broken through the floor, leaving a big gaping hole in it. The changeling filly was standing by the hole, coughing and sneezing, but in one piece.

"Whoopsie..." she said, turning around and smiling innocently. She revealed a pair of tiny fangs that sparkled in the light and the dark skin on her cheeks bloomed with red. Her giant horn, which looked more like razor than a horn, had a torn piece of green cloth on its tip. It seemed to belong to one of Fluttershy’s curtains, but how it’d ended up on the filly’s horn, she had no idea.

"Sorry," the filly, who, as Fluttershy suspected, was Queen Chrysalis, apologized. "I didn't think it would break."

"And we had just arrived! You three destroy everything you touch!" Spike clasped his claws.

"I'm really sorry, Fluttershy. I promise, I'll fix all of this! You won't have to lift a hoof, just, please, help me!" Twilight pleaded, turning to her friend who was strangely pale. "Fluttershy? Flutters?"

"Ooooh..." Fluttershy whispered, rolled her eyes backwards, and fainted. Her body emitted a loud thud when she hit the ground.

"I'd guess that was a no," Spiked noted with sarcasm.

"No time for jokes, Spike!" Twilight ordered. "Gather these three and watch that they don't move, else these little monsters demolish Fluttershy's whole house!"

"Easier said than done!" Spike grunted, charging after little Chrysalis.

Twilight struggled to lift Fluttershy up into the air and get her on the couch. The yellow pegasus certainly wasn't the lightest pony to carry. Maybe she was hiding a secret stash of waffles, Twilight thought dryly and tried shaking her a little bit, just to wake her up.

Meanwhile, Spike was in a brutal chase after Chrysalis. The young changeling thought of it as a game and playfully taunted Spike as he struggled to even keep up with her.

After more effort than reasonably necessary, Twilight had finally dragged Fluttershy into a corner.

Chrysalis looked around with her green eyes, looking for an escape route, but none was present. She was trapped between a shelf and a drawer.

"Now, my shifty filly, don't move. Now, I take you back to the wagon, alright? Remember what I promised you if you stayed there?" he spoke calmly, but breathed heavily, exhausted from all the running.

"There was no candy in that wagon, you mean liar!" Chrysalis said in an offended voice. "And it was too tight there! You never said those two would be coming with us!"

She shifted her eyes to Sombra and Nightmare Moon, who were watching the whole scene from on the table, then back at Spike.

"Did you promise them candy too? My candy?!" she seemed angrily. Spike felt a little blush appear on his cheeks. He was no stranger to lying, but lying to a Queen of Deceivers was something new.

"No. The candy I promised to you. I promised to no other than you," Spike tried to convince her. Chrysalis looked at him with her huge filly eyes, and for a moment, Spike felt a little weird. As if she was staring right into his soul... looking... searching... leering creepily.

"Thou liar! Thou hast promised her candy too?" Nightmare Moon suddenly shouted.

"Argh, shoot!" Spike shouted as Chrysalis quickly took flight before he could catch her. Yeah, he forgot she could do that.

"He promised me candy as well," Sombra added, shifting his sight between Chrysalis and Nightmare Moon.

"What a liar, that dragon!" Chrysalis exclaimed. "I'll never trust him ever again!"

"I agree with thee, fair maiden," Nightmare Moon nodded, looking hither and yon.

"Why are you talking so weirdly? Are you ill or something?" Sombra inquired.

"I? Nay, ‘tis just the speech I am used to and nothing else. Thy common words suit me not," she replied.

"What are your names, by the way? We never got to speak in that wagon, anyway," Chrysalis asked and Sombra turned to her and brightened up.

"Because thou wast too busy gnawing on my mane, thou vagabond!" Nightmare Moon addressed Sombra, but cleared her throat to announce her name and finally get acquainted with her new comrades. "My name is Nightmare Moon. Pleased to meet you, miss...."

"Chrysalis," the changeling filly said, extending her hoof to Nightmare Moon. "Pleased to meet you."

"My name's Sombra," the unicorn quickly intercepted Chrysalis’ hoof and shook it first. "Sorry I haven't introduced myself first... your mane was just too tempting!"

"Bah... never mind it, Sombra," Nightmare Moon said, looking at him.

She is weird, Sombra thought. She obviously forgives me, but why is she frowning right now? In fact, she is frowning ever since I saw her. She is very weird, this Moon.

"You get down from there this instant!" Spike shouted at the trio. "Or I'll have to get up there and beat you up!"

"Oh, my, what horror! You're going to beat us up!" Chrysalis moved to the edge of the table and looked down at the dragon. "You can't even reach us, you silly lame-o!"

"Don't be—" Spike said menacingly as he rushed towards the table and jumped, landing just nearby Chrysalis. "—so sure!"

Chrysalis backed away, as did the rest of them. Nightmare Moon unfolded her wings, preparing to take off, when suddenly, Sombra moved closer to her and whispered something into her ear. Nightmare Moon, at first, looked annoyed, then her face assumed an evil grin. The same happened to Chrysalis when the young unicorn whispered something to her ear as well.

The trio started backing away slowly until, finally, they reached the very edge of the table. Spike smiled: he had them trapped. They wouldn't want to jump down; the height was pathetic, but they were too afraid. They were, after all, just kids.

"Oh, my, our hour has come! We are beaten, truly!" Sombra exclaimed, rolling his eyes and trying to be as dramatic as possible. "We meet our end here!"

"Yep, exactly!" Spike interrupted his speech. "Now, come with me if you want to stay away from the end."

"Now!" Sombra suddenly shouted, and the two fillies grabbed him by his hooves and lifted him up into the air. The unicorn's horn coruscated with bright red and Spike could only stare in complete shock as the table started to lean. The dishes slipped and crashed into the ground, to be smitten to smithereens. Spike, in the heat of the moment, struck the surface of the table with his claws, hoping to get a hold.

"Wait! Maybe we can talk this over! Wait!" he shouted, looking down and noticing that there was quite a lot of space between him and the floor. More dishes slid past him and crashed into the floor.

Sombra didn't listen to his pleas as she shook his head a little, which in return made the table shake as well. Spike's claws had failed him and he was sent plummeting down into the floor.

"Ha-ha! It seems the tables have turned!" Nightmare Moon exclaimed. "A magnificent plan, sir! Thou truly art a master tactician!"

"That was really clever! Good job, Sombra!" Chrysalis echoed the flattery towards the dark coloured foal. Sombra's cheeks turned red with a blush.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just simple planning, is all," he said and then looked around. "This place looks boring!"

"Aye, ‘tis true. The landscape is certainly uninspiring. I am greatly disappointed with this interior design," Nightmare Moon agreed.

"Let us get out of here, then!" Chrysalis offered, and everypony nodded thereto.

"A good idea. Let's just get my armour; I’m not leaving it behind!" the alicorn said, looking at her silver helmet and slippers lying beside Spike. "Just one second and... Ah Wha—"

Suddenly, both Chrysalis and Nightmare Moon felt their wings freeze... and yet they were still hovering in the air. From shock, the dark alicorn almost let Sombra go, but quickly regained control over her hooves.

"No. You're not going anywhere," Twilight stated in a calm, and yet clearly infuriated voice. Her eyes were burning brightly with light and colourful wisps were streaming out of the edges.

"Get back to the wagon. Right. Now!" she commanded strictly, forcing the two fliers and their cargo to land. Her wings were spread widely, and it — even though her mane was still dishevelled and looked quite sloppy — made her seem incredibly menacing.

The three children lowered their heads, losing their happy attitude and glee, and walked slowly unto the wagon.

When Spike finally recovered from his fall, shook the dust off his scales, and approached Twilight, he looked angrily at the three ponies.

"Did you see what they did, Twi? That was... That was..."

"Awesome!" Sombra interrupted him, but Twilight quickly shushed him. Spike smiled and put out his tongue at the unicorn, much to Nightmare Moon's displeasure.

"Eek, what a brute!" she whispered.

"You stay in the wagon until I say otherwise. If you even think of climbing out, I'll put a door on it, and tie it with chains," Twilight leaned closer to the three, trying to put as much anger in her expression as she could. "Am I clear?"

"Yes," the three replied in unison and climbed into the wagon. Twilight watched over them and felt... incredible pride. She just ordered an eldritch demigod, a monarch of a menacing race and a ruthless, merciless dictator to get into the wagon and stay put.

The world of Equestria was truly a weird place to live in.

Twilight let out a sigh of relief and turned to unconscious Fluttershy. She should wake her up as soon as possible. Though, the poor pegasus wouldn’t be excited about what Twilight wanted to ask of her, especially with this mess.

"Spike."

"Ugh, really?" Spike applied his palm to his face with a loud slap sound. "Grrr, you owe me a gem for that, Twi. Okay, where does Fluttershy keep her broom?"

Totally platonic cuddles

Author's Note

Bring out the cute!

Totally platonic cuddles

The Apple family was rounded up in the living room. None of them seemed too happy about being robbed of their precious time that they could have spent cutie mark crusading, apple bucking, or doing whatever Granny Smith liked them to do.

Apple Bloom, as usual, couldn't stay still and kept bothering Macintosh, poking him to the side and asking him 'What's up?'. Granny Smith was sitting in her chair, head resting on the side and snoring loudly.

"Ehem... dear Apple family!" Applejack exclaimed, standing before them, like an actor on stage. They quickly turned their attention to her — Apple Bloom stopped bothering Big Mac, Big Mac started looking like he actually cared, and Granny Smith opened her eyes, looked around, and, after realizing that something was going down, shook her head and looked at Applejack.

"Ah know that will be a great shock for y’all. But please, do not panic; what Ah am about to show y’all ain’t dangerous and will not hurt ya..." Applejack assured. "...Ah think."

"Wow, Applejack is going to show us a dangerous trick!" Apple Bloom jumped, clapping her tiny hooves. "What's it gonna be? Ridin' a timberwolf? Wooow, you brought a timberwolf here?! Yer the best sister ever!"

Once Apple Bloom got an idea, there was no way to stop her.

"No, no, Apple Bloom, no tricks," Applejack said whereto Apple Bloom turned sad, expressing her dissatisfaction with a loud 'aww'. Disappointed, she sat down near Big Mac and made a frowny face.

"Ain’t dangerous, huh?" Granny tapped her chin. "What’re ya waiting for, huh, show us yer not-dangerous... thing!"

Applejack took a deep breath, counted to four, gathered all her courage and finally spoke the words.

"You can come out." she stated and Chrysalis walked into the room, turning her head away when she noticed all three staring at her, and sat down near Applejack, looking at her family stone-faced.

"That’s... Chrysalis, and...err... she's a changeling," Applejack introduced lamely. Chrysalis poked her in the side.

"I would prefer 'pony', thank you very much," she grumbled, and looked back at Apple family, who were all staring at her blankly. Maybe it was because it was the first time they'd ever seen a changeling so up close.

"I's another one o’ yer pranks, Applejack? Why did ya paint Scootaloo black and put a razor on her forehead?" Granny Smith mumbled, squinting her eyes, trying to take a closer look at this new pony. "Oh, wait, this ain’t Scootaloo. Her eyes are different."

Chrysalis stifled a chuckle. Having no idea who this Scootaloo was, this little detail could help her a lot when coming up with new ideas for pranks.

"A changeling? Like those y’all fought in Canterlot! Woooow!" Apple Bloom exclaimed, jumping off the couch. "A real changeling! Sweetie Belle is gonna die of jealousy!"

"Hold yer hippogriffs, Apple Bloom. We've got some rules to set up; first of all, Chrysalis will live among us for the time being, eat with us, work with us, and sleep near us as well. So, please, treat her gently..."

"And with appropriate respect," Chrysalis grumbled.

"Yeah... Is everypony alright with that?" Applejack asked, and her family nodded. Even though having a changeling near you was unusual, to say the least, Apples never had a problem with accepting new members into their wide happy circle. Besides, it was only temporary. The second rule, though.

"Fine, then. The second rule: nopony must know about Chrysalis' presence here. Not a soul!" Applejack exclaimed. "That goes double for you, Apple Bloom. No, ya can't tell yer friends. "

"Awwww..." Apple Bloom turned glum and turned away, because her possibilities of getting a cutie mark in changeling training had been ruined even before they were formed.

"And finally: in case she's trouble, report to me. Ah'll figure out how to calm our raging rebel down." Applejack leaned closer to Chrysalis. "And believe me, Ah know exactly what'll calm ya down."

Chrysalis let out a chuckle, preparing a soft spot in her heart for this earth pony's impending fall from grace. Because, while she might not be the most genial pony in the world, but very close to it, Chrysalis knew one thing for sure: she was unbreakable. Nothing in this world could put her in line, especially an adult.

***

“Nice apples,” Chrysalis said, admiring Applejack’s impressive collection of the delicious, juicy fruits, hanging from the trees. “Did you grow them yourself?”

“The Apple family once settled here and help found the town of Ponyville. And some trees in this garden are as old as the town itself.” Applejack closed her eyes, diving into the sweet memories of her childhood stories.

“So, you didn’t grow them yourself, I get it,” Chrysalis finished Applejack’s thought with her own conclusion, taking the lead and trotting deeper into the apple orchard. The dull landscape of trees, grass and insects, buzzing in the air, felt even duller when accompanied by the small version of Applejack who just wouldn’t shut up.

“Don’t be so gloomy! Working in the garden is a lot of fun! Ya’ll see — you buck apple trees, catch the apples in the bucket!” Apple Bloom was jumping around Applejack, constantly uttering the sounds of pure joy. Chrysalis looked at these two, and could not comprehend which one of them looked more stupid.

Though, in her opinion, the ratings of their stupidity were nearing the level of Nightmare Moon’s. The only achievement that Chrysalis wasn’t proud of: being the discoverer of idiots was not what she had planned herself to be.

Finally, they had arrived at a small field, more or less clear of apple trees, and Applejack put the buckets down and sat down on her haunches, taking a deep breath. The sun was going mad today, bombarding the ground with scorching heat.

“Alright team, Ah’m giving yer an easy job today. All ya need to do is to collect the fallen apples in the buckets and carry them to the barn.” Applejack swept the sweat off her brow. “There, Mac and ah’ll sort ‘em out. Thas it for today.”

“Sounds easy enough! We’ll do this, sister!” Apple Bloom widened her mouth in a bright smile. Chrysalis imagined herself smiling like that — the results would be at least several ponies with severe seizures.

“Ah trust ya will!” Applejack trotted away and soon disappeared behind the thick trees. Apple Bloom jumped towards Chrysalis, smiling just as brightly, if not even brighter.

“Wow! A real changeling! Ah didn’t know you could be so small, though…” Her chattering made Chrysalis’ head hurt, and she wasn’t going to stop. Making up a fact after fact about changelings, like their size, their behaviour and their hierarchy, Apple Bloom became one long, buzzing, irritating noise, like a fly looming over your ear when you’re sleeping.

“Just several minutes ago, I thought you actually had some sort of intellect if compared to a certain pony I had the displeasure to be living with,” Chrysalis stated matter-of-factly after what felt like three hours of Apple Bloom profusely splattering nonsense all over the place, “but it seems I’ve judged you too kindly.” Chrysalis’ sigh finally made Apple Bloom shut her mouth and listen for a change.

“I will not repeat the same mistake again.” Chrysalis turned away and hissed. “Out of all ponies I’ve met so far, only one was intelligent enough, anyway.”

“Wha-?” Apple Bloom raised her eyebrow, confirming Chrysalis’ theory about this pony’s intellectual level. Below rock bottom — Chrysalis checked this point in her imaginary checklist and tried to rescue this dumb little filly from her confusion.

“Nevermind. Just thinking out loud.”

“Err, fine. Well, if you’re done thinking out loud, let’s get to work!” Apple Bloom smiled once more. “You take this side, Ah take another. This way, we’ll do this in no time at all! Oh, and when we’re done, yer going to tell me e-e-e-everything about yerself! Ah wanna know everything ‘bout ya!”

Chrysalis sneered, when the pony finished her speech, turned around, grabbed the bucket and ran away.

“Sure I will.” Licking her fangs, Chrysalis ventured into the orchard, ogling the delicious fruits, hanging on the branches of the trees, like the long awaited reward for a tired traveller. Chrysalis was such a traveller.

The apple juice poured into her mouth like a river would flow down the stream. Chrysalis moaned in pure bliss and pleasure, as her fangs pierced the fruit’s measly skin and reached the juicy meat. Slowly, she clenched her jaws, biting a huge chunk off of the delicious apple. The smell of its juices filled her nostrils, enticing her to sink her fangs even deeper. Her heart beating like an engine, blood pumping in her temples, she let go of all sense and devoured the moist apple, spitting the seeds out once she had finished chewing it.

Surely, after such a relief on a hot day, she was not going to stop pleasing her mouth with the sugary juice. Without hesitation, she flapped her wings and hid herself in the foliage of the apple tree. Pushing some empty nest off its top, she quickly made her own, making herself comfortable.

Now, all she needed to do was burp whenever she had finished eating the fruit: her horn did all the work for her, levitating the fruits right into her mouth. The sun now felt soft and loving, its beams caressing Chrysalis’ skin, tickling her nose. After the seventh fruit, she looked at her belly, which certainly had grown, closed her eyes and started slowly rubbing it. Purring from enjoyment, she burped one more time before smiling and chirping “Thank you, Flutters.”

Time was passing, the sun was getting hotter, and Chrysalis was getting more and more gluttonous. Apple after apple fell victim to her insatiable hunger, but Chrysalis wasn’t worried a bit — this garden was full of these delicious fruits.

Apple Bloom sighed heavily, leaned on the apple tree and slowly slid down on the ground. The basket stationed not far from her was filled with apples — good and bad ones. There were none in the approximate area of fifty meters around Apple Bloom: she checked under every rock, in every bush to ensure that; so, with clean conscience, she decided to take a short break. Not that she needed it; she wasn’t tired, at all.

“Ah wonder what Chrysalis is up to. She probably hasn’t done half as much as Ah did!” Apple Bloom thought out loud, and her muzzle brightened up. She could check on her and help her out if need be. That way, she could make a new friend, or even get a cutie mark in helping changelings out! Excited by the opportunity, she rushed to where Chrysalis was supposed to be.

All she had managed to find were the apple cores and an empty bucket. At first, Apple Bloom did not understand what had happened, but when another eaten apple fell right in front of her nose, she raised her eyes to the tree top.

“Chrysalis! You’re not supposed to eat these apples!” she exclaimed indignantly, watching angrily as the changeling gobbled up another one. “They’re for pie-bakin’ and sale, not eatin’!”

Her frustration grew even more when Chrysalis ignored her and just proceeded to eat another apple.

“What will we sell? This is our livelihood you’re eatin’!” Apple Bloom bucked the apple tree, trying to get her attention. She noticed that the tree was shaking a little bit: she still lacked the power her sister had, but she was getting close.

“Oh? Err, sorry, didn’t notice you there.” Chrysalis yawned and looked down at an angry Apple Bloom.

“Get down from there!” Apple Bloom shouted, but Chrysalis only sneered in reply.

“What’s that, Bloom? I can’t hear you from where I’m sitting,” she exclaimed. “Try jumping. That might help!”

Apple Bloom did not realize Chrysalis’ trick and started jumping and shouting at Chrysalis to cease eating the apples and get down. The sight of the young filly hopping in place like a bunny sent Chrysalis into a laughing frenzy. The branch on which she was lying finally snapped under the pressure and her weight, and the changeling fell right into the bucket she was supposed to have been filling with apples.

“Ha…ha-ha-ha…. Ouch… Totally worth it.” Chrysalis leaned on the side of the bucket, giggling.

“Why did you do this?” Apple Bloom asked. “This…”

She looked at the eaten apples, at the empty bucket, and at the fallen fruits, that were still waiting to be picked up.

“This is the complete opposite of what ya were supposed to do!”

“Well, I kind of didn’t feel like it,” Chrysalis replied, rubbing her head. “C’mon, have some mercy. I need time to get used to the new environment and all…”

“New environment? Applejack is gonna kick yer flank for this. What environment are ya talking ‘bout?” Apple Bloom exclaimed angrily. “C’mon, get out of the bucket and let’s gather as much apples as we can before big sis comes here!”

She quickly raced around the bucket, grabbing any fallen apple with her teeth and throwing it into the bucket as fast as she could. There was no time to lose: Applejack could come at any moment.

“Don’t just stand ‘round! Help me out!” she exclaimed, turning to Chrysalis and scowling.

“I appreciate your help but, honestly, I’m not interested.” Chrysalis leaned on the edge of the bucket and smiled. Judging by the expression on Apple Bloom’s face, she either thought Chrysalis was a lunatic or just very stupid. This meant this was going exactly in the direction the little changeling wanted it to.

Applejack was going to be so pissed. Then, Chrysalis would see how far her anger would go. Fluttershy endured quite a lot before exploding and sending her here. Maybe she just didn’t want to get her hooves dirty and sent her off here, thinking that the orange pony, who clearly had more guts than her, could ‘deal’ with her.

“Yer insane! Applejack’s gonna be absolutely livid! C’mon, I’m trying to save ya here!” Apple Bloom threw another apple into the basket, which Chrysalis managed to swiftly dodge.

“Yet again: thank you very much, but I don’t need help.” She smiled slyly. The sound of hoofsteps in the distance reached her ears. She bit her lip, wondering just how loud Applejack was going to shout.

The orange pony appeared on the horizon, walking steadily towards the two fillies. Apple Bloom squealed and hid herself behind the nearby bush, afraid of her big sister’s mighty wrath. Carefully peeking outside, she watched Applejack approach Chrysalis who was still smirking.

Applejack carefully eyed her surroundings, noting the apple cores and the fallen fruits, which hadn’t even been touched. Minding her step, she walked around the basket, where Chrysalis was lying, raising her eyebrow at the sight of each eaten apple. Then, she looked at the foliage above her, noting the disappearance of at least half of apples on this tree, and her cheeks turned slightly red.

Her face had the menacing mix of orange and red, blood pumping through her body and reaching the one destination it had at the moment — her cheeks, to make her look as angry as possible.

“Ah see ya had better things to do,” she murmured, narrowing her eyes at Chrysalis. The changeling shrugged innocently and switched her smirk into a smile.

“’Twas too hot. I thought that you wouldn’t mind if I take a small break and... have a tiny, tiny snack.”

“Oh, Ah don’t mind ‘gainst snacks and breaks, but those things are for ponies that deserve ‘em,” Applejack hummed, looking around for Apple Bloom. “What did ya ever do to deserve either?”

“Err…” Chrysalis stumbled, put her hoof to her chin and made her young brain work its magic to come up with a witty response.

“Pweease?” Chrysalis widened her eyes as much as she could and pouted. “I reaaaaally wanted a snack. You wouldn’t deny a filly in need her super-duper tiny snack, would you?”

“Judging by the amount of weight ya got in that body o’ yers, a super-duper tiny snack would be too much for ya.” Chrysalis turned crimson, when she heard such an insult.

“I’m not fat!” she exclaimed angrily, leaning over the edge of the basket.

“Ah’m the Element of Honesty, dear. When Ah say ya have a lot of weight, Ah’m dead serious about it.”

Chrysalis scowled while Applejack circled around her.

“Don’t worry, yer little weight problem is easily solvable. Ah’ll help ya. My way.”

“No , thank you, I do not need your help. There’s never a need for help when there’s no problem.” Chrysalis scowled in reply, looking at her belly. Was she really fat? No, she wasn’t!

Applejack shrugged and smiled. Hiding a devious plot in her mind, she turned away and slowly trotted in the direction of the farm.

“Ah’ll see y’all at the dinner,” Applejack said, addressing both ponies. “Don’t be late.”

When Applejack disappeared from sight, Chrysalis angrily put her tongue out. Apple Bloom came out of her hiding spot and sighed with relief, swiping the sweat from her brow.

“That was close. For a second there Ah thought you were a goner,” she turned to Chrysalis. “Yer a lucky one. If I did somethin’ like this, she would definitely leave me without dinner.”

“Pff,” Chrysalis huffed and crawled out of the basket. “I suppose she could do better than that.”

The little changeling swiped the sweat from her forehead just below her jagged horn, licked the remains of the juice from her lips and took a deep breath. Applejack surely could go beyond Fluttershy’s limits — she was so close. She just needed one more push, one more little prank, and Applejack would explode, and then… her theory would be proven.

“Let’s go. I’m eager to find out what you eat for breakfast besides foals.”

“Excuse me?”

“Nevermind.”

***

The kitchen of the Apple family could be found in two different states: the unused state, the most boring and usual one with all the cutlery carefully hidden in the drawers and the air filled with the stoic smell of dough and flour; and the used state, when the whole family was sitting at the table, all ponies eager and ready, drooling over the smell of freshly baked bread and apples teasing their nostrils and gnawing at their hunger.

For a pony who had never tasted the smell of fresh bread, this was more intoxicating than any rum, cider or ale in the entire existence of this fragile world. And for Chrysalis, who had no clue that such smell could ever exist, the amount of intoxication reached its limits.

The instant she entered the kitchen and sniffed the air the world started spinning around her, and she reeled from side to side, her belly instantly forgetting it was filled with delicious apples and rumbling in burning desire for the apple cake.

“Wha- what is this?” Chrysalis murmured, slowly making her way through the howling, breathing, living kitchen.

“Apple cake!” Apple Bloom exclaimed, jumped on the chair and started drumming a beat on the table. “Apple cake! Apple cake!”

“Hold yer hippogriffs, Apple Bloom!” Granny Smith furiously kicked the oven, since the sodding thing just refused to open. “It’s almost… ready!”

With one final buck, the door of the oven opened with creaks and the delightful sound of oven finishing its work clicked in their ears. The cake, buried in the metal dish, glistening in the light of the lamp on its bright, sugary surface, immediately caught Chrysalis’ attention. She gazed at it with utmost hunger, the delicious smell striking her nostrils, filling her lungs to the brim.

“Ah hope ya didn’t forget to add the orange juice this time.” Applejack grabbed the cake and dropped it on the plate near the knife stand. Her most recent idea: adding orange juice into the dough before shoving the cake into the oven. It improved the taste of the dish tremendously, and also added a special flavour.

“Of course Ah didn’t forget, young one! Ah never forget anything!” Granny Smith proclaimed. “Now, where did Ah put that chair? It should be right over ‘ere.”

With swift motions of the knife, Applejack divided the cake into several big parts and then carried the sweet treat to the table. Apple Bloom stopped drumming and sniffed the air.

“Ah, smells deliciously good!”

“Ah don’t think you can word it like that, Bloom.” Applejack noted, while hoofing out the cake. The biggest chunk was for Big Mac: the hardest working pony had to receive the biggest portion. Granted, he would always cut it in two and share it with Apple Bloom or her. He was soft-hearted like that.

Chrysalis looked with awe at the huge piece of cake that Big Mac received and licked her teeth, almost drooling with hunger. She had already prepared herself to sink her teeth into the cake and taste its delicious insides, which consisted of apple jam.

However, her dreams were crushed when she saw that the big plate was empty, the Apple family had already got to eating and her plate was still as empty as a desert.

“Err, you’re not forgetting anypony?” She raised her eyebrow and looked at Applejack, who was about to bite into her portion of the cake. “I’m not that hard to notice.”

“Why so surprised?” Applejack swallowed and looked at Chrysalis. “Ah thought ya already had yer snack?”

“That was a snack, not dinner,” Chrysalis replied.

“And yer not going to take yer plump figure into account?”

Chrysalis chuckled nervously, and then her face turned stone cold.

“Okay, nice joke. You got me. Funny. Now, can I eat or not?” She said. “I am hungry, you know.”

“Ya wanna be serious? Fine, let’s talk serious.” Applejack put her hoof on the table, and the grim silence overtook the room. Even Big Mac swallowed nervously and turned silent, looking a little scared by Applejack’s anger.

“Ooh, yer in deep trouble now,” Apple Bloom whispered and crawled underneath the table.

“Let me tell ya the mantra we Apples live by.” Applejack got up and gazed at Chrysalis. “Ya only eat what ya worked for.”

Chrysalis snorted, but Applejack paid no attention to her attempts to disrupt her.

“Ah’m serious. What did ya do to make this little cake possible? Did ya gather the apples for it? Did ya gather the wheat? Did ya make the flour? Did ya grow the oranges for the orange juice — no, ya didn’t. Ya did exactly nothing, nada, not a single thing. Ya just come here and expect to get fed out of the blue. Why should we pay for the food you eat if yer able to do it just fine?”

Applejack took a deep breath, made a long pause to let the information sink into Chrysalis’ brain and continued.

“Remember this: to eat our cakes, ya have to either pay for it, help us make it or be a good friend and guest to my house.” She leaned closer to Chrysalis. “Let’s recount: ya didn’t pay for it; ya didn’t help us make it; and yer definitely not our good friend.”

After finishing her speech, Applejack backed away and sat down at her chair, calm and collected as before and as though the preceding speech hadn’t happened.

“Ah’m done, y’all can resume eating,” she exclaimed, and the ponies at the table slowly got back to their senses and resumed eating. Apple Bloom crawled back onto her chair and looked at Chrysalis.

The changeling looked furious and yet kept completely quiet. Apple Bloom felt a bit guilty eating in front of her, so she took but a few small bites and excused herself, saying that she wasn’t hungry.

Chrysalis watched with jealousy as Applejack took the Bloom’s piece of cake and put it onto her own plate. Of course, sisters don’t mind finishing each other’s dish, how cute. Angered and offended, she sat glumly all throughout the dinner, ruining the appetite for each Apple except the one ending with Jack.

Big Mac left soon as well, then Granny told that she had ‘important matters to take care of’ and so Applejack was left face to face with the hungry changeling.

“Well, Ah guess the dinner is over.” Applejack exclaimed, after finishing her plate. “And it’s the break time. Ah guess Ah should show ya where ya will be sleeping.”

Chrysalis nodded glumly and followed Applejack, keeping quiet. However, her expression changed when they went outside.

“What, shall I be sleeping under the sky on the naked ground too?” grumbled Chrysalis.

“Nah. Ah’ll make ya a comfy bed in the barn. Ah just thought that since ya don’t like any of us, ya would want yer privacy, so…”

Applejack pushed the door open and entered the barn, Chrysalis following right behind. She looked around: huge piles of hay everywhere, and not much besides that. Occasionally, she noticed several bird nests underneath the roof and the mommy birds flying in and out.

“Here’s yer bed.” Applejack pointed at the moderately sized mattress with pillow and a thin blanket. “Sleeping in hay feels good, before ya wake up and realize ya got the whole stacks stuck behind yer ears, so don’t fall off. The nights are hot this season, so Ah gave ya a thinner blanket. That should feel comfy at night.”

“Can’t get more comfortable than this,” Chrysalis grumbled, approached her bed and lied down, or, to be correct, crashed into it.

“Going to sleep already? Fine, Ah would love a shut eye m’self,” Applejack said. “Get yerself comfortable. See ya later this day — ye still have a lot of work.”

“Oh, so you’re leaving me here alone?” Chrysalis shouted, as Applejack was leaving. “Just leaving me to sleep alone in the barn? Nice caring, Applejack! Top notch! Leave a child to care for herself!”

Applejack did not pay any attention.

“Careful ‘bout the door. It doesn’t swing both ways!” she exclaimed, before exiting the barn.

“Yeah! Barn doors!” Chrysalis shouted with sarcasm as Applejack left. “Let’s ignore the fact that I’ll be sleeping alone! Wait, no, there are cockroaches! Nevermind, I’ll be fine!”

Applejack sighed. It didn’t seem like leaving Chrysalis without dinner put her mood down a bit. Maybe this wasn’t what she needed to keep her in line? No, it was too early to judge: she should wait until later. Chrysalis would come to her senses, after staying hungry for an evening or two. Then she would start doing her job, and then, Applejack could actually start building some kind of a bridge. At least, that was what she was hoping for.

Apple Bloom took a deep breath, gathered all courage, whispered a prayer and pushed the barn door open. The last rays of the setting sun were slipping through the tiny cracks in the walls, creating a mysterious and somewhat spooky atmosphere. Carefully treading through the piles of hay, Apple Bloom tried to keep the tray with a huge slice of cake on her back still.

A week and a half had passed since Chrysalis first arrived at their farm, but throughout all this time, she had managed to stir up Apple Bloom’s mind quite heavily. And, as the time passed Apple Bloom felt more and more guilty. She didn’t know why.

Why would she feel guilty: it was Chrysalis who would always cause trouble. It didn’t matter what task Applejack would give them, Chrysalis would never do anything asked of her. With sarcasm, puns and witty remarks she would watch Apple Bloom do all the work. Each and every time. And each time, each evening, she would be left without dinner. Apple Bloom even got used to her jokes.

However, Apple Bloom noticed that Chrysalis started to lose her snark; she was much quieter than on the first day, and joked much less. It seemed as though she was slowly fading, and it worried Bloom greatly. She figured that it might be because of hunger, so, today, she slipped a big piece of cake and decided to bring it to Chrysalis. Maybe that would cheer her up — looking at her grim muzzle every day made Bloom’s heart shrink.

Slowly trotting deeper into the barn, Apple Bloom wondered if this was a good idea at all. Two voices were speaking inside: the voice of reason and voice of her heart.

“What are you thinking? This is silly!” Reason spoke. “Are you still hoping to be her friend? She doesn’t want a friend. Just forget it! Eat the cake yourself!”

“No!” Heart spoke. “You can’t leave a pony in need like that! She’s probably hungry: you can’t be satisfied with just apples! Come on, just help her; nothing bad will happen.”

Apple Bloom didn’t know which voice to listen to and she really didn’t know what to say to Chrysalis once she’d found her. Maybe greet her first, and then offer the cake, or just put the cake near her and run away? That seemed like a good idea. And yet, she really wanted to talk to Chrysalis, find out a bit more about her. She just seemed so cryptic, and Apple Bloom did not like that.

She leaned over the pile of hay and finally saw Chrysalis, peacefully lying on her bed, seemingly sleeping. The opportunity was golden: she could just put the tray there and slip away without making a sound. She would do that and would not have to talk to her.

Apple Bloom approached the bed and carefully put the tray near her. There, the deed was done. She could leave now. But why did she feel so guilty?

No, she couldn’t leave. She didn’t want to leave. She wanted to help.

“Hey. Hey!” Apple Bloom poked Chrysalis’ side. “Wake up!”

“Huh? Wuh?” Chrysalis opened her eyes and turned to Apple Bloom. “What are you doing here? What do you want?”

“Ah… err…brought ya something.” She pointed at the slice of cake, lying near the mattress. “Ah… thought ya were hungry.”

Chrysalis carefully eyed the cake and then Apple Bloom. Slowly shifting her eyes from one target to another, she rose from her bed.

“Is this some kind of a trick?” Chrysalis hummed. “Definitely. I bet if I eat this cake, I’ll spend the whole next week kneeling before a toilet.”

“Err… No. It’s a cake. It’s… delicious.” Apple Bloom replied, hiding the hurt she felt because of Chrysalis’ suspicion. “Go ahead, eat it. It’s all yours.”

Chrysalis raised an eyebrow, reached for the cake and sniffed it carefully. The smell was the same as it was in the kitchen, maybe a little weaker. The cake looked exactly the same as the one Applejack made, no different colours.

“So… no tricks?” Chrysalis asked one more time, and Apple Bloom nodded. After taking a deep breath, she took a bite.

Chrysalis slowly chewed the delicious treat, and then swallowed, as if expecting something bad to happen. And yet, nothing happened.

When she realized that there was no mean trick hidden in this present, she started eating. Apple Bloom felt a little better once she heard the gluttonous gulping she was so used to hearing.

“There, ya see? No tricks, no pranks, no nothin’! Just a plain old piece o’ cake.” Apple Bloom exclaimed.

Chrysalis took a few more bites and then put the cake down, frowning. “Why?” She asked bluntly.

“Why? What d’ya mean why?”

“Why are you helping me?” Chrysalis exclaimed. “I’m not your friend. I’m not even your pal! I’m just a stranger in a family that doesn’t accept me; in fact, even hates me. Why are you helping me?”

“Hates ya? Pff! Nopony hates ya here!” Apple Bloom giggled. “Well, maybe yer looks are a little scary, but ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.”

She moved closer to Chrysalis.

“Ah’m helping ya because Ah think ya need my help. Why d’ya think Ah need a reason to help?”

“What do you mean they don’t hate me?” Chrysalis felt a bit shocked. “Your sister leaves me starve here and you say she doesn’t hate me?”

“Well, yer kinda not doing what she’s asking ya to. Ya just need to do the work she gives ya and ya can enjoy a nice meal. Ah know, this is a silly system, but that’s how Apples work — no work, no meal.”

“And you say if I work, she will give me cake? Despite me being younger, and despite me playing pranks on her?”

“That’s the silliest thing Ah ever heard. Not giving food ‘cause yer younger? O’ course she’ll give ya food, don’t worry. Just try doing what she asks. Ah’ll help ya, Ah promise.”

Chrysalis swallowed at such words. She found it touching that the filly cared even after all the hours of her bullying her.

The weirdest thing was the fact that her usual sense of possibility a good and mean prank was silent. She… did not want to drive Apple Bloom away. Chrysalis’ cheeks turned crimson when she realized that she actually liked Apple Bloom, her naïve and hearty smile, her colourful pudgy cheeks.

“Finally!” Apple Bloom exclaimed, prompting Chrysalis to raise an eyebrow. “Ya smiled!”

“What do you mean?’ Chrysalis felt confused, and finally realized that she was smiling. Not grinning: smiling. An honest smile that had never crossed her face before. “Oh… Err… I just remembered a funny joke, that’s all.”

“Really? How funny?”

“Very funny.”

“Tell me!” Much to Chrysalis’ shock, Apple Bloom crawled closer to her and went as far as to wrap her foreleg around her neck.

She was used to confined and populated dormitory caverns where you couldn’t avoid touches and changelings who’d grab you in their sleep — not that she minded the warmth that came with it — but never had she gotten this close to a pony, for they preferred to run away from her kin.

“I…err… ehm…” Chrysalis stumbled, surprised by such a sudden move, and accidently put her hoof on Apple Bloom’s belly, and…

Sweet caves, she’s soft! Chrysalis thought. Grass, silk blankets, puffy pillows — all of these paled before the softness of Apple Bloom’s body. She had quite puffy and well cared fur coat, Chrysalis’ hoof was almost drowning in fur. The tiny hair tickled. Enthralled by the tickling, she reached for Bloom’s belly with her other hoof and gave it a slow, gentle rub.

She shivered, losing herself in the sweet softness. Chrysalis pressed her belly a little and her eye twitched when it gave away. A changeling can’t do that.

“Tee-hee, stop! What’re ya doin’?” Apple Bloom giggled, swinging carefully at Chrysalis’ hooves. “It tickles!”

“What do you wash yourself with?!” Chrysalis exclaimed. “I swear, you are the softest creature I have ever touched! Do you rub yourself with bunnies or something?”

“What? No, it’s just soap. Why are you asking?”

“Your fur! It’s the softest thing I have ever touched!” Chrysalis exclaimed, continuing to rub Apple Bloom’s belly. “I can’t stop!”

“Well, Ah’m not stopping ya. Rub all ya want, just don’t tickle too hard.”

Apple Bloom suppressed countless giggles, as Chrysalis, unaware of her sensitive places, continued to tickle her. Her hooves felt like sticks: very pointy and a little sharp, but Chrysalis treaded with extreme caution. Apple Bloom felt relaxed: it wasn’t every day she got a free belly massage, so she closed her eyes and enjoyed it thoroughly.

“Wow… you feel so good… I wish I had you for a pillow: I would dread the moment I’d wake up,” Chrysalis said, and Apple Bloom smiled in reply.

“Ya really think so? Ah mean, I’m not the softest pony in Equestria. Ah wager my big sister is softer. Flutters is quite soft as well. But, in my opinion, Rarity is softest of all. She’s like marshmallow.”

“Oh…” Chrysalis skipped Apple Bloom’s words past her ears.

“Anyway, enough ‘bout me! How do you feel like?” Chrysalis almost jumped from fright and wanted to stop Bloom from touching her, but it was too late.

“Wow…” Apple Bloom mumbled, rubbing Chryssie’s belly. “It’s—”

“—horrible?”

“No. It’s different.” Apple Bloom said. Indeed, Chrysalis’ belly felt rough to the touch at first, because of the harsh, hard surface of the chitinous green carapace that encased her back and parts of her midsection. The most notable thing, however, was neither that nor her leathery skin, it was that she was incredibly warm.

The weird thing was that with every beat of her heart, it seemed as if a wave of warmth would spread from it and through her body. Apple Bloom felt a bit wobbly as the warmth seemed to seep into her and lull her to sleep.

“It’s… so… warm,” Apple Bloom whispered closing her eyes.

“Warm? I think you’re mistaken. Maybe, you’re fresh from the outside, and touching me would feel very warm to you. Maybe you have a cold. But I can’t feel warm. Whenever I touch my belly, it’s never warm. And also…”

Chrysalis was interrupted by Apple Bloom’s loud snoring.

“Hey! What, you’re just going to sleep here? Hello? This is my bed, y’know. Don’t you at least want to treat me to dinner before we—” She was once again interrupted by Apple Bloom who wrapped her forelegs around the changeling’s neck and hugged her tightly, burrowing her muzzle in Chrysalis’ mane.

“Hey, that’s… It’s…. Ugh…” She sighed heavily and gave up, realizing that there was no waking Apple Bloom up. So, while she was stuck in this situation, she might as well benefit from it. Chrysalis pulled Apple Bloom closer and rested her head on the earth pony’s belly.

“Aaaah…. Divine!”