Sunset Shimmer’s POV
Ms. Cheerilee’s Classroom
3:01 PM

“I think, if there’s nothing else,” Story told us after looking around for anyone to do or say anything else. “We can say that all of you guys are able to finish a long rest. Put your HP to full and get your spells ready. Rainbow Dash? Fluttershy? If you’re changing your spells, do it now.”

“Wait, both of you get to change them out?” Rarity blinked. “I thought only Fluttershy got to do it.”

“Uh-uh.” Rainbow grinned while Fluttershy got to work. “And all of mine are cool too! I can do cooler smites or other fancy stuff. I don’t get too many though.”

“How many do you have?” I asked.

“Uhhh.” Rainbow paused to count out what she set up. “I can pick three.”

Story paused his own work from behind his screen. “Three? No, it’s four.”

“What?” Rainbow Dash stared at her stuff for a few seconds. “Since when?”

“Since always?” Story blinked. “What’s your Charisma bonus?”

“Three.” Rainbow Dash nodded. “That’s the number of spells I get.”

“Three, plus half your level. So, four.” Story frowned. “You choose four spells each day.”

“Oh...Oh!” Rainbow Dash scooped up a pencil. “Awesome, I get another one of these!”

“Woohoo! Mini level-up!” Pinkie cheered. “Anyone else have something they haven’t gotten to use yet?”

Pinkie kept up the positivity, keeping everyone smiling in preparation for what was to come. For the most part, it worked. These few short scenes felt like those talks during lunch. Where things were simpler. And everyone was all the better for it.

But Twilight was having a little trouble as she kept to herself most of the time. Vareén was unconscious, meaning that most of what our characters talked about was garbled. But that wasn’t the issue. If it was, Fluttershy might have been in the same headspace.

Instead, Twilight was staring holes through the table. I couldn’t tell what was going through her mind, but she had been getting progressively more distracted since the game started. What made it worse was that when she caught one of the others looking, she put on a fake smile and dodged the attention with a few quick words.

“Hey, Twilight?” I spoke quietly, letting Pinkie’s boisterous words and Rarity and Fluttershy’s debate over spells for Thorn drown me out to the others.

“Hmm? Oh.” Twilight straightened up, putting on another fake smile. This time for me. “Sorry. Another Nothic thing. I’m okay now.”

“Ya sure?” My brow tightened. “Because you’re not spacing out like before. What’s up? Is confronting the Nothic making you nervous?”

Her fake smile didn’t last long after that. Since we were sitting beside each other, she turned to me fully and showed me her real expression. She was so miserable. “Possibly? I-It’s more about Vareén. It came after my memories through her, and I’m realizing that Vareén doesn’t have many memories. I gave her a happier one, but...it was so small. I didn’t have time to do what you and Applejack did. And, I keep thinking about how alone she must feel in there.”

I smiled at her. “Come on, she’s not alo—” but then I saw Twilight get more depressed. And it hit me. Vareén avoids everybody. That’s all she knows. Even if Ravathyra or Glemerr act exactly as they do when played, Vareén would avoid them.

Kind of reminds me of somebody.

“Do you want some help?”

She gave me a look. “How? Aren't we in the middle of the game? I can’t just expand on the memory now.”

“I don’t think you have to.” I winked. “Watch.”

I sat up. “Hey, DM?”

He glanced over, having helped explain a few of the druid spells for Fluttershy, and when he saw me, he winced a little. “Uh, yeah?”

You’ll be next, I decided. “Can I do something after we finish a long rest?”

Story quickly fell back in his role and nodded along. “The floor is yours. What would you like to do?”

I ignored any forming stage fright from the watchers around us and rolled up my jacket to start knocking on the table like a door. Then, as Stostine, I spoke. “Uh, Vareén? Vareén, are you awake? Stonehill is offering to make us breakfast. I wanted to make sure you had a chance to get something before Glemerr ate it all.”

“Onwy da bac’uun!” Pinkie shouted while keeping her knuckle between her teeth, bringing the others to chortle along.

Twilight looked back at me and I just kept smiling. “Your call,” I told her, breaking character for a second.

After a second or two, she smiled back and sat forward. She thought about the setup for a second and used Pinkie’s little bacon trick as an idea. Twilight picked up her backpack, sans Spike, and put it against her face.

“Go away.” It was Vareén’s voice. It sounded muffled. Like underneath a pillow.

“I-I could not quite hear that.” I rolled my eyes. “One second, I am coming in.”

“What?! Uh, no! No, no— and. I think Vareén would tumble out of her bed,” she narrated at Story. Earning a bunch of laughter from the others.

Story held up his arms and, convincingly, made the sound of a body tumbling around while mimicking the movement. We then heard Sweetie Belle trying to mimic the sound from the other side.

“An echo in here,” Story joked, earning a snicker.

“Sorry.”

“Stostine’s opening the door.”

“I think Vareén would’ve locked it.” Twilight smirked, knowing that wouldn’t work.

“Uh-huh. DM?” “Unfortunately, Vareén didn’t go to bed herself,” Story followed our lead. “Glemerr? Did you lock the door?”

“I don’t know how she'd do that,” Pinkie said in mock innocence. “How else would she leave the room?”

“The door opens just fine,” Story translated, giving me a smirk. He even forgot his fear for a second.

“What do I see?” I asked her.

Twilight smiled fully. She then imagined Vareén’s living space as she spoke. “Inside, you would find the arm of Vareén pulling down her blanket over herself from behind the bed. And, just hearing the door open, she would probably cry out in a panic—”

Stostine Swordhand’s POV
Stonehill Inn, Upstairs Bedroom

“Get out!” Vareén cried from behind the bed frame. “Get out! I don’t want you in here!”

I quickly rushed in, ignored her cries, and rounded the bed. She was wadded up on the floor with the blanket covering every inch of her body. Right away, I was looking on the bed for signs of blood or anything that might hint at her condition. And when I couldn’t see it, I looked down at the person at my feet.

“Vareén, are you okay?!”

“I will be once you get out!”

“Stostine!” Glemerr shouted out from downstairs. “Ah heard a bang! Is Vareén all good?!”

“Uh.” I glanced back at Vareén. “Well—”

“Tell her I’m fine!” Vareén said, now in a hushed whisper. “Tell her anything, just don’t let her in here! Don’t let anyone in!”

“...Yep!” I shouted back. “Everything’s good! It was me, I just. Dropped something.” I bit my lip. Not my best lie. “We will be down soon!”

“Okay! We’ll be waiting for ya downstairs! Hurry, err yer breakfast will be gone by, uh, Platick!...It’s convincin’! What, yer sayin’ ya don’t eat?”

I walked over and closed Vareén’s door, taking a moment to enjoy the silence. And then I heard cloth shifting behind me.

“You’re supposed to be on the other side.”

I turned around, seeing Vareén staring back at me. Her blanket hung off her like her cloak, complete with a hood. It kept me from seeing much of her. Just her face hidden by shadows.

“I still need to know you are okay,” I told her. “I was with you last night. Those were not injuries anyone walks away from.”

I watched Vareén’s shoulders slump from under her cloak. “Fine.”

She stood up at her full height and pulled the blanket out so I could see her in full. After Glemerr finished bandaging her wounds, she had put one of Vareén’s outfits on before putting her to bed. It was the first time I had seen her without armor. Her clothes were surprisingly cute.

A muted green tunic with a basic leaf design around the cuffs of the sleeves and her trousers were a thick, dark brown fabric that looked focused on comfort. It had this detailed flower design stitched along the left pant leg and looked like they could be secured to fit underneath armor. It also had these laces around the side which could be loosened to adjust the pant legs for whatever reason.

What stood out the most though was this leather belt she had around her waist. It was at an angle for no reason other than aesthetics and tucked into notches in multiple places were bear claws, tied with different colors of leather cords. The notches were to keep them from dangling, but it looked like the cords could let them dangle if Vareén so chose. I know Glemerr didn’t put that on her. The pants and belt were probably what she had last night.

“Wow. I never knew you dressed like that,” I remarked. “I would have expected something plain.”

“Gee. Thanks.” Vareén lowered her blanket back around her, hiding the clothes once more. “Now get out.”

“I-I didn’t mean that as an insult.” I held out my hands. “I mean, they look pretty, is all.”

Vareén said nothing, but a tinge of color showed up on her cheeks.

I took a moment to steel myself. “Before I leave. I have a question.”

“I don’t care.”

“You were...shot,” I told her. “Multiple times.”

“I know. I was there.”

The corner of my mouth pulled to the side. “I mean, in the chest. Twice. I was pretty sure they both hit vital organs.”

“Obviously not,” Vareén told me. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t be talking to you. Probably your weird mood swings making you see things.”

I mean. I paused. That is always an option...But no. I’m sure of it. “I remember what I saw. You even said it was hard to breathe with one of them. You even removed them like they were bad splinters.”

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Vareén said. Her tone never changed. “They sucked. They were in the way of my shot, but not anywhere vital. You were hearing things. And it was dark.”

“Not dark enough.” I folded my arms, but the usual effect was gone. My torn sleeve was still in my backpack. I didn’t want to bother Sister Garaele when she was still resting, so it wasn’t repaired yet. “I know what I saw.”

Vareén closed her eyes and made a point to take in a breath, hold it, and then release. She stared at me. “Fine. Let’s play this game. How did you see anything? We both know you didn’t need that light.”

“The light was more to lure the Redbrands awa—” “Not that,” She cut off. “How can you see in the dark? Humans can’t.”

“I believe we have already gotten over this. Platick has asked me about this in front of everybody.”

“And you skirted the question. Like now.” Vareén crossed her arms. “Tell me something. Do you think I wanna talk about me? When you don’t even want to? Because I value my privacy as much as you value yours.”

“Is that a fact?”

“Confidently.”

The two of us just stood there, trying to convince the other to crack with our stares alone. By this point, I knew Vareén enough. Pressure didn't exist with her. It only existed for everyone around her.

Platick wanted to be the same way, but it didn’t work. He couldn’t stay quiet. If you annoy him, he will put his foot in his mouth. Maybe it was underhanded using a tactic like that. I fully admit that. But given what I thought I knew about the Fortunas, I had to know the kind of person he was. And it worked well. The knife at my throat didn’t draw too much blood.

But Vareén was different. She didn’t like talking. Hated it, in fact. If anyone probed her, Vareén shut down. She did a few times already. The only reason she was still talking was I had her backed into a corner. Which signaled to her that I trusted her enough not to kill me for doing so.

When prey has its back to the wall, it will do whatever it can, I thought. Probably another underhanded thing to think of, but I was right. Vareén was defensive. This might’ve been the first time I heard her pull the ‘no you’ card against me. And it went for the throat.

I didn’t dare look away from her eyes. I was wise enough to glance around her room before talking to her. Vareén rented it for herself and despite only sleeping here one night and recovering on another, it already promoted her person.

Her closet was left open and, judging by how the rest of the room was, that wasn’t Glemerr’s fault. She had more than one extra outfit, which from what I understood was uncommon for mercenaries. They were all the same setup too; a cloth shirt and looser leather pants that could be adjusted for use under armor.

She had a couple of arrows propped up against her bed in a way to make it easy to grab them. Her bow and sword would likely be the same but Glemerr was the one who returned them after tending to Vareén’s injuries.

Everything else though, was somehow both untidy and sparse. Dresser drawers were left ajar and the desk had some sort of hunting trap disassembled and cluttering the space. Surrounding that were the decorations of the room that were noticeably messed with. As if Vareén casually pulled aside picture frames and checked behind furniture for signs of, I don’t know, life?

All of it spelled out a very paranoid woman who kept what she needed to live on standby.

“Well?” Vareén narrowed her eyes. By now, maybe half a minute passed of neither of us breaking eye contact. “If that’s all, out. You saved my life and that’s the only reason I’m not forcing you.”

I nodded to myself. “That’s just it. You saved my life as well. Even when you could have run away.” I turned around and stepped in front of the door. “Your privacy is as important.” I turned the deadbolt. “Just as much as mine.”

Behind me, I heard Vareén breathing. It was...shaky. It was hard to tell, but I was certain of it.

I spun around. “I want to build on that. Because I get the feeling that what you are going through is very similar to me.” I walked towards the chair that was set up in the corner of the room.

“Somehow, I severely doubt that,” Vareén told me. Still, her voice was now wavering. Something that made me confused as I sat down.

“I don’t think so,” I pressed. “I keep what I am close to my chest. And aside from possibly three other people, no one knows what I am. Because you, and Platick I suppose, are right in your suspicion. I’m not human.”

Vareén slowly stepped back, leaning herself against the bedpost furthest from me. Her eyes never left me. “Okay. Fine. I’ll bite. What do you want out of this?”

“In a word? A friend.” I gave her a sad smile. I saw her start to roll her eyes and I sighed. “Yes. I know how that sounds. But it’s the truth. You’re the first person who seems a lot like me and I just want to find someone I can talk to about these things.”

“I am nothing like you, Stostine,” she told me. “Not in the slightest.”

“But you are,” I told her. “I’m not human, and I have a very strong feeling that you’re not an elf.”

“And your weird delusion that I was shot in the chest is your only proof of that?”

“Well that and the fact that you’re the only elf I’ve ever heard of that sleeps,” I told her, motioning to the bed she was sleeping on.

“I was unconscious from the pain. Not asleep.”

“And all the times during camp?” I frowned. “You climbed up a tree and slept on a branch, but I’m starting to think that wasn’t to avoid us.”

“It was to keep an eye over the entire camp,” she excused. I didn’t buy it and we both knew it.

“Look.” I focused my thoughts for a second. “You saved my life. You could have run away. And when you learned that that family was kidnapped, you didn’t run then either. You have a good heart. And your head’s in the right place. Despite whatever this front is you keep up. Whatever you are, I won’t turn and run. And I won’t betray my own words.”

Slowly, Vareén crossed her arms. “You really think that? Do you really think you can actually go through on that promise? Sometimes there’s a new level of terrible that people never expect until they see it.”

I folded my hands together on my knee. “Let me ask you this then. Vareén. Are you an undead?”

“What?” She scoffed. “No. If I were, do you think I’d take my chances near Rava? Or even the cleric in town?”

I merely smiled. “Then it’s fine. Whatever you are, I know that you are a good person. I have nothing to be afraid of.” I took the chance to take out my severed sleeve from under my robe. Sister Garaele hadn’t woken up yet and I wasn’t about to wake her up just to fix my clothes.

Vareén then watched as I tossed the sleeve, and the arcane focus connected to it, onto her bed. It was now closer to her than it was to me. “If you want, I can go first.”

I watched her size me up further. My crossbow was still downstairs. And she could easily overpower me with her nearby sword if I drew a dagger. Not that I was good with it in the first place.

“Alright, fine.” Vareén nodded. “You first. But I’ll decide if it’s enough. If it isn’t then all you’re getting from me is knowing I’m not an elf. Deal?”

I nodded back. “Deal.”

I took a second to prepare myself, putting all my thoughts together as They rested their hands on the back of my chair. ‘Are you certain of this, child?’ Tabbrius asked me. Vareén made no reaction to their arrival or voice. ‘Many would take full advantage of what you are.’

I took a deep breath, smiling and nodding once towards Vareén. It was meant for them.

‘Very well.’ I felt their presence back up, but still there. ‘Whatever may come, be ready. You did lock yourself in here with this one.’

“I know,” I said aloud, earning a much more tense stare from Vareén.

“Know what?” She asked. “Who are you talking to?”

“My friend,” I told her. “Only I can hear them.”

Vareén looked like she wanted to take that chance to control the conversation, but I carried on.

“Now then. Hello Vareén,” I said, unbothered as I looked up at her. “Allow me to introduce myself in earnest. My name is Stostine Swordhand. I was born as a brown-haired, green-eyed, sickly human girl with whom every doctor my parents sought gave me months to live. And each time their deadline came and went, they were not only shocked but had the gall to tell my parents— sometimes right in front of me —about how I was a scourge to the history of medicine.”

Vareén furrowed her brow, obviously confused as she looked at my hair and then carefully at my eyes which failed to match any of what I said.

“One day,” I carried on regardless. “I went to Heaven. A form of it, at least.” I watched her then start to lean back. Now considering me insane. “And I was told that my pain and suffering would end. And it did. I couldn’t walk three feet away from my bed without collapsing. Now? I can run. I can climb. Or even better, I can be impaled by a javelin or pinned to a wall by a sword to the stomach. Or take numerous debilitating arrows to the torso and be just fine the next morning. You know. Like right now.”

I then stood up, twisting my upper body to the left and right with my arms held up perpendicular to me. Some light stretching. Suddenly, my claims started to hold a little more water to the non-elf.

“Oh. And like you said. Yes. I can see in the dark.” I closed my eyes, and focused as I sat back down. Then I reopened them. Watching as Vareén now floundered back until she bumped into one of her open closet doors. My eyes, and several ‘cracks’ along my face, glowed with a divine blue light.

With Townmaster Wester, I used Prestidigitation to make it look much more obvious and brighter. Normally, the light from it was as weak as a dying candle. It also got exhausting to hold for long periods. Like tensing your face and holding it like that.

But it did its job. Vareén’s breath got caught in her throat and she started taking this conversation very seriously. “Wha—What are you?”

“I am told that there are a few names for people like me. Celestial. Planar being. Angelkin.”

‘An Empyrean, technically,’ Tabs voice chimed in.

“Yes, Empyrean as well,” I agreed, ignoring the blink from Vareén. “Although, that always seems too presumptuous. People envision Empyrean Lords when using that word, and that is too much.”

‘A mortal’s interpretation doesn’t hide that it is the most correct.’

I shook my head, chuckling. “No. In my case, I think I most prefer—”

“Aasimar,” Vareén breathed. “One of divinity.”

“Well, not exactly.” I brought my hands to my face and rubbed at it until the divine cracks settled down. My eyes settled back to their gold irises. “This is where it starts getting difficult. And where the secrecy part comes in. I wasn’t born of divinity. Remember? Sickly human girl?”

Vareén took in a breath as though she were going to object, but failed. Instead, I waited and watched as she took a step towards me. “That’s...Is that possible?”

“It is not documented,” I told her. “Anywhere, in fact. The birth of aasimars has been, though. It seems that often their birth is typically considered a boon. And while they are never worshiped, people act very differently around them due to their proximity to heaven. A lot of odd myths spring up around them.”

“Y-Yeah. Those I’ve heard of.” Vareén then slowly sat on the edge of her bed, never looking away. “A lock of their hair cures illness. Their touch dispels blindness. Their saliva counters poison.”

I smirked. “That last one’s new to me. My favorite one is how every aasimar has a halo, whether present or not. Some just hide, somehow. And the light from it grants good fortune. But despite all the old wives’ tales, all of them are fake. I was in a fortunate enough position where the politicians and merchants my father introduced me to were never that desperate. At least, not in that way.”

I watched Vareén’s eyebrow twitch for a moment. “So then, your father knew? That you weren’t born an aasimar?”

“Correct. And he understood that it required secrecy. He just went on telling everybody that I was born an aasimar. And then, somewhere along the line, I met a true aasimar. And when they heard about how I was made, not born, the terror on his face was palpable.”

“I think I understand why,” she told me. “People try taking hair and spit from aasimars because they’re desperate for cures. If they found out that someone can become an aasimar, you’d have a whole new brand of desperation.”

I frowned. “Which is why I try hiding that I’m an aasimar to begin with. Thankfully, a lot of the obvious signs aren’t there with me. If someone knew an aasimar personally or was well-versed in them, they would probably figure me out. Like Ricven.”

“Ricven? He knows?”

“He spotted the clues. I think it’s more that he knows magic so well that he can tell not all of my power stems from it. But it’s not concrete and even then, he wouldn’t know the full truth. Unlike you.”

Vareén sat back, propping herself up with her hands. “Unlike me.”

“S-So..." I tapped my fingers together for a moment. “Is it enough? For our deal, I mean?”

Vareén took in a deep breath and held it. Then, she started to nod. “Y-Yeah. It’s enough. More than I was hoping, which...puts things in perspective.”

I didn’t push her for her turn. Instead, I watched as Vareén flopped onto her bed, staring at the ceiling for a moment. “I. I’ve never met an aasimar before. My parents talked about them when I was a kid. I grew up on all of those old myths about them for a month or two before they finally threw me out.”

This time, I sat back. “Threw you out? What for?”

She sighed, slowly sitting back up to face me. “Because, a lot like you, I was born a human too. Both my parents were humans. I’ve never been anything Elvish. And like you figured out, I’m not an elf now either. I...Am a shapeshifter. Changeling, specifically.”

“A Changeling?” Sunset questioned. She then looked to Story. “And, erm. Would Stostine know anything about them?”

When Sunset revealed Stostine as an aasimar, Twilight wanted to ask what she knew about aasimars. And Story quickly ran down some bullet list facts. Something that helped Twilight understand and help remind Sunset simultaneously.

This time around, Sunset had a different outlook. She knew what a changeling meant to her, but not from the game. And seeing how Twilight played Vareén and how she kept the secret close, things started to piece together.

“Really?” She sat back. “Th-That’s what they’re called?”

Story nodded. “Yep. And, for a brief explanation about what Stostine would know...”

Story went over a small summary of facts that cemented the idea that this world’s changelings were not too far off. It was uncanny how similar they were in ways. They were the boogeymen of Story’s fictional kingdom. The causes of a witch hunt between Leodaav’s citizens. The perfect species to perform subterfuge.

The only difference was, in Equestria, Changelings had their own brand of magic that allowed them to change form. In Story’s world, Changelings didn’t use magic to change shape. They just did. It came as naturally as someone folding their arms.

Sunset couldn’t tell which was freakier. The thought of a Changeling not needing magic. Or the amount of things Story made up that happened to be correct.

“You’re a Changeling,” Stostine repeated. “Huh.”

“Yeah. Huh.” Vareén rubbed at her arm. “Little interesting point of fact. Just like with your problem, changeling’s aren’t changelings the second their born. We become changelings. Typically a few years before puberty. And it’s not gradual. You just wake up and suddenly you’re a changeling.”

“And...You said your parents..." I instantly regretted asking, but Vareén shook her head.

“It wasn’t right away. I remember waking up to Mom screaming. I looked down and suddenly my skin was peeling off like an onion. And I looked..."

Rather than describe it, Vareén slowly began to stand up and let the blanket fall onto the bed. I leaned as far back as my chair would allow. Then, after Vareén did some light breathing, she looked at me.

“Promise not to scream? Or panic?” Her voice wasn’t as stern anymore. Just defeated.

I realized how I must have looked at that moment and took in a large breath and held it. It made the cracks of light reappear on my face, but I left them be. It was a reminder at the very least, that I wasn’t normal either.

She took some solace in that and stood with her back completely straight and her arms hanging on either side of her. Then, slowly, I watched her shift.

Like splotches, her skin tone bleached away into a soft light gray color and her hair, usually jet black, inverted to a snow white, and the locks scattered out like a small sea urchin before settling downwards once more.

Her body and face changed next. The bandages tightened against her frame and her muscles slithered like slugs underneath her skin into a more broad-shouldered, somewhat taller build. Their ears rounded out, losing most definition, and became little more than half-oval discs and their eyes turned into milky, off-white pools with pitch-black skin around the sockets.

I just kept myself focused on my senses and did my best not to make any sudden reactions. During the process, I noticed Vareén staring back. Checking to see if I had made any sudden moves. I never did. And she continued.

Not that there was much else. I listened while the bone structure of Vareén cracked and popped in a nonstop chorus. It sounded like it was a wave, starting from their skull and traveling down across their ribs and limbs.

Eventually, the changes came to a complete stop and what was left was...vacant, in a word. It was like inspecting the living drawings of a child. There was only just enough to tell that there was a face. They lacked all detail.

I kept staring. I was in absolute awe of what I had just witnessed. Meanwhile, Vareén's posture showed how uncomfortable they were with my stare.

“...Well?”

Their voice was different too. Deeper, somewhat grainy, and lacking the accent Vareén had. Or, that they used to have. The inflections were the same and the tone and emotion as well, but it was wholly someone else’s.

“This is what I am,” they told me. “You wanted to know. Here you go.”

“You’re...” I blinked, slowly standing from my chair. Vareén took a step back and held up a hand. It had no fingernails.

“Don’t,” They commanded. “Don’t come near me. I don’t trust you that much.”

“I-I won’t. Sorry.” I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. “It’s just. You’re...Y-You’re—”

“It’s weird. Right?” They looked down at themselves. “I haven’t looked at myself for, I think, a few months now. It gets uncomfortable after a while. If I stay as something for too long, it’s like wearing the same outfit day in and day out. You get used to the feeling, but you can only go so long without having to ‘wash your clothes.’ You know?”

I blinked. “And...You said that this is what your parents saw?”

They nodded. “Yeah. I was born in a town called Luxarmig Peak. A lot of churches to different gods. Maybe it’s expected or maybe it isn’t, but people there all know their myths and legends. Changelings are just another thing on the list. So my parents knew what I was. They spent the next few months going from wives’ tale to legend trying to find something to reverse my curse. And when they realized nothing was working and they couldn’t hide me from our neighbors forever they just...gave up.”

My jaw started to pull apart from the rest of me, sliding closer to the floor. “You’re kidding me. What did they just— did they leave their daughter out on the street?”

“I wasn’t their daughter.” They shook their head. “I wasn’t anything to them at that point. Just a monster they couldn’t be seen with. My parents both followed Sune. My father was a devoted acolyte. How could followers of a Goddess of Beauty show their face when their child is a hated shapeshifter?”

I frowned. “One of the tenets of Sune is that beauty is more than skin deep. If they were truly her followers, they wouldn’t be so vain.”

“Not the first time I’ve heard that argument,” Vareén told me. “But that changes nothing. For shapeshifters, the only god for us is the Traveler.”

I turned and walked over to the dresser, fighting every urge not to kick it as I stewed in my anger. I knew about shapeshifters. Everyone knew about them. They were despised across all of Leodaav. But that wasn’t from anything recent. That was seeded deep. To go as far as to throw your own daughter out for something wholly out of their control is despicable.

“How long have you been on your own like this?” I looked back at them. Their body was in the process of morphing back into Vareén. This time it was all at once instead of pieces.

“I wasn’t always alone,” Vareén admitted. “Shortly after they threw me out, I fell into line with these hunters. And when the truth came out, most of them accepted me. Emphasis on most. Since then, it’s been about three years.”

I felt a little better hearing that, but not enough when I realized the implication. “One of them turned on you and the other hunters. Didn’t they?”

“Sold us out,” Vareén confirmed, broiling me all over again. “I was to be killed on sight and the other hunters, if they turned themselves in, would probably be executed anyway. We all chose to run. The one you see here.” Vareén pushed back her hair so I could see her entire face. “Was my mentor, Vareén. She accepted me more than anyone else. Had me saying I was her twin. It worked pretty well since she kept to herself anyway.”

“Until it didn’t,” I said hollowly.

“Until it didn’t.”

After a few seconds, I made up my mind. “I will never say a word,” I told her. “I swear to you I will not. I have nothing against shapeshifters. And even if I did, I would have nothing against you. However I can help or whatever you need, do not hesitate. All I ask is if I can expect the same from you.”

Vareén started to secure her pant legs as she considered the offer. “I...I’ll think about it. I didn’t come here to find a friend. I came here to even out a favor for Sildar. That was it.”

“Does he know too?”

Vareén opened her mouth to reply, stopping short for a second.

At that, Twilight looked over to Story. They came up with a basic ‘Sildar knows Vareén’ idea as a way to explain why Vareén took the job in the first place. But never anything beyond that.

“Uh..." So, Twilight was left debating the idea for a second. Story suggested that Sildar asked Vareén, so she didn’t know Sildar. “I. I think..."

Story noticed the problem and, sticking to what he knew, picked up his pencil and a notepad. Then he slowly raised it above his screen until Twilight could see it.

Quickly, Twilight got the memo and nodded. “Okay then.”

She turned back to Sunset, who was now watching Story just as much as Twilight. “Sildar knew about me. When the group first found out, he left and joined up with a guild. He never outed me, but that was a personal favor for Vareén. Who he thinks I am. The favor he’s cashing in is from not outing me.”

From behind them, Ms. Cheerilee was watching with renewed interest. She might not have been able to see the magic or make sense of it, but apparently, Sildar was supposed to be connected to her somehow.

Makes me wonder if I’d do the same, the teacher thought. I would not put a child in danger. Never. But would I ask a friend for help for staying quiet?

A large part of her said no, but Cheerilee ultimately wasn’t sure. It did give her enough pause to stop working at her desk and simply listen along to her students playing their game.

However, before Twilight and Sunset could go into detail about Sildar’s story, Rainbow sat up.

“Hey Story? Is it cool if I do something here?”

Story glanced at the other two. He realized that what Rainbow said must’ve been garbled. No way would they be talking along about changelings otherwise.

“Uh, sure? What do you wanna do?”

“This group sounds pretty much like a second family,” I told her. Vareén was starting to get more comfortable the more the topic stayed on them. “How many of them were there?”

“Hunters came and went regularly,” Vareén admitted. “Aside from my mentor and me, only about three other people were permanent. The first were these dragonborn twins—”

Knock-knock-knock!

“Stostine? Vareén? Are ye awrite in there? You’ve been stuffed back upstairs fer nearly ten minutes now.”

Vareén looked at me, suddenly terrified as she scanned the room for her cloak. When I pointed it out to her, they nearly dove for it while I turned back to the door. “Yes, we are fine. I was taking the time to personally thank Vareén for last night. She did a lot for me.”

“I’m aware,” she added boredly. “And you still aren’t leaving me alone.”

“Vareén, go a bit easy on the lass,” Rava lightly prodded from behind the door. “Last night was a lot fer us all. And we’re suitin’ up ta do it again. Mind if Ah come in?”

Again, Vareén looked terrified. It felt ironic to say that Vareén felt like a whole new person now, but she did. And I was starting to wonder if this is what she felt like whenever nobody was watching.

I bit my lip. “Um. One second. Let me get the door.” Instead of doing that, I cast Mage Hand instead to fiddle with the lock and walked straight over to Vareén. “It’ll be alright. She won’t find out.”

“I. I...Am I good?” Vareén started patting her face. She was checking for the shape of her face or to see if any hair was missing. When she started counting her fingernails, I held her hands and helped her relax.

“Don’t worry! You look normal to me,” I whispered to her before approaching the door. My Mage Hand was tapping against the deadbolt the whole time. “Hold on. Lock’s stuck. Almost...Aha.”

When Mage Hand finally flipped the deadbolt open, I arrived just in time to open the door and saw Rava standing there with a smile on her face. “Sorry about that. I think Mr. Stonehill may need to bring these locks to the blacksmith.”

“Not a worry, lass,” Rava grinned. “Breakfast is almost gone though. Glemerr couldn’t help herself. Toblin n’ Elsa went all out with helpin’ us get ready fer the day. Meanwhile, Ricven just got back from that bitter granny at the Sleepin’ Giant. Apparently, Thorn’ll be waitin’ for us inside a’ there.”

“Inside?” I blinked. “So then, Thorn Wielder’s not anchored to the ground anymore?”

“Anchored?” Vareén blinked. After a quick explanation from myself and Rava, she was caught up. “Maybe she’s part plant.”

“Ah dinnae ken.” Rava shrugged with a chuckle. “But when Ah woke up, the space around her had freshly grown grass and some tiny daisies sproutin’ up. More druid stuff, Ah suppose. She was already gone by then too.”

I blinked. “Okay. Well, I am glad to hear Thorn Wielder is okay. But what is she doing at the Sleeping Giant instead of here with us?”

“Well...Ricven said that was best left seen with our own eyes. Come on. We’ll grab breaky on the way out.” And with that, Rava started down the stairs.

I looked back to Vareén. She looked mostly back to her usual self now. “Well. What do you say?”

Vareén huffed. “Let me grab my stuff.”

I left Vareén be for the moment and came back downstairs. True to what Rava said, most of the breakfast was cleared out and most of the plates were around Glemerr’s section of the table. Elsa had brought out a couple of other plates, but I could tell this was probably the last round of food. After we gave half of the money from those Redbrands to the inn and tavern, they were much more willing to give us a buffet’s worth of food for the day.

“I still can’t believe y’all couldn’t save me some a’ the nicer helpin’s,” Ricven told us. He looked drained of energy and still had a rag tied around his hair from cleaning the Sleeping Giant. “And I am about certain I told y’all how much I love hashbrowns. Meanwhile, most a’ them ‘browns are hangin’ off Miss Glemerr’s tusks.”

“Mah bad,” Glemerr admitted before letting out a small belch. “In mah defense dough, dey are really good!”

“That don’t make me feel any better,” Ricven tossed out. “Lady Elsa? Ya got any coffee back there at least?”

“We do. I was about to finish a new pot for Platick, actually. Should be enough for both.” After Elsa set down the last couple of plates, she retreated to the kitchen.

“The more sugah the better, thank you!” Ricven shouted after her. When he turned around, he saw Glemerr reaching for the flapjacks. “Eh-eh-ehh! No! Enough a’ that! Miss Glem, you keep eatin’ we’re gonna be rollin’ you up that hill.”

“But it’s so good dough!”

“Then save some fer me!”

I glanced over to Platick, who was sitting there with his plates mostly empty already. Elsa wasn’t exaggerating. Platick cleaned up an entire pot of coffee himself. “How are you holding up?”

He spared a glance at me for a second and grumbled. “Sore. Bandaged. And I want this to be over with. You?”

I took a breath and shook my head. “Physically, I am fine. Mentally, I am preparing for a necromancer and a Nothic.”

“Don’t forget the remaining Lamebrands,” Platick told me. “They’ll be turtling now if they haven’t run already. All but one captain is dealt with and their real leader rarely does anything.”

“Eh, leave da Redglands ta me,” Glemerr told us. “Fightin’ off gangs is somethin’ Ah’m used to. With some added backup from Platick and Thorn? It’ll take us three—no. Two minutes tops.”

“Dial back the bravado,” Platick told her. “We’re not splitting up this time. They can have any number of traps and tricks waiting. And past the Fakebrands, it’s either undead, a fissure demon, or bugbears.”

“It’s still indoors,” I warned him. “If we all crowd up the front, we might not have the space to fight effectively.”

“She’s got ya there, Platick,” Ricven agreed. “You weren’t there, but when those fools rushed the Sleepin’ Giant, it became a mosh pit. If it wasn’t for the ‘funnel’ at that doorway, as you call it, things woulda gotten too tight.”

Platick took in the words and folded his hands together under his chin. “...Fair point. Okay, let me think of something.”

At about that time, we heard boots coming down the stairs. The others all craned their heads to watch as Vareén came down with her hood now pulled all the way back over her face. Her bandages and wounds were hidden under her cloak and her signature bow was ready to be pulled out when she needed.

“And the latest to rise reveals herself,” Ricven welcomed. “Why don’tcha pull up a chair? There’s still some food that Glemerr hasn’t caught yet.”

“I don’t need much.” Vareén walked over, picked up two flapjacks, and then looked around. “Coffee would be nice though.”

“Coming!” From the kitchen, Elsa quickly stepped back out. She had a pot in one hand and a couple of mugs in the other. “Sorry about that. Took me a second to find the sugar.” She set both mugs down, making sure to check before sliding over Ricven’s. “Three lumps in the mug. Just tell me when I’ve poured enough.”

She started pouring, but Ricven chuckled. “Appreciate the courtesy, Lady Elsa, but no need. I got space fer a whole human’s mug. Fill it up.”

“Same.” Vareén told her. And when Elsa did, she took the coffee, folded one of her flapjacks, and proceeded to dunk it into the mug before eating it. When she saw the myriad reactions from us, she simply raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“That’s honestly genius,” Rava remarked.

“Geniously weird,” Ricven countered. Platick, meanwhile, held up his mug to get yet another refill from Elsa before reaching for a flapjack himself. “Platick, come on now!”

“What? I like coffee.”

“I think too much,” I told him, earning a curt stare. “How many cups is that?”

“Sixth now,” Elsa told me. “Platick, dear? Maybe listen to your friends?”

“Ya hear that Platick?” Rava smiled and rolled her eyes as she went after only the second cup of coffee. Which nearly emptied Elsa out of her pot. Then she grabbed the last flapjack. “We look like friends!”

Platick said nothing. Just dunked his flapjack back into his coffee and took another bite while the rest of us enjoyed a few more minutes of calm to ourselves. But soon enough, we had to pack it up and head out into the village.

A few of us took a glance up at the trail that cut into the forest. There were a few of the townsfolk standing by as they wore the defeated Redbrand’s armor. They also each had a shortsword and crossbow, both from Leanne’s shop.

So far, the Redbrands hadn’t retaliated, but that wouldn’t stay the same If we didn’t assault them today, that might mean they would take the chance to come back down here. Even if it was just to scout or surrender, who knows how the armed villagers would respond.

We need to act soon, I thought. I looked over the others and we quickly decided to split up for the last loose ends. Rava grabbed Thorn for us while Platick and I spoke with Sister Garaele. At the same time, Vareén and Glemerr went to check on the Griffonbound Vendors for some last-minute supplies. And then finally, Ricven checked in on the captured Redbrands and Townmaster.

This assault was probably going to be tougher than the ambush. And we couldn’t afford to take several days doing it. The sooner we took down that necromancer, the sooner we could focus on finding this ‘Dark Pit Keep.’ And finding Gund—

And finding Principal Celestia, Sunset thought to herself. The party figured out the last couple of things needed before rushing for the lodge. They didn’t have as much time today. Ms. Cheerilee had to shut it down at 6 PM when she left.

Sunset checked her phone. 3:13 PM. Less than three hours. Fights from this game took the longest amount of time. Even a fight that lasted three full rounds could take half an hour with this many of them.

It’ll be close, Sunset thought to herself. And while Story had Twilight and Pinkie go first, she quickly sent him a text message. He had his phone silenced, but she still saw Story glance down for a second and tap his screen.

Are you sure we can fight the nothic at this pace? And save Aloe and Lotus?

Story kept describing the scene to them, but as he did, he gave Sunset a small thumb’s up. Whether not to cut himself off or because of garbling, it didn’t matter. Sunset understood it and nodded along. Both of them, and everyone else at the table, were committed to seeing the girls safe and the demon dead.

Author's Note

My bad on that everybody, I was a day off. Although, I do have a reason!

Without further ado, I am proud to finally present, Vareén's Full Character Sheet! It's been a long time coming, probably too long, but the last of the party's sheet is now un-garbled. I already have it in the shared document folder on Google Drive, but the link above is directly to the character sheet.

But that's not all! I have one other link. Also a long time coming, if anyone's interest, I also have a world map! It's the map of my own homebrew world and I've been sitting on it for a while, unsure how to keep improving on it. But it's now at a spot where I'm comfortable to keep it.

For any map buffs out there, please let me know what you think. The other kingdoms have a solid color over the 'texture' of the landscapes, but that's to direct focus toward Leodaav as I keep working on it.

Handouts aside, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm taking next week off, so the next chapter will be here in two weeks. On Saturday is the goal.

Please let me know what you think and any criticisms you have are always appreciated! Until next chapter everybody.

Cheers,
-Zeke