Take My Heart

“How could you leave us out here~!” Twilight yelled as she pounded hard of the shield that now prevented even her from entering the city.  Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she pounded hard against the shield. “We fought for you, you sick son of a bitch~!” Spike saw her in distress and used one of his now massive paws to move her away from the shield. Twilight was so broken by both the losses and the betrayal. Spike was calm till he sensed a very familiar presence in the area. Spike growled as he looked in the distance. Twilight took notice to what he was looking at when she saw massive wings flapping against the ground in the distance. It appeared one of the dragons the changelings had brought was injured and left behind to die? Spike started his way in the dragon’s direction. His eyes widen upon seeing who it was. Evergreen lay injured on the ground. Chrysalis must have been hit by the beam upon retreat. Chrysalis was nowhere to be found. Evergreen on the other hand was abandoned by the one who had created her. Evergreen saw spike and her vibrant green eyes began to water. She reached out to him with one of her claws and spoke for the first time around him.

“H-help me.” She said in a pained voice. Her voice was unique and sounded much like chrysalis. Only evergreens voice was younger sounding. Evergreen’s back leg had a compound fracture. There was no way she was going to be able to stand. “P-please, h-help me.” The dragon cried as it flapped its hurt wings trying to move. Spike knew normally the best way to help her would be to kill her. He unlike most dragons was brought up by the ways of friendship. There was no way he was going to kill her. Even if she had killed his friends. She was only following orders, Just like everyone else she was a slave to the changelings.

“Alright I will help you.” Spike said in a much deeper voice than he had when he was little. “But you have to trust me.” He said looking Evergreen in her green eyes. Evergreen looked back at him with emotion streaming from her stare. The dragon was feeling things it had been kept from all its life. Evergreen slowly nodded to tell him she trusted him. Spike let out a roar as he got low and started to lift her to lie on his back. She was heavy because she was bigger than he was. As he lifted her he sank deeper into the mud that was the ground. Evergreen wrapped her tail around his so she wouldn’t fall. Evergreen was much more complicated then spike could imagine. At night her details were hard to see. During the day her feminine features stuck out.  Her horns were thin and long. The hooked like fish hooks. She had six of them on top of her head.  Evergreen let out a purr as Spike let out another roar once he had her secure on his back. His thick tail swayed back and forth as he felt much heavier with her on his back. All was good until Draco came into the situation. Draco flew down from the sky ripping Evergreen right off Spike back. Draco had so many bent up feelings right now that he only wanted to kill Evergreen. For good reason she had killed Rainbow dash. Spike roared angrily as he turned to look at Draco who was now pinning evergreen to the ground.

“Spike stay back, she killed my master she has to die.” Draco said as he put his axe like tail to her throat. Spike was feeling something inside him he had never felt. Was it love? Or was evergreen consuming his mind? Either way he couldn’t let her be hurt.

“Noooooooooooooooo~!” spike roared as he reared back before charging knocking Draco right off of her. Draco immediately responded by swinging his axe like tail right into the chest armor of Spike. The axe bounced off but put a deep cut in his chest. Spike felt the pain but ignored it as the flame formed between his lips. Draco’s eyes widened once the flame exited spikes mouth. Twilight saw the fight from the distance she was and knew her and her left over men had to stop it. Draco was hit right on by the fire but endured the pain it brought on. Spike was incredibly pissed off as her rushed in and plowed Draco over once again. Draco Roared out as his back spike were stuck in the mud. Spike did not want to hurt his friend so he stuck Draco’s horn into the mud to insure he would not attack again. Evergreen had been watching him this whole time with her emerald like eyes.

“Spike she murdered our friends and your helping her~!” Draco roared as he was trying to get out of the mud. “She doesn’t feel she has no soul she was created.” Draco grunted.

“Same could have been said about anything. We were all created by something. Just because she is what’s she is doesn’t mean I shouldn’t help her.” Spike said as he lifted her onto his back once more. Evergreen wrapped her tail around his again for support. She was slipping in an out of consciousness so it was best to get her the help she needed and as soon as possible.

“your friend is right on some prospective. Though I can plead for the soul and heart that thrive inside me, cold and black they may be. I was abandoned by my mother; she raised me only to leave me here to die.” Evergreen let out a sad roar after she had said chrysalis was her mother.

“you were born like this?” Spike said rather confused.

“I don’t know but I have been this way since I was small. My mother came to me when she was blown from canterlot by something she called love. That was way before I remember there being any war.” Evergreen said as she closed her eyes falling asleep on his back. Twilight had a very disappointed look on her face when she saw spike carrying her.

“Spike you’re not bringing her anywhere near canterlot. We may be locked out but that does not mean you can just care for the enemy.” Twilight said as she holstered her sword.

“She is way more than just an enemy Twilight. She was abandoned, I can’t let her just die.”  Spike said as he set his course for the front entrance of canterlot.

“Actually you can, put her down this instant. I forbid you to take that thing anywhere near home.” Twilight argued

“This thing is a dragon. She could be of use to use. I happen to…..”Spike stopped speaking as he continued to walk towards Canterlot the mud matting on his paws.  Twilight stood there surprised at spike. Was he about to express some kind of crush on the Black Death evergreen? She looked back at Draco whom had finally got out of the mud. He wasn’t attacking instead he was keeping his distance from spike. Evergreen’s eye opened once again as her head had been swaying from his walking. She looked right at Twilight with sympathy in her eyes. She knew she was friends with Rainbow Dash just by looking at her. Evergreen wished to apologize but refrained from it.

Later that night all the ones who had been left out of canterlot were around a fire. This included Rarity who had been found half dead. Evergreen was lying next to Spike for protection from everyone else. Especially Draco, who appeared to have wanted to kill her every time he looked in her direction,. Evergreen had fabric wrapped around her leg along with a large tree that spike had placed in the cast to brace and keep her broken bone aligned while it healed. The fire reflected off of Evergreen the most. Her jade color was very shinny and the light was well absorbed into it. Everypony was eating and telling stories. That was when somepony had the guts to ask Evergreen a question.

“What happened to you? Why were you left here?” a Stallion asked. Evergreen flinched at the question but felt an explanation was probably best if she was to gain any kind of trust here.

“When your leaders sent out that wave of energy it made me fall from the sky. I did everything as I fell to prevent Chrysalis from being hurt. She raised me from a small dragon to what I am now. She is my mother.” Evergreen sighed. “I crashed into a large boulder and broke several of my bones. Chrysalis got up and when she saw how bad I was…. She just… left me.” Evergreen lowered her head as she remembered. That was when black tears formed in her eyes. The dragon had never actually cried before so this was alarming. “I don’t know what’s happening to me anymore. This stuff keeps leaking from my face and I can’t h-help it.” Spike sighed and wiped her cheek with a claw.

“Those are called tears Evergreen; It’s something that happens when we are sad.” Spike said to the emotionally clueless dragon. Evergreen seemed even more confused. She had no idea what sadness was. The word seemed foreign to her. Evergreen had a lot of emotions on her mind. She felt the need to run. She spread her wings and shot straight for the sky. She let out a screech as she took off headed north.  Spike grunted and scampered to stand up. He ran after her despite being unable to fly.

“Spike wait~!” twilight said reaching out, unfortunately he was long gone.

“Evergreen get down here I know your confused~!” Spike said as he shouted up at her. Evergreen looked down at the relentless male.

“Why do you follow me, I am not a dragon I’m some monster.” Evergreen said as her tail started to glow shooting a green beam down at him to get him off her tack. Spike dodged to the right and ran up a slanted rock. He jumped straight up and grabbed her good leg. He was too heavy for her to carry and her and him both dropped to the ground. Spike wrapped around her to protect her from the fall. He landed on his back with her held close above him. They slid like 20 feet and laid to rest with his head bouncing against a rock. Evergreen looked up and her muzzle met with his. Her green eyes shined in the dead of night. She breathed out slowly.  “spike I am confused I don’t know what’s wrong with me~!” She teared up a little. “Like I feel sad I think and then I look at you and I get this swirly and warm feeling.” She let her head go limp and she laid it on his chest plate.

“There is nothing wrong with you. Your feeling things you didn’t know existed.” Spike said as he placed a claw behind her head and hugged her. Evergreen purred very deeply when he hugged her.

“Where did you learn this?” She asked as he hugged him.

“A hug? Well, when I was little my mother… Twilight sparkle would tuck me in. I would await her smile in the morning day. But before I went to bed she would always. Hug me and tell me she loved me.” Spike said as he rubbed a hand on her softer neck spikes. “hugs are a way of expressing your there for someone, You don’t need to say anything, just wrap up next to them and hug them. Let them know your there. Sometimes that is all it takes.”

“Then I like hugs.” Evergreen said as she shakily wrapped her thin arms around his neck hugging him back. Evergreen felt the warm feeling he was talking about. She liked it, it made her feel not so alone. Spike knew draco would kill him if he saw him like this. Thankfully he had sprinted for some time after evergreen. So they had quite the walk back. Evergreen looked up and her muzzle was oddly close to his. That was when spike had planted a kiss directly on her lips. Evergreens back spike started to glow green as he had done this. Then the glow shifted to a shade of pink and her tail curled up neck to him.

Opal had been walking the streets of Canterlot for a while now. She knew the castle would be off limits to her. After Luna had seen her guise she knew she would be beheaded for this crime. Opal didn’t exactly want to confront her with the situation. If luna knew exactly who she was she knew she would be immediately punished and killed. Opal wanted to express an apology but such things seemed unlikely right now.

“so you thought you could just hide forever Changeling.” The voice of Luna sounded behind her. Maybe she had no choice but to now. “I trusted you, we let you into our home. Now tell me where the real opal is.” Opal chuckled at how Luna had suggested Opal was actually a real pony. Like some changeling had kidnapped her just to take her appearance.

“Luna I am Opal, I was always of the changeling species.” Opal said as she turned and looked at Luna. There is just one problem though” Opal sighed. “I’m not a drone.” Opals body lit up in a raspberry aura as her body began to change. First her height increased and then her visual appearance showed who she really was.

“T-tamera~!” Luna said as she dropped the sword she had been holding. “You were here the whole time~!” Lunas voice filled with anger.

“Luna I know you think I was here using you all, I wasn’t I was here to get away from the war” Tamera said as she fluttered her bug wings. “I’m sorry, but I couldn’t have just walked in her and asked for the war to end. Chrysalis was going to take power one way or another. i just wanted out and your city was the safest. “

“My friendship with Opal was a lie, just so you could keep your cover~!” Luna said as she got even more frustrated, “I feel used~!”

“Luna that isn’t how it is. You are my friend, you always will be. You showed a changeling queen there is more to her life than eating love when she can just feel it~!” Tamera said as she stomped her front right hoof. “You showed me that others could care for a species so dark so cold. You showed me that my heart can feed itself. You showed me how to care. You made Opal who she is, you made me who I am.” Tamera’s eyes turned a shade of red and her horn started to glow. “I could eat every ounce of your life right now if I didn’t care~! I could suck you to the dryness of the raisins I ate in every god damn muffin you equines served me. I adapted to your food after vomiting it up every time I ate it. But I stomached it to be by you so you would think I was one of you. For a while there I truly believed I was a pony~!” Tamera’s eyes returned to their usual pink state. Luna was in awe she couldn’t believe the word the queen was saying. “You can go ahead and punish me for guising.” Tamera teared up and stomped her hoof again. “But remember the look in my eyes as you watch a friend die.”

“Tamera, you left your own species and hid for 13 successful years as a pony. You choose to stay here over returning to your loving followers.  I can’t believe the queen who killed so many of my friends is standing here calling me her friend. Stating she knows what love is now. I don’t see the same evil I saw when you killed my closest friends. I see the soul of an equine in the eyes of a changeling?” Luna said as she looked very confused. “You are right… you could kill me right now…But you’re not.” Luna said as she looked back at the castle that held the crystal heart.

“Luna I have never felt feelings before I came here. I was bent on bringing every single pony to their graves. That was until my changelings brought me a pony who had so much life in her eyes, they ate her alive in front of me and I watched such a life disappear before my eyes. I have seen ponies being eaten thousands of time before. The only difference is this pony died in vein. Her name… was pinkie pie and she told me before those changeling ripped her apart. She said…. I don’t hate you for what you are doing. I don’t see a monster… I see a friend I haven’t made yet.” Tamera said as tears filled her eyes. “I told those bugs to stop, they didn’t listen they just kept feasting. I wanted it to stop. I took my anger out on your yaks killing every last fucking one of them. When I got to the hive I killed every last one of the changeling who had hurt that beautiful pink mare. I made sure they died as painfully as she did. Then with the blood coating my muzzle I transformed internally. Something started beating in me that had remained nearly motionless my whole life. My heart was thudding deep inside me. I chose a form replicated the lashes of the pink pony’s eyes and made myself white with my mane and tail. I wanted the same life in my eyes that I saw in her. That’s why my eyes are as inviting as they were. That was they night I became opal. I abandoned the bustards who killed a beautiful form of life.” Tamera panted after expressing her transformation. Her whole body was getting overwhelmed with a warm feeling and sickliness.

“Opal.. I mean Tamera….What, whats wrong?” Luna said catching Tamera before she could fall to the ground.

“Chrysalis, she can feel my form.” Tamera said as she started to transform back to opal. “I forgot about our linked emotions. Apparently some changeling didn’t let go of our engagement.

Spike was walking with Evergreen back to Canterlot where her friends were camping out. Evergreen was slightly leaned against spike as she walked. Both for comfort and because she could only use three of her legs, Spike was caught off guard when in the distance a bright beam of light shot from the sky. The beam was coming approximately from where the changeling hive was located. Something was wrong and he could feel it.