stranded

by johntheanimefan

Rating: teen
Tags: Mystery, Adventure, Applejack, Romance, Original Character, Equestria Girls
Length: 10883

A changeling escapes to the human world to avoid capture by obsessive crystal guard. There, he meets human applejack, and that's when his life takes a turn for the interesting...

In order to escape capture by the crystal empire, a lone changeling escapes to the human world. Once there, he becomes the guest of the human Apple family. But things aren't as great as they appear to be for our hero, as an obsessed crystal guard comes to the human world as well with intent to hunt him down, no matter the cost. And to top it all off, that's not even really the biggest worry on our unlikely hero's mind.

Published 2015-12-15 04:50:01 UTC
Last updated 2016-07-19 18:31:58 UTC

chapter 1: please, sing for me

Stranded
Chapter 1: Please, sing for me

Haggard breaths and galloping hooves were the only sound echoing through the halls of the crystal empire, as a lone changeling (our hero for the novel) hurried through the castle, looking for an exit. Preferably one that did not have several guards waiting to skewer him. He was about to slow down to catch his breath when he heard the sounds of guards coming up behind him. “Search the area!” he heard one of the voices say. No doubt it was their leader, Captain Flash Sentry. More than likely, he had the entire castle on lockdown by now. The windows and doors were useless to him now, he needed another way.

A thought then occurred to the changeling. He had heard rumors about a magical mirror that apparently took you to a different place. The rumors never specified where exactly, but it was clearly not equestrian. While at first, our currently unnamed hero debated whether or not he should run such a risk, the closing in sounds of hooves from all sides encouraged his inevitable decision.

Right now, anywhere was better than here.

So the changeling ran for the treasure room where the mirror was located. The room had no windows or any doors leading to the outside, thus nopony thought he’d run to here. Big mistake. The changeling dashed to the unguarded door. However, the chase was not over yet, as a blast of magic stopped him from entering the room by impacting the wall in front of him. The changeling looked through the smoke to see a face he dreaded coming across. Lieutenant Silver Bullet; one of the most frightening soldiers in the crystal army. A unicorn notorious for his single mindedness, and his hatred of changelings. In short, the last person that our hero wanted to run into. At least Flash Sentry might have gone a bit easy on him, this stallion was insane, and everyone knew it. Even through the smoke, the changeling could feel the piercing gaze of Silver’s hate filled green eyes. He knew he missed intentionally, as Silver wielded that horn of his like a scalpel. He wanted to see him fry with his own eyes. “Let me pass,” our hero said, doing his best to act unafraid.

“Get past me if it means that much to you,” hissed Silver. Two more blasts of magic erupted from his horn, straight at the changeling. Luckily, he was able to morph into a snake to slither around them and under Silver. The changeling then reformed into his original form right under silver, using his newfound leverage to throw him across the room. Our clever hero took this chance to dash into the treasure room and right toward the mirror. However, Silver was not done with him yet, and tackled him, sending them both hurtling into the mirror.

As the two hurtled through the void between worlds, their fight continued. But as they fought, they failed to notice the many changes happening to them. At least, not until they came flying out of the wondercolt statue on the other side. The changeling’s vision blurred back into focus, where he then saw him new hands, and new fingers. “Wha-what…? What in the world?” he murmured to himself. But he didn’t have time to look over the rest of his newfound body, as Silver, who had obviously regained consciousness, kicked him in the gut. The changeling writhed in pain before scrambling to his feet to get a look at his adversary. It was night time, so it was hard to get a bead on where they were, but from their warped appearances, it was clear that they weren’t anywhere near equestrian anymore. But, even in this strange new form, Silver was just as frightening as ever. Hell, he was probably more so given the unfamiliar appearance.

“You’re even more hideous than before,” said the now human Silver.

“You’re no prize yourself buddy,” replied the changeling.

“Maybe, but I still have my magic.” Silver’s new arms lit up with green electricity, giving the changeling cause to run for his life. He didn’t get very far before blasts of magic were whizzing by his head, and explosions were ringing all around him. He managed to get out of sight for a few precious moments, where he decided to make for a nearby diner. Perhaps help could be requisitioned there.

Flash Sentry thoughtlessly spun his spoon around in his milkshake, as he looked down at a picture of Twilight Sparkle he had on his phone. “Buddy, if you miss her so much, why not call her?” asked his older brother, Bolt Sentry.

Flash chuckled to himself. “I’d kill for it to be that easy,” he said.

“Well, why isn’t it?”

Flash quickly thought up an excuse. “She…she lives in another country. The only one who has her phone number is Sunset, and she’s….clingy.” Flash saw Bolt’s raised eyebrow and mirthful smirk and quickly pointed his finger at him. “Not remotely what I meant.”

Bolt raised his hands defensively. “Okay, okay,” he chuckled. He then patted Flash on the shoulder. “Don’t worry lil bro, she’s come back twice, so that has to say something. She’ll come back again, and probably sooner than you think.” Flash smiled at his brother’s reassuring words.

The changeling barged into the diner and looked around the room at the patrons, who were all pretty shocked at the sight of this man’s appearance, which resembled a man who had just ran through a battlefield. “Please, you have to help me!” he shouted.

Bolt slowly approached our hero and held up his police badge. “Canterlot P.D, how can I help you, son?” he asked.

“P-please, there’s someone trying to kill me!’ the changeling said. Then he saw Silver approaching the diner and charging up a blast. “Get down!” he shouted, tackling Bolt to the floor just as the magic blast impacted the diner.

After the dust had settled, the changeling forced himself to his feet. He looked around the diner, seeing the patrons strewn about the floor. He wasn’t sure if they were unconscious or dead. Either way, he only had one thing to say to Silver when he entered the destroyed diner. “Are you insane?!”

“I care nothing for this world or its people,” said Silver. “But don’t worry, I won’t be staying long.”

“Freeze!!!” Shouted Bolt, who stood behind Silver with his revolver aimed right at his head. “Hands in the air, right now!”

Silver turned around and glared at Bolt. “You must be joking,” he said before Bolt pulled the trigger. While it didn’t hit his head, it did nick his cheek, causing a bit of blood to run down his face.

“No. No I’m not joking. Hands. Air. NOW!” Bolt pulled back the hammer on his revolver to solidify that if Silver does not comply, he’s a dead man.

“Alright, alright,” said Silver, who turned around to hold his hands up in the air. “Hands.” He then pointed two of his fingers at Bolt. “Air.” A gust of wind pounded Bolt in the gut, sending him flying out of the destroyed window and into the hood of a car.

“Bro!’ shouted Flash, but Silver stood above him before he could get up.

“Son, just don’t,” he said. He turned back to his original target. “Now then, where were we-what?!” during the confusion, the changeling had fled out the back door. When silver charged after him, Flash darted out to check on his brother.

Bolt writhed in pain on top of the car. “Bolt!” Flash said, running over to him and helping him down.

“Flash, c-carry me to the car,” said Bolt. Flash had bolt lean on his shoulder, where he then carried him to Bolt’s cop car. Bolt threw open the door and grabbed his radio. “D-dispatch, this is Officer Bolt, requesting immediate assistance and medical support for Cuppa Joe’s diner. Possible terrorist, just blew up cuppa Joe’s diner and is now heading east down Lavender Avenue. Approach with caution, as suspect is armed with heavy artillery and explosives.”

“Copy that Officer Bolt, sending S.W.A.T unit now,” replied the dispatch radio. “Also sending an ambulance unit to your location.”

Bolt hung up the radio and slumped against the car, Flash sitting down next to him. “Y-you okay, big bro?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Bolt said with a reassuring smirk. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a bit dinged up…” Then Bolt fell unconscious.

Meanwhile…

The changeling didn’t get far before the shooting started up again. He couldn’t run through the alleys, that would give Silver too clear a shot, and he couldn’t just run through the street and endanger more people. A catch-22 if ever there was one…

Well, he had to think of something fast, he could hear him gaining. Then, a new idea popped into his head. If he couldn’t find him, then he’d at least stop blowing things up. So he ran out into the street and started analyzing everyone around him. Faces, skin color, freckles, hair style and color. He gathered these details from the humans on the street and compiled them all into a brand new disguise. Although, after he put it on. “Nice new face, changeling,” said Silver, who was right behind him. “Turn around, nice and slow.”

“Okay, okay, you win.” The changeling turned around to face Silver. “Okay, you’ve blown up half of a city just to nab one guy. Happy?”

“Oh, you have no idea,” said Silver. “And I cannot wait to drag you back and watch as Captain Shining Armor breaks you like a glowstick.”

Just as our hero was about to process what exactly that meant, three cop cars pull up, and their residents pulled their guns on Silver Bullet. “Freeze! Step away from the citizen.”

“Oh for the love of-this again!?” Silver asked, which allowed the changeling to escape. After chasing off the cops, Silver gave chase once more.

The changeling kept running until he saw what may be his salvation: a river! Wherever it went, at least it would be far away from that psycho. So, he ran as fast as he could, leaping into the river. However, before he hit water, his back was blasted with one of Silver’s magic bolts. The blast knocked him unconscious as he plummeted into what was to be his watery grave.

Silver watched the changeling float downstream, confident that he was dead. Still, it couldn’t hurt to check…

However, before he could, S.W.A.T vans surrounded him, and men with guns poured out and aimed their crosshairs at his head. Realizing that he couldn’t take them all on, Silver decided that it was best to retreat for now. So, he snapped his fingers and disappeared in a puff of smoke. The swat team opened fire on the smoke, but a voice called for them to hold their fire. It was police chief Shining Armor, who turned to one of his subordinates. “Check all of the helmet cams, I know we have his face,” he said, looking out to the smoke billowing from canterlot. “I want that man’s face all over the state, am I clear?”

“Yes sir,” said the subordinate, running off to distribute the orders.

The changeling’s eyes fluttered open in response to the rays of sunlight peeking into his room. His body was covered in bandages, that most he could feel out, but his vision was still blurry. One thing he could hear clear as day though, was the sound of someone humming a song. It was a beautiful melody, even when hummed. When his vison came to him, he searched for the source of such a melody. To his left, absentmindedly carving a piece of wood, was a lady with golden blonde hair. Due to his unfamiliarity with this species, he wasn’t very good at discerning age, but he could guess she was rather young. The lady ceased her carving and her singing when she noticed him looking at her. She stood up and walked to his bedside, about to say something before he spoke. “Don’t stop,” he said as best as he could, his throat bone dry. “Please, keep singing…” At first, she seemed confused, but then she smiled softly and continued singing until he fell back asleep.

Author's Note

Brand spanking new story, everyone. Yeah, not that anyone probably cares, but advent of the goblins just wasn't working out. Maybe I'll incorporate the goblins somewhere else, but it's pretty up in the air right now. Anyway, hope you all enjoy this new story.

chapter 2: laying low

Chapter 2
Laying Low

The changeling awoke once more, this time in late afternoon, and also to three more faces joining the one from before. One much younger, one male and around the same age, and finally a much older woman. All three looked down at him, concern painting their features. “Ah think he’s wakin up sis,” said the youngest one.

“Glad to have ya back amongst the livin, young’n,” said the eldest. “Ya had us worried there for a second.”

The changeling sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and groaning. “whe-where am I?” he asked.

“Easy,” said the male, who kept the changeling from making any sudden moves.

“Yeah, you were pretty banged up back there,” said the young lady from before. “My name’s Applejack, it’s nice to meet you. Now, what’s your name?”

The changeling looked at Applejack and grunted out. “Grey Ash, my name is Grey Ash. Can I have a mirror, please?”

“Sure, here ya go,” said applejack, who reached for a mirror on a nearby desk. Grey took the mirror and looked into it to examine his new features. Grey hair, fitting. A touch of freckles across his nose. Green eyes, lightly tanned skin. Grey was unsure if this was an appealing appearance, given his unfamiliarity with the species. But it was as good a form as any.

“Thank you. But you still haven’t answered my question. Where am I?” he asked.

“You’re on our farm,” said Applejack. “Sweet apple acres. This is mah family, Applebloom, Big Mac and Granny Smith.”

Seemed wherever he landed kept equestria’s strange fixation on naming. “I see,” Grey said. “Not to sound ungrateful, but why did you save me? You owe me nothing, you don’t even know me. Why waste your medical supplies on a complete stranger?”

“Now what kinda hoo haw question is that?” asked Granny smith just as Applejack was prepared to say the same. “We saved you because you were in trouble. You washed up from the river, lookin like you just had a kissin session with a missile. Of course we patched you up.”

Grey looked at Granny as she said this as if it were the first time he had ever heard such words. “Well, then…thank you,” he said.

“Oh never you mind,” Grany said with a wave of her hand. “Now then, you should be able to move in about an hour, give or take. I’ll whip up some breakfast for ya then.” Granny stood up and walked out of the room, beckoning Apple Bloom to follow. Big Mac, remembering the work he had to get done, also left, leaving Grey and Applejack alone.

“Don’t you have to leave as well?” Grey asked.

“You were at death’s door when I found ya,” Applejack replied. “Until you’re up n running, I ain’t leavin ya alone. Sides, I got nothin better to do.”

Grey laid back down, looking over at her. “Thanks. Also, sorry about the thing with the singing. I was…delusional.”

“Eh, it’s alright. I pride myself on my singing anyway, so I get asked to sing a lot.”

Grey smiled up at her. “You really do have a beautiful voice.”

A bit of red dusted over Applejack’s face as she chuckled sheepishly. “Well shucks, thank ya kindly. A-actually, I remember, I do have somethin that needs mah attention, I’ll be back in a bit.”

“Alright, I’ll be here,” said Grey as Applejack darted out of the room. Grey laid his head back on the pillow, wondering what had gotten into her.

Two days…

For two days Silver had been stuck here. His recklessness on the night of his arrival had come back to bite him, as it seemed the entire city was currently looking for him, and his face was on wanted posters on every street, forcing him to descend into the sewers for a hiding place. Well, he had to give these “humans” as they called themselves credit, they worked fast. In any case, Silver decided that, at least for now, he needed to find a way out of town and hide until the police were off his trail. Turned out the portal was in the courtyard of a school smack dab in the middle of town, so there was no way he was going to be able to get there without getting shot at. Best to just wait it out and then return. Once the police had cooled their heels, he’d come back, sneak over to the statue, and get the hell out of this world.

Besides, he thought to himself, there was no way that changeling survived his blast…right?

Grey walked down the stairs from his room after donning some clothes left to him by Granny. They must have belonged to Big Mac, given the flannel pattern that he seemed rather fascinated with. They were adequate, though he didn’t see the point in such garments. He walked around without any clothes on all the time in equestria, hell ponies only dressed up on special occasions. But he decided to put up with it, after all, these people didn’t have to help him, the least he could do was adhere to their admittedly strange customs. Grey entered the living room, where he came into contact with one of the loveliest smells he had ever encountered. It was coming from the kitchen. He walked in to see Granny Smith setting the table.

She looked up and saw Grey walk in. “Ah, glad to see ya up n’runnin,” she said.

“Thank you,” Grey replied. “May I ask what that smell is?”

“Why don’t you sit at the table and find out?” Granny asked with a smile and a wink. Grey chuckled before sitting at the table. Granny walked to the door, opening it to call out to those outside. “Lunch is ready!” Applebloom rushed into the kitchen at top speed, while Big Mac walked in shortly afterward, wiping sweat from his brow.

“Where is Applejack?” Grey asked.

“Oh, she had a class assignment with her friends,” said Applebloom. “She should be back for dinner, though.”

“In the meantime,” said Granny. “Let’s eat!”

“So, AJ,” said Sunset Shimmer, who was working at her laptop while sitting on her bed. “I hear you have a new guest at your house.” The girls had all come to Sunset’s house to work on an English paper together, and were all hard at work. Except for Pinkie, who was balancing three pencils on her nose…because pinkie

“Just until he gets back on his feet,” Applejack replied. “He was pretty banged up.”

“That poor dear, what do you suppose happened to him?” asked Rarity.

“I’d imagine it had somethin to do with that guy who was tearin up downtown last night.” Applejack turned to Twilight, who was hard at work on her computer. “Speakin of which, Twi, how’s Flash’s brother doin?”

Twilight pushed up her glasses, not even looking up. “I talked with Flash this morning. Bolt’s set to make a full recovery, but he’s going to be in the hospital for 2 more days.”

“Jeez,” said rainbow, who was thoughtlessly bouncing a ball against the wall. “He’s been in there for two days already, is he that beat up?”

“Well, getting tossed through a window and into the hood of a car hard enough to crush said hood and shatter the window will do that.”

“I guess,” Rainbow said before turning to Applejack. “Ya tried calling his family?”

“We couldn’t up until he woke up,” Applejack said with a shrug. “We only got his name this mornin. I imagine Granny’s gonna get right on that though, so he shouldn’t be there much longer.”

“So,” said Rarity as she sidled up to Applejack. “Is he cute?”

“A-a little bit, yeah,” Applejack replied, a blush washing over her cheeks.

“You gonna keep in touch?” asked Rainbow Dash

“We just met, I don’t even know all that much about him. So probably not.” It was then that Applejack’s phone started ringing. She pulled it out of her pocket and answered it. “Hey Big Mac, What’s up?”

Big mac leaned against the doorway of the kitchen, staring out into the fields of sweet apple acres, where he could see Applebloom teaching Grey how to play horse shoe. “Applejack,” he said. “I’ve been looking into our new house guest, and what I’ve found is interestin to say the least.”

“What did you find?” asked Applejack.

“Nothin,” he replied. “Not a single thing on Grey. No social security, no home address, no relations, not even a name in the phone book that fully lines up with the guy currently getting his butt whooped at horseshoe by applebloom. Simply put, the guy might as well not even exist.”

“You’re kiddin me, there has to be somethin on him.”

“If there is, I can’t find it. So, what should we do?”

“Well, keep an eye on him. I’ll think of somethin.”

“Alrighty. See ya.” Big mac hung up the phone and went back to watching Grey, who had just scored a point, prompting him to pump his fist into the air with excitement.

“And that’s about the jist of it,” Applejack said, having explained the situation to her friends. She turned to Sunset. “So whaddya think? Think he may be from equestria?”

“It’s definitely looking that way,” Sunset replied. “Though it doesn’t explain who that guy was that was tearing up the city last night. Magic doesn’t usually work in this world.”

“I’d say that’s a bridge we can hold off on crossing for now,” Twilight said. “In the meantime, We should probably learn what we can about this Grey Ash, see if he’s dangerous or not.”

“Don’t worry, after this, I don’t plan on lettin him outta my sight,” Applejack said. She then saw Rarity wry smirk. Applejack went deadpan. “Oh you know what I mean.”

“It probably is best that you do it,” Twilight said. “Since you saved his life, he’s probably going to be more comfortable around you.”

“But keep us posted, just in case you need our help,” Sunset chimed in.

“Got it.”

“Uh guys,” said Pinkie, who hadn’t really been paying attention, but had now decided to lean into the group. “Isn’t this project due tomorrow?” With widened eyes of realization, the group rushed back to work.

“And that makes ten points, I win again!” Applebloom shouted, bouncing around haphazardly.

Grey chuckled while rubbing the back of his neck. “Truly you are the master of horseshoe,” he said with a grin. The scamp was a handful, but she was a really fun handful.

Applebloom perked up when she heard a car rolling up. “Applejack’s home!” she said, running to the driveway. Grey followed after her, as applejack stepped out of her car.

“Hey sugarcube,” Applejack said, ruffling her sister’s hair. “Have fun today?”

“Yeah, though Grey sucks at horseshoe, we still had loads of fun.”

“Is that so?” asked applejack, sending Grey a smirk. Grey simply gave a good natured shrug. “Well, glad to see ya’ll getting along so well. Now go wash up, it’s almost time for supper.” Applebloom ran off back to the house, leaving Applejack and Grey. “Well if nothin else, Mr. Grey Ash, you’re certainly great with kids.”

“Something on which I pride myself,” Grey replied with a smile. His smile then dropped when he remembered his situation. “Look, I don’t mean to impose. I’ll be leaving pretty soon.”

“Do you have anywhere to go?” asked Applejack.

“Yes I do,” Grey lied. “I live in the next town over and-“

“Big mac did some digging,” Applejack interrupted. “Turns out as far as the internet is concerned, you don’t exist.” Grey’s eyes widened as he tried to think of an excuse, but Applejack stopped him once again. “Chill partner, It’s okay. You think you’re the first to come through that portal? Your secret’s safe with me.”

“Wait,” Grey said holding up his hand. “You know about the portal?”

“Me and my friends have had to deal with it in the past, so yeah. And don’t worry, you can stay here.”

“A-are you sure?”

“Positive. Now c’mon, I can smell dinner and I am starvin.” Applejack walked past him and headed for the house.

Grey turned around. “T-thank you ma’am,” he said, his cool veneer melting away. “Anything you need done around this farm, consider it done. I’ll make it up to you for this, I promise.”

“I’d say no need, but from the sound of it, your mind’s made up. But let’s eat first.” Grey caught up with Applejack, and the two walked to the house for dinner.

Author's Note

Here's the second chapter, folks! Hope you like it. Meanwhile, I just hope I can finish this one. There probably wont be chapter 3 for a while, since I'm heading home to georgia after christmas and won't be back until the 3rd of january. But I'll get right back on the horse when I get home.

see you then!

chapter 3: out of sight, out of mind

Chapter 3
Out of sight, out of mind

It had been about a week since Grey had decided to stay among the apple family. He’d kept true to his word and started work on the farm almost immediately. None of the apple family complained about their new volunteer worker, as his dedication gave them all some much needed time to themselves. Once the weekend rolled around, Applejack decided it was high time for Grey to meet her friends. So Applejack went out and gathered her merry menagerie of misfits and returned to sweet apple acres with them in tow.

Grey was on the porch, taking a break with a bottle of cola after a long morning of work. He perked up when he saw Applejack’s car come down the driveway. He set the cola off to the side and stood from his rocking chair as the car pulled to a stop and its inhabitants stepped out. There were about seven, including applejack, all around her age. All of their attentions seemed drawn instantly to him. Either his form was more attractive than he realized, or they were here to see their friends newest house guest. More than likely the latter, but he was open to options. “Morning Applejack,” he called out. “I’m guessing these are your friends I hear so much about?”

“None other,” said Applejack with a smile. “This is Twilight, Sunset, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Pinkie, and Rarity.”

By now, Grey had gotten used to the odd naming scheme, and just walked over to shake each of their hands with a smile. “Well, it’s nice to actually meet all of you,” he said. “Applejack has told me a lot about each of you, but it’s nice to have faces to put with those descriptions.” Grey always believed that you could tell a lot about a person by the way they shook hands, and that was no different here. Sunset shook his hand firmly, giving him a kind smile. Twilight never took her eyes off of him while they shook, thoroughly analyzing him in those few seconds. Pinkie shook his hand so furiously and with such energy that she practically shook the rest of him as well. Rarity offered her hand with the elegance of a fine noble, but he got the distinct impression that she was undressing him with her eyes. After flashing her a wink, he moved onto the next one. Rainbow grabbed his hand tight and shook it roughly, flashing him a confident smirk. Finally, Fluttershy was very hesitant to take his hand, but ultimately clasped the ends of his fingers and gently moved them up and down, while averting her eyes. Grey stepped back and looked to Applejack. “Well, my work is finished, I think I’ll head inside. You’re all welcome to join me, I’d love to get to know you all some more.”

“I think that’s a great idea,” said Applejack. With that, the eight walked into the house to have lunch and shoot the breeze.

His magic was gone

Silver didn’t know why, but ever since the night he had come to this blasted world, he had lost control of his magic. Technically speaking, it was still there, but he couldn’t access it. If he had to guess, it was probably due to his unfamiliarity with this new body’s anatomy. But then, if that was the case, how did he access it when he arrived? So many questions, no way to get the answers, at least, not safely.

In any case, he still needed to get out of the city. He had decided to travel as far as he could using the city’s expansive sewer system. The minute he hit a pipe that led out into an area away from the city, he’d bolt for the hills. Easier said than done, unfortunately, as the sewers being so expansive meant he was traversing an underground maze. A week was spent wandering, scavenging, and searching for a way out that wouldn’t lead him right into police custody. But finally his search bore fruit, as one pipe just large enough for him to slip through led him right into the hillside outside of town. Just far enough away for him to make his getaway.

However, once he was able to squeeze his head out of the pipe, he was greeted by about a dozen rifles pointed right at his head. The police had found him. Silver tried to shimmy his way back inside the tunnel, but one of the officers took exception to that, and grabbed him by his hair to pull him the rest of the way out of the pipe and into the muddy ground. Silver had gone so long without proper rest and food that he was easy to cuff and detain. Silver looked up from the mud to see Officer Bolt standing next to captain Armor glaring down at him. “Nice try, buddy,” said Captain Armor. “But we have a few questions for you.”

Silver grunted in frustration, but let the police take him anyway. Nothing he could do now, after all. It didn’t matter anyway, he had broken out of worse prisons than these people could put him into. This was nothing more than a minor setback.

“So, where in Equestria are you from?” asked Sunset. The group was gathered in the living room around the coffee table, each enjoying a can of soda.

“Not really from anywhere,” Grey replied with a shrug. “Me and my family travelled a lot. Thankfully so, because judging by what my folks had to say about what their home was like, it doesn’t sound like a place I’d like to stay.” Though much of his story was misdirection or outright lies, that last part was true. Grey could remember vividly the shivers that ran down his parent’s spines as they recounted their lives in the badlands. The harsh winds, the searing heat of day, the choking cold of night, and the monstrous beasts that dwelled beneath the desert floor. The changelings’ punishment for their defiance was to live in a land all others would deem unlivable. “Besides, if I stayed there, I wouldn’t have gotten to see equestria. As well as several of the surrounding countries and kingdoms.”

“Can you tell us anything about the places you’ve been to?” asked Twilight. The violet haired girl was perhaps the most intent listener of the group, leaning in to hear every possible detail. Good thing Grey remembered to brush this morning.

“Certainly,” he said. “Now, where to begin…?”

“Hey guys,” said Rainbow, who was watching T.V. “Check this out!”

Grey watched the television with the rest of the girls. It was the news, and the anchor was reporting that the terrorist responsible for all of the property damage two weeks ago had just been apprehended. A picture of Silver’s face appeared on the screen, which made Grey freeze. Applejack noticed this and laid a hand on his shoulder. “Grey, you alright?” she asked. She looked back at the screen and glared at the picture of Silver. “He’s the one that attacked you, ain’t he?”

Grey let out a breath, calming his nerves. “Yeah,” he said. “I was wandering through the city after I came through when he attacked me. I never got his name, never got the chance. He just blasted me with one of his explosives, and I fell into the river.” Grey turned to Applejack. “Though in some ways, maybe I should be thanking him. He’s the reason I met you, after all.”

Applejack’s face went bright red and she cast her eyes to the side. “u-uh, yeah. I guess that is true, ain’t it?” she sputtered. The others chuckled at the exchange, while Rainbow just gave a thumbs up and a wink to Grey. “A-anyway, Twi, don’t you wanna hear the rest of Grey’s stories?”

“Oh, right!” Said Twilight, placing her chin on her hands, focused on Grey. Applejack sighed, having successfully gotten attention off of her.

“Alright then,” said Grey. “Where was I? Oh yes…” Grey continued to tell the tales of his travels, forging the circumstances of why he visited these lands in the first place. During which, he looked at the news broadcast still talking about Silver, and calmly changed the channel.

Out of sight, out of mind…

Author's Note

Guess who's back?! Sorry about the long wait, college is a b*tch, and I've just been too tired or busy recently to focus on this. Which is why this chapter is so short. I promise, though, that we'll return to the 2000 word norm next time around.

see you next chapter!

Chapter 4: the gift

Chapter 4
The gift

“Valentine’s day?” asked Grey, taking a break from his morning cereal to look at granny smith.

“Yes sir,” said the Apple matriarch, who was setting breakfast down in front of Applebloom. “Once a year, all the couples in town git together to show their special someone how much they care. And everyone else…well, there’s always next year.”

Grey chuckled at the joke before placing a finger to his chin in thought. Applebloom leaned over the table with a sly grin on her face. “Plannin on gettin somethin for Applejack?” she asked. The eponymous cowgirl was at school today, most likely drowning in a sea of red and pink decorations.

Now, a less composed man might’ve flustered and stumbled over his words at such an accusation. But Grey was…experienced in these matters (yeah, that’s a good word for it), and thus knew how to temper his emotions. Grey crossed his arms. “I just might,” he replied. “Problem is that I don’t have any money, and I don’t have any clue what she’d want.”

Applebloom quickly scarfed down her breakfast and ran up next to him. “Well, I can’t help ya with the money thing, but I can help ya with finding out what she’d want,” she said, grabbing his arm and tugging him out of his seat. “Follow me.”

“Uh, ok.” Grey was led out of the kitchen and up the stairs, leaving a mirthful granny to clean up the food.

Applebloom opened the door to her older sister’s room and led Grey inside. Applejack in terms of personal decoration was the exact opposite of what was expected of a teenage girl. Which is to say, the girl was a Spartan. A mediocre vanity with a small mirror, a simple bed and nightstand, with a picture of her friends sitting next to the lamp, and a picture of her family hanging on the wall. Well kept, but simple and essential. “There has to be somethin here that’ll help,” said Applebloom. “Just have a look around, but don’t go pokin your hands where they don’t belong, know what I mean?”

Grey chuckled. “Understood.” The two searched through the room for a few minutes, Grey of course staying a good distance away from anything that would draw the ire of the hyper active youth. Eventually, his search led him to Applejack’s closet, which he opened to inspect the contents within. Inside, there was a series of hung up shirts next to a dresser, but something in the upper left hand corner caught his eye. It was pretty far off to the side, far enough that he would’ve missed it had his head not been fully leaned inside. It seemed to be a stuffed animal of sorts, so Grey reached up and pulled it out of the closet. Sure enough, it was a stuffed teddy bear, worn down from age. An ear was missing, as was an eye, and some of the stuffing was sticking out. Grey turned the toy around in his hands, further inspecting it.

“Oh, you found AJ’s old teddy bear,” Abblebloom said, walking up behind him. “Yeah, Granny says she’s had it ever since she was my age. Guess she just forgot it was back there.”

Grey focused intently on the bear, as a brilliant idea formed in his head. A grin plastered itself across his face, it just might work! “Applebloom,” he said. “Do you know how to sew? I don’t, unfortunately.”

“Nah, sorry,” Applebloom said with a shrug. “Though, AJ’s friend Rarity does-and he’s gone.” Indeed, Grey had sped out of the room the moment he had a name.

Grey ran past the kitchen, stopping for a second to talk to Granny. “Granny, I’m borrowing the bike for an errand, I’ll be right back,” he said before running out of the house.

“What’s got him in such a rush?” Granny asked no one in particular.

Rarity chewed on her pencil, staring down at the pop quiz below her that simply vexed her. Honestly, she knew Valentine’s day was essentially a made up holiday meant to sell cheesy hallmark cards, but it was still a holiday, why did they have to have a pop quiz? And as she stared down at her inevitable F that was just waiting to happen, she silently swore that she would do friggin ANYTHING to be out of this hell. Then, the intercom blared to life. “Rarity, please report to the principal’s office. Your father is here to pick you up.”

Rarity then made a mental note to thank whatever gods may be before zipping out of the classroom.

Grey watched Rarity walk out of the school from behind a corner, currently having taken the form of her father, whom he was lucky enough to ride by on the way here. Quickly transforming back, he stepped out to meet her. “Hey Rarity,” he said with a smile. “Fancy meeting you here.”

“What have you done with my father, Grey?” Rarity asked, her face deadpan.

“That’s beside the point-look, I need your help. Or would you rather go back to whatever fresh hell your deeply flawed school system was subjecting you to?”

Rarity thought about it for a second or two before sighing in defeat. “Alright, what is it?”

Grey reached behind him and presented the bear to Rarity. Rarity looked at the bear, then back at him with her eyebrow firmly raised. “Yes?” she asked.

“I want to give this to applejack as a valentine’s day gift,” Grey said. “Unfortunately, I don’t know how to sew. I was hoping you could help me with that.”

This made Rarity soften and smile at her friend. She reached over and patted him on the arm. “Come with me, darling. You have much to learn.” She took Grey by the arm and walked off with him in tow.

Rarity brought Grey to her home, where the lessons began. Though a fast learner, that didn’t stop Grey from pricking himself with the needle more times than he could count. Rarity was patient enough with her student, guiding him through the process of sewing on the replacement ear and eye, and patching the torn holes in the fabric. Finally, after half an afternoon spent on this labor of love, the bear was finished.

“It’s brilliant I tell you, brilliant!” Grey proclaimed, holding up the bear while looking at Rarity.

“Congratulate yourself, darling,” Rarity replied with a smile. “You made this gift, not I. Now, she should be on her way home by now, so you might want to be-and he’s gone.” Indeed, Grey was once more already out the door before Rarity could finish her sentence, yelling out a “thank you” as he zipped out the doorway.

Applejack pulled into the driveway of sweet apple acres, downing another piece of heart shaped chocolate as she did so. She didn’t really care for this holiday, to be honest, but any holiday that lead to free chocolate by the bundle simply for being drop dead gorgeous couldn’t be all bad. She stepped out of the car, whistling a tune and swinging her key ring on her index finger while she stepped up the porch to the door. But right as she was about to open the door, the sound of huffing and peddling grew in volume behind her. She turned around to find Grey on her bike, slumped over the handlebars trying to catch his breath. “Grey? What in tarnashin are you doin?” she asked.

Grey held up his finger, silently asking her to give him a second. After regaining his breath, he stepped off the bike and retrieved the bear from the front basket, which he had adorned with a bow he picked up on his way out of Rarity’s house. He walked up to Applejack and presented the present to her. “I wanted to give you this,” he said in between smaller breaths. “Happy Valentine’s day. I didn’t have the money to buy you a bear, so I just repaired one of yours.” Grey held up his right hand, the fingers wrapped in band-aids. “Took a few pricks, but Rarity helped me through it. So, what do you think?”

Applejack looked down at the bear, trying to remember where she had seen it before. One of hers, was it? After a few seconds, her eyes widened slightly when the memory came back. She let out a deep breath and, wither her eyes downcast, snatched the bear away from Grey. “Thanks,” she muttered before going into the house and shutting the door in his face.

Grey was dumbstruck, staring at the wooden door as if it would give him an answer as to what just happened. On one hand, he was angry. All that hard work, and she slams the door on him? But on the other hand, he was confused. He had never seen her act that way. Perhaps it was because he went into her room and put his hands all over his stuff? Possibly. Probably. Yeah, that sounded about right. “This is all my fault,” He said to himself.

“Nah, it’s mine,” said a voice from behind him. Grey turned and saw Granny Smith standing in the driveway, a forlorn expression covering her like a storm cloud. “I should’ve told ya sooner, but you left in such a rush I didn’t even catch on to your plan. Once Applebloom told me what you were plannin on doin, I knew this would happen. Poor thing doesn’t understand either. Then again, how could she?” Granny walked up the porch and sat in one of the two chairs. “Sit down, I need to tell ya somethin about our family.”

Grey sat in the other chair, watching the old woman’s every move. “First off,” Granny said. “It ain’t your fault. How could you have known what I’m about to tell ya? So you’d best get that thought outta your brain. That bear was the last gift Applejack’s parents ever gave her. The very next day after giving it to her, they…died.” Grey’s eyes widened considerably and he sunk back into the chair. “She ain’t really mad at you. It’s that just lookin at that bear makes her remember. She’ll calm down in time, don’t you worry.”

“No,” Grey said, standing up. “This is my fault. And I have to make it right.” Grey ran into the house before Granny could say anything.

Before Grey knew it, he was standing in front of the door to Applejack’s room. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door. The door slowly opened, revealing Applejack, whose eyes were just a bit red and puffy. The mere sight made Grey’s heart drop, along with his shoulders. “Applejack, listen I…”he started before applejack interrupted.

“You don’t have to apologize, Grey,” she said, wiping her left eye. “I should apologize. I shouldn’t have acted so ugly. I-it’s a great gift, and I shouldn’t have overreacted. I’m sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing?” Asked Grey. “I’m the one who imposed himself on you and your family. I’m the one who invaded your private life without your permission. I’m the one who arrogantly ignored the obvious warning signs that this would piss you off. I should be the one on my knees begging you to forgive me!” Grey’s head dropped, out of breath from the rant.

Applejack was dumbstruck, to say the least. She was at a complete loss for what to say to him. So she did the only thing that came to her mind. She hugged him around the waist and squeezed tightly.

Grey tensed up when she hugged him, but after a moment or two, he returned the hug. At that moment, it didn’t matter who was at fault. All that mattered was that, even if they didn’t want to admit it to themselves, this was the only place either of them wanted to be.

Author's Note

I'm BAAAAAAAAACK! Sorry that took so long, but I have to say, this is probably my favorite chapter that I've written yet. Here's hoping I can top myself!

chapter 5: exposed

Chapter 5
Exposed

Grey whistled a happy tune as he sauntered down the street of canterlot, bound for the high school. Today was the day he did it: he was going to ask Applejack out on a date! He would meet her as she was leaving school and ask her to dinner. Now, as a changeling, Grey has had to charm his way into the bedroom of many women, mostly to get necessary information. But this time, there were no tricks, he just wanted to spend time with her. So, he leaned against Applejack’s car in the parking lot, and waited for her to arrive. He didn’t know how long he waited, staring off into space, but he was brought back to earth by the smell of smoke. He stood up and looked to the school to find it consumed by flames.

Grey bounded toward the school, just about to make it to one of the windows, when the entire wall exploded, sending him flying back. He looked up to see Silver, stepping out of the flames, with Applejack’s neck in his hand. A rage filled Grey like never before. “You!” he shouted, transforming into a bear and running toward silver, with intent to maul the crystal guard to death. Grey was simply knocked aside.

Silver stared down at him, holding up the limp body of applejack. “This is your fault, changeling,” he said. “Did you really think you could escape me forever? That you could just run from what you are?” Silver dropped her and opened his palm in Grey’s direction. “Now…Die!” a ball of magical energy formed in his hand, and he fired it at Grey.

Grey reached for Applejack as the energy impacted him. “No!” he shouted as darkness consumed him.

“Gah!” Grey shouted, shooting up in his bed in a cold sweat. He put his hand to his chest to still his heartbeat. After a moment, he got up from his bed and walked to the bathroom. He needed a shower.

After washing himself to calm his nerves, he looked in the mirror to find that he was in his changeling form. He froze as he realized how easy it would’ve been for him to be discovered, had he awoken an hour later. He was about to change back, but stopped when he remembered that he had never seen himself in this form, at least not in this world. Everyone was still asleep, so a closer inspection wouldn’t hurt. Pitch black skin, that was a given, along with the large bug-like blue eyes. Serrated teeth, wings just big enough to carry him over short distances. Everything he had as a pony, he had in this new form.

Grey quickly returned to his human form when he heard footsteps coming from down the hall. A knock at the bathroom door. “Grey?” asked Applejack, her voice groggy, having just awoken. “You alright in there, partner?”

Grey sighed. “Yeah,” he said. “Bad dream. Needed a shower. I’m fine, though.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” He heard Applejack mumble “okay” before the sound of her footsteps grew quieter as she returned to her room. Grey was lucky it was as early as it was. Had Applejack not been so tired, she would’ve instantly knew something was up and pressed him. Grey sighed. Perhaps he should return to bed as well.

The morning sun crept into Silver’s jail cell through the barred window above him. But Silver had not slept that night. Rather, Silver was meditating. He could feel his magic inside of him, it was only a matter of reaching it. If he could just access it for a minute or two. Silver’s eyes finally opened and he extended his hands. Magic spurted from his palms like a partly clogged faucet, gathering in midair in front of him. The magic took on the shape of a mirror, and on the other side was Princess Cadance. “Silver?” she asked. “Silver Bullet, is that you?”

“My lady, Princess,” said Silver, his voice strained from holding the spell. “I am contacting you from the other side of the mirror. I apologize for any worry I may have caused.”

“It is good to see you still live, Silver,” said Cadance. “But why have you not returned?”

“I would if I could, but after I eliminated the changeling spy, I was apprehended by the authorities of this world. I was reckless in my anger, I caused damage to one of their cities, and now they suspect me of terrorism. And without the ability to control my magic, I cannot escape. It may be a while before I am able to return, but do not send anyone after me. We cannot let this become more complicated than it already is.”

Cadance sighed. “Very well. Just make sure you escape. You’re one of our best, and with recent developments I have been made aware of, I believe your help is going to be invaluable in the near future.”

Silver nodded. “I will get out of this, Princess. I’ve broken out of worse prisons than this.”

“One last thing,” Cadance said. “Are you sure you eliminated the changeling?”

“Reasonably.”

Cadance nodded. “Then please, leave it at that.”

Silver hesitated for a moment before bowing his head. “By your order, my princess.” With that, the spell dispersed.

Grey let out a yawn as he made his way down the steps and into the kitchen. There, Granny Smith was fixing up pancakes for breakfast, with the rest of the family waiting at the table. “Morning, all,” grey said with a tired smile as he took his seat.

“Mornin, Grey,” said Applebloom. Big Mac gave a nod and a friendly grunt as his greeting.

“Yeah, g’mornin,” said Applejack, who was trying to hide the fact that she was avoiding his gaze. Grey sighed lightly. Ever since their hug a few days ago, Applejack had been acting this way. She wasn’t avoiding him outright, but he was lucky if she could look him in the eye for more than a few seconds before coming up with an excuse to leave. It’s not that Gray couldn’t put his finger on why that event triggered this behavior, but was it general embarrassment for venting her emotions in such a way, or did she perhaps…?

Grey was broken from his thoughts by Applebloom prodded him in the shoulder with her fork. “Ya listenin, Grey?” she asked.

“Uh, sorry, I just zoned out for a minute there,” Grey said with a chuckle. “What were we talking about again?”

“Plans for the day,” Granny said. “No work needs doin, for once, and it’s the weekend, so Applejack’s off from school. I say we have a good ol’ fashioned family day. But what to do?”

“Ooh, ooh!” Said Applebloom, who had her hand raised. “How about the zoo? I hear they got lotsa new animals.”

“I think that’s a wonderful idea,” said Granny, who looked over to the two older siblings. “How about ya’ll?”

“Oh,” said Applejack, who looked up from her pancake. “Uh, the zoo sounds like a great idea.”

“Eeyup,” chimed in Big Macintosh.

“I think it’s a wonderful idea,” said Grey.

“Then the zoo it is,” said Granny.

“Awesome!” proclaimed Applebloom, who went back to her breakfast.

Grey, who had already finished his, stood from the table. “Well, I suppose I should get ready,” he said, walking back up the stairs while whistling a tune. Something like this was just what he needed to get his mind off of last night.

“And Grey was just there, waiting for you?” Asked Sunset.

“Indeed he was,” replied Rarity, who put down her fork. The two were enjoying their day off by hanging out at the local café. Their conversation hadn’t began on this Bechdel-test-breaking subject, but seeing as how it had started on the surprisingly numerous things bacon does NOT go together with, the author felt feminism would forgive him skipping a paragraph or two.

“And that didn’t raise any eyebrows?” Sunset asked.

“Oh sure, it does now, but I was just so swept up in the energy, I didn’t even think about it until after he left.”

Sunset’s brows furrowed, her hand clasping her chin. “Something wrong, dear?” Rarity asked.

“Just thinking, that’s all. Maybe-“Sunset was broken from her thoughts by her diary giving off a familiar signal. Twilight was contacting her. Sunset reached into her bag and pulled out the diary, setting her food aside to make room for it.

“Do you just carry that thing everywhere?” asked Rarity.

Sunset let out a sharp “shhh!” as she opened the book. Sunset and Rarity watched the pages as the words magically appeared.

Sunset, we may have a problem. My brother just informed me that a changeling was found in the crystal empire about a month ago. The changeling escaped into your world, and one of Shining’s knights gave chase. We just heard back from him, and he thinks he got him, but Shining still has his doubts. I just wanted to know if anything out of the ordinary has been happening lately.

Rarity and Sunset looked up at each other. Sunset looked worried, while Rarity was more confused than anything else. “A changeling?” she asked.

“Trouble,” was Sunset’s answer before she grabbed a pen and returned to the book. As a matter of act, something has happened. Not jumping to any conclusions, but I’m gonna look into it. I’ll write you back as soon as I find something.

Sunset closed the book and returned it to her bag. Sunset rose from her seat and laid a handful of dollars on the table for the meal. Rarity rose with her. “So, you think that Grey might be one of these changeling things?”

“I intend to find out.”

Author's Note

Guess who's back?! My god, this took a while, I am so very sorry, people. Luckily, since the plot is picking up a tad, hopefully I'll be able to update more often.

Till then, ta ta!

Chapter 6: A day at the zoo

Chapter 6

A day at the zoo

Monkeys were apparently hilarious.

That seemed to be what revelation Grey was meant to gleam from his time at the zoo with the Apple family. The shrieking, erratic, feces throwing creatures sent the young Applebloom into fits of hysteria. They would swing, scratch their backsides, and, as stated above, fling their droppings at each other, and this was ample entertainment for the young girl.

Really? That made her laugh? He could do that, it’s not that funny. Grey concluded that it must be a human thing.

He’d noticed himself coming to this conclusion often recently. He found this vexing.

Grey said nothing, though, calmly biting into his cotton candy. Soon the group walked away from the monkey cage, and Grey followed suit. Unaware that he was being followed himself.

How could she be so blind? Sunset mentally chastised herself for not noticing the warning signs. The air of detachment, the fake smile, the way he would put himself as close to the most emotional member of whatever group he was infiltrating. No matter how well they hide, if one is trained to spot them, there is no disguise perfect enough.

A changeling had infiltrated the Apple family. And she had to stop him.

She was about to walk out to confront him, but she stopped and returned to her hiding spot before she was noticed. Sure, go and call him out in broad daylight and look like a complete loon, he’d NEVER be able to turn that against her. No, she had to think this one through if this game was to turn in her favor. Applejack was the best person she knew at sensing out bullcrap, so if he could fool her so thoroughly, this one required a bit more finesse.

First things first, though, she needed to clear up any doubts.

Applebloom was in the petting zoo, Granny had went off to find a restroom, and Mac had gone to get some more cotton candy. If there was a more perfect time to at least bring it up, then Grey obviously had missed it. So, Grey turned his head to the side, seeing Applejack next to him. She hadn’t noticed him staring, as she was too busy making sure her younger sister wasn’t pissing off the goats and….horses.

Well, that’s going to take some getting used to.

Veering his mind back on track, he cleared his throat to get Applejack’s attention. “So,” he said calmly. “You’ve been a touch evasive the past few days.”

Applejack looked up at him with surprised eyes. The surprise didn’t last long, as he expected. Applejack looked down. “Yeah, sorry bout that,” she said. “I don’t mean anythin by it, I swear. I’m just…”

“Not used to letting people in like that?” Grey finished. He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Yeah, I can relate, trust me. To be honest, I’ve never gotten as close to anyone as I have with you.”

Applejack turned with a wry smirk. “Now that has to be a lie,” she said. “Guy as good lookin as you? Ya must’ve been beatin off the mares with a stick.”

Grey chuckled. “True, I’ve had a lot of women in my life, but, well, let’s just say it never worked out.” It was Grey’s turn to look away from Applejack and thousand-yard-stare up into the sky. The funny thing about living a lie is that it was very hard to find someone willing to live it with you.

Grey was broken from his trance when he felt Applejack link her arms with his. He bristled at the surprise touch, but didn’t shy away. “Well,” she said. “Their loss, right?”

Grey quickly regained his composure and smirked down at Applejack. “Yeah, I suppose so,” he said. However, just as the two began to lean closer to each other, Applebloom decided that she felt like a good ol fashioned cliché, so she decided to kill the mood by poking her head up from behind the chain link fence. “Whatcha doin, guys?” she asked, though her big smile gave away her insincerity.

Applejack immediately shot away from Grey and stared off at nothing in particular. “N-nothin,” she said, trying to hide her blush.

Applebloom’s smile remained, though becoming injected with a knowing wit. “Ya’ll can’t fool me, sis,” she said.

Grey chuckled along, ruffling the young girl’s hair. “No, I don’t suppose we can,” he said.

“Applebloom, I got more cotton candy for ya!” Said Big Mac from a few yards down the path. Applebloom immediately forgot the previous conversation and ran over to have herself some candy.

“God, the energy on that girl,” said Applejack with a chuckle.

“Heh, yeah,” Said Grey, who pursed his lips and looked back down at Applejack. His arm snaked around her waist and pulled her close. “Now, where were we?”

“Y-ya know what, I just can’t recall,” said Applejack, who smirked wryly through her intense blush.

Grey’s toothy grin drifted closed as he brought the blonde in for a kiss. His fingers drifted into her hair, while her arms locked behind his neck.

A common misconception about changelings is that they feed on love. In actuality, only the queen had to feed on love. Grey could feed on it, but he didn’t have to. Even so, despite himself, he could feel just a bit of it enter his system from the kiss. Grey’s eyes shot open at this realization and he broke the kiss, though still holding her. Applejack took a moment to catch her breath. “Dang…” she said.

He couldn't have put it better himself. The trance held by the two was broken by the sound of muffled giggling. Grey and Applejack looked over to see Applebloom, Granny and Big Mac staring at them. “Well,” said Granny with a wry smirk. “Glad to see ya’ll finally stopped beating around the bush.”

Applejack broke down into fits of laughter, while Grey maintained his composure, save for a sharp chuckle. Hand in hand, the couple rejoined the apple family, and they continued down the path through the zoo.

A minor complication with spotting changeling behavior is that much of the key features could easily be replicated by someone who is asocial or is suffering from depression. As such, Sunset knew, even with her gut screaming at her that this was the guy she was looking for, that she couldn’t just jump to conclusions. So she continued following him through the day, doing whatever it took to remain inconspicuous.

Then she saw Grey and Applejack kiss. And she saw her proof, a small puff of green mist travelling from Applejack’s mouth to his. If anyone else saw it, they probably wrote it off as a trick of the sun. But Sunset knew better. It was official; the changeling was alive, and had infiltrated the apple family.

It was still too risky to confront him in the open. She either needed to get him alone and confront him there, or get enough solid evidence to convince applejack that she just kissed an anthropomorphic bug-horse-man thing. The latter would probably take too long, so Sunset settled on the direct approach.

Sunset watched her friend laughing, her arms linked with Grey’s, and her heart ached with what she had to do.

All she could hope for is that she would one day forgive her…

Applejack and Grey plopped down together on a bench. Grey lifted his right leg to massage his tired calves. Grey bristled when he felt the blonde next to him lean against his shoulder. Grey smiled and leaned his head against hers. “I’m willing to listen, you know,” she whispered.

“What?” Grey replied.

“I know you’re hiding something.” Applejack looked up at him with a wry smirk. “I can smell a lie a mile away, buddy.”

Grey forced a smirk to maintain his composure. “I think you’re mistaken,” he said.

Applejack chuckled, returning to his shoulder. “It’s alright, I’m sure it’s nothin too serious. If it was, it woulda blown up in ya face by now.” Grey joined in her chuckle, though his was a bit more choked. “Whenever you feel like tellin me, I promise to listen, kay?”

Grey looked down at Applejack and smiled softly. “Okay,” he said, snaking his arm around her waist to pull her closer. “Okay…”

Author's Note

I'M BAAAAACK! A short one this time, since this was taking way too friggin long. I'll strive to reach 2,000 words next time, I promise. I also promise it to not take nearly as long XD

See you all next time!