And Hearts Will Change

Chapters

The Opening Act
More Than Just Food
Less Than a Lie
Time Will Tell
The Final Act
Epilogue - Time Heals All

The Opening Act

The Opening Act

A dim, green light pierced the darkness of the tunnels in the heart of the Drakenridge Mountains, its pitiful glow illuminating a large passage of cleared rock and earth. The presence of several unmoving forms littering the floor caused the light’s source to shudder and sway, the sound of a distraught cry filling the area only to be swallowed by the all-encompassing emptiness of the void. The light moved away from the still, black husks and stalked further through the tunnel, its chitinous, black hooves clacking loudly upon the hard ground.

It paused at the sound of an insectoid buzzing and turned its light source in the direction of the noise. The turn halted on the forms of two black creatures, perfectly identical to the corpses it had revealed moments ago, flicking through the dank air above a third body, this one as still as the previous group. The flying beings loosed high pitched chirps before rearing back, fangs bared, before the light moved away with an angry huff, the sound of which rang through the air like a chorus of voices.

Soon, the illumination came upon a large, open room dug off to the side of the main tunnel series, the pathway easily passed over were it not for the familiarity of the layout. It stopped as it shone upon the mass of eggs set up in clusters upon the walls and floor, or, rather, what once were eggs. The silken shells lay, split open by the sharp horns of the black creatures buzzing around the room, the creatures that had feasted upon the growing young inside.

The light loosed a pained cry and grew in intensity, soon becoming a bright green flame that torched the insects that had feasted upon its children until none was left save her and the scant few unmolested unhatched children of her swarm. The lingering light of the flame she had conjured fully illuminated the light’s source, forcing it into view of any, although there were none to speak of, being that would happen to chance by.

The changeling queen stood, a grim frown upon her taut, chitinous face hidden partially by her stringy lime hair. She looked down at a single unharmed egg between her hole-ridden legs and choked back her sadness and anger. She knew it wouldn’t help in any way, her children were not to blame. Not even with the use of her hive-mind could she have prevented this. Hunger can drive any creature to desperate acts, and when you had little self-control outside of her instructions?

She shook her head and turned to leave. There wasn’t any reason for her to remain anymore. Her hive had broken free of her control, the bonds severed by their growing need to feed, and were now cannibalizing each other in droves. As she neared the exit of the long, intricate tunnels beneath the quiet mountain, she stopped and took one last fleeting glance at her nest. “I shall be back, my children.” Her voice hung in the air, its swarm like sounds resonating in the hollow chamber. “We need to feed and the dragons can no longer sustain us. No, now we must move on to the ponies.” Abandoning her hive, she buzzed her insectoid wings and flew off into the sky, her lithe, equine body flitting gracefully through the night air.

It wasn’t until she spotted a small town just under the gaze of Canterlot’s peak that she landed, assuming the guise of an unassuming mare, and began to formulate her plan to attain the sustenance she required. “Yes, this will do nicely.”

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The light of the moon and stars shone brightly on the balcony of a certain library, as if their beauty shone solely for the lavender unicorn sitting between the boughs of her tree-home. Twilight carefully adjusted the direction of her telescope’s sight, aiming it perfectly for the set of constellations of the northern hemisphere, her favorites. “Another wonderful night for stargazing. Princess Luna certainly has been outdoing herself lately. It’s a far better view than what Princess Celestia was capable of.” She blinked and gasped in shock at what she said. “Not that Princess Celestia did poorly at arranging the night sky! I mean, she did have to control the sun and the moon and-” She paused, taking a moment to giggle at herself. “And I just tried to justify my words to myself.”

Twilight sighed with a smile. “I really can overreact sometimes. Now, where was-” Her thoughts halted abruptly when she spotted a lone mare trotting casually down the central road of Ponyville, taking her directly beside her balcony. “That’s strange. I’ve never seen her before. Perhaps she’s lost? Maybe I should ask if she needs anything.”

Without wasting a second, Twilight stood from the pillow she had been resting upon and rushed through the library, carefully setting down her telescope downstairs from where she had brought it inside. In seconds, she stood just outside her front door as the black-blue pony passed by. “Excuse me? Are you okay? It’s not often I see another pony out so late and you’re definitely new to Ponyville. Are you lost? Do you need any assistance?”

The unicorn, as Twilight could tell now that she was closer by, looked up and smiled. “Why, yes. I could use some help. You see, I am travelling to Canterlot and have been on the road for quite a while now, I live in a small settlement just north of the Drakenridge Mountains, so I’m quite tired. I was hoping to find someplace to rest, but this town doesn’t have an inn. Do you perhaps know of a place I could stay for a few days?”

Twilight gasped and stood to the side, ushering the pony inside. “Wow, that’s quite the distance to have travelled by hoof! You must be exhausted. I’m sure there are better places you could stay in, but, seeing as I’m usually the only pony awake at this hour, why don’t you stay with me? After all, it’s just me and my assistant staying here and we have a spare bedroom you could use.” She smiled warmly as the pony stepped in past her before shutting the door and welcoming her with a sweep of a hoof. “Well, it’s not much as it is a library, but welcome to my home. Now, I’ll have to readjust my schedule to fit you in so I don’t lose any time, but I have a few open spaces that can be filled in order to accommodate you. Oh! I almost forgot! My name is Twilight Sparkle. What’s yours?”

The mare grinned wider and bowed her head slightly, her thin, lime hair falling gracefully across her muzzle. “I’m Skysong. Thank you for allowing me to room here. I thought I’d never find a place to rest my hooves.”

“Oh, it’s my pleasure. We rarely get any newcomers to Ponyville, but I’m sure you’ll find that everypony here will be very welcoming.” Twilight glanced towards a door in the back of the library, set between a pair of large bookshelves. “The guest room is right there and the bathroom is just through the door to your left when you go upstairs. My room is attached to it, but you don’t have to worry about waking me if you need to go. I’m a heavy sleeper. Well, if you need anything else, I’ll still be awake for a couple more hours and my assistant Spike will be able to help you in the morning if you wake before me. Any questions?”

Skysong shook her head and began the short trip to her temporary bedroom. “I think I’ll be okay. Thank you again for helping me.”

Twilight watched as she slipped into the guest room and smiled, pleased with herself. I’ll have to write a letter to Celestia about this. Sure, it won’t be something as important as a friendship report, but I think she’ll be happy that I’m helping ponies without prompt. As she trotted back upstairs to resume her stargazing, her mind was already burning through the procedures of letter writing, preparing for the one she would be sending in the morning.

Dear Princess Celestia,...

Despite what she had said to her current hostess, the unicorn-disguised changeling was not nearly as tired as she said. She sat in her bed, eagerly awaiting the unicorn mare’s descent into sleep. “Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm. Oh, this will be much simpler than I thought. I forgot how trusting these ponies can be with Celestia on the throne. Oh, mother, you were wrong. There isn’t any way feeding off them could go poorly. Look at where I am now!” She stood and climbed from her mattress to stand in front of the small mirror hanging upon a wall in her room, then dropped her disguise in a flash of green flame.

Her pure black face stared back at her through the mirror, the frail flesh of her mouth curling up in a smile. Oh, I do so enjoy the love radiating from this town. It's so abundant and ripe for the taking! I honestly do not know why mother warned against feeding from the ponies. They're so trusting. She watched the green pools that were her eyes bob and weave in the near lightless room, the luminescent orbs moving with her ecstatic dancing.

She halted when she could no longer feel the full strength of the lavender mare's love, the lowered output a sign that she had finally fallen asleep. Slowly, quietly, the changeling crept from her room, up the stairs, and onto the landing where her host slumbered. She sighed, smiling at the mare curled beneath her blankets. “Ohh, sweet pony. If only you could feel the strength you give me as well.” Being careful not to disturb her prey, she lit her jagged horn and enveloped Twilight in its glow. The room brightened slightly for the few moments that the spell remained active, but she dared not leave it running its course for long.

The flow of magic ended abruptly and the queen sighed in content. “Ahh, sweet sustenance. It is a pity that I cannot devour such unfocused emotion in higher quantities. A true shame. Regardless, I thank you, pony, for the strength you have provided me.” In the tradition passed on by her predecessor, she leaned down and planted a soft kiss upon her food’s forehead. Such a pointless act. Why have I continued now that mother is dead? Our food does not deserve our respect or thanks. Regardless, it is time to start formulating a course of action. If I am to replenish my swarm, then I will have to make her love directly. A soft chuckle escaped her lip as she returned to her room and reapplied her disguise. Yes, this time is going to be just.... Perfect.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

While Twilight normally enjoyed the sun, her mentor, ruler, and mother figure being the one in control of the celestial body, today, however, she silently cursed its piercing rays as they fell perfectly upon her closed eyes, blinding her through her eyelids. Ohh, Princess, why can’t you wait another hour? I feel like I didn’t get any sleep last night. Despite her protests and attempt at dissuading the sun from continuing its spiteful glare, the beam upon her face refused to let up and, so, the studious mare found herself dragging her own body from the comfort of her mattress. “Ugh, why am I so tired? Oh well, I hope Skysong had better luck sleeping than I- Oh no! I forgot to tell Spike that we had a guest! Spike! Spiiiiiike!”

“What, Twilight!? I’m trying to cook, here!” The baby dragon poked his head from the kitchen, his face showing mild annoyance.

“Oh! I wanted to tell you that we have-”

“Company? Yeah, I know. I saw her when I went to the bathroom earlier. Nearly gave me a heart attack! Why didn’t you leave a note or something?”

Twilight chuckled, smiling sheepishly. “Sorry, Spike. It was kind of sudden and I was just a teensy bit distracted last night. Anyway, where is the pony in question? I figure that, once we have breakfast, we could possibly figure out what she likes to do. Don’t want to keep her cooped up all day doing nothing for the time she’ll be here.”

“I am here.” Skysong stepped out from her room, her green hair tied up in a bun. “I heard you were talking about me. Was there something you wished to know?”

Twilight flushed slightly and looked away from the mare. “Oh! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to talk about you without you knowing. I was just wondering what kinds of things you’re interested in. You know, that way you won’t be bored while you’re here. I remember reading a book about housing guests and one of the first things it told me I should do is find a way to entertain them and since I don’t really know anything about you, I figured it’d be best to just ask!”

“Ah, I see. Well, I am an easy pony to keep entertained. I enjoy others, or, more specifically, learning about others. Why, I’m sure that a mare such as yourself, one that lives in a library with her own dragon, would have plenty of things to regale me with.” She grinned when the purple unicorn flushed brighter and nodded. This is going to be much simpler than I thought. She is just yearning to tell me all about herself.

“Breakfast is served!” Spike quickly waddled from the kitchen, his pink apron helping to rest the platter of waffles, eggs, and potatoes on his stomach. “I hope you girls are ready to eat, because I’m starving!”

A soft gurgle sounded from the bookish unicorn followed by a nervous chuckle and a nod of agreement. “Yes, I most certainly am. I guess all my stargazing left me famished. We can talk all you want after breakfast, Skysong. Is that alright?”

The changeling nodded and took a seat, gazing at the plate set before her. “I won’t be leaving anytime soon, so what’s a few minutes to attain required sustenance?” The trio ate in relative silence, the only sounds that filled the area being the clinking of silverware on porcelain as their meal drew on. The dark unicorn watched the other two carefully, not once taking her eyes from the pair as they ate. The dragon would be impossible to impersonate. It is obvious that they know each other very well. She would notice the differences in our personalities....

As their meal came to an end, the three turned to planned discussion. “So, Skysong, what would you like to know? I’m not the most interesting of ponies, but I’m always glad to assist in scholarly pursuits.”

“Why don’t you tell me where you grew up?” Twilight cocked her head slightly, her surprise evident upon her face. “Always start with the beginnings, I say. Of course, if you’re not comfortable we can change the topic.” Or I’ll force it from you later, whelp.

The librarian chuckled and nodded. “Of course. It just caught me off guard. I’m still pretty new to the whole ‘meeting new ponies’ thing.” She turned her gaze to the ceiling, lost in thought, before focusing back on her guest and smiling. “Well, I was born in Canterlot, the rural town just at the base of the mountain to be exact, and lived in a bookstore with my parents. I’ve always had a hunger for knowledge and learning, so I often spent my time reading the stuff my parents had for sale. I guess I’m what my friend Rainbow Dash would call an egghead.

“Anyways, when I was a filly, I was accepted into the Canterlot School for Gifted Unicorns under the Princess’ personal tutelage.”

Skysong’s eyes widened as she leaned in. “You were a student under Cel- Erm.... Princess Celestia?”

“Oh, yes! I still am. In fact, were it not for her, I wouldn’t be anything like the mare I am today. I was truly lucky to be able to study under her wing like I was.” Twilight beamed proudly, her typical humble nature overpowered by her pride of her tutelage.

This is even better! Not only have I found a pony willing to take another in unquestioningly, but a student of the princess. Oh, her pure love must be so delectable. “Do you still stay in contact with the princess?”

“Eager to learn, are we? I admire your studious nature. And, yes, in fact, I still do. I send friendship reports to her quite often. Well, anytime my friends or I learn something about friendship, that is.”

“Friendship reports? She still requires you to do assignments for her?”

Twilight chuckled nervously, hiding her blushing face behind her hoof as she pretended to scratch her nose. “Well, when I lived with Princess Celestia, I had a tendency to ignore other ponies and focus more on books and studying. She always said she liked how dedicated I was and she never told me, specifically, to go and make friends. And, when your mentor is kind of like a second mom, you tend to try and please them as much as you can. Well, when I came to Ponyville, rather, when she sent me to Ponyville in the lull of Nightmare Moon’s return, she told me to make some friends and then, after everything was over, bid me to write reports on my growing knowledge of friendship while I stayed here in Ponyville.”

“You should have seen her when she was late for one of her reports. She was flipping out like crazy! Twi has a tendency to overreact when things don’t work out as scheduled.”

“Spike!” Another nervous laugh and she returned her focus to her guest. "Anyways, that's just about the story of my life. All jokes about my quirks aside, I'm a pretty boring bookworm. I tend to like to read, learn, and, well, study magic."

Skysong almost laughed in the mare's face, but withheld her mirth concerning the unicorn's plain nature for progress' sake. "I'm sure there's plenty of fascinating things about you that you're just too humble to admit. So, how was life back-"

"Hey, Twilight! Gooooooood morning!" In a matter of seconds, the relative peace of the breakfast table was shattered by a high-energy mass of pink that proceeded to bullet straight into the stunned bookworm. "So, thought you could hide your new friend and keep her all to yourself, did you?"

"Pinkie, I wasn't-"

"Well, I'm here to prove you wrong!” Her grin grew to impossible lengths as she pulled out a trio of party invitations and handed them to each of the ponies plus dragon. “I’m going to host a party tonight and you’re all invited!” A burst of confetti exploded from behind her as she shouted ‘invited’ and slowly settled on the library’s floor. “You don’t have to bring a gift, but the guest of honor is a must! I'll see you at the party, missy!" Just as quickly as she had come, the pink mare was gone, dashing away to hand off invitations.

The pair stared after her, neither of them entirely sure why that had happened. The silence drew on until Skysong recovered. “Does that happen... often?”

Twilight groaned, but did so with a smile. “Yes, in fact, it does. Honestly, I’m more surprised it took her this long to show up. Well, I was planning on having you meet everypony today anyways, so I guess that will be taken care of.” She took a quick glance at the slip of paper and giggled. “Pretty soon, too. We can go take a walk for the thirty minutes we have until then, how’s that s- Are you okay?”

The taller mare shook her head, clearing the shock from her system. “Uhm, yes. I’m fine, just mildly stunned.” I am glad that I hadn’t found that pony first. I likely would have gone insane. How does she even talk that fast? I’ll have to avoid her. “The walk sounds good, though. Perhaps I’ll learn something of your liking for this town.”

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The changeling queen watched intently from a corner of the Town Hall, commissioned and decorated for the party said to be in her honor. All around her were multi-hued ponies dancing, chatting, and just enjoying themselves as Pinkie Pie’s party played on full-swing. Beside her stood a group of five, each of which was, and had been her focus for quite some time.

Twilight merrily chatted with her group of friends, the small circle of ponies like a seeming island of salvation from the hubbub of the rest of the party-goers. She had been observing the lilac mare since the party started, keeping an eye on her actions and who she mingled with. At one point there had been seven in her group, but the white unicorn that had been introduced as Rarity had wandered off in order to mingle with other ponies, followed closely by the purple dragon.

As the gathering continued on, Skysong found herself assailed by other ponies quite often, asking her questions about where she had come from, how she was enjoying the town so far, and what it was like to travel among some of them. She answered in kind, not wishing to draw any unneeded suspicion, neither too eager to engage in conversation with the driveling mass should her mark move away without her noticing.

Two more of Twilight’s group of ponies broke off, each seeking to talk to friends they hadn’t conversed with recently, leaving the unicorn with the brash pegasus and the shy one. Neither of which seemed all too eager to abandon their friend, nor did they wish to ignore the other ponies, but a quick dismissing hoof from Twilight sent them, too, on their way to mingle, the yellow pegasus much more reluctant than the rainbow maned one.

The dark unicorn frowned inwardly as she watched the remainder of the six depart, noting the longing look on her host’s features. Those six would be ideal for replacing, but she seems much too familiar with them for me to pull off the swap without her noticing. Their personalities are too complex, too individual, and she’s much too close to them. Soon, Skysong was joined by her fellow unicorn who loosed a sad sigh as she plopped down beside her.

“You must truly love those ponies. Closest friends indeed.”

“Yeah. They’re great. They were the first ponies I met when I came to Ponyville last year and the ones that stuck with me when we freed Princess Luna and defeated Discord. Without them, I would be just some boring unicorn living alone in a tower library.” She chuckled and shook her head. “At least now I’m a boring unicorn living in a tree library with six best friends a mare could ask for.”

“You say you defeated Discord? And freed Princess Luna? I thought he was a god and she imprisoned by jealousy?” Her mind reeled back to the history lessons given to her by her mother, each story passed down from queen to queen, recounting the tales of Luna’s fall from grace and Discord’s tyranny. “Princess Celestia required the use of powerful magic to stop them. How is it a group of mares were able to do what the ruler of Equestria needed arcane assistance with?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I thought it was relatively common knowledge after this Discord incident. You see, my friends and I represent the Elements of Harmony. We each embody a single element.” A warm smile graced her lips and Twilight found herself reminiscing on events of the past. She quickly snapped out of her daydream when she noticed her companions gaze still upon her. “I guess that’s why we’re so close.”

Skysong prepared to question the mare further, seeking out a way to grow closer to her, when a pair of newcomers approached from the mob of others. “Hey, Twilight! How’s it like housing this cutie? She seems like she’d be a tiger, if you know what I mean.” The wine colored pony slurred her words as she spoke, a bottle of berry-flavored alcohol held in the grasp of her hoof, and winked at the librarian.

“I- Uhm.... Uhhh....” The changeling ruler arched an eyebrow, surprised at her normally open-spoken hosts sudden nervousness. Her azure-colored pegasus friend and asked the same question, albeit much less drunkenly, which had been dismissed immediately. Another frown joined the one currently displayed on Twilight’s muzzle.

“Aww, don’t worry ‘bout her, Twi’. She’s just drunk. We actually came over here to welcome the new pony and to ask if you’d need any help. With just you and Spike, I’m sure it can get difficult having another pony over.” The second pony, a blue unicorn with an hourglass for a cutie mark, nudged the first away and sighed as her companion staggered off into the crowd. “Well, I’d better go keep track of Berry lest she start causing trouble. I don’t know why Pinkie even brings alcohol to her parties. She knows that mare will drink it all. Anyways, see you!”

“Y-yeah. See you....”

This will be much more difficult than I thought. She may be open and free with her close friends, but seems to have issues communicating with any others. If it wasn’t for my changeling charm, she’d most likely have let me pass by as well. I will have to find another way to get closer to her, or find another pony.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Twilight sighed heavily as she stepped past the threshold of her house followed by a much less beleaguered Skysong. As she levitated her baby dragon up to his bed, she cast a quick glance at her temporary roommate. "How are you not exhausted? I never come home from a Pinkie party without at least five days worth of fatigue." She chuckled and moved to sit at her writing desk nestled up against the wall.

"I am more accustomed to larger crowds. I could tell that you don't do very well outside of your comfort zone of friends. That in itself can wear a pony down quickly." The larger unicorn joined her hostess at the desk, but a glint of light caught her eye as it reflected off a waxen gold surface. "You have a letter, Twilight."

“Huh? That’s strange. Why would I have a letter? The mail already came tod- OH!” She rushed over to the rolled parchment, grasping it firmly in her magic. “It’s from the princess! Why didn’t she send it by Spike? She couldn’t have known about the party today. Ohh, I hope it wasn’t sitting here for too long. I don’t want Princess Celestia getting angry at me for not replying sooner.”

The changeling arched a brow questioningly. “Does the princess always get angry whenever you fail to immediately respond to a letter?”

“Well..., no, but I never know when she will! She’s the ruler of Equestria!” Despite her mild panic, the young mare quickly unfurled the letter and glanced over the words. “Oh! It’s a reply to the letter I sent about Princess Luna!”

Her curiosity piqued, Skysong leaned closer, attempting to read over Twilight’s shoulder. Luckily, the mare didn’t seem bothered at all.

My Most Faithful Student,

Thank you for your concern over my sister’s well-being since her return to Equestria. It gladdens my heart to see your attempts at trying to help reintegrate Luna back into Equestrian society and it brings me much joy to hear that you’d be willing to assist her should she wish it. I admit that she has been having issues recently, mostly due to the vast differences in customs as compared to a millenium ago, but she wishes to try and solve this dilemma on her own. For now, I’ll make sure to keep an eye on her and, if she seems like she would need a friend, I’ll be sure to inform you right away.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

A wicked smile drew itself across Skysong’s face as she read across the short, but very informative letter, plans of action already beginning to formulate in her mind. Ohoho.... This will be much simpler than I may have thought.... “So, the young princess has been having difficulty meshing back into pony society? I’m quite surprised, but I’m not surprised that she is trying to solve this problem independently. That does seem like something she would attempt, as far as the history books are concerned.”

“Yeah, I was worried that she wouldn’t be able to fit in with her reputation, but I’m glad it doesn’t seem to be the ponies causing the issues. I just hope she’ll ask for help if she needs it.”

The dark unicorn nodded and looked out a window, staring intently at the pale face of the moon. “Speaking of help, I must thank you for yours. It was kind of you to allow me to stay without even knowing who I was.”

“Oh, it wasn’t any issue at all. In fact, I felt quite compelled to do so.”

“Regardless, thank you, but I must be leaving if I want to make it to Canterlot within the day. I just want to make sure my hooves are rested before I depart.”

“Oh? Are you sure you have to leave now? I mean, I wouldn’t mind if you wanted to stay another day and I’m sure my friends would love to help keep you company.” She glanced out the window at the growing darkness. “And it’s pretty late. Are you sure you don’t want to at least wait till morning?”

Skysong chuckled, and shook her head. “I much prefer to travel at night, especially during the summer times. It’s much cooler and makes for far less periods of rest. I thank you, Twilight, for your concern.” She is already influenced by my draining. It’s a shame that such a poor hold won’t hold until I return, but it shows how easily influenced this mare can be.

“Well, be safe on your trip. Wouldn’t want you getting hurt right after I let you go, would I?” She laughed, watching intently as the blue-black unicorn opened the front door to her tree home. She couldn't help but to feel a miniscule sense of longing for the mare to stay, but pushed the feeling down as she disappeared from view. With a quick flip of her magic, Twilight shut her door and raced upstairs to her balcony, watching as her short-term ward walked down the street, moving ever further towards her destination. "You're always welcome to come back, Skysong! Come back any time!" The mare stopped and turned her head and Twilight hoped that she had heard her, but she didn't seem to have understood the words due to the distance. Hanging her head, the studious mare trudged back to her bed and lay upon it, thoughts stuck on the strange, but welcome mare that had been so interested in her.

As she began to succumb to the pull of slumber, she couldn’t keep her mind from wandering to the mysterious mare that had just left. She found it odd that anypony be so interested in her, rather boring, life, but what was even stranger was Twilight’s own disposition towards her. I’ve never been so outgoing with a pony I’ve just met. Such an odd occurance, but I guess it’s just due to her natural charisma. She pictured the blue-black mare, smiling as she spoke of her life leading up to the current point in time. Her slim figure, beautiful green hair and eyes. I guess it helps that she’s rather attractive, too.

Twilight bit her lip as she slowly moved a hoof further below the sheets, picturing the mare’s shapely body. She wasn’t really aroused, as was apparent by the lack of lubrication for her hoof, but the mental images of a certain pony helped to rectify the issue. Her hoof made contact, barely scraping over her breasts as it descended between her thighs, and began gently massaging her soft lips. She gasped and closed her eyes, beginning to imagine another pony’s hoof manipulating her folds, neon green eyes staring sensually into her own purple.

A slight grin drew itself across her face as her fantasy drew on, the careful ministrations of ‘Skysong’s hoof’, moistening her box. Soon, however, it just wasn’t enough. Her horn lit, glowing magenta as she applied a little magic to her love to replace her hoof. She ‘saw’ the dark unicorn lean down towards her sensitive sex, tongue hanging out, until, finally, she made contact once more. The magic worked over the slickened lips, spreading them open as if it truly was the mare’s pink muscle, and drew all the way up to her aching clitorus.

She spasmed when the firm nub was flicked by the ‘tongue’, stiffening as a torrent of desire blanketed her. Again, it soon came to be too little. She worked the magic over her peak, vigorously stroking, twisting, pulling, and squeezing it as if Skysong we working it over with her beautiful lips and teeth. Twilight groaned, rubbing her legs together as she drew closer to the release she desire. Just... a little... more....

She split her magic in two, leaving one tendril to massage her bead, taking the form of the unicorn’s hoof in her mind once more, and trailed the other back down to her sopping hole. The magic snaked inside of her and expanded, twisted, and writhed in her burning love tunnel. She pushed it further, meeting resistance, and stopped. No.... I can’t go further. It might not be real, but I don’t want to disappoint my mate. With a sigh frustration at having deprived herself once more, Twilight pulled the magic out, squirming at the amazing sensation, and refocused her efforts.

Without waiting for any more of herself to lubricate her magic’s passage, she thrust the force into her backside and grunted at the intrusion. With practised ease, Twilight weaved the magic inside of her, coiling it and manipulating her cavity with as much strength as her lust addled mind could muster until it finally tipped her over the summit.

She orgasmed, moaning softly into her pillow to keep from waking Spike, as her marehood pooled its come into her sheets, soiling them as well as her tail. Quickly, she recovered from her climax, not her greatest one, but certainly one of her fastest, and panted heavily. Her leg was sore, but it was nothing she couldn’t just sleep off. More concerning, however, was her inability to remember the details of the mare she had envisioned during her masturbation session. She pondered over the meaning of it, concerned that one of her most prized endowments had failed to meet her expectations, but groaned when she couldn’t come to the conclusion as to why it had happened.

Well, at least she said she’d return. Maybe I’ll be able to figure out why I can’t remember anything about her. At least I won’t have to worry about her finding out I just masturbated while using her in my fantasy. She grinned, blushing, and closed her eyes, finally drifting off into the slumber that had evaded her moments prior.

The changeling queen buzzed only a few hundred meters from Ponyville, hovering in the air with her acute vision focused on the open balcony doors leading to Twilight’s bedroom, and grinned. Oh, I’ll be back much sooner than you think, Twilight. I’ll be back and you’ll give me so much more of your love....

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The cool night air blew in through the open balcony, rustling Twilight’s hair as she read under the flickering light of a candle. She sighed as she came to the conclusion of her novel, the ending leaving her unsatisfied and yearning for a sequel, but she couldn’t blame the author. You can’t just leave a multi-part story off on an all-encompassing wrap-up, or you won’t have any ponies yearning to obtain the next in the series. It does remind me of a similar issue I’ve been having, though.

She trailed her vision to the main road heading into the town square, the same road a visitor had come through and left upon nearly a week prior. “It’s so frustrating! Why can’t I remember who that pony was? I can’t even remember if it even was a pony, yet my friends remember her very well. At least I can take their word for it. According to them, she hasn’t come back through here, so I guess I’m doomed to-”

Twilight paused, the sound of disturbed foliage catching her ear. She wouldn’t typically pay any notice to the noise any other time, but this was different. It wasn’t the rustling of bushes due to the wind, but instead something more akin the movement of a large being. “Hello? Is somepony there? Rainbow Dash?” She sighed and stepped out onto the balcony, staring up into the greenery above. “Come on out, Dash. There isn’t any point in pranking me if I know you’re- Eep!”

She started, stumbling to the ground as a pair of deep blue eyes stared down at her. A large, midnight-blue frame gently, but firmly hovered down into view on powerful wings, a starry mane and sharp horn gracing the being’s head. Twilight gasped, momentarily shocked by the mare’s sudden appearance, but expediently recovered her senses and bowed as her company’s station demanded. “P-Princess Luna! I didn’t expect to see you here! S-sorry about mistaking you for my friend! You see, she often comes by to play pranks on me and I thought that she might have been doing it again, but I never thought to see you without some notification of your visitation!”

“Be silent, Twilight Sparkle. We have not any need for thine explanations. Our coming here tonight was not meant to be disclosed prior to our arrival.” The night goddess smiled slightly, but kept her royal air about her. “Thou art free to rise at thy leisure. There is not any reason for thee to be so formal. We are here for personal matters, after all.

The lavender unicorn chuckled and rose from her prostrated position. “Well, I’m certainly surprised. Your coming here like this was almost as expected as the Maneish Inquisition.” She giggled at her little joke, but the humor seemed to have been lost on the princess.

“We’re not quite sure we understand. Was that supposed to be a pun?”

Twilight sighed and shook her head. “It was an obscure reference and I had hoped you’d know it. It was supposed to try and lighten the mood, not make it more stiff.” She smiled regardless and motioned for the night princess to come inside. “So, what brings you to Ponyville, Your Majesty?” She watched as the regal mare strode across her room and took a seat at the writing table in the corner before sitting herself upon the floor beside her bed. “From your letter, it sounded as if you wouldn’t want to come to Ponyville any time soon.”

“It was not our intention to deceive thee or our sister, but we did say we would be going about this in our own manner, our own time.” Her smile turned somewhat devious as she leaned in closer to her young host. “We did not wish for our sister to know of our intentions when we are so adamant on helping ourselves. It is a rather difficult thing to overcome, our pride, that is.”

“You know, Princess, you could have just sent me a letter yourself. You didn’t have to be so sneaky about it.” Twilight grinned and shook her head.

“But where is the fun in that? We find it much more exciting to live dangerously. Plus, my sister has guards watching us at all times.” She heaved a heavy sigh, rolling her eyes at the statement. “We could not send a letter and just leave without a guard regimen following us everywhere we went. ‘Tis a royal pain. Our sister.... She fears our ponies will hate us. And Canterlot? Canterlot... is a silly place. Too many rules and regulations. We only wish to make friends, Twilight Sparkle, and from what our sister has told us of thee, thine friendship is of great importance to us.”

Twilight smiled wider, and nodded. “I’ll be glad to be your friend and help you make other friends, Princess. How long will you be here tonight? Should I go make tea?”

Luna thought for a moment before giving a little nod. She lit her horn, the appendage glowing a bright green, and levitated the book Twilight had been reading over to herself. “We shall read while thou prepares the tea.” She opened the book to the first page, but halted when she noticed Twilight staring at her. “Is something the matter, Twilight Sparkle?”

“Oh, no! I just- You can call me just Twilight, if you want to.” She looked away, blushing lightly, but her gaze eventually drew itself back to her ruler. “Actually, I do have one question. You wouldn’t happen to have met a pony recently, would you? I’m afraid I don’t know much about her other than what my friends have told me, but she had green hair and an almost black coat. Do you know of her?”

Luna shook her head slowly and smiled sadly. “We are afraid that we know nothing of this pony. Why is it that thou asks?”

“I’m not sure, but I just feel something. It’s familiar, but I can’t quite place where I felt it before. I thought that, if you knew her, then it might explain the sensation somewhat, but I guess not.” She shook her head, sending any stray thoughts further out of her mind and turned for the stairs once more. “I’ll go get the tea started. I’ll try not to take too long, Princess Luna.”

Luna followed Twilight with her eyes as she hastened down the stairs, watching the unicorn until she had disappeared entirely into the kitchen, then beamed widely, her perfect, white teeth displaced by two pairs of gleaming fangs. Her eyes flashed green, as she chuckled, making sure that her laughter never rose to a volume that the scholar would be able to hear. “Oh, Twilight Sparkle, I feel that you will become quite accustomed to that sensation. All the way until I’ve sucked you dry and left nothing behind, but a husk....”

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Author’s Notes: Woo! This is gonna be interesting. It won’t be nearly as long as ATFN or ND, probably about 4 chapters ish depending on how I get it to work out completely, but it’s an idea that’s been buzzing around my head like a swarm of changelings since the episode aired. I hope you enjoy this and don’t mind the pacing. There’s so much I want to do, but not enough patience to do it with, so it’ll all have to be either skimmed over (the important stuff, but not completely crucial), forgotten (the stuff that would just fluff it), or fleshed out (everything that truly matters [such as the clop :D]). For now, enjoy! Peppy out~!

Editor’s Notes: This chapter should have been completed a long time ago, but I am ashamed to say that I introduced Peps to A Game of Thrones... There is something to be said for persistence though. I was so far up peppy’s ass about finishing this that I could see out of his mouth. Now to go bleach that image out of my mind and sleep. Cya.

More Than Just Food

More Than Just Food

The changeling queen settled down upon the grassy floor, focusing her efforts on remaining awake. A quick glance around told her that nothing had found her hideaway, but another turning gaze informed her of her proximity to the small pony town. She could still see the lights of the nearest houses and she knew that her current position in the woods would not keep her hidden for much longer. The insectoid pony clenched her jaw and gathered the blankets and bedding she had stolen from the townsponies several weeks ago before flitting off further into the dense foliage.

“These conditions are repulsive. I should not have to be forced to live in this hell they call a forest. I am queen of the changelings and deserve to sleep on a bed, surrounded by slaves that feed me their love!” Her hooves hit the ground with a dull thud and she continued her trip a short distance further on hoof, her wings much too tired to carry her. “I should have chosen another pony to pose as, taken more time to figure out how to get closer to her faster!”

The linens fell to the ground and blew the leaves that had settled upon the forest floor away. “But by then I’d have starved to death. I’m surprised I’m still holding on to life with how little love I’ve been able to devour. Unrefined emotion is just too chaotic to feed off of, too weak to nourish me or my children.” She heaved a forlorn sigh and looked down to her slender black legs, noting the muscle and bone showing in the cavities that had opened as the final stage of starvation set in. “My body had already been devouring itself....”

The changeling queen sat upon the piled cloth and stared towards the sky, waiting for the final rays of sunlight to disappear and blanket the world in darkness, leaving only the moon to illuminate the world. She would not be able to make another visit until the moon had settled higher in the sky, giving her enough time for it to not become suspicious. She didn’t have any actual idea of the palace’s schedule and the princesses’ nightly activities and neither, it seemed, did Twilight, but her short time spying on Canterlot had given her enough insight to know when Celestia retired to her chambers. She assumed that Twilight was privy to such information as well.

Another glance at her decaying carapace summoned a choking sob, reminding her of the brood she had birthed, then led to cannibalism. She did not truly love the swarm, for she never held love for anything, but they were her children. She knew their lives were much shorter than her own, but they were her children. And it was her fault that they had succumbed to their most basic instincts. “I should have come to the ponies sooner.”

So she sat, brooding over her loss, yet eager to begin repopulating. She needed her swarm and they needed her. It was only a matter of time until Twilight fully succumbed to her manipulations and poured her refined, focused love into the changeling. It was only a matter of time before she had an army and could rebuild her empire.

The light of the moon caught her eye and drew her attention to the sky again and she grinned. “Finally, it’s time again.” She stood, making sure to secure her bedding with a group of heavy rocks, and took to the sky, donning her alicorn disguise in a flash of green fire.

Luna glided over the various houses, her hooves barely an inch above the thatched roofs as she quickly approached her destination. Her wings flared, halting her dropping her speed exponentially, until she was drifting slowly enough to land on the library’s balcony. Her nearly silent arrival was welcomed by a familiar magenta glow encompassing the windowed doors leading to the building’s main bedroom. The alicorn stepped through the opened entryway and smiled at the sight of the lavender unicorn waiting inside.

“Hello, Luna! Were you able to figure out a way to avoid the guards’ suspicion?” The princess nodded and plopped gracelessly upon Twilight’s bed, sighing in relief as the mattress provided comfort a bundle of rags never would. “It must be difficult having to sneak out and make excuses all the time. You could just tell Princess Celestia that you wanted to come visit. I don’t think she’d judge you over it.”

“I’ve told you Twilight. It’s a matter of pride. I told her that I was going to do everything on my own and I intend to have her believe it.”

The unicorn rolled her eyes and levitated a tray with tea pre-prepared upon it. “I know, I know. I just find it silly, is all. You’re the princess. You shouldn’t have to sneak out to come visit me if you wanted to.” Her magic carefully manipulated the kettle and cups, pouring each of them a serving before being set back upon her nightstand. “So, is there anything specific that you wanted to do tonight? I made sure to keep my schedule free at nights in case you decided to come by.”

The changeling queen settled closer to the head of the bed, allowing her companion to lay next to her as they enjoyed their tea together. She could already feel the love trickling into her, but it was not yet enough to provide her any true strength. “I did not have any plans. I figured we could just discuss the previous days that I have been absent. I’m sure there must have been many happenings worth speaking about.”

Twilight smiled and tilted her head back as she recalled the prior days’ activities. “Well, a couple days ago was Fluttershy’s birthday. It was definitely the most exciting thing to happen all week. Pinkie Pie threw a party for her at Sugarcube Corner, like she does for everypony in Ponyville, and invited all of our friends along with a select few other ponies from town.”

“Oh? And how did that turn out?” She leaned closer, eager to feed off the slowly increasing flow of friendly affection and, strangely, to hear what happened more clearly.

“Well, it was certainly interesting. I think Pinkie forgot, or perhaps chose to forget, that Fluttershy doesn’t do too well in crowds. The poor dear was scared stiff for the first portion of the party. From the moment everypony jumped up and yelled surprise, which, now that I think about it, wasn’t a very good idea, to the starting of the games, she couldn’t even bring herself to talk.” Twilight chuckled and scooted closer to Luna, leaning on her slightly.

The midnight mare twitched at the contact, still not used to the familiarity, but did not shy away. It would not do her any good to avoid deepening the friendship between the two and avoiding the contact would only serve to push Twilight away. It’s much more enjoyable than I had thought before, though. “That can’t be all that happened. From what you’ve told me of Fluttershy, that’s much too normal to be worth mentioning.”

Twilight chuckled and nodded. “Of course there’s more. Do you remember how I made you promise not to tell anypony about Fluttershy’s crush?” She waited for the alicorn to respond, beaming when her question was affirmed. “Well, Pinkie invited Nurse Tenderheart to the party. Apparently she told Tender that Fluttershy liked her, so she spent the whole time making passes on Fluttershy.”

The changeling queen laughed, picturing a shy mare cringing under the constant assault of the nurse’s flirting. She smiled as Twilight joined her, their shared mirth strengthening their friendly bond. “Did they admit feelings for one another? If they started dating, then I’d have to admit that your friend Pinkie is a master strategist.”

Luna watched Twilight intently as the young mare spoke, keeping a keen eye on the unicorn’s facial features. She did not have any interest in what her friends were up to, but was fascinated instead by the one telling the stories. She kept her ears trained on Twilight’s words, but allowed her mind to drift back to the previous weeks since she had assumed the lunar princess’ form, recalling the changes in both of their behaviours since then.

Twilight had definitely been nervous around her during the first few meetings, especially when the changeling queen had attempted to bring them closer by way of the dropping of titles and formality. She mentally chuckled, recalling how the unicorn had adamantly refused to speak with familiarity, insisting on calling her princess and bowing whenever she visited. It had taken much persuasion, but with the miniscule amounts of love created from mere respect and duty made the effort worth it. The payoff of friendship was definitely worth the price.

She paused and considered that word for a moment. Friendship. I know she sees me as a friend. I can feel it, taste it, every time we’re together, but do I still only see her as food? Images of their time spent together flashed through her mind as the mare beside her droned on. She briefly recalled their various sessions. The first time Twilight had finally relented and called the alicorn by her false-name came to the forefront of her memories followed by each little victory over the unicorn in rapid succession.

She smiled. Perhaps I do enjoy her presence. It’ll be a shame when she’s dead and I have to move on to my next meal, but that is the price I, and she, must pay. I may as well milk this situation for all that it’s worth and revel in her affection and the company.

“-And then I accidentally turned Spike into a newt, but he got better. It was definitely-”

“So, Twilight.”

The mare stopped mid-sentence and looked up the her guest, blushing lightly. “Oh, I’m sorry Prin- Luna. I didn’t mean to go off on a tangent like that.”

The changeling laughed and shook her head, immediately falling back into her role as the night ruler. “It isn’t a problem, dear Twilight. That little excursion to the market yesterday sounded exciting, so it comes as little surprise that you would wish to explain every happening of the moment.” Her smile grew as the little mare showered her with unbridled affection, then moved to stand. “I was going to ask if you would wish for me to come back again tomorrow. Perhaps some time during the normal ponies’ waking hours so that I might meet your friends and become acquainted with Ponyville society.”

The little unicorn gasped and jumped to the floor, rushing over to where Luna now stood. “Really!?” Her eyes widened at the volume of her words and she cast a guilty look towards the basket holding the sleeping Spike. Reassured that her outburst hadn’t woken the baby dragon, Twilight sighed and returned her focus to her guest. “Are you sure? I mean, I’m excited that you’ll be able to meet all my friends, but won’t it be difficult to sneak out during the day?”

“Of course, but isn’t that the fun of it? Unfortunately, I won’t be able to hide my presence from the common ponies, but it’s not like they have any direct correspondence with my sister, right?” The changeling smiled down at the lavender mare, formulating a plan of action for the following day as she spoke. “Besides, it’s not like I could call myself your friend if I don’t take the time to get to know yours. One can only formulate so much of an opinion based on word of mouth alone.”

Twilight beamed and hopped around the royal mare chanting her excitement and drawing a curious glance from her companion. She caught sight of the alicorn’s arched eyebrow and immediately halted, a heavy blush tinting her cheeks. “Hehe.... Sorry, I was just excited. I just know my friends would love to meet you.”

The changeling sighed happily as the sudden influx of emotion filled her with relief. Ohhhh, this love is so sweet, so delicious. I need more. Her horn lit as she focused the majority of magic upon her host, refining the draw of love from the mare, while levitating a book at random from Twilight’s personal shelf, disguising the act as a simple levitation spell. The unicorn gasped and collapsed as a sudden bout of dizziness overcame her, but was quickly righted by the lunar alicorn’s glow. Luna checked Twilight worriedly, making sure the mare was alright before releasing her. That was stupid. I’ve been drawing from her since I arrived. A sudden drain like that could have truly hurt her.

“Wow, that was weird! I don’t know what happened, but thank you. That could have left a bruise.” Twilight smiled, shaking the lingering unbalance from her system before carefully climbing back onto her bed. “I think I’m more tired than I thought.” She opened her mouth in a long, drawn-out yawn and chuckled. “Yup, definitely tired, but if you want to stay a little longer, I won’t mind. I can stay awake as long as you want.”

“No, that is fine. I should have known that keeping you awake till such hours would eventually take a toll on you. I forget that you are just a mortal pony.” Luna smiled and stepped out onto the balcony. She cast one final look back at the reclining pony and nodded. “I shall see you tomorrow.”

Twilight watched the alicorn fly off into the night and trailed her movements through the air with her eyes until she disappeared in the darkness. She shook her head and rubbed the sides of her skull with her hooves. “That was.... That didn’t make any sense. I’m not tired at all and the sudden dizziness. That feeling is so familiar.” Her eyes flashed green momentarily and she replaced her frown with a soft grin. “Oh well. It’s not really important.” An excited giggle escaped her lips as her mind turned to the following day and plans for the princess’ arrival flew through her brain. “I think I can push tomorrow’s schedule off for a day to make room for Luna.”

The young mare climbed under her blankets and snuggled up closer to her pillow, an eager smile plastered upon her face as she drifted off to sleep.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The changeling queen landed in the patch of forest she had claimed for her own, using the remnants of her magic as a beacon to find her place, and shed her disguise. Her carapace gleamed under the moonlight as she strode under the leafy canopy, casting her gaze around the area to ensure there were not any intruders in her temporary lair before spreading her pilfered blankets upon the ground. She dropped to the ground gracelessly, finding a small amount of comfort from the familiarity of her surroundings, yet still longing for the comfort of a bed, or, more specifically, Twilight’s bed.

A pang of guilt nipped at her conscience, but she quickly suppressed it, crushing the feeling under her mental hoof. Am I feeling sorry for what I did? She laughed, the sudden outburst scaring off a small flock of birds that had settled in the boughs of the trees above. Preposterous. She’s my only source of food, so of course I’m worried that I’m feeding too much from her. She is merely entertaining for a host.

The changeling sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. I'm not fooling myself. I've let this friendship progress too far. Mother always told me not to play with my food lest I grow attached. Another soft chuckle and the mare rested her head on the rolled bundle at her hooves. It truly is a shame that I won't be able to convert her fully. Such a strong will for a pony so young. I could have kept her around after were it not for that.

Another heavy sigh escaped her lips as she closed her eyes, finally preparing to rest in preparation for the coming day. I've been sighing a lot recently. It's quite unbecoming of a queen to have to fret so much, but one must do what needs to be done if she wishes to see her children prosper like her foremothers before her.

The queen quickly drifted off to sleep, her mind settled for the evening as her eagerness to feed from and meet with her lavender host gave way to the need of rest.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The sun shone brightly through the glass of the library’s second floor window, it’s aim true as it slowly drifted over the face of the slumbering librarian. She grunted and shifted out of the stray beam before leaning upright against her bed’s headboard so she could rub the post-waking exhaustion from her eyes. As her mind caught up with her body, a faint smile formed on her muzzle and she hopped from her mattress after quickly displacing her sheets to allow free movement. Another use of her magic and the discarded bedclothes were tucked neatly under the mattress, ready for the next upcoming use.

Twilight trotted down the stairs to find her number-one assistant already awake and devouring his portion of the breakfast he had prepared for the two of them. She took her place at the small table, beaming as she joined Spike in the consumption of their food. The baby dragon took note of his caregiver’s unusual mood and paused his fork mid-bite. “Uhm, Twi? Not that it’s a bad thing, but why are you so happy? You’re never this happy in the mornings.”

“Well, we’re going to be having company later and I’m just excited. You should be, too!”

“Company? But I didn’t see anything about any visitors on your schedule. I know. I checked it three times this morning!” He glanced over to the extensive list for the day and cringed at the memory of triple-checking the checklist.

“That’s because it isn’t on the checklist, Spike. It was decided last night and I haven’t had the time to update it.” Twilight, too, snuck a peek at the lengthy piece of parchment and sighed. So much more stuff to do tomorrow, but it’s totally worth it.

“But what about all the stuff we have to do!? We can’t just not do them. You’ll totally flip out and try to go back in time to get them done or something.”

“Oh, Spike. I’d never freak out over anything as silly as an uncompleted task or missing a deadline. Besides, we can just do all of that tomorrow. Considering who’s coming over, it would make sense to make time for her.” She waited a moment to let her words sink in, but frowned when the dragon cast her a confused look.

“Who could be important enough to drop an entire day’s list of chores over? It can’t be Princess Celestia. I’d have known!”

Twilight chuckled and shook her head. “No, Spike. It’s Princess Luna. She came for a visit last night and we decided that we’d meet again today, so she could properly meet the girls. Now, finish eating so we can prepare for her arrival. I suspect she’ll be here pretty soon.”

The unicorn levitated her plate, now devoid of the hunger-abating goodness it had once held, into the kitchen and returned to her room leaving Spike to fully digest her words and remaining food. She busied herself with reorganizing her room, clearing it of the displaced books and sheets of paper strewn about. As she began rolling up the final scroll, the sound of claws scraping across wood caught her attention and she turned to find her assistant standing, arms folded, with a questioning look upon his face.

“Yes, Spike? What’s up?”

“Don’t you think it’s weird?”

Twilight sighed and set the scroll she had been levitating back on her desk. “What’s weird? That Luna’s coming later? She’s the princess, Spike. She’s more than welcome to visit whenever she feels like it.”

“No, not that. That she didn’t just send a letter or have Princess Celestia send a letter! I mean, don’t you think that would be a lot more convenient than coming randomly in the middle of the night herself?”

“Oh, Spike. You’re just overthinking this.” She giggled and patted the dragon on his head. “Besides, she’s visited several times during the past few weeks.”

“What? Why haven’t I noticed? I’m pretty sure I haven’t seen her at all since the summer sun celebration!”

Twilight sat up against her bed and smiled. “That’s because you haven’t. She’s been coming during the night and,” she pressed her hoof to Spike’s mouth, halting his words before they could even form, “she’s already explained her reasons. I was curious too, you know, but she’s our princess and has every right to be as secretive as she wants.” She stood and turned away, searching her bookshelves. “So, do you think you could help me prepare? I need my copy of Daily Activities for Friends or Large Groups.”

The baby dragon shook his head in defeat and plucked a book from the bottom shelf of the nearest bookcase. “Here, Twi. Just, if something goes wrong, don’t say I didn’t try to warn you.”

“Hehe. Spike, it’s not like she’ll grow big, sharp, pointy teeth and try to bite our heads off. Trust me, you’ll love her. Now, let’s prepare some food for lunch.”

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The sun glinted off the decorative gorget hanging around the moon princess’ neck as she flew under the midday sun. Her lips curved up in a smile as she approached the familiar balcony of the Ponyville library. It’s true. I’m excited to spend the day with my food and not because I’ll be feeding. She pushed the thoughts from her mind and landed gently upon the wooden outcropping, her lithe, changeling body, still disguised as the lunar alicorn’s, allowing a softer arrival.

She pressed open glass doors, conveniently left unlocked for her arrival, and stepped in to see the typically cluttered living space of the lavender unicorn surprisingly tidy. She chuckled, thinking back to her second visit and how the mare had frantically tried to clean her bedroom while keeping her at bay with a locked entryway, much to her ire at the time. She still holds Luna, me, in high regards even after I told her it did not matter.

Her eyes scanned the area for her friend and, having not found her hiding under the bed or in the closet, decided to call out for the librarian. She heard a crash from below her and a muttered curse follow by a cheerful greeting as the purple form of her host rushed up the stairs to greet her.

“Luna! You’re here earlier than I expected! We don’t really have everything prepared yet, but we’ve got most of it done.” She grinned sheepishly and glanced over the balcony to the kitchen archway, taking note of the food splattered just barely in sight. “If you don’t mind missing out on the potato salad, we could go and gather my friends now. Unless there was something that you wanted to do first, of course.”

“No, that is fine. Will Spike be coming with us? I have seen him many times, but I have yet to truly meet him.”

“Of course. He’s just cleaning up a, uhm, mess real quick and then we’ll be ready to go. I figured we would find Rarity first since her house is the closest.” She turned and leaned over the railing looking over the library lobby. “Spike! Are you ready yet? The princess is here!”

The purple dragon in question walked out of the kitchen carrying a large picnic basket, presumably filled with lunch-foods, grumbling grumpily. “Yeah, yeah. Don’t get your mane in a twist, I’m done.”

“Did you make sure to pack some drinks, too?”

“Yes.”

“And the blanket?”

“In the basket.”

“The cutlery for Rarity?”

“Jeez, Twi! Yes!” He set the basket down and folded his arms, glaring at her impatiently. “Do you want me to bring you a shrubbery and chop down the Whitetail Woods with a fish, too?”

The changeling queen blinked at the blatant disrespect the dragon was show, but Twilight just shook her head and took it in stride. If he were one of my minions, he would have been hung up for his display. Why does she not reprimand him?

“That’s just silly. Why would I need a bush or want the woods chopped down? I’m just trying to make sure we don’t leave anything behind. It’s Princess Luna after all and I don’t want to disappoint her.” The lavender mare turned back to her guest and smiled happily before trotting down the stairs to join her young reptilian ward. “Well, let’s get going. Perhaps seeing Rarity will help to improve your mood a bit?”

Spike’s mood visibly bettered at the second mention of the pale unicorn’s name and he followed the mares out the door without any further protests. The trio, led by Twilight, moved briskly under the noonday sun, basking in the warmth balanced by a cool northern breeze. The trip to the fashionista’s boutique and home went by quickly and the group found themselves standing outside the lavish building’s purple door.

Twilight couldn’t see any lights on inside from where she was standing, but she brushed it off without another thought. Her hoof knocked thrice upon the wooden door, the sound reverberating through the wide lobby beyond it. The trio waited for a reply, but none came and, so, the librarian knocked a second time with more force. Again her call went unanswered.

“Huh.... That’s strange. Usually she’s at home at this time.” She looked curiously through the window, but the lack of light inside proved such actions fruitless. “I guess we’ll see her in town, then. Let’s go find Fluttershy next.”

The trip to the edge of Ponyville where the shy pegasus’ cottage stood took slightly longer than the walk to the Carousel Boutique, but they crossed the small creek bordering Fluttershy’s property in little time at all. Like the residence before it, the banana-yellow mare’s house was devoid of all lights and life save for the occasional scurrying critter or bird. Sure that the pegasus would be too scared to sit in her house with the lights off for any amount of time, Twilight huffed and pointed to a large formation of clouds above them.

“Well, Fluttershy’s missing too, so we’ll check Rainbow Dash’s cloud-home and AJ’s apple stand, then check Sugarcube Corner. Honestly, where could they all be?”

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Luna sighed as they approached the massive gingerbread confectionery shop. She had planned to begin feeding off of Twilight’s friends’ love for her during their get-together in order to spare the unicorn the exhaustive effects of a second day’s meal, but after finding the prismatically maned pegasus and farm worker missing from their typical locations, she feared that this would not likely be the case.

They soon stood outside the bright pink bakery and peered through the windows, but the garish pink curtains inside blocked any form of sight into the shop’s lobby. Twilight reached to open the door, but the changeling halted her with a hoof in her path. “I’ll check. It’s a public shop, so it would not be strange to walk in unannounced.”

The alicorn-disguised mare turned the bakery’s handle and pushed open the door to reveal another large, dark room. Twilight grunted in annoyance at the sight, but followed Luna into the building regardless of the obvious absence of the party pony. “Well, that’s just crazy! Where in Equestria could they have all-”

“SURPRISE!!”

Seemingly out of thin air, Pinkie Pie jumped into view of the trio and tossed confetti into the air which was immediately followed by the flicking of a light switch to reveal the rest of Twilight’s friends plus a few guests.

Startled by the sudden outburst and unaccustomed to the pink mare’s antics, the lunar alicorn dropped into a defensive stance, horn glowing green as she prepared a spell to fight back the impending assault. Which will not come.

Twilight rushed to Luna’s side and rested a hoof on the mare’s shoulders, effectively lowering the mare’s defensive status. “Hey, Twilight! Hey, Spike! Hey, Princess Luna! Did I surprise you? I bet I did! You see, it was the best idea I’ve had so far and I was sure it was going to work and it did! I saw the princess fly off last night and I thought: Hmm. Now, I wonder why she left so early tonight. And then I knew! You were gonna come say hi to everypony finally, so I told all of our friends that you’d be coming for a visit and planned for this surprise party! Isn’t that exciting!?”

The trio gaped at the hyperactive pink pony before Spike recovered. “Wait a second. How did you know that the princess was visiting Twilight when I didn’t even know and I live in the same house!?”

“My Pinkie-sense, silly. Duh. I have a Pinkie-sense for almost anything and it told me last week, through the combination of scratchy ear, wriggly nose, and bouncy knee, that somepony special was coming to Ponyville! And then I saw her land at Twilight’s place!” She grinned from ear-to-ear, proud of her achievement, but instantly dropped her smile to replace it with an inquisitive stare. “Hmmm.... That’s strange, though. Isn’t Princess Luna’s magic supposed to be midnight-blue?”

The changeling stepped back involuntarily, suddenly somewhat intimidated by the mare’s intuitiveness and discovery, but was quickly rescued by her lilac host. “Oh, Pinkie. It’s obviously green. We’ve never seen Luna’s magic color until recently, so I’m not sure where you got the assumption that it would be another color.”

The pink mare kept up her unrelenting stare, eyeing the alicorn’s horn closely. “I dunno, but I’ve never known you to be wrong about magic, so okay!” Her overly-large smile returned in full force and she turned to the other four girls plus two siblings. “Are you girls ready to get this party started!?” With a deft twist of her body and nudge of a hoof, the record player kicked into life and spewed its upbeat sounds into the room, prompting the group to begin their dancing and mingling.

It wasn’t long at all before the royal mare was assailed by the fashionista she had met just a fortnight ago. “Good afternoon, Princess Luna. I just want to take the time to say that it is a pleasure to actually converse with you. It’s unfortunate that the last time we met you were too busy to speak with anypony. Well, considering the circumstances, it would make sense that you’d be busy.”

The changeling’s response died on her tongue as her mind fully processed the unicorn’s words and came to the one conclusion that almost terrified her. She didn’t know what the mare was talking about. “I’m afraid that I do not recall having met you before.”

Rarity tilted her head, confused. “Whatever do you mean, darling? You’ve met all of us before.” Her confusion disappeared as she came to some sort of realization. “Well, we didn’t really meet for too long. And it was a little more than a year ago without any sort of correspondence.”

Luna’s eyes widened as memories of a year ago came back to her mind. She recalled one of her scouting drones coming with news of Luna’s return and that she had been freed by the assistance of six mares. So these are the mares that defeated Nightmare Moon. “Oh, I apologize. It has been too long if I had forgotten my saviours. I do not recall if I thanked you for redeeming me, but it means a lot to know that I have friends such as you, if you do not mind the presumptuous nature of my calling you as such.”

Rarity beamed. “Oh, that is most wonderful. You know, I would love to make a dress for you. Perhaps sometime later you and Twilight could come by my boutique?”

The changeling made to reply, but her words were cut off by the sudden reappearance of the party’s host. “Hey there! Guess what time it is!” She grinned and bounced in place, waiting eagerly for an answer. Luna and Rarity both prepared to supply the pink mare with a reply when she whipped out a large board with a pony painted onto it. “It’s time for my favoritest game ever! Pin the tail on the pony! Aaaaaaand, since you’re the guest of honor today, you get to go first!”

The changeling stood, momentarily dumbstruck, as Pinkie Pie hung the poster board upon the wall and returned with a dark blue pony tail. “How do I-”

“Well, it’s easy, silly! You just put on a blindfold,” Pinkie forced a black blindfold over Luna’s eyes, “spin around in circles,” and spun her multiple times until the alicorn was practically falling over her own hooves, “and try to pin the tail on the pony!” With that, she pushed the blunted end of the tail’s pin into the false-princess’ mouth and nudged her towards the general area of the target.

The midnight mare wobbled uneasily as she took a tentative step forward, much to the amusement of the other party-goers, but quickly found her footing again as she moved closer to the spot she had been aimed at. What is the point of this game? She listened for the cheering of the group of friends and, more specifically, the soft utterings of directions from the excited ponies before thrusting her muzzle forward and sticking the pin into the cork board. Honestly, this is completely pointless. She inched a part of her blindfold off to examine the results of her pinning, a bored expression on her face. Where is the fun in-

"Haha! I won!" She ripped the remainder of the cloth covering her eyes from her head and jumped with joy, then noticed the laughter coming from around her. The group of ponies gathered closer and congratulated the false-princess on her achievement which resulted in a surge of energy for the changeling as they unwittingly fed her. "I had my doubts about this game, but it I can see the appeal of winning."

Twilight chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, you haven't won yet, but you definitely did better than most of us would."

"I do not understand. My pin is almost perfectly placed. How is this not a victory?"

"Well, sugarcube, that's 'cause Pinkie hasn't gone yet." Applejack patted the alicorn consolingly, and pointed to where the pony in question was blindfolded and ready to go. "We ain't beat her once in the entire time we've known her. She's some kinda pin-the-tail master."

As they spoke, Rarity twirled the party pony faster than Luna thought possible, yet, when she was stopped, Pinkie didn't even seem phased. With inequine precision, she bounced cheerily up the the pin board and stuck the tail perfectly upon the pony's rump, taking the lead from the princess.

The dark queen gaped in amazement at the skill displayed for such a simple act. Pinkie simply trotted up to the runner-up and hugged her. "That was a great try, Lu-lu! Nopony's ever gotten that close to me before! I'm gonna have to keep my eyes on you if I wanna keep my champion title!"

They all watched the princess as she stared at her situational better, unsure of how she would react. The alicorn herself wasn't sure if she should be angry or impressed and her face reflected the conflicting thoughts writhing inside her mind. She scanned the other ponies, taking note of their unease, before returning to Pinkie Pie whose smile had drooped just slightly.

Luna burst with laughter. “Incredible! I've never heard of an earth pony with such precision! Are you certain you're not a unicorn without a horn?" She smiled, reveling in the emotions given freely to her. So amazing. Who'd have thought simple acts such as this could generate so much emotion from so many subjects? She turned to the purple mare at her side and her grin widened. All animosity she had felt at any point towards the unicorn, the pony that had helped her arrive at this point no matter how unwittingly, vanished as she was invigorated with the flood of love from the group.

A spike of regret tugged at her heart, the heart that had never cared for anything more than motherly love for her children, as she recalled how she had gotten this far. It was because I played her into feeding me, blinded her with magic and disguises. She sighed softly, an act that didn't go unheeded by her host who now watched her with worry upon her face. It is fine. She will not find out as long as I don't tell her. It's come too far for anything to go wrong.

Twilight nudged the queen, her concern only slightly masked so that her friends wouldn't catch on. "Is something wrong, Luna? You seemed kind of distressed."

The midnight blue mare shook her head and smiled, giving the unicorn a small amount of the love she had received back, even if she couldn't feel or truly appreciate it. Just this once. "No, everything's fine. In fact, I think everything's going to be perfect."

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The changeling queen hovered above the clouds, staring down at the illuminated window of the treehome down below. Or, more specifically, the lavender mare sitting on the wooden balcony and staring out towards the towering mountain that held Canterlot City. She settled softly upon a cloud, her eyes never leaving the forlorn unicorn below her, and rested upon her hole-ridden legs. It had been a little less than a week since she had been to visit Twilight last and almost three since the failed get together and impromptu party honoring ‘her’ first public visit and she longed to spend time with her friends and, especially, Twilight.

But that was where the problem lay. Her mind played over each visit since that party, recalling the events that had led up to her current predicament. It had been fine after the party. We went back to her library and talked until I left to ‘raise the moon’. But it hadn’t. I returned some of her love.... Well, that isn’t too much of an issue. A queen mustn't exhaust her main food source if she wishes to draw from those around her. I came back a few days after that and nothing seemed too different. We talked about trivial topics and she read for us. Two days after that, I came back during the day and we had the picnic that had been reneged. Just her and I. I remember her feeding me more than usual, nothing further than pure friendship, but I had given back almost as much in fear of her health.

The insectoid mare bit her bottom lip, being careful not to let her fangs pierce the chitinous skin and shook her head. That wasn’t too much of a set-back and couldn’t have been abnormal. I returned it willingly. Then... there was our last meeting. It was a normal night like any of our previous get-togethers. We stayed up later than usual due to the most interesting book.... No, it wasn’t the book.... It was her.

Her gaze traced over Twilight’s body as the mare gazed longingly at the horizon, yawning occasionally as the moon continued on its descent across the sky. The book was absolutely boring, but she was captivating. She fell asleep and I remember watching her like I am now. Then it happened....

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Author’s Notes: Wellp, here you gaiz go. Another chapter of AHWC that only took much longer than I wanted it to. You can all thank Jeky-poo again for kicking my ass to keep it going and can blame the internet (along with some of you) for keeping me from writing. Much thanks to Jekyll for his assistance and, once again, see if you can spot the references (if you can’t I’ll have to murder you all.). Anyhoof, I’mma be finishing this up before getting back to ND and ATFN, so expect at least two more chapters of this in the near future (hopefully within a couple weeks). Wellp, that be all, so.... Peppy out~!

Editor’s Notes: Another Peppy cliffhanger for ya. Well, was fun and stuff, but I just woke up and my head itches like mad so I’ll end it here. Ciao!

Less Than a Lie

Less Than a Lie

Twilight’s lips curled into a light smile as she leaned upon the alicorn at her side and continued reading from the large book of history levitating before her. She felt completely at ease in the presence of the moon goddess, capable of relaxing and letting her mental safeguards down just so she could better enjoy her company. Her trust of the mare was absolute, so much so that she was comfortable enough to allow herself to slowly drift away from wakefulness. An extensive yawn escaped her mouth as her fatigue from the long day, and now night, finally caught up to her. She could tell that she was losing focus, her vision blurred as tears of exhaustion formed in her eyes and her voice began slurring the words she was reading, and laid her head against the soft neck of the mare at her side.

Soon, even against her greatest efforts to quell the desire, Twilight dozed against the supporting form of the youngest alicorn princess.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Twilight sighed, her forlorn gaze never once faltering from the tall mountain that housed her mentor and close friend. She had been reliving that moment over and over in her head, picking it apart and analyzing each piece individually, seeking out the moment that things had gone wrong. I just don’t understand! Why hasn’t Luna come back? Was it rude of me to fall asleep like that? She didn’t say anything against it..., but maybe she was just too uncomfortable to speak up.

She grunted in anger, the majority of the emotion directed at herself, but, still, let some of the blame fall upon the princess’ shoulders. Why couldn’t she just tell me? She didn’t have to avoid me.... That’s so much worse.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Luna smiled at the sight, her heart pumping faster as she watched the rise and fall of the slumbering pony’s chest. She hadn’t expected the mare to stay up this late as they had both stayed up past their typical resting time the night before, but was equally glad as she was surprised. It was comforting to know that her host trusted her unconditionally and that she no longer had to use her influencing changeling magic to nudge the unicorn’s disposition in her favor. It had been a while since she’d even thought of using her spell.

Twilight mumbled in her sleep, the words incomprehensible save for one. Her guest’s name. The changeling sucked in breath at the sound of her disguise’s name and sighed happily. She hadn’t been this content in years, not since the days of her childhood under her mother, Chrysalis’ rule. She knew that it should be strange that she was so comforted by the being she should be leeching off of, but none of that mattered whenever she was with her. She just wanted it to last forever and would gladly lie even more to spend more time with her.

The lavender mare shifted in her sleep, muttering uneasily as her dream seemed to take a turn away from the peaceful. The faux princess frowned, worried that Twilight’s dream would descend into the realm of nightmares, but wasn’t entirely sure what to do to ease the mare’s troubled mind. She didn’t have the magic of the pony she posed as nor did she know any spell to soothe a pony’s sleep. Changelings never had issues with dreams as her drones and soldiers were all linked to her own mind. She fretted constantly as the slumbering pony’s twitching and shifting grew in intensity, unsure of what action to take, when Twilight spoke again.

“Luna....”

The name came out as little more than a whisper, but the urgency with which the unicorn whimpered it clouded all conscious thought, seemingly rewiring the alicorn’s brain instantly. She smiled down at the dreaming mare’s form and leaned closer to the pony’s head which now rested upon the bed due to the displacing effects of her shifting. As if sensing the larger pony’s imminent presence, Twilight’s movement lessened just enough for the changeling’s next move.

Luna’s lips pressed softly upon Twilight’s, connecting them in a brief, but purposeful kiss, effectively halting the sleeping pony’s nightmare and bringing her back into the peaceful rest provided by soothing dreams. The changeling beamed at the effects the small amount of affection she had just given to the unicorn had on her and leaned in again. Their lips met once more, but, this time, she kept their muzzles together longer, drawing the passionate kiss out into a much more intimate act. She could feel the love pass from her body into the unicorn’s and had to fight not to make it tangible as she poured more of herself into Twilight.

Her eyes shot open and the changeling pulled away as quickly as she had descended upon her sleeping host. She couldn’t believe what had just happened, couldn’t understand how it had happened. She had just given love to a being that wasn’t one of her children. She hadn’t returned it. She had given her own love to the lavender unicorn.

The faux princess stood quickly, backing away from Twilight who groaned unhappily as the changeling’s warmth left her side, but still did not wake. The changeling queen yearned to lay back beside the mare, to stop her unconscious seeking of the comfort of another body, and it frightened her. She couldn’t believe what was happening, couldn’t comprehend how it had happened, and burst out of the library’s balcony window without casting even a fleeting glance at the retreating form of the treehome behind her.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

The changeling queen sighed, rubbing her face with a chitinous black hoof and standing back up upon her cloud-perch. Is this why you warned me about the ponies, mother? Is it because they are so easily manipulated and yet still capable of changing us even as we hold them in thrall? She cast one more look over the edge of her cloud, just barely able to see the host she longed for staring out towards the country’s capital, before spreading her thin, insectoid wings and leaping off into the sky. She made certain not to stray into Twilight’s view and masked the buzzing of her wings with the subtle working of magic as she directed herself back towards the mountains she had once called her home.

The speed at which she flew brought her to the mouth of her abandoned home, the rocky maw as dark as it had been on the night she left. She stepped inside, hoping to hear the sound of buzzing wings, yearning to hear her children flourishing in their cold cavern, but was greeted with only silence broken by the echoing sound of her hardened hooves upon the stone floor. Her horn ignited and filled the area around her in a warm, green glow, illuminating the lifeless walls around her. She sighed, saddened that her expectations had not been met, but continued further into the area until she arrived at the first large chamber of the underground complex.

Her spell’s light faltered momentarily as the sight of hundreds of charred, hollow husks, many of them broken or torn apart, filled her view. Her children, or what once were her children, lay long dead upon the floor, hollowed out long ago due to the rapid decay of their bodies spurred on by the heat of the spell she had cast in anger months before. She choked back a sob, stricken with grief at the tragedy in front of her, but stood strong and moved onward. They may be dead, but there are more. I can feel it.

The same thing greeted her around every corner she turned and inside every room she visited. The desiccated bodies lay everywhere she went, signs of the tremendous loss she had suffered, until she came to her hatchery, the last place she had visited before leaving and the place that she had lost control of her anger. This room had suffered the most damage from her outburst. The walls were all severely charred and piles of black ash were spread everywhere as the fires of her rage had devoured everything in sight.

She smiled.

Everything, but my eggs.

Placed randomly amongst the burned remains of her hive were four eggs, their thick, white shells still lightly pulsating as the young within waited to be birthed. The changeling queen slowly moved up to the closest egg, admiring it fondly, and leaned her muzzle in closer to it. Her breathing grew heavier as she stretched her mouth as wide as she could, causing the brittle skin at the back of her mouth to tear painfully, until, slowly, a luminescent green fluid flowed from her open maw to begin covering the unhatched changeling. She stepped back, coughing and working her jaw to relieve the ache caused by her expulsion of love, and watched.

The egg began to absorb the liquid love, tinting the white casing lime, and throbbed. It shook once, then another time, before it started to expand. It grew larger and larger, the thick shell soon becoming thin and brittle, as the shadow of a form could be seen inside. Then, the pod cracked. In a shower of slime and organic casing, the egg exploded open to reveal the form of a newborn changeling, its hide pale and semi-transparent, but fully grown.

She regarded her newly born offspring fondly and nudged it gently until it could stand on its own. She watched it carefully, making sure there weren’t any defects from its extended stay in its egg, and nuzzled it softly, drawing its attention. “Ah, a female. Not surprising. My daughters have always been more formidable than my sons.”

The changeling queen closed her eyes and focused, searching for the only being currently part of her hive mind, and ordered the hatchling to be ready to feed. Immediately, the translucent child opened her mouth wide and waited in anticipation, eager for her first meal. Her black mother leaned down, maw opening wide once more and further tearing the flesh of her mouth, and let the bright love flow down her tongue and into her daughters mouth. The child mewled happily and sat back upon her haunches as soon as her meal was finished, smiling warmly at the taller mare and spreading her thin wings in excitement.

“Sit here, Mimos, I must awaken another. We have an important task tomorrow and I shall have need of both you and another child. For now, stretch your wings and get prepared for flight. We leave in the morning.”

The filly nodded, chirping her understanding, and watched as her mother stepped to another pod, this one slightly larger and much more active than the other three were. The queen watched it curiously, but proceeded with the hatching regardless of its activity, covering the shell with leftover love, then stepped back and watched as it hatched as well. From the egg fell another changeling, this one significantly larger than her daughter, yet still dwarfed in comparison to her, who stood without her assistance and watched her just as she watched it.

“Oh, what a powerful son you are. It seems my mother’s genetics are predominant in this one.” She chuckled and shook her head. “Mother’s sons always seemed to be more stout than mine. Regardless, you must feed or else, even with your substantial stamina, you will fade like your brethren.” She quickly gave the remaining reserves of her love to her second born,who accepted the sustenance without any change in emotion, then fell to her haunches overcome with exhaustion.

Her daughter, whose wings had dried from the birthing slime, buzzed over to her and nuzzled her affectionately. “Oh, Mimos, you will have to forgive your mother for what she is going to do on the morrow. The mighty changeling queen has fallen from her throne and into the hooves of a mere commoner pony.” She smiled and stroked the girl’s cheek. “At least you and your brothers and sisters-to-be will not be without food. Soon, I’ll be able to come for my other children and begin laying again. Perhaps, one day, our race will be as proud and abundant as my foremothers’.

“Now, you two must rest. It is a trying flight back to the pony town and your presence will be vital if I am to fully secure my place with the mare that holds my emotions. Sleep, and we will leave at first light.” She laid herself upon the rocky ground, her daughter curling up close-by and son laying in the same spot he had been since hatching, and quickly fell asleep under the familiar ceiling of her childhood home.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Twilight’s eyes opened blearily as the sound of knocking came from downstairs and roused her from her slumber. She groaned groggily, her sleep-deprived body moving sluggishly as she pulled herself from her bed and dragged her hooves down the stairs to shoo away the early morning sleep interruption. Another rapping upon the door frustrated the mare further and she huffed angrily. “I’m coming! I’m coming!” Her horn lit and mouth opened wide to reprimand the pony disturbing her, but her voice caught in her throat as soon as the door opened to reveal her tormentor. It took her several moments to recover from the shock of the sight, but as soon as her voice returned she gasped in surprise. “P-Princess Luna! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to yell at you! I’m just a little tired and I’ve been kind of grumpy lately.”

“A little tired is an understatement, Twilight. You look exhausted.” The alicorn hung her head in shame, truly feeling regret at having watched the mare from afar and done nothing. “I should be the one to apologize. It must have been my extended absence that caused you to lose sleep, yes?”

Twilight’s eyes dropped to the floor, refusing to meet Luna’s. “It.... I was worried, you know? I thought I had done something I shouldn’t have.... I didn’t offend you, did I? I’m really sorry if I did!”

The faux princess smiled and shook her head. “No, Twilight. It had nothing to do with you. Well, it did concern you, but it is not you who is to blame. I assume you wish to know why I haven’t been to visit recently or why I didn’t leave a note that night, yes?” The young unicorn looked up and nodded slightly. “Uhm, may I come inside? My guards and I are relatively tired from our flight. We’ll remain out here should you wish it, however.”

“Oh! Oh, no! It’s fine, Princess. Please, come in.” She stepped out of the way, allowing the regal mare and her two pegasus guards through the doorway. The guards, after acknowledging their leader’s nod, sat as silent guardians beside the doorway and stared forward as their princess sat beside Twilight on a small sofa backed up against the eastern wall.

“You don’t need to call me princess, Twilight. I am sick of all the grovelling and titles of Canterlot and, with as close as you are as a friend, you have no need for such formalities.” She smiled as the unicorn hung her head again and lifted her face with a hoof. “Besides, I have something important to tell you. I have spoken with my sister and arranged to stay here, should you allow it, for the period of a week.” The unicorn’s eyes lit up at the announcement and she had to forcefully restrain herself to keep from cheering wildly. “Of course, my sister would not allow me to go without my guards, so I have brought two of our most trusted ponies, Mimos and Shift, to stay as well. Is the guest room still available for us?”

The unicorn arched an eyebrow and tilted her head. “What do you mean, still available? How’d you know we have a guest room?”

The changeling queen almost panicked at her slip-up, having forgotten that her time as Skysong was not spent as the moon goddess, but quickly covered up her worry with yet another lie. “Well, I remember seeing it the night that I left. I wanted to make sure that my plan wouldn’t fall through due to something as silly as having no place to stay.” She chuckled and beamed, hoping her amusement would ease the unicorn’s curiosity. Luckily, it seemed to have worked.

“Well, that does make sense. I know I can’t do anything unless I’m sure I’m fully prepared for it. There’s nothing I hate more than not being ready for a planned event.” She grinned happily, but the smile soon faded as realization dawned upon her. “Uhm.... Luna? I don’t really have a lot of room in my guest room, especially not for two fully grown ponies and an alicorn. If you want, you could sleep on my bed and I’ll take the sofa. I don’t mind at all!”

The dark blue alicorn shook her head, her starry mane shifting from the movement, and smiled. “I’ll be fine. It is your home and I do not wish to inconvenience you.”

Twilight bit her lip and shifted about as if she was uncomfortable. “Well, we could always share the bed. It’s large enough for two as long as you don’t move about overly much and it’s not like we’re strangers. It’ll be like a sleepover!”

The changeling’s mind raced at the idea of sharing the same bed as the unicorn, unsure if it would be wise to be that close and knowing she should refuse and take up residence on the couch. Despite the inner struggle her mind was having, however, her mouth spoke before her brain could stop it. “That will be just fine. I’ll have to leave for Canterlot to raise and lower the moon, but I’ll come back after each trip.” She mentally facehoofed, but it was too late to take back what she had said.

Twilight cheered, and hugged Luna closely before realizing what she had done and releasing her just as quickly with the addition of a blush tinging her cheeks. “Oh, this will be so much fun, Luna! We can do all sorts of stuff and we’ll be able to spend more time with our friends! This week is going to be great! I don’t think anything could spoil it.”

“Jeez, could you two be any more loud? It’s only six forty! I’m still trying to sleep, here!”

“I’m sorry, Spike. I didn’t mean to wake you; I was just so excited!”

“Yeah, yeah. Keep it down, will you? It’s supposed to be my day off.”

The grumpy dragon yawned and jogged back up the stairs, mumbling grumpily as he crawled back into his basket and fell back asleep. Despite her excitement, though, her assistant’s yawn reminded her that she was tired as well and soon found her own mouth stretched wide as she yawned. The changeling queen frowned and stood. “Come, let’s go to bed. You’re exhausted and I could use some sleep as well. You two may rest in the room, there."

The two guards nodded and left the mares on their own who then proceeded to their own place of rest. Twilight flushed lightly as they came upon her bed, her blankets tossed haphazardly upon the floor in her haste to answer the door, and rapidly fixed the bedspread into a much more presentable form before smacking herself on the forehead. They're just going to be messed up anyways.

The changeling queen chuckled at the mare's display and simply levitated the top of the sheets down in order to accommodate the two of them. "It is your bed, so I shall wait for you to get comfortable before joining."

Twilight nodded and climbed upon the mattress, laying herself upon the furthest side to allow her guest to join her. The lunar mare silently celebrated as she joined her companion, revelling in the close proximity to her. As they made themselves comfortable after moving to make the fit less tight, the changeling looked down into the unicorn's eyes from her slightly higher elevation and frowned. She wanted to just lean down and connect her lips with Twilight's and feed her the love that she had unknowingly given, but she feared ruining everything with such a brash decision.

"Luna? Is something the matter?" Twilight watched as the alicorn's frown was quickly replaced with a heartwarming smile and her worry was brushed off with a rapid shake of the mare's head. "There has to be. Is it about your last visit? There's another reason why you left. It wouldn't take a week to convince Princess Celestia to let you stay for a while. What’s wrong? What happened?”

Twilight watched the alicorn closely, her frown deepening as each emotion played across the mare's face until the princess looked up to her, her eyes glistening with a faint moisture and a serious look upon her. "Twilight, if I tell you, will you promise not to be angry? I don't want to risk our friendship with the truth."

The unicorn blinked, her thoughts momentarily stopped by the seriousness with which Luna spoke, but recovered quickly and nodded vigorously. "Of course I won't be angry. You’re the princess! I don't think you could tell me anything that would make me angry! Besides, we’re best friends, right?”

The disguised mare smiled and nodded, then took a deep breath to calm her frantic mind and emotions. "I cannot say that I have ever had to confess anything before, let alone something of this magnitude, but you deserve to know...." She breathed deeply again and further suppressed the urges to lie or flee. "That last night, do you remember falling asleep while I was there?" Twilight nodded slowly, a nod that said she knew, but couldn't quite fully remember. "Well, I remember perfectly. You were leaning against me as you slept and whispered my name as you dreamt. I do not know what you were imagining in your rest, nor did I wish to intrude upon your dreams to find out, but having you dream of me filled me with joy.

"Then, your dream began to worsen. You shifted and groaned as the nightmare drew on, but when you called out my name a second time, I couldn't just let you be." She flushed slightly, the memory of the kiss embarrassing her even though she had kissed several times in disguise before. "I kissed you. It wasn't lengthy or entirely intimate, but it seemed to ease your sleep. I remember feeling so excited, so courageous and filled with emotion that I could not stop myself from stealing another. I am sorry that I let myself act without speaking to you first, but, even though I am your queen, I have fallen in love with you."

Twilight stared dumbfounded, her hoof pressed lightly to her lips, unable to properly think of a response. The changeling waited with baited breath for any sign from her potential lover, but felt her hope slipping for every second that the unicorn failed to respond, her passive expression slowly slipping into one of despair. Finally, after a near-eternity, the navy mare hung her head and slowly stood, making sure not to bother her friend, and began walking down the stairs. “I’m sorry. I’ll see you when you wake, Twilight.”

The lavender mare snapped out of her stupor and raised a hoof as if to stop Luna, but her words caught in her throat. She wasn’t even sure if she could have made any type of noise and, by the time she had recovered enough, the alicorn was already out of sight and likely trying to slip into the embrace of unconsciousness. Twilight glanced down to where her young assistant slept, hoping that he would suddenly wake to help her, give her advice, or anything, but Spike continued to snooze on, oblivious to his caretaker’s plight.

I can’t believe I reacted like that, but it was just so sudden.... She laid back upon the bed and stared at the ceiling, tracing the lines of the tree trunk with her eyes, contemplating. I- It’s not like I have any problems with it, I just wasn’t prepared! I’ve never even given it any thought before. She chuckled softly and smiled. Well, I do remember asking Celestia once. When she turned me down, I was so devastated, but she had her reasons. And here I am, completely clueless about what I should do when it should be obvious. She slowly lifted herself from her bed and moved to cast her gaze over the railing to the library’s main floor to settle upon the huddled form of Luna. I need to give her the chance that Celestia couldn’t give me.

Hesitantly, Twilight walked down the staircase, contemplating her decision. Well, it's not like she isn't attractive. She's beautiful, even, like the night sky she commands, and I love spending time with her. She arrived at the first floor landing and paused, hoping that she hadn’t disturbed the lunar alicorn. The only downfall is our stations in life. She’s the princess and I’m... just a librarian. I doubt anypony would approve of our relationship. And the scandal that Canterlot high society will turn it into, will it be worth it? I don’t want to say yes, then truly fall in love with her just to be separated due to something so stupid. Maybe.... Maybe I could just let her-

“Twilight? I thought you were going to sleep?”

The lavender unicorn snapped out of her stupor and focused on her guest who had noticed her as she was trying to get more comfortable. She could tell that the mare had been fighting back tears. Her eyes were bloodshot and, as she breathed, Twilight noticed her breath stuttering ever so slightly. She knew, then, that she couldn’t say no, no matter what other ponies might think. “I- I actually wanted to come talk to you. About what you said earlier.” She smiled and moved closer so she could drape a hoof across her elder’s withers.

The changeling drew back, trying to escape the mare’s touch and reject the tender feelings being given to her. She knew what the mare was going to say, just as she knew it would happen when she figured out the truth of her own feelings. How could I expect her to reciprocate my feelings when I, myself, should not even have them? “It is fine, Twilight.” She masked her emotions with a placid expression and looked away. “It was wrong of me to feel as I do and to act without your consent. I will be returning to-”

“No!” The outburst caught both of the ponies off-guard and Twilight grinned sheepishly before continuing. “No. I don’t want you to go, well, aside from when you have to raise and lower the moon when you need to, of course, but I don’t mind you being here at all. I guess you thought I was coming down here to let you down nicely, but, while I admit that I was surprised by the confession and I had to truly think about the outcomes and various situations involving us as a couple and as mere friends, I came to the decision that I’d accept and see where this-”

The disguised queen’s eyes widened and she found herself incapable of speaking. She had thought, truly believed, that the object of her affection would send her away and that she would have to seek out another place to migrate to, another pony to feed from, and had prepared herself for such an outcome, but her lack of anticipation for this turn of events left her mind incapable of processing it properly. And, so, her body did the thinking for her.

She swept the mare into her arms and squeezed her tightly, leaving their faces mere inches away so she could stare happily into Twilight’s bright purple eyes only to close the distance between them in an instant.

The unicorn started at the sudden kiss. Having not had any true warning of the act beforehand, she instinctively tried to flinch away. An act that the alicorn that held her captive took notice of. Luna pulled away just as quickly as she had pulled her closer and her expression of joy disappeared in an instant. “I’m sorry. I let my impulses win over again.” Even though the changeling’s face showed her disappointment with herself, she couldn’t have been any happier than she was at that moment.

Twilight, meanwhile, held a hoof to her lips and experimentally flicked her tongue across the roof of her mouth. The addition of the princess’ muscle into her mouth had surprised her more than the initial action had, but the way it had massaged her tongue and traced her teeth had felt exciting. “It’s- It’s okay. I was just surprised and the way your tongue felt was kind of strange, but, well, I kind of liked it. Could we do it again?”

The faux alicorn nodded and brought their lips together again, this time mentally celebrating when she felt her new mate lean into it as well. She slipped her tongue past Twilight's lips, slower this time, and explored the bookish mare's mouth again, tasting the hint of toothpaste from the night before and the traces of morning breath still lingering. It was far from the most romantic flavor, but she couldn't care less.

Twilight groaned, fidgeting as a sudden warmth washed over her body. She knew that this was just a kiss, just an early form of affection for couples, but it was making her body so hot, especially in a very specific place under her tail. She couldn't help but to rub her hind legs together to try and alleviate the feeling as she relished the taste of Luna’s saliva, the fluid tasting sweet like nectar, and pressed further into their act of endearment.

Luna breathed deeply, trying to catch her breath without breaking their kiss, and inhaled a powerful and all-too-familiar scent. She broke away, leaving a small bridge of saliva to connect their lips, and gasped for air. Now that she was no longer breathing in the strong scent of Twilight's shampoo, she could smell the other mare's musk in full-force. Fuck! I didn't want this to happen so quickly. I forgot about the aphrodisiac effect of our saliva and now I risk ruining this already!

"Luna...." The changeling's breath caught as the unicorn's sultry voice caressed her ears. She watched incredulously as Twilight climbed on top her, panting heavily, and brought their muzzles together again, this time dominating the alicorn's mouth with her tongue.

Their bodies pressed tightly together, their heat intermingled, and their breasts rubbed against the other's coat, as their mouths worked furiously against one another. Soon, however, they had to break apart for air and, so, the ponies stared, faces flushed, at their opposite. "Luna.... I don't know what's wrong with me. It's like I'm in estrus, but it's not summer yet." She grinned and rubbed her horn against the older mare's. "It's so strange, but I don't want it to stop. I know we literally just decided to test a further relationship, but I want this. So much!"

The changeling nodded, then beamed widely. I know just how to give Twilight exactly what she wants. "Twilight. I have a spell that could make this moment even better, but I have a question, first. What do you think of stallions?"

The studious unicorn blinked, caught off guard by the question. "Well.... I don't dislike them, but why would you want to bring another pony into this? Fake or not, isn't this supposed to be between lovers?"

Luna laughed and shook her head. "That is not what I mean, but you did answer my question. I was thinking something more along the lines of this." Her whole body flashed with green, heatless fire causing the mare laying upon her to yelp in surprise. The changeling's grin grew as Twilight's eyes widened.

The unicorn dismounted her marefriend and stared at the growing addition between her thighs, mouth agape. She looked up at Luna's beaming face and laughed. "That's amazing! How did you do that? Oh, wow! I need to see if I can replicate it. Hmm. It seems like some sort of transformation or growth spell. Perhaps a combination of the two...." She poked and prodded at the hardening penis with a fillyish enthusiasm, gently working it over with her magic to try and get a feel for the spell's machinations.

The queen just stared at her in surprise. She's forgotten completely about her own arousal.... Perhaps we can just-

Her mind blanked as the unicorn tightened her magical grip on the shaft and began pumping it up and down, her magenta aura trailing with her movements. Twilight giggled and kissed her meat. "Don't worry, I didn't forget why you made this. I can smell you just as well as I can smell myself. I never knew a male's musk could be so powerful."

Twilight reclaimed her place on Luna's stomach and smiled down at her lover, embarrassment showing plainly upon her face. "So, uhm.... I've never done anything like this before. What do I do?" She smacked herself upon the forehead and cautiously began magicking the alicorn's shaft into position. "I have to make it penetrate me first, of course. I mean, what comes after that?" The unicorn gasped as the thick member spread her lips open and slid inside of her, its entrance made easier by the copious amounts of mare come she had been creating since their first kiss.

Luna chuckled at the mare's innocence and hugged her tightly before quickly spinning Twilight one-hundred eighty degrees, still impaled upon her stallionhood. The unicorn squealed, her inner walls clamping down tightly upon the shaft inside of her, but didn't put up any resistance. She couldn't have if she wanted to as her first orgasm of the morning left her legs too weak to put up any resistance.

Carefully, so she wouldn't accidentally slip out of her lavender companion's twitching honey pot, the moon mare flapped her wings and, in one powerful stroke, landed atop Twilight upon the floor, holding the still-limp unicorn with her magic. She gently rested the mare's upper body on the smooth floor, then smiled when her mate’s legs held her backside up for her. She could feel the mare underneath her shaking and leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “I can hold you up if you wish, Twilight. Your heat has hit you pretty strong, so I would not mind.”

Luna didn’t receive a verbal response, but a quick shake of Twilight’s head told her all she needed to know. She really wants to make this work, to give my feelings a try. A wry grin stretched across her muzzle as she began to pump in and out of the unicorn. And to be rutted like a brood mare.

The changeling queen forced her shaft deep into the unicorn and grunted as her head slammed against her cervix. She moaned softly, her deeper, softer voice mingling with Twilight’s higher, strained voice to create a harmony of ecstatic sound. She couldn’t restrain herself. In all of my six years, after all of the creatures I leeched off of and, occasionally, bedded for that quick burst of love, I have never known anything to feel so heavenly.

“Twilight.... Your love is so wonderful. In all of my years, I’ve never been with a lover that’s as tight around me, so perfectly fitted for me, as you.” She began slapping her hips against Twilight’s flanks as hard and as quickly as she could, bottoming out and pushing her across the floor with every thrust. “It’s almost as if.... As if our bodies were meant to come together. As if we were destined for each other.”

The changeling had never believed in things such as fate or destiny before, but after fitting so perfectly over and into her partner, her large, black member being caressed and milked by the mare’s soaked tunnel, she couldn’t deny that she had been sent to this unicorn by some higher force. Even if it was random chance, I give my thanks to luck for having met Twilight Sparkle.

“Luna! Luna, I’m c-coming again! Please, tell me you’re close! I- I can’t take much more.” Twilight panted heavily, her tongue hanging out and drooling all over the floorboards, as she gazed up wearily into the princess’ blue eyes. “It feels too wonderful! You’re right.... We have to have been made for each other!”

Luna beamed and began pounding into Twilight as hard as she could, pummelling her womb’s entrance with her head as she began to flare up inside of her. “I love! I love you, Twilight!”

She screamed as she climaxed and began pouring her semen into her mate, her heavy balls tightening and pumping ounce after ounce of her love essence deep into Twilight’s womb. Each thrust forced more come past the little unicorn’s cervix, filling her further, until she no longer had any more of her cream to give. With a heavy sigh of relief, She slowly pulled Twilight and fell onto her side as her shaft retreated back into its sheath, finally pulling from the used tunnel with a loud squelch.

Twilight whined softly at the sudden feeling of emptiness as her vaginal walls tried to grasp ahold of the phallus that was no longer there, only serving to push out the excess semen in thick, milky globs. Her lips stretched into a smile as the mare behind her nuzzled her softly, running a hoof across her stomach and down towards her breasts.

“Can you feel it, Twilight? Whatever happened before, it caused you to force heat. Can you feel our child beginning to develop in your womb?”

Twilight nodded and pressed closer to the mare behind her. She could feel it very well. She felt it the moment the alicorn’s potent milk had been pumped into her and had accepted that such a thing would be likely to happen as soon as she had come face-to-head with Luna’s magnificent stallionhood. “I can. When you came in me, I felt a sudden surge of magical energy and knew that you had gotten me pregnant. I’m still amazed that a spell was able to fully replicate a stallion’s genetalia down to even getting the correct chemical compound of semen correct, though. That’s truly a magnificent feat! Imagine what we’d be able to do about the dwindling male pony population if we figure out how to manipulate the chromosomes inside of a stallions testicles before ejaculation! It could-” She blinked, noticing the alicorn’s incredulous stare when she looked back to gaze at her marefriend. “And I am ruining a perfectly wonderful moment by turning this into some scientific testing subject.”

Luna laughed and kissed her softly before laying her head upon the ground. “It’s fine, but I’m more worried about how you feel about this. What are we going to do from here? I never expecting things to turn out this way.”

“Well, I did tell you that I’d give it a go. I really do like you and I wouldn’t just lift my tail for anypony no matter how deep into estrus I am. In fact, I can name only six ponies that I would ever even allow near me during my season, excluding you.” Her smile faltered and she gazed up at the ceiling. “I only worry about what will happen later. Will Princess Celestia be all right with this? I mean, we made an extremely important decision in the heat of the moment and rushed into this tail-end first. I know that I don’t regret what happened at all, no matter what happens.”

Luna held Twilight tighter, forcing herself not to give in to her budding emotions. She was having enough difficulty accepting having fallen in love with anything and didn’t need other feelings disassociating her from her changeling heritage. Instead, she only breathed deeply, inhaling the powerful scent of both male and female ejaculate, and closed her eyes. “I’m certain my sister will be most pleased. She is not the kind to judge-”

“Twilight? Why were you two screaming and why do you smell like that flashy building at the edge of town?” The mares’ eyes shot open and they found a small purple and green form standing above them looking rather cross. They followed his gaze as his eyes trailed across them and down to the sticky mess pooling from underneath Twilight’s tail. “Oh, come on! I just mopped the floor last night!”

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Twilight sighed as she caressed her stomach, and gazed dreamily out at the night sky and the tall spires of Canterlot in the distance. It had been a few days since Luna had left to return to her typical duties as the princess of the moon and Twilight now found herself particularly lonely without the mare around all the time. She giggled softly at her thoughts. We’ve only been together for a week and I already long to be around her at every waking moment. Maybe growing foals throw off our typical emotional states. Perhaps I should write her a letter. I do miss her.

“Spike? Spike! Could you come write a letter for me?”

In seconds, the baby dragon was standing next to her bed, quill and parchment in claw. “Sure thing, Twi! This is going to Luna, right? I’ll make sure to write that on the outside of the scroll before I send it to Celestia.”

“Thank you, Spike. Now....” She cleared her throat and looked back out towards the magnificent city resting upon the mountainside.

Dear Luna,

I am writing to you to tell you that I have been doing fine since last we met. The gift you left me has certainly seemed to increase my appetite a little, as is to be expected, and I’ve been feeling queasy all the time, but I wouldn’t give it up for the world. I know you must be busy after having been gone for so long with only a few hours to check in each night, so I will keep this letter short. I just wanted to tell you that I miss your company and eagerly anticipate your next visit.

With Love,

Twilight Sparkle

“Twilight Sparkle! Got it! Now to just seal it off and sign it off as Princess Luna’s aaaaaand-” Spike took a deep breath and blew out a thick plume of green fire which enveloped the scroll and sent it on its way to Canterlot. “There! I’ll bring you her reply when it comes in, okay, Twilight? I’ll be downstairs straightening up your mess from your last study session.”

“Thanks, Spike. I’m sorry I didn’t do it myself, but I’ve just been more tired than usual lately. Could you wake me up as soon as it arrives?” The dragon nodded dutifully before giving a mock salute and rushing back downstairs to complete his new chore. “Thank you!” Twilight smiled and curled up on her bed, then slowly covered herself with her blankets as she closed her eyes. I hope you can come back again soon, Luna. Good night. I love you.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Author’s Notes: Woo hoo! Chapter three in less time than it took for chapter two with more clop and confessions of love! Now, THAT is a chapter! While we’re on the topic of sex, if you peeps have any questions about what I’m doing with the changeling physiology and such, just leave a comment and I’ll be sure to answer them for ya. I know it seems strange, but remember, they are meant to feed off of love, so everything their body creates is meant to increase the love output of their host. Anyhoof, enjoy the cutesy wutesy Lunachrys™ (that’s my trademark, you bitch -DJ) and Twi shippage while it lasts cause shit is about to GO DOWN! Wellp, that’s it for me. Peppy out~!

Editor’s Notes: Shit is about to go down, folks. I’m sure all of you can guess as to how it will go down.... Oh, and... Good news everyone, Peppy can’t stop thinking up ideas for new stories. Now before you say anything, I’m keeping Peps on track, there will be a new ND (YA HEAR ME, PEPS) after the next (and final [There might be an epilogue, I don’t know how Peps plans on doing the final chapter]) chapter of AHWC (that’s the one you’re reading right now). Cya!

Time Will Tell

Time Will Tell

Faint candlelight illuminated a flimsy sheet of parchment laid out upon Twilight’s writing desk, its light color offset by the black ink covering the majority of the page. Her eyes scanned the letters for the seventeenth time since it had arrived; her brain still refused to believe what the letter was telling her.

“Twi, what’s up? You look like you’re seeing a ghost. What's the letter say." Spike stood upon his toes as he tried to read the elevated letter.

"Spike, you know there isn't such a thing as a ghost, but...." She bit her lip, fighting off her worry with denial. "C-could you go stay with Rarity for a few days? Tell her that I'm going to be really busy and that I need her to watch you."

The little dragon shook his head and crossed his arms. “No way! It’s like, almost midnight. Rarity’s probably asleep by now, but even if she wasn’t I wouldn’t go. You’re upset about something.”

“Spike, please? It’s really important.”

He nearly caved in to the request as his foster sister’s voice grew more desperate, but stood firm. "What's going on, Twi? Why won't you-"

"Out! Now!" Her horn flared and, in the breadth of a second, the room was cleared of all beings save for the purple unicorn, Spike having been teleported to the residence of their fashionista friend. She panted heavily, momentarily winded by her sudden outburst and surge of magic, and turned back to the letter on her desk. She scanned the words, hoping that, despite her knowledge of the facts of the universe, the message would be mysteriously changed to reflect something much less heartbreaking.

As she expected, nothing had been different. It still held the soul crushing truth it did during her first reading. A choked sob escaped her throat as she continued her struggle to maintain her composure. The rustling of the branches outside her window drew her attention. Slowly, she turned her head, hoping that it would be nothing but the wind blowing through her home’s boughs, but, standing upon her balcony, was the pony she had been dreading.

Twilight’s heart soared at the sight of the alicorn, her beautiful eyes drawing her in and she instinctively ran a hoof across her stomach, but stopped the moment the letter crushed her hopes once again like an ant under hoof. She couldn’t stop the tears anymore and, as she trudged over to the window to allow the false princess inside, wept openly. As soon as her task was done, Twilight fell back upon her haunches and cried.

The changeling gasped and swept her mate up in her hooves, cradling her as she settled them down upon the unicorn’s bed. With a tilt of her head, she ordered her guards to go downstairs and wait until further orders were given. Her focus returned to the distraught mare in her arms who, despite her lack of resistance, only seemed to suffer more as she was held against her lover’s chest.

“Twilight? Twilight, what’s wrong? Did something hurt you? What happened?” Her voice wavered as she fought back her own boiling emotions. She wanted to cry away Twilight’s misery for her and to crush the being that dare harm her, but she couldn’t give in while the lavender librarian needed her to be there as her pillar of support.

Twilight pulled away enough to turn her grief stricken eyes up to look into the changeling's sparkling blue orbs. Luna could see, in those glistening pools of purple, the look one would give a total stranger who had addressed you as if you knew each other your entire lives. Her breath caught in her throat, but she couldn't look away. She couldn't understand where her love's confusion had come from.

"Who are you?"

"What do you mean? I'm Luna, your mate and the mother of our child. Can't you see?" The changeling smiled, her eyes shifting about as she searched the room for hidden answers, answers that it couldn't provide.

"Liar. You're not Luna. Who are you?" The unicorn's voice wavered as she choked down an impending bout of tears, but held her composure.

"B-but Twilight. Why would-"

"Don't lie to to me! Who are you!? I let you into my home! I spent time out of my life to cater to you and make you happy! I helped you find friends! I fell in-" Twilight pressed a hoof to her mouth as she fought back the bile rising in her throat. As soon as the sudden sickness abated, and her anger had lessened to a degree, she continued. "I let myself think I loved you and what do I get in return? Nothing but lies! Who... are... you?"

“Tw-Twilight.... Please, don’t. Wh-why can’t I...?” The fiery glare she received from the librarian killed a thoughts of begging she had and she turned away in shame, tears beginning to trace lines down her own face. Well, this is the end. Funny. I thought everything was working out perfectly. “I-I’m sorry, Twilight. I never meant for this to happen.” The moon mare sighed heavily, her body sagging as she resigned herself to her loss, and flashed with green fire to reappear moments later as the thin, chitinous changeling queen she truly was. Her wings buzzed as she stretched them before settling back upon the hard, green exoskeleton on her back. “I am Queen Chrysalis, mother of all changelings, caretaker of my swarm, and-”

She saw it in the young mare’s eyes, the one emotion she had used to love so much at each revelation of her true form before finally consuming her prey yet now felt just as much as her ex-victims had. Fear. The unicorn feared her as all other weak-minded creatures had and it cut deep into her cold heart, causing her to step back involuntarily. “Please, Twilight....” Her voice rang with a harmony reminiscent of a swarm of locusts and Twilight shuddered as a feeling of dread washed over her. Chrysalis, against her better judgement, tried to close the distance between the two and comfort the mare’s fear, but was stopped by a powerful blast from a magical field.

“Stay back! D-don’t come near me, you monster!”

The changeling grunted in pain and covered her face with her hooves at the onslaught of magical energy the unicorn threw at her, but her hole-ridden legs proved useless against the magic. She had little choice but to throw up a small defense for herself and stare blearily at the furious librarian. “Stop, please. I’m not going to hurt you. I’ll never hurt you, just please stop.” The magical assault abated and the insectoid mare took time to breathe, the miniscule amount of reserve energy she had had gone in the blink of an eye. “I never wished for you to find out.... We could have lived happily for the rest of our lives and raised our daughter in an environment more fit for a princess than she could have ever had with me alone, but it’s over now.” She forced back her emotions and turned for the window, glancing back over her shoulder at the distraught, furious pony, her lover for a week, and smiled, traces of tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “I shall return in eleven months’ time to retrieve my heiress. Could.... Could you try to love it despite your hatred of her mother? We changelings can’t grow or survive without love.”

The queen’s sincerity caught Twilight off guard and she allowed her anger to subside for a moment, a moment long enough for the black mare to see hesitation in her purple eyes. “Where are you going!?”

“She isn’t going anywhere, my faithful student.” Like the sun piercing through cloud cover, Princess Celestia descended upon the balcony outside Twilight’s room, her graceful white form landing softly on the wooden outcropping as she calmly strode towards the now-terrified monarch. “This is the one that you wrote about in your letter, correct?”

“Y-yes, princess. She’s Chrysalis, the change-”

“Changeling queen, yes. I have known many of her foremothers over all of my years and even held court with their originator, Queen Aurora, many, many years ago.” The solar diarch smiled sadly in reminiscence before turning her focus back to the cowering mare before her. “Your kind are not welcome among the ponies, changeling queen. As ruler of the swarm, you know of the treatise made between our peoples, yes? I would not think that your predecessors would lapse in the transfer of information to their children.”

Chrysalis balked under the stern gaze of the sun princess and eyed the stairs leading to the library’s main entrance. I wouldn’t be able to make it and I can’t leave my children here. Cautiously, she stood to her full height, standing equal to Celestia, and bowed her head. “I assume you are here to imprison me, then. Very well, I shall not resist. I would not have the strength to do so either way. Farewell, Twilight. Take care of yourself for the both of you.”

Celestia arched an eyebrow at the curious choice of words, but paid it no heed as the queen began to descend towards the lobby below. “Do you wish to come with us Twilight? I understand that this must be shocking and I can understand your grief. It is, unfortunately, not the first time one of my ponies has fallen for the wiles of the changelings’ magic, and even began to truly love them, but I will help you to overcome your sorrow if you want.”

Twilight watched from the balcony railing as Chrysalis called her guards from the guest room below and, just like their queen, ordered them to drop their disguise. Celestia frowned at the sight of their light body tone. “I think I’ll be fine, princess, but could you tell me what you decide to do? I-I think I deserve to know.”

The alicorn quickly hid her worry and smiled down at her student. “Of course. I shall send you a letter as soon as my sister, the Canterlot Court, and I decide what the best course of action would be. I’m not sure how long it will take, but I’ll keep in touch during the entire process.”

Chrysalis watched the two mares talk as she led her hatchlings to stand beside her near the front door. She could hear the sounds of armor clinking together loudly and the boisterous voice of the alicorn she had impersonated. The changeling sat upon her haunches and held a hoof to her chest, wincing at the ache in her heart. Don’t come near me, you monster! Those words had hurt more than the decay of starvation she had endured until recently. Her head drooped, unable to continue looking at her former lover lest she lose her composure in front of her children.

“Ah, sister. We see that thou hast captured our imposter. We believe it is time for us to depart. The ponies grow concerned over our army’s presence.” Luna stood next the their captives and eyed them carefully, her gaze piercing and cold. “A changeling. Intriguing! We hast seen nary a glance of thine species since long before our banishment. We see that thine children are naught but that. Tell us, queen, where is the rest of thine swarm?”

“They are dead. All but the two you see here and the one in incubation were killed. They were starved and ate themselves. I burned the ones that survived. I could no longer feel them in my hivemind, so they were lost.” The black queen heard the gasp loosed by Twilight and allowed herself to smile slightly.

“‘Tis a tragedy, but thou hast committed a grave crime against our nation. Do not expect our judgement of thine crimes to be lessened by thine story. Come, sister. We must return to Canterlot at once.” The lunar mare jumped up to the second story to stand beside her sister and the librarian. She took a moment to bow her head to the young mare before sighing sadly. “We apologize that our presence causes you so much grief, Twilight Sparkle. Were we capable of lessening the impact our image made upon thine mind, we would do so. As mine sister hast likely offered, we, too, would be willing to listen to thee should thine heart so desire. ‘Tis the least we can do after such tragic acts were perpetrated in our image.”

Twilight shook her head and glanced down at the despondent changeling. “I just need time, I think. Thank you, Lu- erm.... Princess Luna. Could I speak with Princess Celestia alone for a moment?”

“But, of course! We shall prepare the prisoner for transportation, sister. We shall see that we are set to depart as soon as thine conversation is finished.” She turned and leapt from the landing to stand beside the trio of changelings. "Come. Thine shackles are outside. If thou dost not resist, we shall chain thee as loosely as can be allowed.” Chrysalis followed behind the moon princess, her hooves dragging noisily across the hardwood, and paused to cast one final glance towards the mare she loved before disappearing into the enveloping darkness outside the library’s threshold.

Celetia watched silently as Twilight’s eyes followed the black queen out and her hoof raised inches from the ground as if to stop her from leaving. She could practically feel the hurt that consumed her little student, could almost taste the sorrow permeating the area around them. “Twilight? What is it you wanted to talk about?” She smiled as warmly as she could, knowing fully well that she had to be the voice of comfort that the young mare needed.

“Princess.... I really loved her, Celestia. Sure, it’s an entirely new situation for me and I’m certain that it was only a budding love, but I did.... I do....” She sighed and fell back upon her haunches to relieve the discomfort in her legs, idly stroking her stomach as she leaned against Celestia’s side for support. “I do love her, but she’s not the pony I fell in love with. I-I don’t know who she is.”

“Oh, Twilight. You mustn't worry overmuch about this situation. I know it’s difficult to accept and that it’s heartbreaking to be lied to like this, but you have to remember that she is a changeling.” She exhaled sadly and wrapped a delicate white wing around the lavender librarian. “Changelings are deceptive creatures and, while it may not have been so many centuries ago, they are known to use their magic to influence the thoughts and will of the beings they set their sights on. I’m certain that, in time, your grief will lessen as her manipulative magic wears off and you’ll be capable of looking back on this night in a brighter light. It will be tough to cope with the loss, but remember, Twilight. My sister and I are your friends and we love you dearly. We will help you cope in any way we can as you overcome the magic’s influence and stay with you should you call. We’re just a dragon’s breath away, after all.”

The alicorn’s bright smiled warmed Twilight’s heart slightly, not enough to pull her fully from the precipice of despair she stood precariously upon, but enough to nudge closer to safety. “Now, was there anything else, my faithful student? If not, I’m afraid Luna and I must be on our way. We shall have to secure Queen Chrysalis in a cell before word of her presence is made known. We do not wish to upset the nation.”

The little mare looked up into Celestia’s amethyst eyes, screaming in her mind to reveal to her what she had growing inside her, hoping that her mentor would see it revealed in her own glistening pupils, but reluctantly shook her head. “N-no. That was all. Thank you, Princess Celestia. Could you tell Princess Luna that I appreciate her offer? I’ll.... I’ll make sure to come to you two if I need to talk.”

The solar alicorn smiled and planted a soft kiss upon the unicorn’s forehead before following the changeling’s steps down from the second floor landing and towards the open doorway. “Be well, Twilight, and remember that the magic should wear off in a few weeks’ time.”

Twilight smiled as widely as she could, managing to pull off a feeble grimace, and watched her mentor board a silhouetted chariot that promptly took off into the night. Her door closed under the guidance of the day mare’s golden aura leaving the young pony to stare off into an unseeable distance, unfocused. If my distress is caused by magical longing, then why can’t I sense it? I could feel it before, I think, but I haven’t noticed anything in almost a month. Is.... Is it so ingrained that I wouldn’t notice it until it’s gone? She wiped a tear that had been forming in the corner of her eye and brought the hoof down to rest beside the other as it softly caressed her stomach. How am I going to tell the princess about this? She’ll notice eventually, but what will I tell her? I can’t just let them take her away. Oh, Celestia, what do I do?

Twilight closed her eyes and curled into a ball upon the floor, hugging her stomach as tightly as she could as she finally allowed her emotional dam to break down. Her tears flowed freely once more, her anguish loosed in a downpour of liquid sorrow, as she wailed into the night until, after several grueling minutes, the young mare slipped into the welcome embrace of slumber.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

My Faithful Student,

My sister and I have received your troubling letter and are on our way to you now with a guard regimen. I will explain to you as much as I can at the moment, but any full detail will have to wait until we arrive. We fear that you are not safe. My sister, although she is prone to moving about in secret, has not been outside of Canterlot since your last letter concerning her and has attested to such a fact adamantly. The pony, if that is truly what it is, that you have mistaken for Luna is an impostor. We advise you to remain at your library and send Spike to stay with one of the element bearers until this matter is solved. Should the impostor return before we arrive, act as you would usually. We do not want it attacking you out of desperation. Above all else, keep yourself safe.

Celestia

Twilight rubbed her eyes and set the tattered, tear-stained letter back upon her desk. She couldn’t keep looking at it, reading it, lest she lose herself in sorrow once again, but she knew that it would only be a matter of time before the parchment was in her hooves again, acquiring more stains and frayed edges for her grief. She sighed, drying her leg on her chest, and looked out into the world beyond her treehouse.

The sun was slowly rising to its apex, marking the time as just before midday, and shone down upon the myriad ponies as they performed their daily rituals of shopping and gossiping. Twilight caressed her stomach as she sat upon her home's balcony, having moved from her room to partake in the relaxing feeling of nature. Birds fluttered by, the warm sun casting their shadows across her small sanctuary, and the sounds of business and joviality rose to her elevated perch. Her whole body sagged as the joy of others pushed down upon her heavy heart.

“Twilight? Do you wanna talk about it?”

The unicorn jumped, startled by the sudden vocalization of concern, and spun to find her little assistant standing a meager distance behind her. “Oh, hey Spike. I, uhm....”

“C’mon, Twi. I can tell you’re still upset. You cry every time you read the princess’ letter and it’s almost two months old.” The baby dragon scratched his toes across the balcony’s surface as he fidgeted in place. “You don’t have to keep it to yourself, you know. I may not know much about feelings ‘cause they’re, you know, girly, but I do know how to listen. I’m sure the girls feel the same way, too.”

“I know, Spike, but it’s just so.... Just so... difficult. Princess Celestia said my feelings would go away, but they’re not.” She brought a hoof up to her face and wiped away the moisture that had begun building in the corners of her eyes. “I want them to go away. I want to forget about all of this, but I can’t. Every time I do, my heart aches and I feel like I’m empty. I don’t understand! Why won’t it stop?”

“I dunno, Twilight. Maybe you still like her? Why else would you be so upset by all this?”

“But that doesn’t make sense, Spike! Celestia said I was under a spell. Plus, Chrysalis lied to me. She lied to me! Everything was a lie. How can I like a mare that can’t even tell me the truth? How can I like a mare that isn’t even a mare.”

“Hey, I’ve had Rarity lie to me plenty of times and I still like her. I know she’ll never really like me back, but it doesn’t mean I won’t treat her like the goddess she is. And, besides, I like Rarity and she’s not a dragon.” He grinned and puffed his chest out, eliciting a pained giggle from his caretaker.

She smiled sadly and hugged the baby dragon closely as she let her emotions free once more and quietly cried upon his shoulder. "It's so frightening, Spike. I don't know anything about her, but I just can't stop myself from loving her. She's a creature out of nightmares, yet she's so beautiful." She pulled away from her assistant and levitated a quill and parchment from a drawer in her desk. "Could you take a letter for me?"

"Sure, Twi- Urp!" The scroll that had been held aloft in front of him burst into flames as he spewed green fire upon it and was replaced by another scroll, rolled and sealed with Celestia's royal crest.

Instantly, the letter was snatched up in an aura of magenta magic, the seal broken, and unfurled for the librarian to read over. Spike watched nervously as her eyes flitted back and forth as she scanned the scroll’s contents. As Twilight reached the tail of the letter, all color drained from her face and she ignited the parchment in purple magefire. Fear took root in her expression and, without warning, she teleported into her room, slamming the window behind her, and screamed.

The sorrowful wail pierced the minimal protection of the glass panes, drawing the attention of a certain cerulean pegasus. In seconds, the rainbow-maned mare crashed through a second floor window, spraying the glass across the floor, and landed beside her bookish friend, wings flared and senses on high alert. “Twi!? What’s wrong!? Are you okay!?”

“R-Rainbow! Please, you h-have to help me!” She tackled the mare, burying her face in Dash’s chest, and cried as Spike finally got the balcony window open and rushed to their side.

“Sure, Twilight! What do you need?” The brash mare awkwardly patted her distraught friend’s back, unused to such displays of emotion, and tried not to sound uncomfortable with the situation.

“Could you....”

“What? You mumbled that last bit. Come on, Twi, you know I’ll do anything for you. They don’t call me the Element of Loyalty for nothing.” She grinned and hugged Twilight closer. “Just say it and I’ll do it! Besides, you’ve been cooped up in this library for like, ever. We haven’t gotten the chance to do anything recently. I’m sure that’ll cheer you up.”

“No. It won’t, but.... What I’m asking isn’t easy. Are- Are you sure you-”

“What do you take me for? I’m the best pony in all of Equestria!” She frowned as if hurt, but quickly replaced it with her typical smug grin. “I can do anything you need me to!”

“I need you to fly me to Canterlot. Today. Now.”

Rainbow Dash balked, her ears drooping, and averted her gaze. She had expected something challenging, dangerous even, but what Twilight was asking was definitely impossible. “Uhm.... I’m... actually not sure I can do that. I know I said anything Twi, but that’s even too much for me. I can’t carry a pony that far. Not without several rest stops.”

“I know, but I need to get there now!” She bit her lip, and levitated a cloth from a small cabinet over to wipe her face off with and dab preemptively at her tears before they could fall. “It’s important. Something terrible is going to happen and I can’t let.... I can’t let that happen to the mare I love!”

Spike, who had been silent through the whole thing, perked up and shook the lavender unicorn’s shoulder. “Hey, Twi. You could use the balloon. I’m sure you could hook Dash up to it and get there that way.”

“Hey! Yeah! That could work! Kind of like how you girls saved me from Discord. We’d be able to get to Canterlot in no time at all!”

The baby dragon puffed out his chest proudly, but had the air crushed out of him by an overly excited big sister. “Oh, Spike, you little genius! We don’t have a second to lose! Let’s go!”

She raced off, hooves pounding at the wooden floor and then dirt as she rushed to the back of the library and levitated the large basket and massive balloon out into a clearing. The pegasus and assistant watched in awe as the purple fabric was suspended in the air and promptly filled with air heated by Twilight’s magic. In moments, the hot air balloon was filled and carrying a single panting passenger.

“Hey, Twi. Why do you have to rush anyways? What did that letter say?”

Twilight bit her lip and anxiously averted her gaze. I can’t tell him.... He- He deserves to know, but I just can’t. “I.... I don’t have time to explain, Spike. I’ll tell you when I get home..., okay?” She pointedly avoided eye contact with her foster brother, instead opting to levitate the bridled rope over to her impromptu chauffeur. “I added the bridle so it’d be safer in case we had to do something like this again. I’m kind of glad I did, but.... I wish we didn’t need it.”

“ Alright, Twilight. Let’s get going! I’ll have you there faster than anypony could even dream. Just make sure you keep this thing afloat!” In record time, the polychromatic pegasus was hooked into the bridle and preparing for take-off. She furrowed her brows in concentration, crouched down into pre-flight position, and took to the air as Twilight’s horn super-heated the balloon’s air. In a matter of seconds, the two ponies were well on their way to the nation’s capital, flying high above the rest of the world at breakneck speeds.

Twilight leaned over the edge of the basket, clinging onto the side for support as she mentally willed Rainbow to fly faster. She couldn’t expect her athletic friend to break her body for her, but she couldn’t keep herself from hoping. Her eyes trailed to the sky, watching the sun’s position in the heavens, and silently calculated the distance between their current position and their destination. We have to get there before two, or else.... “Rainbow! Please, fly faster! We have less than two hours! If we don’t get to Canterlot in time.... She’ll....” Die.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Author’s Notes: Ohohoho. Now that’s evil, right there. Wouldn’t you agree? Yeah, I thought you would. Slightly shorter chapter this time to build suspense and just be an all-around asshole, but I’m sure the next and then final chapter will be worth it. I had only planned on this being four chapters, but, well, things changed last minute (and by last minute, I mean now). For now, enjoy and watch for the final chapter + Epilogue! Peppy out~!

Editor’s Notes: Blah blah blah, stuff, things. Cya.

The Final Act

The Final Act

Celestia sat upon the golden throne positioned centrally against the wall in her royal audience chamber, her calm mask hiding the growing uncertainty that welled in the pit of her stomach. Despite the lack of an actual present audience, she could still feel the piercing stares of countless ponies trained upon her, condemning her without truly knowing about her currently uncommitted crime. She sighed, trying to dispel some of the tension welling in her back and shoulders. “It will do nopony any good to fret over this, Celestia. She has made her choice and neither you, nor your sister can think of an alternate method. She’s starving, thus it’s the merciful thing to do.”

Another soft exhalation and she straightened her posture back to her full, regal height. “Besides.... She is suffering terribly; that much is apparent.”

“Talking to yourself again, dear sister?” The day mare started at the sound of another voice aside from her own, but calmed quickly as soon as she recognized its source. “‘Tis troubling times indeed when we speak to ourselves. Tell me, sister. Art though having second thoughts over today’s execution?”

“Oh, Lulu. You know fully well that I’m doubting that our decision is the right one. I cannot simply shrug off the taking of another’s life as if it was nothing.” The solar goddess’ frown deepened, her facade dropped around her sibling. “I love all of my subjects whether they be pony, griffon, or changeling. I fear we are rushing our decision.”

“We are glad that we are not the only ones having doubts. However, it is not entirely our decision to make.” The moon mare nuzzled up against Celestia’s neck in an attempt to brighten her sister’s mood. “We asked what fate she desired and she hast given her answer. She has confirmed that she is not the last of the queens, so we have little reason not to respect her wish. We do not desire to see the mare suffer more than she already has. After the loss of her little ones, we are not surprised she has chosen such a path.”

Celestia nodded, remembering that night only a week prior quite vividly. Chrysalis had despaired as she held the husk of her hatchling daughter in her arms having been fed the remainder of the child’s love just to sustain her as long as possible. “It was so soon after the loss of her entire hive as well. Even considering her crimes against my Twilight and you, I cannot feel anything other than pity for her. She’s suffered so much as is evident by her visible atrophy.”

“Aye. ‘Tis a shame that the mighty changelings had fallen on such desperate times. Perhaps, if they had come to us in peace, before any of this had happened, we could have given aid to them and saved her from such a disastrous path. Thine ponies are quite open-minded and, as long as they were not drained of all essence, I am certain that they would agree to serve as host for a period of time.”

Celestia smiled and nodded. “They have grown so much over the years, Lulu. Look at Twilight, for example. She’s grown into such a beautiful young mare and is so supportive of her friends.” She turned and stared out the window towards the sun as it began its descent towards evening. "It's nearing the time.... Thank you, Luna, for easing my mind if just for this brief moment. We need to prepare. Has she... chosen her preferred method?"

"She has. Magical execution. Quick and painless with little worry of cleanup save for bodily functions post-mortem." The moon princess' impassive expression fell to be replaced by one of concern. "Celly.... I do not think I can go through with this. While I may have been upset that she impersonated me, this is not the punishment I had in mind.”

“I know, Luna, but there isn’t anything else we can do. If we release her, she’s likely to kill herself or die of starvation. You’ve seen how she is.” The lunar alicorn nodded and hung her head. “I wish there was another answer, another path to take, but in all of my years as princess, I’ve never had to deal with a situation like this. We aren’t prepared for it.” Celestia smiled softly and closed the distance between herself and her sister. “If you want, Lu, I will perform the act myself. You need not watch.”

“No.... No, I will stay. It is not your burden alone to bear.” She pulled away from the alabaster mare’s embrace and turned towards the exit. “I shall prepare the proper chamber and make sure our ponies are blockaded from the area.”

Celestia nodded and turned her gaze back out towards Canterlot city as her sister left. The weight on her heart had been lifted somewhat, Luna having offered to help support it despite both of their worries, but she still could not ease the ache completely. Death over a life without love. I understand why you made the choice, but that only makes it that much worse. Even I know the pain of having love for a pony that fate conspires to keep you from. In the end, there isn’t much you can do if you cannot move on, especially with the short life of a mortal such as yourself.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Rainbow Dash pulled the hot air balloon to the ground, landed herself, and collapsed in exhaustion. She groaned miserably, completely incapable of lifting any part of her body, and closed her eyes, panting and sweating uncontrollably. In seconds, she was swept off of the cool, marble ground she had fallen upon and pulled into a spine-crushing embrace only to be deposited back upon the comforting coolness once again.

“Thank you so much, Rainbow. Just stay here and I’ll send a royal guard to take you to a room where you can rest. Don’t worry, I’ll make it up to you any way I can!”

The prismatic pegasus merely groaned incomprehensibly and slumped further onto the hard stone beneath her, relaxing as much as her sore body would allow her. Never. Never again, Dash. I don’t care how cute or miserable the pony is. Never. Again.

Twilight rushed into the palace, shouting rapidly at a nearby patrolling guard that her friend needed assistance as she passed, and tore through the halls at speeds any bookworm around the world would be envious of. The white marble of the castle sped by her as she raced between crowds of regular ponies and guards and teleporting past any group she couldn’t simply dodge. Turns were made without any noticeable sense of direction, but the unicorn knew the palace like the back of her hoof and, in a matter of minutes, she was barrelling down the final hallway leading to the royal throne room. A quick glance out a window showed the time to be just past one after noon.

I made it in time. Please, let me have made it in time!

The massive, gold-wrought doors blocking Twilight from her destination exploded open in a flash of magenta magic, only to be forced shut by the same glow seconds later, startling the room’s only other occupant and causing her to jumped several inches off her throne. The out-of-breath librarian skidded to a halt just in front of her wide-eyed mentor and panted in a fashion much resembling her loyal friend only moments ago. She dropped to her haunches and leaned her head back, straightening her body as much as she could to increase the airflow to her lungs as much as possible.

“Tw-Twilight! What are doing here? And in such a rush, too!”

Twilight took a deep breath and lowered her head to look into the sun mare’s eyes, forcing herself to keep a calm face. “I- I came to.... I came to talk to Chrysalis.” She paused for a moment, still panting from her gallop through the palace, and calmed her thundering heart as much as she could. “She’s- She’s still... alive, right? You haven’t executed her yet, right!?”

Celestia flinched at the sudden exclamation and direct words, but smiled soon after. She always was one to speak her mind. “She is. I am glad I sent you the notice right away. She wanted it done as soon as possible, after all.”

“She? You mean Luna? Why would she want to-”

“Not Luna, Twilight. Chrysalis.” Her smile faded, a process that she found to be happen much too often lately. “She’s lost so much. Her hive, her only remaining children, and her closest source of life. She doesn’t have anything else to live for.”

Twilight’s ears folded back, her face stricken with an emotion Celestia had never thought she’d see from her student in this situation. Fear. “C-can I speak with her? Before the... execution. Just once? I need to talk to her.”

“Of course you can, Twilight.” The diarch’s smile returned slightly, a glimmer of hope planted in her heart. “I fear she may not be too responsive, but you have every right to speak with her. It was you she wronged, after all.”

Celestia watched as Twilight opened her mouth as if to say something, but quickly closed it and looked back towards the golden doors she had nearly broken down in her haste. “Could you take me to her? I want to see her as soon as possible.”

“Sure. Come. We’ll take a shortcut.” Celestia stood and walked over to the eastern wall of the throne room and placed a gold-shod hoof upon a seemingly random brick in the wall. Her horn glowed yellow and, in a flash of powerful magic, a passage to the lower levels of the castle was revealed behind the false wall. She grinned in amusement as Twilight followed behind her, awestruck at the revelation of there being passages in the castle that she did not know of. “These tunnels were built long before Luna’s banishment as Nightmare Moon, back before Canterlot was even the capital of Equestria. In those times, things were quite different from the way things are now, so these passages were required in case my sister or I were ever attacked while staying here.”

“This- This is amazing! If I wasn’t so worried, I’d love to stop and examine these. Perhaps map out the layout, but....”

“I was wrong, wasn’t I?” Twilight looked up to her mentor, her expression denying any possibility that the princess could ever be mistaken. “There is no need to defend my image, Twilight. I can see it quite clearly. She never had you under her influence, did she? You truly have feelings for the young queen.”

The lavender unicorn hung her head in shame and tried to make herself as small as she could, hoping that, if she made herself invisible, she could somehow retain her mentor’s approval. “I’m sorry.... I never meant to-”

“Hush. There is nothing wrong with how you feel, Twilight. I was merely surprised. You should be proud of your love for her. For a creature as lonely as the changelings are, it is ponies like you that they need. To truly be able to love them for who they are, not what they are.”

“But, I don’t even know if that’s really how I feel! She- She lied to me.... The entire time, it was all a lie and....”

“You can find out now, Twilight.” Celestia stopped and motioned with her hoof towards the right path in the fork they had come to. “She is being held in a cell down that path. You need not worry about being stuck in here, the wall will open itself when you approach, so I will leave you on your own. Talk to her, tell her what you feel. I pray for your success, Twilight.”

Before she could protest, Twilight was left standing alone in the cold, dark hallway of Canterlot Castle’s under passages, staring down the path she had been directed to follow. Her heart raced in her chest, mimicking its pace from her run to the throne room, and sweat began forming upon her brow. Slowly, she began moving down the dim hall, chest tightening and stomach clenching with each tentative step in the right direction. Even at her sluggish pace, she came to the seemingly solid wall separating her from the castle’s prison cells in little time and stopped dead in her tracks.

“I don’t know if I can do this. What will I say? How can I face her? I don’t even know who she truly is.”

“Twilight? Is that you? I can... feel your presence. This isn’t a trick is it? Where are you?”

The unicorn’s heart skipped a beat at the insect-like beauty of the changeling queen’s voice. She took a moment to admire the multiple facets of the sound, something she had not been able to truly appreciate when her true form had been revealed. She smiled despite her worries and took a step closer to the wall. “No, it’s not a lie. I’m here. I’m right-”

The two mares stared at each other from across the miniscule amount of space between each other in stunned silence. Twilight blinked and stepped back, having not expected to end up in the very cell of the one she was seeking. Chrysalis stepped closer, her hoof extended as she tried to confirm what she was seeing, but never finished the action. It would not have been the first time her misery-pressed mind had deceived her in recent times and she had never truly expected her lost lover to actually visit.

"I- Uhm.... Chrysalis...."

"Wh- Is that really you? Am I hallucinating again?" Finally willing up the courage she had so recently lost, the emaciated changeling closed the distance between her hoof and the unicorn's cheek. She gasped at the touch of velvety fur, quickly retracting the hoof, and fought the urge to melt into tears. "Why? Why are you here? If you have come to mock me, do your worst. I have not suffered enough for my crimes. Even I feel like today is just a quick escape."

Twilight's lip quivered and she had to look away to prevent herself from crying. "It's true? You want to die? Is everything that Celestia said true?"

"I do not know what your princess has told you, so I cannot tell you what's true or false..., but I do wish to die. My life no longer has meaning." Chrysalis turned away from her surprise visitor and pressed her face against the cooler bars of her cell. "My children are gone save for the two eggs that remain in my hive, neither of which will survive the week, and the daughter that is growing in your womb. I no longer have the capacity to love. It was torn away by the loss of my swarm and betrayal."

"Betrayal? How is it my fault that you were imprisoned? You lied to me!" Twilight stalked towards the changeling who merely pressed harder against the iron supports of her cage. "How could you try to make me the villain here!?" Her voice shook as she spoke and slowly lost the restraint she had held on her emotions causing warm tears to begin their trek down her cheeks. "It was you that betrayed me!"

"I did not place blame on you, Twilight. I cannot and will not. I was the one that did wrong and I'm sorry. It is my own fault that I no longer feel anything other than pain." She sluggishly lifted a hoof to stare into the brittle chitin at the flesh underneath. "Physical and emotional. I will atone for what has happened with my life and join my children in the Great Hive."

Twilight stopped in her tracks, her anger dropped. "Wh-what? You.... You're really going to...."

"Have the celestial sisters end my suffering? Yes. They asked what I would have done and I told them. I committed a dire crime against Equestria and...." She cast a fleeting glance at Twilight before staring back into the sparsely lit dungeon. "I told and they will comply."

"B-but.... What about what they want? What about the changelings? Wh-what about our child!? You said you would take care of her! I don't know anything about you or your ancestry! H-how am I supposed to raise her myself?"

The fallen queen sighed sadly and and looked back at Twilight, frowning at the pitiful state the unicorn had fallen into. She watched silently as she cried, tears falling like rivers down her face and a small trail of mucous forming from her nose. Her heart clenched at the unicorn's desperation, but she steeled herself against another blow of heartbreak. "Twilight.... There isn't a need to worry. Us changelings survive by eating emotions. Love is by far the most... nutricious of them all and the only one that can keep us alive. All you need to do is love her. I'm certain that-"

"Th-then.... Wh-what about m-me? You said that you loved me. W-was that a lie, t-too? Did you just s-say it put your seed in me? To carry on your kind for you?" Twilight turned away, pointlessly wiping her face off with her legs. "Tell me the truth. Tell me the entire story, from before we met until now. I want to know the real you.... Not somepony hiding under the guise of a friend."

"You.... Do you not hate me? When you reported me to the princesses, was it not out of spite? I have wronged you as no other could. Why do you visit now, during the last hours of my life, and weep?" Chrysalis watched Twilight, confused. She had seen many of her victims react when she had revealed her true self to them before devouring the last of their love and leaving them to wither. All of them had acted with anger, trying to lash out at her with the last bit of will they had, but never had she seen, or felt, anything like this.

Twilight merely watched, weeping as softly as she could as she waited for the answers she had demanded. She held the changeling's gaze, her eyes unwavering despite her emotional turmoil. She stared into the emerald orbs, searching deep into the depths of their master's heart, and gasped quietly. The look that she was being given, while full of sorrow, was all-too-familiar.

It was the same gaze that Chrysalis had had while disguised as Luna the night the mare had bared her heart. The same pained expression, so full of love, that she had worn while expecting rejection. Wh-why?

"No, I cannot. It would not matter either way. You made your choice and I will respect it." She broke their eye contact and focused on a section of wall to occupy her sight. "I don't want you to be here out of pity. Pity is useless to me. Please, if you're here to say goodbye, do so and let me die in peace. I can't go through with it if you're around."

"No.... You.... You don't want to die and... I don't want you to, either." Twilight, having finally gotten her emotions in check, moved closer to the imprisoned monarch and pressed her forehead to the taller mare's side. "You don't have to tell me. Not now, but.... Sometime, okay? I want to know more about you and not just so I can pity you. A mare deserves to know about the mother of her child and her lover, doesn't she?"

Chrysalis' head spun to stare at the unicorn, incredulous. D-did I feel that properly? She....

"Princess Celestia said that your influence over me would diminish over time until it disappeared completely. It's been far past the time she predicted, yet I don't feel any different at all." The black queen began to speak, but Twilight cut her off with a light nudge. "You once told me that you loved me and asked if I could return your feelings. I told you that I was willing to try and make it work, and I will, but.... No more lies. Do you truly love me, or was what you said moments ago the truth?"

"Why would you do this to me?" Chrysalis, with trails of sorrow sliding down her face, turned her head and looked into Twilight's eyes. "You sell me out to your princesses and have me taken away to rot in a cell only to show up randomly and demand answers from me. Then y-you... you raise my hopes and break down my defenses like they're nothing. I've spent my entire life honing my emotional fortitude and yet you can crush it like an ant under hoof. Why?"

"I didn't tell them! It was an accident! That week after you left, I was lonely. You had taken my heart, as Luna, and flew away with it. I sent a letter to Princess Luna thinking that you would receive it...." Twilight sighed and pressed closer to Chrysalis, resting more of her body against the taller mare. "I felt so angry back then, and I still do, but I still have feelings for you.

"So, please, come with me. I can get you out of here and talk with the princesses to pardon you. You can come back to Ponyville with me and we can start over. We'll really introduce you to my friends and, maybe, if everything works out properly, we'll raise our daughter together. As a family."

Chrysalis chuckled softly and smiled despite her tears. "You ponies are completely illogical, or perhaps just you."

"I am not illogical! Everything I do is planned out and documented in an orderly...!" Her mind flashed back to the memories of her blind panic and desperate race to get to Canterlot, then rushed forward to her present moment. She had never planned for this entire situation at all. She had expected to come here and get answer, then decide what to do next. With a frustrated huff, Twilight threw up her hooves and distorted her face into a pout. "Fine! Maybe not everything I do is planned out with dedicated precision, but this doesn't really count! It's a special situation, but the point still stands. I'm not illogical."

"Perhaps it's just due to my inexperience in dealing with your kind, but everything you've done goes against everything changelings believe in... typically." She brought her hoof up to rub the moisture from her face and winced as her tears burned her exposed flesh.

"Wh-what's wrong with your legs? Why do you have holes where your skin should be? Why can I see through them?" Twilight held one of the mare's legs out before her in a magical field and pressed a hoof against the soft, yet firm, skin around one of the holes. She drew back in surprise when Chrysalis pulled her leg away from her grasp. "I-I kind of expected it to be harder. Your skin, that is. Like the green shell on your back and around your barrel. But it's less chitinous that I thought....

"It hurts though, doesn't it?" She moved closer to the queen's front legs to get a better view of them without the need to move them. "What happened? Did.... Was this from your time in here?"

"No, it wasn't. Not all of it, at least." Chrysalis stood to her full height and pressed a foreleg closer to where Twilight was sitting. "You can observe it, but try not to touch near the deterioration." The scholarly unicorn nodded and inspected the sores as closely as the changelings limitations would allow her, taking special care to not aggravate the wounds any further. "It's a symptom typical to changelings that manifests differently among the swarm and the queens. We call it Atrophy of the Loveless.

"In short, it causes our bodies to eat away at our skin when we are starved of love as our skin absorbs large amounts of the nutrients from feeding. Typically, a queen's skin is as durable as granite yet as soft to the touch as your own, but when we are unable to acquire sustenance.... Well, this happens. It can eat away at any part of our bodies and my legs are not the only part of me to suffer. They are, however, the only parts of me where I can feel it." Chrysalis sighed and lowered her hoof to the floor and opened her mouth as wide as she could.

Twilight flinched back when she saw the brittle flesh connecting the mare's jaws tear and ooze with green fluid. "Doesn't that hurt? How can you suffer through that so calmly!?"

"I don't have nerves there or else it would cause me endless suffering. One uses one's mouth for many things during their life, especially when one cannot use magic." She glanced out towards the door at the end of the dungeon, marked by the faint light spewing from beneath it. "However much I would enjoy sitting here and talking with you about my many ailments, wouldn't it be best if we found a better place to do so? As long as your offer was sincere, at least."

"Of course it was! I am many things, but a liar is not one of them! It would be cruel to offer you freedom and a chance at redemption only to deny you such things later. We'll leave the way I came in."

Twilight stood and began walking into the dark halls from which she had arrived. She lit her horn, casting a minor spell of light from the tip to illuminate the path for them, just as Celestia had done on the way here, and turned to make sure Chrysalis was following behind her.

The changeling stood several feet back, watching the unicorn move ahead and only made to follow when she was a safe distance away. Or, rather, she made the attempt to create distance between them. Twilight rushed back to her cell the moment she noticed the gap between them and immediately began inspecting her for injuries, a frantic look of worry etched onto her face.

"Are you alright? I didn't hurt you when I touched your legs, did I?"

"No, I'm fine. Let's go." Chrysalis pushed past Twilight and walked briskly into the darkness, leaving the lavender mare to rush to close the gap between them.

Twilight slowed as she caught up and glanced at the changeling worriedly. "You seem distant. After.... After seeing you cry back there, I didn't expect your mood to turn sour so quickly. I thought you were glad that I came?"

"I am, but-" She sighed and slouched into her walk. "I'm joyed that you came here for me, but I guess we both have things to work through. When you confronted me at your library, I was confused and more than little fearful. I never wanted you to find out and, looking back on the situation, I see that it was inevitable that something unveiled the truth. But, when the princesses came, Celestia and the true Luna, I was terrified.

"I do love you, you know. It's something that no changeling has ever felt for another species as far as I'm aware of, at least." Chrysalis slowed to a more languid pace and allowed her shorter companion to ease her own. "Well, when the princesses came, I was terrified and emotionally crushed. I trusted you wholeheartedly. I know that I was lying the entire time, but it still hurt.... I'll be truthful from now on, though. If it means I can have another chance, I'll do anything."

As if on cue, the wall they were coming upon opened to reveal the agonizingly bright throne room of Canterlot Castle complete with a pair of alicorns waiting on the other side. Luna was the first to act and jumped towards the escaped prisoner, wings flared and magic ready. Celestia stood and calmly walked over to the trio, a soft smile gracing her lips.

"You will do anything within your capabilities, won't you, Chrysalis? After all, you currently owe your life to my little Twilight, willingly or not." Her smile widened as she reached the small group and placed a comforting hoof on her sister's shoulder. "It's all right, Lulu. Twilight released her by my guidance and I do not wish for her to go back and I'm quite certain that you don't either."

The midnight alicorn relaxed her stance and frowned at her sister. "Sister, we have asked thee not to use pet names around our subjects! It's belittling!" Celestia merely giggled which elicited a sigh of frustration from Luna. "Celestia is correct, though. We will admit that we did not approve of thine choice of punishment. It... troubled us. We are gladdened by thine choice, young queen."

"It was an easy choice to make when presented, but I'm afraid it will be the most difficult one. Not that it's a bad option, though." She smiled softly and glanced down at Twilight who returned a similar, but much more nervous grin. "I believe it will be hardest on Twilight, though. I have done much to earn distrust and, as a changeling, I know how difficult it is to earn trust from strong-willed creatures."

Celestia nodded and gracefully sat upon the floor where she stood. "Very well, as long as you and Twilight agree to work on your bond once more, I will allow you to return to Ponyville with her and live in her custody. However, I have one more question for you, Chrysalis, and another for you as well, Twilight, depending on how she answers hers." Luna looked to her sister and locked eyes with her, nodding slowly. "You are likely to be compelled, rather, need to revive your swarm. It is in your nature as queen to have the need to expand your nest and breed more changelings, but you know what would happen should you do so."

"Of course. I already have the compulsion to lay after the loss of my last two, after all. And I know where you're going with this. My children do not have the longevity of myself or you ponies." She frowned at the thought of her children dying around her as she continued to live on. "It would be troublesome to have them integrate into your society and develop any sort of close relationship with a pony in order to feed only to die within a few years' time.

"That is... a difficult issue to address. Normally, they would feed for months at the most and drain their host to death unless ordered not to. It eliminated the risk of emotional breakdown on the host's side from loss of their partner. My best choice would be to not lay and prevent further issues, but...."

"Thou wouldst be unable to hold to such a task. It wouldst be nigh impossible to force such urges to disappear." Luna stepped closer and imposed her full height, allowing her coat to darken as she coalesced magic into it. "We offer thee a choice. We sisters are capable of suppressing thy need to breed with magic, but such spells have dangerous side-effects. We wouldst not only quell thy need, but also destroy any further ability to do so."

"Are you.... Do you mean she wouldn't be able to have children anymore?" Twilight glanced up at her companion, worry etched upon her features.

"We are not finished, Twilight, but that is what such a spell entails. So long as she creates the eggs within her body, so too does her body force her to want to lay them. We have a second option, though." Celestia widened her ever-present smile and nodded to her sister. "We could allow you to recreate your swarm under the agreement that they acquire love without any form of disguise. It would be difficult for the first few years as my little ponies have never seen your kind before, but I believe the rewards would be worth the struggle.

"Now, this is a decision that both of you need to make as it will affect both of your lives drastically. You can consider this your first step to bridging the chasm your actions have created between the two of you." She nodded towards her sister who spread her wings and ignited her horn before disappearing into a mist of stars and flowing through the doors and out of the room. "We'll allow you to stay here for tonight in order to give you more time to talk. Luna has gone to prepare a room for the two of you, one with two beds should they both be required, and will fetch you shortly."

"Celestia."

"Princess."

The two mares looked at each other and smiled warmly. Twilight stepped forward and bowed slightly before gazing up into the solar diarch's eyes. "We already know what the answer will be. We may have issues with trust right now, but we both know that we'll resolve them. I'm certain that she can hold off her need until we are ready to delve into that path together, but cutting them off forever will help nopony."

Chrysalis nodded and brushed a hoof across Twilight's cheek, taking care to avoid scratching her with a claw. "I put my faith in Twilight in hopes that she will help me to control my needs. I do not expect her to let me fall to temptation. We will reform my hive together and educate them in new ways to feed. We will accept all responsibility for the actions of my children and hope that you will allow us to do so under our own discretion."

Celestia beamed and nodded. "My faithful student, my offer still stands for the night of rest if you still want it. You need not accept, but I implore you to be mindful of Rainbow Dash's current state of exhaustion before you decide this time." The alabaster mare gave a mischievous smile as Twilight's calm demeanor turned into a panicked frenzy.

"Oh buck! I completely forgot about Rainbow! She's going to be soooooo mad when she finds out I didn't make sure she got help. Ohnoohnoohnoohno!" Twilight turned and raced out of the throne room with record speed leaving Chrysalis to stare incredulously after her and Celestia to snicker quietly.

"Don't worry. She'll calm down as soon as she realizes that we already took care of her friend." The royal alicorn exhaled heavily to calm herself, then looked back to the changeling to find a warm smile upon her face. "You look much less intimidating when you smile like that." Chrysalis immediately wiped all emotion from her expression and coughed to try and hide her embarrassment. "Thank you for choosing Twilight. It brings me endless relief to not have to execute you and I can see it has raised Twilight's spirits as well."

"I didn't change my mind for you. I almost didn't do it for her, either. I'm certain you are aware of why, though."

"Yes, I am. You don't have-"

"Princess! That was mean! You could have told me that Dash had already been helped! I almost had a heart attack!"

Celestia and Chrysalis laughed as Twilight pouted angrily. "I'm sorry, my faithful student. You'll have to excuse a mare for seeking a way to lighten a situation." She watched Twilight carefully, her grin never faltering, until the small mare gave in and smiled in return. "Come. Let's get you two situated in time for dinner. Luna should be making her way back here with news of your room shortly."

Twilight nodded and turned to leave, oblivious to the fact that the other two hadn't begun to follow. Celestia opened her mouth, preparing to speak, when she was cut off by a halting hoof. "Don't. I don't want to talk about it until it's time."

"Of course. If you ever want to, remember that my sister and I have experience regarding the subject. We will support you when you need it."

Chrysalis nodded and followed in Twilight's hoofsteps with Celestia following along just behind her. She looked out the various windows dotting the hallway and sighed. One day, I'll tell her.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Twilight exhaled heavily as she stepped past the threshold of her tree home and flopped down on her side upon the cool wooden floor. A small smile crept across her lips when she heard another set of hooves and a pair of claws move behind her followed by the soft click of her door closing. "I really enjoy spending time with everypony, but it sure is exhausting. The books I read on pregnancy didn't say anything about having less energy this early in."

"That's because your books don't take the fact that our child is a changeling and not a normal pony into account." Chrysalis smiled and leaned down over the unicorn to plant a kiss upon her cheek. Twilight sighed and pressed against the black mare's lips, revelling in the affection.

"Blech! Why do you have to get all mushy while I'm around?" Spike huffed and crossed his arms before marching off towards the kitchen. "I'm going to find some gems to eat before you start pulling me into your girly stuff."

Twilight giggled, shaking her head, and turned her gaze up to the changeling who took a seat at her back. "It's been almost three months since we came back from Canterlot and he still acts like that when we kiss. Sometimes I forget that he's so young."

"We only recently started showing our affection, so it doesn't come as a surprise. It's still pretty new to him."

"Well, that's true. And while you spent your time as Luna, we were much more discreet about it, aside from our first night." She chuckled and pressed herself against Chrysalis' legs. "When he came to check on us, both of us covered in our fluids, I thought I was going to have a heart attack. Luckily we were facing away from him. I'd hate to have to explain that." Twilight grinned, but her elation quickly sobered as she allowed her marefriend to lie across her chest and rest her head near her own. "I can think of another close friend that hasn't quite adjusted either. Why were you so distant during the pet play date? Was something wrong?"

Chrysalis frowned slightly and closed her eyes. "I just don't feel comfortable around everybody without a disguise. We aren't meant to expose our true selves and it's disconcerting. Plus, it doesn't help that your friends still distrust me. Except for that pink one, Pinkie Pie. She doesn't seem to hold any ill will towards me at all."

Twilight nodded and caressed her growing stomach. "I don't think Pinkie could ever dislike anybody, she's just... Pinkie, but I think I understand what you mean. The others will come to believe in you as I do, but the sudden revelation that you had deceived us and got me pregnant made them cautious. We'll eventually get them to accept you again, but it'll take work." She smiled up at the changeling and kissed her lips lightly. "I wasn't sure myself, for a while, but you've proven yourself to me. I'm so glad I was able to come to your rescue. I'm not sure I could have found love again."

"That's nonsense., Twilight. Anypony would be blessed to know you, let alone have you as a partner. Why, if you were to ask one of your friends, I'm certain you'd be surprised by the results. They love you dearly and friendly affection can easily turn into romantic love." The black queen smiled, pleased, as a surge of love filled her with vigor. "Thank you for coming to me, but I wouldn't advise asking any of your friends how they feel about you. You are the beautiful mother of my daughter and I won't let anybody else have you."

Chrysalis pulled the lavender unicorn into a tight embrace and pressed their lips together, connecting them in a passionate kiss that ended with the pair panting for breath and staring into each other's eyes. Twilight shifted uncomfortably as her backside began to heat up, the aphrodisiac qualities of her lover's saliva having begun to ignite her arousal. She lost herself in the bright emerald pools belonging to the changeling that lay across her body and had to fight for control as she felt herself begin to fall into the hot depths of desire.

The queen grinned as she felt the young mare's heart rate increase and inhaled the early traces of her arousal. Twilight, however, huffed in mild annoyance. "You need to hold back on your kisses! I can't easily ignore this, you know, and having this happen everytime we kiss could be an issue!"

Chrysalis spoke with her voice barely above a whisper, following the unicorn's lead, right next to Twilight's sensitive ear. "We could just take care of it. It has been four months since our last time, after all."

"We can't. Spike's awake and just around the corner! The last time was a close enough call and I know we won't get away with it this time."

The changeling looked around the library, scouting out the various possible places they could couple for one that would provide them with privacy, and grinned as her sight fell upon the closed door to Twilight's guest room. She turned to gaze back down at the unicorn whose face had flushed brightly as she restrained her burning heat. "If you can't suppress it, I think I've found somewhere we can copulate without fear of discovery."

Twilight bit her bottom lip, glanced nervously towards the kitchen where her draconic ward was currently feasting upon the various jewels she had in supply, before looking back up at her companion. "I-I'm kind of nervous, to be honest. This was how our last session happened, similarly, at the least. Then, you turned out not to be who you appeared and I almost lost you. I know it's irrational, but I'm scared that, if we do this again, you'll leave me alone and hurting...."

Chrysalis stared down at the unicorn, sorrow dancing languidly in her eyes as she fought off the regret of past mistakes. "Twilight, if I ever left you, hurt you like that again, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I don't think your friends or the princesses would hold back their search for my head, either." She smiled softly and pressed her lips against the mother-to-be's forehead, using the action to allow the guilt she felt to subside. "If you don't want to, we won't. You didn't ingest enough of my saliva to succumb to desire unless you let yourself do so."

Twilight nodded, but pulled her partner back into another kiss, parting the mare's lips to let her tongue dance around the changeling's mouth and teeth. She breathed through her nose as she tasted the sweet nectar that was her lover's saliva, losing herself in the rising heat caused by the aphrodisiacal influx. She pulled away, panting like a hound in heat, and cast a lustful gaze to Chrysalis before calling out into the kitchen. "Spike! Chrysalis and I are going to rest in the guest room! If you want anything, just help yourself!"

"Sweet! Sure thing, Twi!"

The purple unicorn ignored the sound of the words ice cream coming from her assistant's direction and quickly led the changeling queen to the spare bedroom and locked the door behind her. She panted heavily, struggling to hold back her lust, and gently laid her lover down upon the moderately sized bed nestled in the back corner of the room. The changeling smiled as Twilight climbed on top of her, resting her pregnancy-burdened body atop the inky mare's barrel, and connected their muzzles into another struggle of dominance.

Twilight moaned into her love's mouth and recoiled slightly as she felt Chrysalis' long, seeking tongue push past her own and explore her. She tasted the sweet muscle as it toiled against her own, snaking about her mouth and partially down her throat, to fill her body with the passion fuel that had lit her desire minutes ago. Reluctantly, she pulled away from the kiss, guided by the insectoid's clawed hooves, and rolled onto her back.

Chrysalis flashed a predatory grin, her sharp teeth glinting in the light provided by the singular arcano-bulb hanging above them, before pouncing upon the vulnerable unicorn, much to said unicorn's delight. Her face hovered over Twilight's, her thin, stringy hair tracing against the small mare's chest from her reversed position, and then leaned down to nip gently at her neck. She allowed her ivory teeth to scrape the skin under lavender fur, drawing a surprised, throaty gasp from the dominated pony, and followed it with a lick across the pricked flesh, melding the sharp pain with delicious pleasure in her lover's mind.

Her descent continued undeterred, grazing over Twilight's chest, past her rounded belly, and down to her swollen, dribbling teats. She kissed around each of the nipples, dabbing at the trails of sweet mare milk with a flick of her serpentine tongue and relishing the euphoric taste of a mother's nectar. "Ohh, Twilight. You are positively delectable. I am jealous of our child already. She'll have these succulent teats all for herself when she's born into this world."

The lust-addled librarian giggled and brought her hooves up to massage Chrysalis' supple, black flanks. "She will, but I'm afraid these breasts of mine will become sore during my time without a daughter to drain them for me throughout my remaining term. It would be incredibly kind if somepony were to help me with them until then."

Chrysalis chuckled, her harmonious voice vibrating against her mate's firm peaks. "That could be arranged. It would most certainly be a fair trade." She opened her maw and closed it upon one of Twilight's seeping mounds, sucking the entire breast into her mouth before drawing back and suckling upon the nipple. She sighed happily as the creamy white filled her mouth, teasing her taste buds as it made its way down the mare's throat, and began gently nibbling upon the hard bud, reminiscent of times long past, to add the faint metallic tinge of blood to the mix.

She heard the unicorn whimper with mild pain, but a quick lashing of her tongue across the injured teat morphed the pained whine into one of bliss. "You should become accustomed to such pain before we are true mothers. I remember being merciless when it came to nursing from my mother, so you should expect similar results from our daughter. Fret not, though, as I will be oh-so-gentle with my nibbling."

She felt Twilight's nod against her thighs followed by a hot wetness sliding across her own humble breasts before setting to work on her lover's other teat. In moments, the unicorn's other nursing mound was drained and she allowed herself to move on.

Stretching her neck down further, Chrysalis' muzzle met with Twilight's sopping honeypot which exuded a powerful musk and oozed with copious amounts of mare come. She took a deep breath, becoming drunk with desire under the influence of her marefriend's heat, and stood to better allow herself access to the Holy Grail displayed before her. She dove into the winking, flooding pool and sucked upon Twilight's hole making the unicorn groan into a hoof to muffle her urge to scream. She could already feel her lover's well convulsing against her lips as she climaxed, rewarding Chrysalis with a torrent of mare fluid to lap at as she helped her ride out her orgasm.

Twilight sighed as her body finally relaxed, allowing her to look down, embarrassed, at her interspecies lover between her legs. "Y-you made me come first again. It w-was sooo incredible, but i-it's not fair."

Chrysalis smiled warmly as she turned about, simultaneously flashing with green fire, to rest atop Twilight, her new mass of flesh pressing between the unicorn's sensitive breasts and against her foal-laden stomach. "You are the mother of our daughter, the pony carrying the last of my race, and the only non-changeling that I love. Fairness is not truly important and, besides, we'll both have our fill by the end."

Twilight gasped as she felt the familiar weight of mare meat press against her thigh as the changeling shifted, moving so she could pierce Twilight's anxious vagina. "O-oh! I forgot about that, but you can't! I don't want to risk harming the foal, but... I want it so badly."

Chrysalis nodded and looked into Twilight's amethyst eyes, her own reptilian emeralds glowing with lustful fervor. "We could always use the... back entrance. It will be uncomfortable for a while, but can be equally pleasurable if taken slowly."

The scholarly mare chewed on her bottom lip, debating whether or not she wanted to venture into such an unknown area, but it did not take long for her studious nature and aching lust to choose her words for her. "Gently..., please."

The onyx monarch grinned and expediently slathered her mare meat in Twilight's juices, anxiously awaiting the moment she would push into the resistant pucker waiting below. In seconds, aided by the river of lubricant provided by the unicorn, Chrysalis stood, her unflared head prodding gently against the darkened purple rose, poised to begin. She leaned down to plant a soothing kiss upon Twilight's lips and nuzzled against the side of her face. "Just relax and you'll be wallowing in pleasure before you even know it."

Twilight nodded and relaxed herself as much as she could, preparing herself for the inevitable discomfort of having her tailhole stretched and filled. The head of Chrysalis' rod slipped past her lax anus, catching her off guard and making her clamp tightly around the shaft. She squealed, almost drawing blood as she bit her lip to keep from screaming, and writhed under the obsidian changeling. "Stop! Stop! Please, stop! I-I can't!"

Chrysalis pulled out slowly, gazing worriedly down at the whimpering mare, and pulled her into a warm embrace. "Shhh.... Maybe some other time when you're more prepared for it. Don't worry, we can stop here."

Twilight shook her head and fought back the tears that stung at the corners of her eyes. "No, I'll be fine, but can we do something else? I-I think I'll be able to replicate your morphing. I can pleasure you that way, even if it won't be able to give you children yet."

The queen looked down at Twilight, surprised, but smiled and kissed her forehead. "You never cease to amaze me. It's no wonder you're Celestia's prized pupil."

The lavender unicorn blushed and focused her magic into the tip of her horn. Magical light danced from the point and lit up the room in a brilliant display of magenta only to disappear with a soft pop as the spell was cast. Chrysalis was surprised by the sudden presence of new warmth twitching and throbbing against her stomach and stood to find a mottled purple and black phallus bobbing eagerly beneath her.

Twilight gasped as a wholly different flood of feelings emanated from her crotch, centered on the stiff length protruding from a new sheath just below her breasts. "O-oh, wow! This feels...."

"Exciting, right?" Twilight nodded and stared wide-eyed at her length. "It'll feel even better inside of me. You don't have to worry about preparing me. I've been ready since the moment we kissed." Chrysalis stood in a flash of fire, reverting herself back to normal, and spun around again to press her barrel against the sheets, positioning herself so her lover could mount her without the issue of their obvious height difference, as she leaked bright green fluids upon the bedspread.

The purple unicorn rolled onto her stomach and quickly crawled over to the waiting changeling, but paused when she heard a faint clicking, barely audible over Chrysalis' expectant pants. "What's that sound?" She saw the queen tense up and cover herself with her tail in a sudden show of modesty, but failed in her not-so-subtle attempt to hide her marehood. "Why are you-? Oh...."

Twilight stared at the six little black talons writhing methodically from around Chrysalis' bright green clitoris, only visible when she parted the soft, hole-ridden black lips of her vagina. She flinched away involuntarily, somewhat intimidated.

The changeling huffed, frustrated, and tried to wrench her tail out of the unicorn's magical grasp. "I'm sorry, Twilight. I can't seem to be able to get today to work out properly. You can see why I don't typically bed with my prey in my natural form, aside from the obvious reasons. We changelings are intimidating. I can promise that I won't hurt you, but if you want to stop, then I won't mind."

N-no! Erm..., no. I can do it. It's just, different. You have to let me study you sometime. abook on changeling physiology, especially when you start laying again, would be revolutionary!" Chrysalis chuckled as Twilight's scholarly nature took hold once again during one of their carnal acts, but nodded her assent as she stopped struggling to free her tail.

In seconds, Twilight was pressing up against the soft, green love hole of her royal lover, shivering in delight and mild uncertainty as the clawed fingers squeezed and massaged her shaft. She took a moment to wonder about the nature of such appendages, but didn't give herself any time to truly contemplate it before plunging deep into the eager depths of Chrysalis' box.

Both mares moaned loudly, nearly releasing immediately upon insertion, but restrained themselves in the spirit of making this experience a lasting one. Twilight felt the claws stiffen around her shaft, no longer manipulating the hefty phallus to, instead, focus on squeezing her as tightly as they could without piercing her skin. She sighed happily and ground her member against her marefriend's cervix, instinctively prodding against the insectoid's womb.

Twilight allowed herself a moment to make certain she would not come the second she decided to pull back, then did just that; she followed it up with a quick, powerful, and awkward thrust which pounded Chrysalis' womb and made her sensitive testicles slap against the changeling's nub. She growled hungrily and began pumping into and out of the mare, her mare, making her groan blissfully under the sexual onslaught.

The lavender unicorn grunted, her rapid pace quickly draining her already limited stamina, but also pushing her closer and closer to a second climax. She could feel Chrysalis tighten around her, the queen's sheath crush her mighty sword, and the claws work her over once again. She wanted to give her beloved a second and even a third release, to repay her for the ones she'd taken selfishly for herself, but her endurance wouldn't last.

Twilight fell atop Chrysalis' back and moaned into her neck, erratically thrusting her hips as her shaft's head flared up and released her magical seed into the changeling's hungry cauldron. The black fingers massaged her aching member, coaxing more come to pump into their master and not stopping even after Twilight had no more to give.

The two lay there, lavender atop obsidian, breathing heavily with bright smiles upon their faces. "I can see... why you liked that. It kind of makes me wish I was a stallion already, but then I would have missed out on the wonder of bearing your child." She leaned down to kiss Chrysalis' neck and nuzzled her lightly. "I love you, Chrys...."

The changeling looked up at her and her smile slowly morphed into a frown as guilt chewed at her conscience. "Twilight...." The unicorn opened her eyes at the somber tone of her lover and soon her own expression matched the one she saw. "I have something that I need to tell you. It's... important, but I didn't want it to hurt you. I should have listened to Celestia back in Canterlot and told you then, but.... I wanted to build our relationship again without having it dangle above our heads. I guess I never did learn my lesson from my first lie."

"Wh-what is it? We agreed that there wouldn't be any more lies."

Chrysalis sighed heavily, the burden of the truth weighing heavily upon her, and spoke, calmly and evenly. She couldn't show any weakness for that would be Twilight's place. She would be needed to support the unicorn as she suffered for her.

And her worries came true.

At the revelation, Twilight broke down into frantic sobbing and clung to the changeling, desperate to never let go. Chrysalis merely held her, lying upon her back with the mare in her embrace, and whispered soothing words into her ear, assuring her that all would be right, that everything would be fine in the end.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Author's Notes: Check it! An entire chapter done on my phone and boy what a doozy that cliffhanger is. I bet that, if I took the collective rage generated by you guys created by this cliffhanger and harnessed it, I could create another sun. Anyhoof, lots of feels (and awesome changeling physiology, Woo!) in this chapter. only one more to go and that will (hopefully) be just a short epilogue. Thanks for stickin with me on this one as I am well aware that it deviates from my typically paced stories. As soon as I finish the epilogue (hopefully within a day or two) I'll be moving on back to Necro Domina (yay! finally, amirite?) Anyhoof, see you, space cowponies! Peppy out~!

Editor’s Notes: I’m just going to go ahead and warn you guys right now (and this is a slight spoiler). If you don’t want to be sad, don’t read the epilogue. I know how Peppy plans to wrap this one up so... yeah. There’s my two bits for the day. Ciao!

P.S. Since Peppy's interwebs will be down until sometime tomorrow, he won't be commenting for awhile. That being said, I'm currently using his profile to upload this.

Epilogue - Time Heals All

Epilogue - Time Heals All

Celestia sat at the forefront of the large group of ponies, nestled in between her sister and the proud changeling queen, as she watched her student speak from behind a wooden podium. She had been to countless gatherings such as this in her long lifetime, many of which within the previous millennium, so none of this was new to her.

She glanced to her left, watching the somber expressions of her student's closest friends. Many of them had faced such circumstances in their lives as well. She could remember each instance perfectly as only a god-princess could. To her right sat her student's family. Her parents both wept, knowing the true meaning of the situation. Spike, her foster brother, showed little emotion; his tough outer appearance, however, was merely a facade. She could sense his troubled heart beats and the way he drew breath. Cadance and Shining Armor held each other, crying softly into the other's shoulder, unafraid to show how they felt.

Celestia looked to her sister who glanced back and offered a consoling smile. She knew her sister wasn't as emotionless as she portrayed herself to be. Later, when they were alone, she would weep Celestia would console her, but not now.

The solar diarch cast her goddess vision back to the remainder of the crowd, all of them friends or associates of Twilight and the queen. She could see several varying expressions amongst her subjects, many of them empathetic. Despite the tone of the event, there were still ponies chatting amongst themselves, heedless of the aggravated glares they were receiving. Celestia sighed, disappointed, but knew that she couldn't say anything to silence them. She didn't want to upset her little student.

Finally, she looked over the young queen, her face as expressionless as her sister's, yet her mood was given away by the trailing tears that rolled down her royal purple cheeks. She looks so much like her mothers. A build as powerful as Chrysalis, yet as soft as Twilight. Be strong, little one.

Celestia looked to the unicorn behind the podium and cast her gaze behind her. A large black coffin dominated the area, decorated with roses as white as the clouds overhead and topped with a picture. In the frame was a close-up of a black changeling sitting in front of Sugarcube Corner wearing a smile as wide as her muzzle would allow. Celestia could tell that the picture had been magically doctored. She knew. She had been there that day. It was missing several other participants, all of them present today, herself included.

I remember that day well. It wasn't long after Twilight had given birth, forty-two days to be exact, and she had asked all of her friends over to the library and sent an invitation for Luna and I as well. She had called us together to celebrate Chrysalis' first batch of eggs since her return to Ponyville. Those two were ecstatic. They had a beautiful filly, fresh into the world, and were expanding their family even more.

Everyone was happy for them and Pinkie Pie decided that a party was in order. Before it started, she had hired a photographer to capture that day forever and Twilight and Chrysalis were right in the middle of us all, their daughter wide-eyed with awe in their arms.

Celestia smiled brightly, tears burning her eyes and staining her cheeks as they wove trails down her face. She was proud to have helped raise such a wonderful pony and help them through a trying relationship. She was certain that that moment had been the pinnacle of their lives, the happiest day that they had ever known.

She finally replaced her sight upon her student, the beautiful mare that had been speaking her piece, dictating her eulogy with the broken sentences of a despairing wife. Celestia felt her heart throb as her student finally gave in and broke down into fitful sobs, unable to finish the heartfelt speech she had summoned from the depths of her being. She fell, wailing, to the ground and beat her hooves against the soil, screaming for the return of her lost love.

In seconds, the changeling that had sat at Celestia's side took her places beside her mother, holding her and weeping all the same. Celestia watched on, helpless in the face of such sorrow, and wept with them. She knew the pain that Twilight felt, and shared in the agony that the unicorn's parents felt. She had helped raise Twilight, been an important figure in the young mare's life, and regarded her as if she truly were a daughter.

The crowd watched on, all of the pair's friends, family, and acquaintances, as they unleashed their hearts upon the world and, soon, it was too much for Celestia to bear.

She stood and slowly walked over to where her student and her student's daughter had fallen, gazing tenderly at them and waiting for them to acknowledge her presence. She waited for Twilight to look up, for her bleary eyes to register who was standing before her, and then throw herself upon her mentor, screaming and crying.

Celestia knelt and pulled the young librarian, mother, and widow into her arms, leaving space for her daughter who accepted the embrace just as swiftly, and wrapped them in a protective cocoon of feathers. She did not move when she felt the heartbeats of the other Elements of Harmony, stayed still when Twilight's draconic ward joined in to embrace them from outside of the wings, and remained unfaltering when her family soon followed.

For a seeming eternity, the group stayed together, the center of the other attendees' attention, until Twilight Sparkle had no more tears to cry and her voice had gone hoarse. Celestia released her from the protective shell of wings and smiled down at the pony whose beautiful amethyst eyes stared back up at her. She watched as Twilight looked around, sniffling and hiccuping uncontrollably, to her friends and family, before cracking the faintest smile and nestling her head against the alicorn's powerful chest.

"Thank you...." Celestia nodded, incapable of finding words to express herself, a rare occurance for a pony thousands of years old. "W-hy did you have... to make to-today... so pretty? I-It hurts too much f-for today... to l-look like th-this."

"If it were raining, would you be happy? I find that days of beauty are best saved for such events. It is therapy, nature's way of consoling those that need it."

"Sh-she t-told me... that this w-would hap-pen. A long time a-ago. She told m-me and I cr-ied j-just like n-now...." Twilight sniffled and clung closer to her mentor, her alabaster pillar of support. "We did e-everythi-ng to ma-ke th-the most of our time.... I knew it w-would come..., but... it hurts so much. I feel s-so empty.... What am I s-supposed to do wi-without her?"

"Live, Twilight. She loved you with all of her heart, an amazing feat for a changeling that had only truly known herself until she met you. She shared her love, her life, with you and you shared yours with her. Together, you loved others, your friends and family, and together, your hearts became one." Celestia smiled brightly and stroked Twilight's unruly mane just as she had done when the unicorn was a filly and had hurt herself. "You gave birth to a wonderful daughter, the product of your conjoined love, and raised her into a fine, young mare. She'll need you, too. Chrysalis would never want you to forget her, so keep her memory close to your heart, but don't let her death hold you back. She would never approve of such an action."

Twilight giggled, a short, choked sound that was quickly swallowed by sniffles and hiccups. "I can almost hear her scolding me. Like when I had walked in on her during her laying.... She was so embarrassed, but...." Her sentence died as fond memories brought the pain right back to the surface, picking at the wound that hadn't even had time to begin scabbing over.

"You have your friends and family as well, along with my sister and I. You are not alone."

"Mommy, it'll be okay." Twilight looked to her daughter whose luminescent green eyes regarded her fondly from behind a soft, turquoise mane. "Mother will watch us from the Great Swarm. We'll always be with her, even if we can't hug her."

Twilight looked around herself again, to each of her friends as they smiled their support, to all of her family who offered their love, and, finally, to the princess who regarded her with a soothing smile. She felt her sorrow lessen, only by a fraction, but even that was more than enough, and allowed herself to truly smile for the first time in more than a week.

"Thank you, all of you." She pulled her daughter into a tight hug, focusing her world upon the young changeling and drowning out the background noise that was the funeral crowd, and kissed her softly upon her forehead. "We may not have Chrys, but we have each other. I love you, Imagie. Now and forever."

"I love you, too, Mommy."

fin.

~{A}~{H}~{W}~{C}~

Author's Notes: It has been an amazing ride, this one, and I thank all of you that read it and enjoyed it since the beginning, and all of you late bloomers that found this little tale. I hope that the story brought out the feels that I wanted it to and that it entertained you up to the last moments. I'll pause here to pre-empt a few possible questions. No, this doesn't take any inspiration from real-life events. It was just something I thought of one day and wanted to write. Yes, that ending had been planned from the beginning. Yes, changelings have a lower life expectancy than even my head-canon ponies reaching to approximately twenty years if they are well-fed (and queens) as compared to the forty of typical ponies. Swarmlings only live a few years (see three to five at best). Yes, Chrysalis died several years early at around the age of thirteen years. Remember that she had spent a long time being malnourished along with several stress factors weighing upon her early in life. Yes, Twilight will likely outlive her daughter, too, as she is roughly eighteen at the time of the ending. No, there were not any swarmlings because, by the time of the funeral, Chrys' children had died due to her being unable to keep her link with the hive mind and her body no longer capable of laying eggs, and Imagie (see Imago for naming) still hadn't taken control of the hive mind yet (her mother hadn't relinquished it until directly before her death). That's all I can think of, but if you have any more questions that I didn't answer above, be sure to leave a comment. Or, just leave your feels. Either one works for me. Anyhoof, see you, space cowpony! Peppy out!

Editor’s Notes: I feel that anything I say will just ruin the mood so... Hoped you all liked it. Ciao!