Author's Note

Yay, another chapter! This also explains the age thing with Night Winger

The Search Goes On

"Any sign of him, yet, Dash?!" Shining Armor yelled up to Rainbow Dash from his balcony.

Rainbow shrugged with a shake of her head. "Nothing, yet."

Shining Armor lowered his head with a heavy sigh and went back into his room. "Okay."

"Shining?"

The distressed unicorn lifted his head, his alicorn sister entered the room.

"Yeah?"

Twilight approached him and placed a hoof on his shoulder. "I know it seems hopeless, but we will find him. I know we will."

Shining sighed again. "Why did he run away, though? We...we treated him right...didn't we?"

Twilight nodded. "Of course you did. I've been thinking of that as well...why would he run away? You were giving him more love than he would ever need! It just...seems fishy...I don't think he ran away."

"Well...we've still gotta find him!" Shining suddenly snapped. A long pause followed. "Look...I'm sorry for snapping...it's just..."

"I understand, Brother. You can't help but miss your son...I miss him too." Twilight sniffed. "I never thought I would have cared for a changeling so much."

Shining Armor gave a small nod of his head. "Thanks..."

"Wanna go look for him together? It's going to be dark out soon."

Shining nodded again. "Sure."

As they were about to head out of the room, the sky suddenly began to light up a bright orange.

Twilight, being Twilight, was curious and went over to the window.

"What's going on out there?"

Shining joined her, squinting his eyes. "It...looks like...a pony..."

"What? Where?"

Then sudden sound of crackling flames filled their ears, the glow becoming brighter, then the sound of clopping hooves in the room. Both Royal ponies had to cover their eyes due to the immense amount of light, and over the sound of flames came an angry, booming voice...

"WHERE IS HE?!?!"

*****

"Thank you," Chrysalis said To Zecora as she left her and Night Winger in peace.

Zecora nodded and went back downstairs.

Chrysalis closed the door behind her and sighed, staring at the lump on the bed covered in a purple blanket. "Night Winger?"

"What do you want?" he asked, sounding rather unamused.

"To apologize." Chrysalis said softly as she came to sit on the bed. "You know I love you...right?"

"Sure, when you lie to me all the time." Night Winger rolled his eyes.

Chrysalis lowered her head. "I don't...it's not...intentional...that I lie..."

"So you admit to lying? And if it isn't intentional, why do you do it?"

Chrysalis reached a hoof out to Night Winger. Beads of sweat rolled down her cheeks as her hoof hovered just above the covers.

"Well...it's part of the reason I don't really let you outside..."

"Why?"

Chrysalis sighed. "Well...our species...we're not very well liked...by anyone else. Dragons, ponies, diamond dogs, you name it. They hate us."

"What does that have to do with lying to me?!" Night Winger snapped, tears stinging his eyes.

"It's kind of hard to go and get love from the other species to feed you and the others when we're hated by everything living in Equestria, Night Winger!"

Again, Night Winger rolled his eyes. "They wouldn't hate us if you would try and break up a wedding just for power and TAKING love! That must be pretty embarrassing. You beat Celestia with a single hit, yet you STILL lose in the end."

Chrysalis gasped, taken back by this. "Well, what do you expect them to think?! We look like monsters to them, not only that, we come from the badlands! What kind of image do you think that gives us in the first place?! They've hated us even before I came to power! I only do the things I do because I love you! I wish I could just go and ask for love and be done with it, but that's not how it works!" Chrysalis yelled, standing from the bed.

"You got fed plenty with Shining, didn't you?"

Night Winger was silent.

"I hated leaving you to them ponies, but I knew they'd at least feed you! I hated myself for leaving you there! I didn't want to, but times were desperate and I couldn't let you die next!" Chrysalis continued to rant, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I love you, Night Winger! I don't lie to hurt you, I lie to keep you alive! You're my only child! You...You almost died on me already!" Chrysalis fell to the floor, burying her face into the side of the bed.

Night Winger looked down. Another thing he wasn't told about has been brought to light. Slowly, he removed the covers from his head, only to see his mother's face buried into the bed. "Almost died? What do you mean?"

Chrysalis took a few deep breaths, wiping her face of her tears and stands. "When you were born...the doctor...he dropped you!"

Night Winger gasped.

"Do you even know the chances of living through that?! Your skull...just pieces, not even given time to form together, and he dropped you! Your brain could have been turned to mush! I...you...you were in a coma! Unlike those ponies, we don't have high tech equipment to make sure you're okay! All we knew was that your heart was still beating..."

Night Winger turned his gaze down, only for his head to be lifted with Chrysalis's hoof.

"You were in a coma for two and a half years. Two and a half years I stayed in that room with you, praying you'd wake up soon. I stayed there at your bedside, holding your wee little hoof...it killed me each day to see you hardly clinging to life. At least we don't need food to survive...I could just feed you with any love my drones came back with. I was so thankful...when you opened your eyes...after those two years..."

"Mommy...I didn't know..." Night Winger muttered.

"I love you, Night Winger. You can choose to believe I don't...but whatever you think of me, hate me all you want...I'm not leaving you!" Chrysalis began crying again as she hugged her son tight. "I can't...I can't risk losing you..."

"I'm sorry, mamma!" Night Winger barely choked out before he began crying as well. "I love you, mamma, I'm so sorry!"

Chrysalis took a deep, shaken breath, tightening her hug. "I love you too...very...very much..."