“Spike, what are you doing? Get away from that thing!”
Thorax shuddered as a flood of negative emotions washed over him. He could have never imagined finding himself standing in the Throne Room of the Crystal Empire, let alone twice in one day. What little joy he could find from this situation, however, was quickly squashed by the herd of ponies in the room staring at him with apprehension, fear and, most of all, hatred. Everyone in the room wanted him, at best, banished from the city and, at worst, dead where he stood.
Everyone that is, except for Spike.
“He’s not a thing!” The young dragon protested, looking up at the changeling with a smile on his face. “His name is Thorax, and he’s my friend!”
A collective gasp filled the room, causing the cloud of fear hanging overhead to waver and weaken. However, the recess left behind was quickly replaced by a new emotion: disgust.
“Have you lost it, Spike?!” Shining shouted, aghast that Spike would even suggest such a thing. “It’s a changeling, nothing but a parasitic, love-sucking monster!”
“You’re wrong!” Spike shouted back. “He’s nothing like the other changelings! He saved my life, twice! All he wants is to be friends, and is that so wrong?”
Despite his pleas, they did nothing to placate or deter Shining Armor, who glared at Thorax with such hatred that Thorax knew that if looks could kill, he’d already have been dead three times over. “I see how it is. Clearly this changeling has already manipulated your mind, filling it with its lies.”
“No! That’s not true! Thorax would never—“
“Like I’d believe the words of a helpless thrall.” Gesturing to the surrounding guards, he pointed a hoof at Spike and Thorax. “Men, seize them both! Once we dispose of the changeling, its hold over Spike should disappear.”
As the Crystal Guards began to close in around them, Thorax wanted nothing more than to run as far away as he could and never look back. Yet, no matter how much he wanted to run, he couldn’t just leave Spike— his best friend— behind. Leaning down, he whispered, “Spike, maybe we should get out of here before—“
“I’m not going anywhere, Thorax. I won’t let them hurt you, I promise.”
“But, Spike—!”
“No. I won’t make the same mistake twice.” Placing himself between Thorax and the advancing guards, Spike held out his arms and shouted, “STOP!”
Amazingly, the Crystal Guards halted in place, silence filling the air as they all gawked at Spike. Taking a chance, Spike pleaded, “Please, you have to believe me. Thorax might be a changeling, but that doesn’t mean he’s evil. Is it so hard to believe that a changeling could change?”
Dropping his arms back to his side, he balled up his claws into fists. “I know you all treat me like some kind of brave hero, but what kind of hero abandons their friend when they needed them the most, all because I was afraid that I might stop being so ‘Brave and Glorious’ to all of you? That’s not brave, that’s just selfish.
“I never asked to be treated like a hero, but right now I don’t care about any of that. Cause right now all I’m asking you to do is trust me. Thorax is my friend, and I swear to Celestia that I won’t abandon him again!”
Spike’s words appeared to resonate with the guards, who glanced at one other, conflicting emotions passing across their faces.
“What are you all waiting for!?” Shining Armor demanded when none of the guards made any attempts to apprehend the pair. “I gave you an order!”
“B-but… but what if Spike’s telling the truth?” One of the Guards asked. “What if the changeling really is—“
“There’s no such thing as a nice changeling!” Shining shouted, his voice echoing through the throne room as he reared up and slammed his front hooves into the tiled floor, shattering them beneath his hooves and causing everyone is the room to jump in fright. “Those things kidnapped Cadance, cast a spell on me and tried to invade Canterlot! Now do as I ordered, before I have you court-martialled!”
Sparing a glance at Spike, the dragon looking up at him with pleading eyes, the same Guard took a deep breath, his mind already made up. “No.”
Shining Armor looked liked he’d just been slapped across the face. “I… I beg your pardon, soldier!?”
“No,” The Crystal Guard repeated, clear conviction in his voice. “If Spike says this changeling is his friend, then I believe him. And any friend of Spike the Brave and Glorious is a friend of mine.”
Shining growled, grinding his teeth together as he glared at the Crystal Pony. “I’ll deal with your insubordination later. The rest of you, arrest the three of them! Now!”
The remaining guards shared a glance, looking back and forth between Spike, Thorax, their fellow guard and their furious Prince/Commanding Officer. It took a moment, but they all knew what they had to do.
As one, they all stepped away from Spike and Thorax, standing off to the side and standing still as statues like they were trained to.
“Traitors! Fine, I’ll deal with this myself!” Igniting his horn with magic, Shining stepped forward, his eyes trained on Spike. “Spike, I know this thing is controlling you, but if you can hear me, then I need you to step aside. I don’t want to hurt you, but I can’t let this spy get away.”
“I already told you, Thorax hasn’t done anything to me and he’s not a spy.” Holding out his arms once more, Spike tried to make himself as tall as possible, the look in his eyes making it clear he wasn’t budging. “I won’t let you hurt him. If you want him, you’re going to have to go through me first!”
Shining’s scowl only darkened. “Despicable bug, using a child as a hostage. If you think I’ll let you escape after coming after my family, you’re sadly mistaken!”
This is all my fault, Thorax thought as he watched the standoff between Spike and the enraged Shining Armor, the unicorn gathering more magic as he prepared to launch a spell.
For as long as he could remember, all Thorax had ever wanted was a friend, yet now that he had one all he’d done was cause them no end of trouble. Yet, if there was one thing Thorax had learned about being friends, it was that friends didn’t run away when they needed them the most. Spike has already made it clear that he wasn’t going to run away, so I promise to do the same. I’ll protect Spike, no matter what!
Suddenly, a voice spoke up from the back of the room. “Shining, that’s enough. Stand down.”
Shining Armor spun around, a fierce tongue lashing already forming for the pony that had dared think they could order him around. Yet, all of that disappeared off his tongue when he came face to face with his younger sister, staring at him with disapproval. “Tw-Twiley? What you are doing? You can’t honestly believe this thing’s lies!”
Twilight’s eyes never left her brother, nor did her clear disapproval directed at him diminish. “Whether he’s lying or not will be mine to judge, Prince Shining Armor.”
Hearing Twilight refer to him by his full title chilled Shining Armor to the bone. Being self-conscious of ponies referring to her as “Princess” or “Your Highness”, Twilight sympathized with how he felt about it. To use his title like that could only mean that Shining Armor wasn’t speaking to his little sister anymore, but to a crown princess of Equestria.
Stepping forward, Princess Twilight Sparkle stopped in front of her brother, her own horn alight with the magenta glow of her magic. “I won’t ask again, Prince Armor. Stand. Down.”
Twilight’s voice shook with such authority that Shining could do nothing but comply, hanging his head as the glow of his magic blinked out. Stepping aside, he said nothing as Twilight walked passed him and towards Spike and Thorax.
Although Shining Armor had stepped down, Thorax didn’t feel any safer as Twilight cantered towards them, her emotions a complete mystery to him as she came closer. He had been there to witness Twilight’s power first hoof when she had blasted his fellow changelings during the invasion of Canterlot, and that had been back when she’d been a unicorn. As an alicorn, there was no telling how much power she could bring to bare, especially if she decided he needed to be dealt with.
Coming to a stop, she looked down at Spike, who for the first time truly felt small before Twilight. “Please, Twilight. You have to believe me. Thorax is—“
“I know, Spike,” Twilight said with a smile, pulling her Number One Assistant into a hug. “I believe you and I’m so proud of you.”
“You… you are?”
“Yes. While all of us were so quick to judge someone based on what they were, you were the only one brave enough to discover who they were. As the Princess of Friendship, I should know not to judge someone like that, but it seems even I still have things to learn about friendship.” Releasing Spike, Twilight turned her attention to the changeling in the room. “Spike said that your name was Thorax, right?”
Thorax’s jaw hung open as he stood before the princess, shocked that she was giving him a chance and not blasting him into ash. “Y-yes, your Highness!” He finally managed to sputter out once he’d found his voice.
“Please, just call me Twilight,” Twilight said, radiating a calming aura that helped put Thorax at ease. “Well then, Thorax, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Smiling, she held out her hoof to him.
Thorax flinched as he felt a familiar feeling wash over him. Kindness! Can’t… hiss! Biting his lip and breathing deeply through his nose, Thorax reached out and shook Twilight’s hoof. Once the feeling had passed, he was finally able to speak. “Th-the pleasure is all mine, Your Hig— Twilight. I’ve always dreamed of getting to meet you, ever since I first saw you and your friends.”
Tilting her head slightly, Twilight appeared confused. “And where was that?”
Thorax froze, pulling away as his eyes widened with terror as he realized his mistake. Idiot! She was willing to give me a chance and I had to go and ruin it! After what Chrysalis did, she’ll never trust me. What do I say, what do I—
Just before he could devolve into a panic attack, Thorax felt something tap against his side. Looking over, he saw Spike standing next to him, grinning up at him. “Don’t worry, Thorax. I got your back.”
“Spike…” Having Spike by his side filled him with sudden confidence, enough that he was able to reply, “In Canterlot… during the changeling invasion.”
“So you admit it!” Shining yelled from across the room, the fires of hatred in his eyes burning once more. “You were there when the changelings attacked! Do you have any idea how much damage you caused, how many lives your kind put in harm's way? I bet you don’t even care, do you?!”
“But I do!” Thorax screamed, startling everyone in the room. Following his outburst, Thorax took a moment to breathe before explaining, “Yes, I don’t deny I was there, but even then I refused to participate. All I could do was watch as changelings ransacked the city and just watching made me sick. Then…” Pausing, he turned to look at Twilight, with what was unmistakably a smile across his face. “Then I saw you and your friends.
“You were just six ponies, surrounded on all sides by changelings and outnumbered ten to one, and yet all of you refused to surrender. Even when they transformed into copies of you and your friends in order to confuse you, your trust in each other never wavered, you watched each other’s back and pushed through. And it wasn’t just you. All over Canterlot I saw ponies putting themselves in harm's way to protect those they cared for.” With a sigh, he hung his head in shame. “No changeling would ever even think of doing something like that.”
“But you did,” Twilight said, reaching out and putting her hoof on Thorax’s shoulder.
Nodding, Thorax turned his head to peer out the windows of the throne room. “After the Changelings were repelled from Canterlot, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Eventually, I knew I didn’t belong with the other Changelings, so I fled the hive. I wandered all over Equestria, searching for someone who I could be friends with, but no matter where I went, everyone always ran away from me. ” Thorax wilted, his ears drooping. “I guess I can’t blame them, given what Chrysalis did.”
Pushing Twilight’s hoof away, Thorax turned his back to her, not able to look her in the eye anymore. “I know what Chrysalis did to you, Princess, so I know you must hate her even now. I understand if you can’t trust a changeling like me because of her.”
There was a long silence before Twilight spoke again, her voice clear and concise. “You’re right about one thing, Thorax. I do hate Chrysalis. She kidnapped Cadance, brainwashed my brother and manipulated him to turn everyone against me, attacked the city I grew up in and hurt my mentor. Chrysalis has done everything in her power to attack the ponies I cared about most: my family.”
Thorax braced himself, already knowing what she was going to say next. Which is why I can never trust a changeling after what she’s done.
“Which is why I’d like to ask you if you’d like to be my friend.”
“W…WHAT?!” Spinning around, Thorax stared at Twilight, sputtering as he tried to process what he’d just heard. “But… but… how…”
“Thorax, you are not Chrysalis,” Twilight said, her compassion towards him washing away any lingering feelings of doubt in the air. “You are your own po— er, changeling, capable of making your own decisions. And from what I’ve seen, you’ve done everything you could to not be her.”
“But… but I was there in Canterlot during the invasion!”
“And yet, by your own admission, you refused to participate, correct?”
“Yes, but…” Sputtering, Thorax couldn’t understand what was happening. “How… how can you forgive me so easily?”
“Because there’s nothing to forgive, Thorax. Despite what happened in the past, I can tell that Spike was telling the truth when he said all you wanted was a friend. And because sometimes…” Looking over her shoulder, Twilight met Starlight’s eye, smiling at her student. “Sometimes all we need is a friend to help us down the right path.”
“Twilight…” Whatever feelings of animosity Starlight might have felt towards Thorax were replaced with sympathy. As always, Twilight was right. It wasn’t that long ago that Starlight had been guilty of much worse, and yet Twilight had still looked past that and offered to be both her friend and mentor. If Twilight could look past that and give her a second chance, then Starlight knew she could do the same for a changeling.
During all this, Shining Armor was beyond livid, his anger threatening to explode as he stood there and watched Twilight make friends with a changeling. How… how can she buy this thing’s lies?! He even admitted he was in league with Chrysalis and she still wants to be friends with him? Twilight, you can be so naïve!
With everyone’s eyes on Thorax, no one noticed as Shining Armor’s horn began to glow, arcane energy sparking as he readied a combat spell. I’m not going to just stand by and let these things threaten my family again. Once it’s gone, the hold it has on Spike will vanish, and then everyone will see that I was right! And if Twilight and Spike think they can get in my way, then I’ll—
In an instant, his magic blinked out, ice filling Shining Armor’s veins as a look of absolute horror crossed his face. For a moment, driven by his anger and desire to make the changeling pay for what Chrysalis had done… he had been fully willing to harm Twilight and Spike to do it. What… what am I thinking? I could never hurt them!
Twilight was his sister, his beloved “Little Sister Best Friend Forever” and Spike might as well have been his nephew considering how much Twilight cared for him. And yet, the very idea that he could hurt either them if they got in his way had still passed through his head, and what was worse… he had actually considered it, if but for a moment.
It… it must be the changeling! He put that thought in my head to make me hurt them! Yet, even fuelled by anger, Shining knew in the depths of his soul that he was lying to himself. That thought had been his and his alone. What… what do I do? I can’t risk letting a changeling harm anypony again… but not if I have to hurt the ones I love to do it. Shining Armor wanted nothing more than to scream in frustration until he couldn’t anymore.
“I agree with Twilight,” After remaining silent throughout, Cadance finally stepped forward, standing tall as she approached. “Which is why, on behalf of the Crystal Empire, I would like to grant you asylum in the Crystal Empire, Thorax.”
“Cadance!” Shining Armor didn’t know if he could take much more of this madness. “What are you doing? You can’t—“
“However, this will come with some conditions.” Though her tone was still one of compassion, there was no mistaking the authority behind it. “While I am willing to grant you the benefit of the doubt, trust is something that you will have to earn with time. As such, a Crystal Guard will accompany you wherever you go, and we are to know where you are at all times. Many areas of the castle will be off-limits to you, and the Crystal Ponies will need to be notified of your presence before you will be allowed to leave the castle. As long as you follow these, you will be allowed to stay in the Crystal Empire. What do you say, Thorax?”
Thorax was at a loss for words, unable to stop himself from tearing up. “I… I… Thank you, Princess.”
“Bah?”
Everyone turned to look at the back of the room, specifically at Sunburst and the carrier that hovered beside him. During all this, Sunburst had been content to sit back and keep watch over Flurry Heart, who, despite all the commotion, had somehow not been disturbed. Now awake, the foal happily gurgled as she looked around the room, her eyes eventually falling on the unfamiliar figure in the room. Giggling, the alicorn foal lit up her horn, poofing out of her carrier before anyone could try and stop her and reappearing on the other side of the room…
… Right onto Thorax’s face.
‘WAAAHHH!” Unprepared for having a foal suddenly latch onto his face, Thorax stumbled back, falling flat onto his behind and only narrowly avoiding rolling onto his back. Shaking off the shock, he could only stare at the small bundle of fur and feathers currently stuck between his eyes. “Um… hi?”
Flurry Heart cooed and gurgled as she held onto Thorax’s face, flapping her wings as love poured out of her. So… much… love… was all Thorax could think as his body soaked up all the excess love. Had Thorax been capable of coherent thought at that moment, he might have compared it to the sensational of sunbathing on a hot rock, lying back as his carapace soaked up the sun’s rays.
“Alright, Flurry Heart,” Trying to hold in her laughter, Twilight walked up to the pair. “That’s enough, now come to Aunty Twilight.” Though Flurry Heart struggled against Twilight’s magic, she was inevitably pulled loose from Thorax, unhappily babbling before she was lowered into Twilight’s arms.
With her niece taken care of, Twilight smiled as she turned her attention back to Thorax. “Well, Thorax, I’m looking forward to getting a chance to speak with you more. I have so many questions about changelings that I’m eager to ask. Ooh!” Twilight’s eyes lit up as she began to hop in place from excitement. “I could even write a paper on it! I could be the first pony to ever write a paper on the study of changelings!”
“See, Thorax?” Spike said, patting the changeling on the back. “I told you everything would work out, and you get to stay in the Crystal Empire. Isn’t that great?” When he didn’t get an answer, Spike looked up. “Uh… Thorax? You okay?
Thorax just sat there, a blank look on his face as he mumbled to himself, his tongue hanging out the side of his mouth. Even when Spike poked and prodded him in the side, he didn’t react. “Uh… I think Flurry Heart broke him.”
As Spike and everyone else tried to snap Thorax out of his love induced state, Shining Armor stood back, unable to take his eyes off the scene before him, but unable to do anything about it. In a matter of minutes, his entire world had been shaken to the very core, and Shining Armor didn’t know what was right anymore. Am I right for wanting to keep my family safe from a potential danger, or is Twilight right for befriending a creature that has yet to do anything wrong? But it’s a changeling, and they’re incapable of any sort of empathy and remorse…right?
He jumped when he felt something against his back, looking over to find Cadance standing next to him, her wing draped across his back as she looked at him with concern in her eyes.
“Shining… You’re awfully quiet all of a sudden.”
Scowling, Shining Armor looked away. “This is a bad idea. We have no idea what its intentions are. He could be a precursor to another invasion for all we know!”
“I know that, Shining. However, I wasn’t lying when I said he’d have to earn my trust. Even though Spike and Twilight are both willing to trust him, I still have a duty to the Crystal Ponies to keep them safe. But, based on what I’ve seen, he appears to be harmless.”
“Harmless?” Shining Armor just scoffed, glaring at Thorax. “You can never tell with their kind.”
Now it was Cadance’s turn to scowl, though for an entirely different reason. Lighting her horn, Shining felt the prickle of magic against his fur, the sounds around him slowly diminishing into barely audible background noise. Shining knew this spell; it was a privacy spell, allowing those surrounded by it to have a conversation without fear of being overheard. Turning his head, Shining Armor found himself caught by his wife’s gaze.
“There, now that we won’t be disturbed, I think it’s time you told me what’s really wrong.”
“Wh-what?” Shining Armor sputtered, taken aback. “There’s nothing else—“
“Yes, there is,” Cadance firmly replied. “I saw you not once, but twice prepare to unleash a potentially lethal spell, even with Spike in the crossfire! If Twilight hadn’t stopped you when she did, then I would have.” When Shining Armor didn’t say anything further, her features noticeable relaxed as she asked, “This is about more than just the changelings, isn’t it?”
Looking away, Shining Armor said nothing, minutes passing without a word from him. Just as Cadance was about to trying asking him again, he finally spoke, his voice drenched in regret as he said, “… I couldn’t protect anyone.”
Cadance said nothing, too shocked by Shining’s words to think of anything to say in response. Taking advantage of her silence, Shining Armor went on, his eyes becoming unfocused as he spoke. “When Twilight was just a filly, I promised her I’d keep her safe. As she’s gotten older, she’s needed my protection less and less, but I wouldn’t have hesitated to step in the moment she was danger. Yet, when she needed me the most, I instead made her cry and turned my back on her.
“Then, when I joined the Royal Guard, and again when I became Captain, I swore an oath to defend Canterlot, the Princess and everypony in Canterlot and all across Equestria. But once Chrysalis dug her hooks into me, it was because of me that the city was attacked and everyone in it put in danger.
“And then, when I fell in love with you, I promised that I would keep you safe no matter what. Yet, I failed you before we could even get married, completely unaware as you were kidnapped, replaced by an absurdly obvious imposter and imprisoned in some dark caves, all alone.
“On that day, I failed in my duties as an older brother, as Captain of the Royal Guard… and as a husband.” Shining pulled away from Cadance, her wing sliding off his back. “I promised myself I wouldn’t ever let something like that happen again, even if…” He briefly looked to Twilight and Spike, before looking down at the floor in shame. “…Even if I had to go through anyone who stood in my way to do it.”
Shining Armor’s words hung in the air, his shame finally laid bare. Ever since he’d been a colt, all he’d wanted to do was protect ponies and keep them safe. It was his special talent, the very thing that embodied his cutie mark, his destiny. And yet, he had failed in protecting everyone he cared about at every turn. What good was he if he couldn’t accomplish the very thing he was destined to do?
He was snapped out his grief by a warm feeling against his cheek, the unmistakable feeling of Cadance’s kiss. Turning his head again to stare at his wife, he was even more surprised to find her smiling up at him, compassion reflected in her eyes.
“You should have told me you felt this way sooner, but I guess you’ve always been one to keep your feelings close to your heart, projecting the image of the big, strong Captain to all your men. It’s one of the reasons I fell in love with you, after all.” Smiling mischievously, she added, “Well, that and you can be just so awkwardly adorable!”
The downside to having white fur was it did nothing to hide the blush spreading across Shining Armor’s face. “C-Cadance!” Shining sputtered, his brain momentarily skipping from his wife’s teasing.
Having had her fun for now, Cadance switched back to her previous serious self. “Shining, I need you to listen to me; nobody blames you for what happened that day, especially me.”
“But—” Shining’s protests were quickly silenced by Cadance putting her hoof over his mouth.
“No buts!” Cadance narrowed her eyes at him as she continued. “You couldn’t have known something like that would happen, and you were as much a victim as any of us. Twilight, Auntie Celestia and me all agreed that what happen wasn’t your fault. Besides…”
Removing her hoof from Shining’s lips, Cadance leaned in and nuzzled against his neck. “When Sombra attacked the Empire, who was it who stood watch over me, keeping me safe while I kept the barrier around the city up? And who also was it who went out to make sure Twilight and her friends made it here safely, even going so far as to face off against Sombra, alone, in order to buy them time to cross the barrier into the city?”
Instead of waiting for an answer, Cadance reached up and bopped Shining on the nose. “You did, the silly pony who I couldn’t possibly love any more than I already do. My very own knight in ‘Shining Armor’.”
Despite wanting to groan at the pun, for the first since word had reached him about a changeling in the Crystal Empire, Shining Armor felt genuinely happy, leaning over and kissing Cadance on the cheek. “What did I ever do to deserve someone as wonderful as you?”
“I could ask you the same thing,” Cadance replied, snuggling up closer.
Looking back at Thorax, Shining watched as the changeling came back to his senses, everyone sharing a laugh at Thorax’s bewildered state. “I still don’t like this,” he said, his good mood diminishing slightly.
“I know, Shining, but I’m asking you to try and give him a chance. Even if you can’t bring yourself to trust him, at least try and trust me on this. Please?”
With a sigh, Shining Armor knew that as much as he hated Chrysalis and the changelings, he loved his wife even more. “I’ll try, Cady. I’ll try.”
Author's Note
No lie, I literally dreamed this up one night and just knew I had to write it. I also wrote this at the same time I was writing my other story, A Chat Between a King and a Prince, so if they seem similar, that's why.
