Outside the Ashlands

Cinder stared at the passed out Changeling father with a mix of concern and dread written on her face.

"Cinder..." Dactylus started slowly and awkwardly as he walked next to her and closed the door behind her. "This is my family."

He pointed first to Magenta, who was simply frozen in shock. "This is my stepmother, Magenta Dye. The unconscious guy next to her is my dad, Pupa."

"What's a Stepmother?" Cinder asked with a cocked eyebrow as she looked over to her changeling companion.

"It's a faker who marries your dad and starts calling herself your mom." Dactylus stated bluntly.

"Dactyyyy! That's not nice!" Butterfly said she took to the air on two insect like wings and started to hover over to the two.

"Sorry Butterfly." Dactylus sighed before he turned back to Cinder. "Anyway, I digress."

"That's my dirty non-believer Stepsister, Berry Flight." He continued as he gestured to the Pegasus sitting at the table, "And this, is my little sister Butterfly. Well... Half sister really."

Butterfly suddenly flew right up in front of Cinder's face with a large smile, little cute fangs sticking out next to flat pony teeth. "Hi!" The little hybrid loudly said. "Is it true that dragons breath fire? If you're a dragon where are your wings? Were you born out of an egg? Is it true you can swim in lava?"

The barrage of questions the hybrid spewed out were so rapid fire that Cinder barely had time to comprehend them. The drake blinked several times as she tried to comprehend what she was asked, before Butterfly was suddenly grabbed by a pair of magenta hooves and quickly yanked away.

"Stay away from that thing!" Magenta loudly screamed as she held onto her daughter.

"Magenta..." Dactylus started.

"Why would you bring that thing to our house!" The purple Pegasus asked as she backed away from the dragon.

"If she were evil, she probably would have killed me when she first found me." Dactylus said rolling his eyes, although it was hard for Cinder to tell, what with his eyes being compact and all.

"Maybe it's just counting on you to bring it to town so it can burn the entire place down!" Berry Flight said, before recoiling in fright when Cinder turned over to look at her. "Y-you're a maniac so you're probably in on it!"

"Why would I be in on it?" Dactylus asked throwing his forehooves in the air in a shrug.

"It just lulled you into to a false sense of security so it can assassinate your Father!" Magenta cried out.

"I really didn't." Cinder stated in a monotone. "And why would I ever want to do that?"

"Oh, my Dad is part of the Council of Ocellus. They're the six changelings that rule the Ocelli." Dactylus quickly stated.

"Don't tell it that! Now it knows!" Magenta shouted.

"SEE! I told you Dactylus was in on it!" Berry screamed.

"STOP IT!!!!" Butterfly shrieked in a high-pitched voice which caused everyone to stop and cover their ears for a second.

Everyone turned to the small hybrid as she wrested herself free of her mother's tight grip and took to the air between them. "Stop shouting at each other. Let's just let Cinder talk!"

"Thank you Butterfly!" Dactylus said as he sat down with a frown and crossed his forehooves over his chest.

"Ok... Um.... Hi." Cinder started with a wave. "My name is Cinder, as Dactylus said. I just met him like.... 20 minutes ago in the forest."

"Uhhuh…" Berry said slowly. "And why are you in Equestria…?"

The gem inside Cinder's collar immediately squeezed down around Cinder's neck, once again cutting off airflow.

"I am trying to get to Ponyville." Cinder found herself saying. It was like it was speaking for her. "I heard that a couple of non-evil dragons used to live there, and I am trying to reform myself and my race."

Dactylus found himself staring at Cinder with a greater amount of intrigue, while Berry and Magenta seemed to relax a tad, even if their faces were skeptical.

"Oh! Like Thorax!" Butterfly suddenly said happily as she flew up to Cinder's face. "I knew you weren't evil from the moment I saw you in the woods!" The little hybrid wrapped her forehooves around Cinder in a hug, which was odd because this was the first time they had talked.

"Wait a minute, what do you mean by reform your race?" Magenta asked inquisitively.

"I'm apparently the last dragon." The collar spoke again. "So I thought I should make sure we aren't all remembered as bloodthirsty monsters..."

"That's a nice goal I guess..." Berry stated with a shrug.

"She wasn't lying either." Dactylus stated. "Usually creatures let out some contempt or fear when they're lying, but I didn't feel any coming from her."

"I guess I'll put out an extra plate out for our new guest tonight... after I wake up your father." Magenta stated suspiciously as she walked over to her husband and tried to resuscitate him.

The Collar loosened around Cinder's neck causing her to take in a deep breath.

"Are you alright?" Butterfly asked curiously as Berry and Dactylus joined the Pegasus matriarch.

"Yeah sorry, this collar can get really tight sometimes." Cinder stated as she gestured to it idly.

"Why not take it off?" Butterfly asked with a cocked head.

"Sorry, I can't. It's a cultural thing." Cinder stated.

"Oh... ok!" Butterfly said.

"Anyway... can I keep asking questions?" The hybrid asked with puppy dog eyes.

Cinder sighed. "Yeah... sure."

"The Ocelli still exist? I'd of thought the ponies would have exterminated them by now." Spike's voice boomed as he idly watched the magical viewing screen as Butterfly suddenly jumped into a second tirade of meaningless questions.

"Indeed. And that disgusting hybrid shows that perhaps the Changelings have lost their worthy status. Perhaps they will need to be burned away too." Ember said with a twitching eye.

"Let us not be so hasty." Spike stated as the Changeling patriarch was shaken awake. He started a second freak out when he saw the small drake again. "The Pharynxi are probably still alive. They are likely still the dominant faction of changelings. That certainly puts points in their favor, does it not?"

Ember smiled and shook her head at that, reminiscing about ancient memories. "Ah Pharynx. He always was pretty intense, wasn't he. I remember what happened when me and Thorax first started dating."

Spike chuckled. "I remember he shoved you into a seat and gave you a spiel about how; 'Thorax was a gentle soul, if you ever hurt him he would make sure you suffered.'" The two laughed lightly.

There was a pause. The changeling on the viewing screen had been calmed down. He mentioned something about, 'getting the rest of the Council together and talking to Princess Twilight.'

"Do you think Pharynx actually managed to do it? Wiped out the Chrysalasi?" Spike asked his partner.

"No. Those scum are like cockroaches. No matter how many of them you kill, they will always find a way to hide and come back. Five years. It took us five years of constant searching to find that WITCH! Even after Pharynx ripped off her leg, she managed to evade us for FIVE YEARS!" Ember shouted. Her claws clenched and cracked the ground below her at the bottom of the sea of fire, causing a booming crack which rattled through the chamber.

"Hmmph. Do you think, if that's the case, Pharynx would be a potential ally?" Spike asked as he idly thrummed his claws. "If he is still alive of course. He didn't really show any signs of aging way back when, but that might have just been a longer lifespan."

"I guess we will have to see..." Ember stated. "That Dactylus... He also seems interesting. I've never seen somedrake so devoted that they would flay their backs with a whip. And to be so devoted to Thorax? I think I've found my third favorite changeling!"

Spike once again chuckled. "We should keep him as a pet once we're done with the ponies." The two broke out into vicious cackling at that.