Why Humans Shouldn't be Allowed in Equestria

I finished removing the detritus from the corners of my eyes. Think it was lack of proper food more than grogginess that kept me weak. It had been days of what amounted to solid-state energy drinks and water. Lost a lot of weight there. I almost fell over. It was Aranea's turn to catch me. I had no idea what to say. Of course I asked what was on my mind, despite it probably being the worst thing.

“B-But... I failed... How?...”

Aranea simply smiled at me. “You did not fail. Much of the energy was being stored for the last phase of the metamorphosis. The physical growth was similar to my shapeshifting, so it required only a fraction of what I received. Though without the last few hours' hope and love I would have been left very weak when it was completed. You have done far, far more for me than any other being. At the beginning I had thought that no other would love a changeling, or that a changeling could truly love another.” She turned her head to the side, a small amount of sadness from old memories resurfacing. She shook them off and returned her gaze. “I know the truth of the matter now. I will explain all to you when you are healthy. For now, allow me to take care of you.”

I held on to her for a moment to lean up and kiss her, feebly as it was. I took the time to really look at her. Of course I'd love her anyway, but I was struck by the change. It wasn't as much as I'd thought, in way of height. She was about three inches taller than me instead of 'amazonian' now that I had a clear view. She had an older body. Her bust had increased perhaps a size to C, nothing major. Her hips were widened. There was more muscle on her arms and legs. Her face was slightly more rounded, the features complementing each other more than simply being side-by-side. She looked fully-grown, for lack of a better way to put it. At first she looked so young, a high-school girlfriend struggling to survive in an uncaring world she was thrust into. Now she looked like a queen in her prime, a mother, a wife.

A wife...

She carefully placed me on a mat and went to the door, opening it. Zecora, Luna, and Twilight reentered the hut. They all looked tired themselves. Must've been waiting it out all this time. Except Zecora, she always looks stoic and sensible Must be in some kind of semi-meditation all the time. Twilight had a basket in her field. Putting it down and uncovering it, she revealed more herbs, cloth strips, and sandwiches.

“While I still do not know what to make of this situation as a whole, it has been proven that you care for each other. This abates much of our concerns.” Luna announced as her judgment. “You will consent to visits of royal personage on occasion?” Of course I knew it was to keep watch, if only a small one. We did show her spies that as long as Aranea and I were together we were pushing for the most dangerous thing on the planet. Keep as much tabs on us as possible while looking like it was a sign of good will. Luna knew what she was doing. Or I was paranoid. Probably both. Aranea looked at me. Even as a queen, and probably the most powerful being in the country right now, she was looking to me for answers. We both nodded to each other. Not reading minds or anything similar, merely understanding our intent.

“We accept.”

I had to add “Call ahead, when possible.” with a smirk. We all giggled a bit at that. Twilight did too, but it rang false. She still didn't like the image. Reminds when she told me her brother married the babysitter, way back at first. It means a lot more to know that now, heh.

“Well then.” Twilight almost blurted out. “Lunchtime?” She didn't wait for an official answer as the sandwiches and such floated over and took their places in front of each of us. I ate with as much gusto as possible, though the flower-filling of the things wasn't going to do anything for me in the way of nutrition. Or taste. Aranea noticed.

“Do you require meat to recuperate?” Twilight knew from before, and Zecora was aware of it, but Luna didn't see that coming. They looked concerned.

“Relax, I'm careful about it. Nothing sentient. Twilight told me griffins did the same. Think of it like that. Hell, half the things here in the Everfree probably do.” They didn't like it, but accepted it. They must've been to other places that did more than enough times to simply understand, or at least tolerate. Turning to Aranea “Maybe later-woah!”

Aranea had already changed back to changeling, probably thinking I needed it then and there. She wasn't just bigger than before she started, and it wasn't just the crown fusing to her head. She was... armored. The chitin wasn't like before. It was overlapping, slightly angled. Her wings had a sort of shell to their back, like beetles move to reveal theirs. Her horn was still jagged, but shorter and thicker. She was back to between Luna and Celestia in size. A little closer to Luna actually.

I didn't know what to expect, the rest did. The rest were wrong.

Zecora looked on with interest. She was probably ready for anything. I never could tell with her.

Luna took a step back, and braced herself for a potential threat.

Twilight shat herself. I'm serious. Never saw anyone actually do that out of fear before. I'm not cleaning that up.

To me it was Aranea's other body. To them it was Doomsday.