Druids and the Wooden Heart

The pegasus chuckled. "You should know who I am and also your suspicions were right. We have indeed met before! But that was long ago so I don't mind that you have forgot it." As he stopped, green flames consumed his body. Spirit and Bite jumped back and made them self ready to attack.

As the green flames were gone there now stood a changeling and grinned at Spirit. But he didn't had much time to say anything else because Bite instantly jumps at him and held him down. The changeling looked a bit annoyed. "Nice to see you again too. So it seems you took my advice. Could you please back off, it's hard to breath like this!"

'His advice? Wait! Is that...' Spirit walked up to him. "Are you Switch?"

He chuckled. "Hey you remember my name! I would shake your hoof if I weren't stuck under a giant wolf made of wood!"

Bite looked at Spirit and raised an eyebrow, Spirit looked at the changeling and then back to Bite. "I think we can trust him. You can go off of him." Bite shrugged, stood up and let go of Switch.

Switch stood up and knocked the dust from his legs. "Thanks for calling your wood dog back." As he said that Bite instantly turned around and growled.

Spirit walked next to him and patted Bite on the back. "He is not my dog. I don't call him back. And his name is Bite. Remember that!"

Switch held one of his front legs up. "Cold down. I doesn't meant it like that. So I am sorry, are you two now happy?" Bite stopped growling but still didn't let an eye off from Switch.

Spirit looked at Switch. "Sorry that we attacked you but how should we suppose to know that it is you?"

Switch suddenly began to cough and held one of his hooves up. He walked in another room and after a few seconds he came back with a pair of saddlebags."Sorry for that, so back to topic. Well first of, you could guess who I am by my disguise. I chose the same from the last time we met and just made his coat look like crystal. Also I didn't tried to suck your emotions out of your body like a normal changeling."

Spirit and Bite looked at each other then Spirit remembered something. "Wait if you are Switch, how does it comes that he couldn't remember your smell?"

Switch raised an eyebrow. "Never heard of perfume? Wait give me a second!" He walked over to the sink and turned it one. He grabbed the water with his magic and splashed it in his own face. "It is good to use magic again. I can't believe how somepony could live without it."

Spirit and Bite both looked at him with raised eyebrows but Switch ignored them. "So now I should smell normal again."

Bite sniffed at him then nodded to Spirit. "Yes I can identify his smell now." The changeling looked at them and waited for them to say something.

Switch walked to the table and set up the chair correctly and sat down. Spirit sat down on the other chair. "So what do you want from us and who is that boss you were talking about?"

Switch chuckled a bit before he answered. "Whoa, one question at the time. So what I want from you is what I said earlier, my boss wants that you stop searching for druids and my boss is the archdruid!"

Spirit looked surprised at him. "Wait what?"

Switch rolled with his eyes. "He is the archdruid. He wants that you stop searching about us and come to us."

Now Spirit was even more surprised. "Does that mean you are a druid and that you did all this today that we would meet?"

Switch chuckled. "Yes I was the one who spied on you in the library and I send you out as the librarian and I threw the flyer so that you would find it. By the way I had to pay very much for your food there."

"Sorry for that but back to the topic. Why should I believe you that you are a druid and that the archdruid send you to me to find me and bring me to him. Doesn't sound very believable to me."

Switch sigh. "It's always the same, isn't it? It took me long enough to find you and also keeping up with you without being see. So just let just make this quick. I am a druid you can believe me or not. I am here to recruit you, I know you searched for us to join us and now you have your chance. If you don't believe me I can guaranty you, you won't find anything about druids in any book in Equestria. So what will you do?"

Spirit looked at Bite. "We should at least try. I mean until now we haven't even found a hint to the place of the druids." Bite was silent for a moment and just sat there.

Bite walked one time around Switch who kept just sitting and looking at Spirit. "I trust him if you do."

Spirit looked back to Switch and wanted to answer his question. "Bite and I will..."

But Switch interrupted him. "Good, do you have anything to get before we start. Probably not, so if you don't mind, I don't want to waste any more time. Come just follow me."

Switch stood up and walked to the entrance of the building but turned around as Spirit and Bite didn't followed him. "What, are you waiting for an invitation?"

Bite and Spirit looked confused at each other. "How did you knew our answer?"

The Changeling smiled. "Well first off I know about your task from your elder. Second I know that you traveled through whole Equestria and didn't found a single hint to the druids. And at last you aren't my first recruitment and at that other time it almost went the same."

Spirit and Bite were still very surprised but they stood up now and followed Switch. As they stood before the doors Switch quickly changed his appearance back to the pegasus with green wings. Switch instantly walked in direction off the exit of the empire but Spirit stopped him. "Before we left I want to tell Cadence and Shining Armor that I will go. It would be rude to leave just like that!"

Switch nodded. "Ok then. Do that, but I am heading out now. I will wait at the entrance of the empire. I don't want to get caught by guards. Don't take too much time!" Switch flew away and Spirit turned to the castle.

As he reached the castle he searched for Cadence or Shining but couldn't find them so he just stopped one of the servants. "Could you inform the princess and prince that I will continue my travel. Say them that I found a hint." The servant nodded and Spirit walked to the exit of the empire.

As he reached the border he saw that Switch got stopped by a group of guards. As Spirit came closer he recognized the captain. It was the same who arrested Bite on the day before.

Thee captain looked very annoyed. "For the last time give me your papers or let our unicorn scan you so they can confirm your identity!"

Switch looked around to find a way out of this and started sweating a bit. "As I said I lost my papers and you can't scan me!"

The captain raised an eyebrow. "And why is that so? Do you have anything to hide from us? Explain yourself or we are going to force you to a scan!"

Switch again looked around and saw Spirit. Switch looked back to the guard and smiled. "Because I don't have to, my friend, Spirit a friend of the princess, will explain everything."

The captain turned around and put on a fake smile. "Oh it's nice to see you again. Do you already leave the empire?"

Spirit and Bite walked next to Switch. "Yes we do!"

The captain shook his head. "No you can't your friend here refuses to let himself be scanned and before that happens we can't allow him to leave!"

Spirit stopped, he hadn't expect that the captain would continue to stop them. Spirit quickly tried to make up a new plan. He looked help searching to Bite who thought for a moment. "Tell them that he is from the zebras and that he has a magical illness."

Spirit nodded then looked back to the captain. "I sorry for him but he didn't knew that he would need any documents, he comes from the zebra lands like me!"

The captain looked suspicions. "Then why didn't he arrived with you?"

"Um because he is..." As Switch saw that he didn't knew to continue he helped him out. "I was send to find him and bring him to my tribe!"

The captain still didn't looked happy with that. "Then why we can't scan him?"

Spirit answered as Bite told him. "Because he has a magical disease that transfers by magical contact." Switch coughed extremely heavily to confirm Spirits statement.

The captain looked between Spirit and Switch back and forth. "I can't risk to infect my guards just to scan somepony. You may pass but if you ever come back here we will scan you. That or you will show us proper documents!"

Spirit and Switch nodded and they walked quickly away. As they were sure that no one could hear them turned Switch to Spirit. "Next time you better hurry! Do you know what happens when they find a changeling? Because I don't want to find out what!"

Spirit was a bit surprised by that. "I am sorry but about this but let just move on before we get stopped by somepony else. So where we have to go?"

Switch pointed to the north. "We have to go to a forest in the north-west of equestria. It think it's called white tail woods or something like that."

Spirit tapped on his chin. "I think I heard the name once but I am not sure when... but anyway how do we get there?"

"Well with the train of course. We first drive in the middle of the equestria and from there we walk to the west." Switch began to walk in direction of the next train station and Spirit and Bite followed him.

After a while tried Spirit to talk a bit. "So why did the druids want to see and recruit me? From where does they know me? And how did you came to them?"

Switch gave a sigh. "Could you wait with these question till we can't be disturbed. I don't want to be caught while talking about a long lost organization but you can ask other question if you want."

Spirit walked a bit slower and though of a good question. Bite nudged Spirit in the side and that gave Spirit an idea."Hey Switch I was wondering something, what do you think about timberwolves?"

Switch looked over his shoulder and chuckled. "You ask somepony like me what he think of a creature who is the embodiment of nature magic? I don't have much of a opinion about them but there is one thing I really like about them... they always 'stick' together." Switch broke into a loud laughter while Spirit and Bite looked at each other.

"Is he serious?" Spirit looked at Bite and Bite just shrugged with his shoulders. They both shook their head once and began to walk, to catch up with Switch again.

As they reached the train walked Switch instantly up to one of the workers. "Good evening my friend. I have booked a train compartment for two ponies and a pet. Under the name Green Wing!"

The worker shortly looked t his clipboard then back to Switch. "Oh right Mr. Wing. You paid a lot money for this room, I hope it will be good enough for you! I will bring you to your room immediately!" He opened one of the train door and lead the way to a door he opened the room and stepped aside so they could look inside.

Spirit could see by one look that this room was far bigger than the one, in which he arrived. The room had two beds, one on each side and a small round bed in the middle of the room. On the left side there stood also a small desk with a chair in front of it.

Switch stepped inside and looked around. "It is nice. You can go now."

"Before I go I have to ask, what kind of pet do you brought with..." As he was about to ask walked Bite past him and laid down in the round bed. It was way too small for him. So he stood up again, shoved the small bed aside and walked next to Spirit.

The worker just stood there with an open mouth. There while laid Switch his bag next to one bed and laid down. "Just write down it is a type of dog or something like that."

The worker nodded and slowly walked away before Spirit could say anything. He put his bag down and turned around to look at Switch. "You know I don't like to keep Bite as a secret."

Switch sat up again and nodded. "I know but I also know that if you had told him he could write down timberwolf we couldn't talk without being disturbed." Switch now walked to the door and a green flash later there stood the changeling. His horn flashed green and the door also flashed once.

Switch turned to Spirit and Bite. "I just locked the door that we can't be surprised by anypony. Now to your questions, now would be a good time to ask!" Switch at down on his bed and just as he did the train started.

Spirit looked around before asking the first question. "How are you able to afford all this? It doesn't look very cheap and you told us that you had to pay extra for our food earlier."

"Ah that's an easy one. I got the money from the archdruid. You know a few member of the druids are working like normal ponies and some of them donate money for."

Spirit sat down on his bed and Bite laid down on the floor in front of Spirits bed. "Why does the druids want us and why now?"

"Ok for starter you should know that the druids watched over you for quite some time now. As you left to search for us I got the task to recruit you. But I also had to test your patience and I did it, I waited one year. If you had break up the search before that time would be around, I wouldn't take you to the druids. Originally I was thinking to give it more time but at the moment we don't have that much time. We are not as many as we wish we would be and since the event last year we have more problem than ever!"

Spirit looked Switch directly in the eyes. "What kind of problems?"

Switch turned to the window and looked outside. "Something wrong is going on with the magic of the nature. Animals are going crazy, some forests are growing rapidly and other are dying for no reason. So I shorten the time a bit."

Spirit nodded. "You shorten it down to one year? That's not what I would call short but anyway, I have one last question. How did you joined the druids?"

Switch raised an eyebrow. "You didn't let yourself nearly as much time as the last recruit but no I won't answer it at least right now. Maybe one day."

Switch turned around and was about to sleep but Spirit stopped him. "Oh yes, who is this recruit, you said you recruit somepony before me. Do I know the pony?"

"I am not allowed to tell their names right now but perhaps you will see her. Till we arrive you will have to wait, you should be a bit more patiently. It could take a while till you even see the face of one druid. Normally we keep our identities a secret but since I am a druid I started to test the recruits."

This made Spirit curios. "But you said you only recruited one pony before me or did I misunderstood you?"

Switch sighed as he realized that that would take a longer than he thought. "No you didn't, I only recruit one other pony till now but I made the tests for the recruits before you."

Spirit looked at Bite and they both were a bit confused. "Tests? What tests?"

Switch chuckled. "What did thought? That we just accept everypony? No we first do a test, like your year of patience, to sort out the ponies who just doesn't fit but it is just a quick way and it is not always enough to sort out the unfitting . This was the last question for now I have to sleep I had to stay awake all day because of you and I think I deserve some sleep."

Spirit wanted to ask more questions. "But..." Switch jut turned off the light with his magic and started snoring. Spirit looked at Bite and thanks to Bites green glowing eyes was Spirit able to see him. Well then good night Bite!"Spirit laid down while Bite nodded one time then laid down and started sleep too.

But Spirit couldn't sleep very much, he was awake for a long time thinking about what happened and what will happened. 'Is this changeling really a druid and is he really here to recruit me or does he has another plan? I should be careful anyway but if he is a druid and if I am being recruit I can finally finish my last task!'

Spirit looked again outside and looked at the moon for a few minute and meditated. After a few hours he was finally able to sleep.