Chapter 5

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I think I might have set a new personal best for the longest time I had ever slept in one go - by the time I was conscious again, the sun had already set, and the moon was high in the sky. I blinked a few times as I became accustomed to the candlelight in the hut, but there was no pain; only two lonely pillars of wax burned on windowsills of opposite walls, and their light was gentle enough for even my sleepy eyes.

Even so, I could see the room in perfect detail, from the cold cauldron in the center to the straw mat a short distance away, and the striped figure lying on the woven bedding. Zecora breathed lightly, with her back to me, and it occurred to me after a moment that the only reason for her not to use her own bed was because it was still occupied.

Sure enough, I picked my head up from my hooves to find my brother still snoozing on the mattress above. I smirked when I saw his wing, as it nearly resembled a perfectly healthy limb, save for the small, slightly-pulsing knot still present at the base. The zebra had the appendage fully extended, propped up by a thin splint, but the wooden supports didn’t look like they would be uncomfortable to wear.

Still laying down, I stretched my legs, cracked my neck, and extended my disguised wings a few times. Standing up, I took a quick peek at Kuva's leg wound. The bandages were snow white, though Zecora may have changed them at some point. His chest also looked fine, with the gash healing nicely.

Moonlight streamed through the window above me as a cloud unblocked the sphere, and it struck me that the current setup of the hut was a bit like the library.

Twilight’s going to freak when she sees Kuva. Actually, she’s probably having a heart attack about me right now.

Should I head into town and bring her up to speed? It might be a good idea for her to find out about Kuva before actually meeting him. I could be there and back well before sunrise. She’s more than likely still up at this point anyway.

I looked back at my zebra host, still motionless and quiet. Kuva might wake up during the night, but he couldn’t move without assistance, so I needn’t worry about him looking for me.

Well, what’s holding you back?

Nothing came to mind after a few moments, so I trotted over to the front door as quietly as I could. My steps must not have been quite as soundless as I thought, as Zecora stopped me a few feet from the door.

“Ah, Peili, you are awake!” she whispered, stifling a yawn while rolling to her hooves. “Though it seems you have a trip to make.”

I froze, glancing at the door and back to the zebra, who was apparently wide awake. “I didn’t mean to wake you, I was just going to tell Twilight about the situation...” I said quickly, glancing at Kuva, but she simply shook her head.

“Nonsense, I only just returned, but there are a few things that you must learn. First, I hope you do not feel betrayed, but arrangements with Twilight have already been made.” At my curious look, she trotted past me and stepped outside, motioning me to follow. Kuva had been stirring since we began talking, and we silently agreed that the more rest he got, the better.

The night was mild, breezy and beautiful in the Everfree. Nocturnal life was going this way and that, but the quiet volume of the animals allowed for conversation between the two of us.

“You told Twilight about him?” The accusatory tone in my voice must have been more pronounced than I intended, as Zecora lowered her muzzle slightly in defense.

“Does it matter from whom Twilight learned about the other? Either way, tonight she would find out about your brother.”

“It matters because you could have... my brother?” I slowed down in my assault as I actually realized what Zecora said.

“I know who and what you are, Peili. Twilight told me of your origin, but I do not care, frankly. You would have shown yourself to me anyway, yes? Please know the Unicorn thought she told me for the best.”

“You’re right, I would have shown you, but that’s not the point.” I snapped back.

The last time someone did what they thought was best for me, I was swept along in an invasion of Canterlot.

You’re bending that slightly; you full-heartedly agreed on and enjoyed attacking the city.

Only at first! And we got our flanks kicked, didn’t we? One-sixth of the hive hasn’t returned home! We still don’t know what happened to them...

My chest started to tighten as I remembered my brothers that were still lost, but Zecora nipped any of those feelings in the bud.

“You want to have full control of your life; I understand this, but do not let us cause you strife. The result is the same, and you have been saved a flight. In the process, you avoided a terrible fright.” Zecora went wide-eyed immediately after finishing her last sentence, looking like she saw a Timberwolf behind me.

“What fright...?”

“I’m sorry, truly, I should not have spoken.” Zecora glanced into one of her hut’s windows. “Perhaps you should depart when Kuva has awoken. His wounds I checked, and they will recover soon. Provided, of course, you return if they need a boon.” The zebra trotted back to the door, giving an apologetic look in the process. “I apologize, but the day has been very long. Would asking to sleep be doing something wrong?”

I shook my head “no” after biting back any further questions or protests. This was her hut after all, and both my brother and I owed her a great debt. If she wanted us gone, we would have to leave, though there were a few choice things I thought about saying to her.

I watched her move from through her window. Back inside, she crept over to her bedroll, laying back down on the straw mat and becoming motionless once more.

I stared out at the Everfree for a while afterwards, thinking about her and Twilight.

You know that Zecora’s right - she saved you time, energy, and an awkward conversation. More than that, she knew Twilight would be worried about you, and took initiative in telling her about you and Kuva. She truly does care.

Even so, I undoubtedly would have handled the situation with Twilight better. For instance, Zecora couldn’t have known that I wanted to tell Twilight about my plan to move ahead and tell her friends about being a Changeling. It’s only going to get harder to hide my identity now that I suddenly have an injured twin brother. Maybe Rainbow will even back off a little. I thought with a smirk.

Speaking of being a Changeling, I dropped my Pegasus form in a flash of green fire. No point in worrying now that the turtle was out of the bag.

... Cat. The expression is cat, not turtle... I think.

I looked to the moon, surrounded by the twinkling stars that covered every inch of the inky dark. The little blips of light were the same color as the fungi back in my hive. An odd thought crossed my mind as I looked around. Surely these similarities can’t all be caused by nature? This whole planet, the stars, everything out there had to have been designed by something. Somepony. Celestia, maybe. Is she powerful enough to do that? What about her sister?

My eyes roved the infinite expanse for a few moments longer. With a sigh, I turned and walked back to the hut. Not three steps in, I was halted by a hiss from the bed.

“What are you doing?” Kuva sounded like he was panicking, and he had even pushed himself upright on his good foreleg to stare at me with wide eyes.

I stopped short, shaking my head in confusion, trying as best I could to indicate the slightly-snoring zebra in the room. In response, he motioned me over to the bed hurriedly. I stepped lightly to his side, asking what the matter was.

“You’re not shapeshifted! You’re a Changeling!” He indicated the rest of my body frantically, nervously glancing over my shoulder.

“Kuva, relax.” I put my foreleg on his shoulder, pushing him back down to the mattress. “She spoke to Twilight, my friend in Ponyville, and she knows almost everything.”

At this, he seemed extremely suspicious. “Just like that, Zecora’s fine with you being a Changeling? And who’s this Twilight to just go around telling the first pony that asks?”

“I’m sure Zecora had her thoughts beforehand. It’s not hard to figure out, what with me carrying you in here when any actual pony would have left you for dead. Or killed you. And Twilight... she did what was best. She knows Zecora much better than I, and I trust both of them.”

He still seemed agitated, but after applying a little more pressure, Kuva let me push him back down, signaling his agreement on the matter. “Fine.” He stifled a yawn with his good hoof, and I jumped at the opening.

“Get as much rest as you can, Kuva. You’ll need it.”

He was obviously still annoyed with me, judging by his expression, but he didn’t disagree. I was guessing that there was still a little of Zecora’s sedative in his bloodstream, because it didn’t take long for him to go back to sleep. I thought about doing the same for a moment, and when a sore spot on my right ribs from sleeping on them for so long became apparent, I curled up on my left side, intent on getting a few more hours of sleep.

Owls hooted, crickets chirped, and eventually, the Everfree’s sounds drifted away, replaced by dreams of flight, spellbooks, and an angry swarm of Changelings.

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Kuva threw his injured leg, wrapped up tight in a fresh bandage, over my withers. I had told him repeatedly that I didn’t mind carrying him, but apparently I had put a hole in his pride along with his leg.

I didn’t really support any of his weight, I just kept him from accidentally using his injured limb. He seemed to manage fine on three legs, and Zecora held the door open for us as we steadily approached.

“On your goals and journeys I wish you well, and be careful of the secrets you tell. Most will not be as passive as I, for they will think your whole mission a lie.” The zebra warned, giving us a serious look.

I bowed as deeply as I could, and I felt Kuva lower his head as well.

“Thank you, Zecora.” I said, meeting her eyes.

“Yeah, I owe you a wing and a leg.”

The zebra thought nothing of it, moving out of the doorway to make room for us. With another “thank you!” called over my shoulder, Kuva and I were on the path back to Ponyville.

My brother and I walked for a few minutes in silence. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but both of us knew we had something to say. Kuva spoke first.

“About the forest...” He was uncharacteristically hesitant in his speech, but I didn’t push him. I figured it would be better to have him explain his side rather than interrupt and just draw it out, so I remained quiet. “You have to realize, I’ve been searching for you for the past two weeks. When you didn’t come back... I knew you weren’t dead. You wouldn’t let that happen. There were rumors in the hive that you had been killed, or worse, that you’d deserted. I couldn’t believe that you were a traitor, until I sensed you in Ponyville...”

“I understand, Kuva.” I spoke softly, gently nudging him with my shoulder. “I know full well that traitors are kill-on-sight targets. Though if you had just let me explain...”

“You wouldn’t have made me a cripple.” He smirked. “So explain, then. Why did you leave?”

I started from the beginning, with the Siege and the grayish-brown mare. I told him how that changed me, and of the months afterwards. I told him about my plan to die in the castle, and about Celestia’s benevolence. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, her friends, I covered everything I could about my time in the town. Lastly, I told him about my overarching plan.

“When we get back to town, I’m going to summon Princess Celestia. I want her there when we reveal ourselves, both as protection and as the voice of reason. I think that being Changelings will go over well enough with most of them after some time. Honestly, I’m the most apprehensive about Applejack and Rainbow Dash.”

“You know,” Kuva cut in, speaking for the first time in about fifteen minutes. “Twilight and her friends sound a lot like the six ponies who stopped the Siege.”

“Well, they definitely helped. Mostly, it was Twilight’s brother and one of the Princesses, but Twilight and her friends enabled the other two to act.”

“So they’re most-wanted enemies numbers three through eight to our Queen. Also kill-on-sight targets.” His tone was not accusatory, he was simply stating facts. Nonetheless, I wanted to know where he was going with this.

“That’s right.” I stated simply, shifting my tone to show I was defensive. Kuva picked up on that signal instantly.

“I understand why you’re staying with them, Peili, and I’m not saying that you’re wrong. I just want you to see what a compromising situation you've put yourself and them in. I’m not the only Changeling out looking for you. What if one of them finds us?”

“I would assume that they would tell Her Majesty about us. What she would do about it, I’m not sure. The hive cannot afford another war right now, so I highly doubt she would take the chance and try to kill us using brute force. I suppose an assassination attempt is possible, but we would sense them coming from miles away. Realistically, no matter what she wants to do, I don’t think she can touch us.”

Kuva nodded slowly, chewing my words over for a moment. He seemed satisfied enough, because the conversation shifted back to us revealing ourselves. “Now, what about being nervous about Applejack and Rainbow?”

“Applejack hasn’t liked me from the start. I’ve spoken to her about it, and she was kind enough to be completely honest and straight with me. She thinks that I’m hiding something from everypony. Something huge. Being the Element of Honesty, she kinda has a sixth sense about liars. As for Rainbow... I don’t see our relationship surviving the event. What will happen when the pony she’s been flying with and hitting on for weeks completely changes everything you thought you knew about them?”

Kuva met my eyes as he spoke his next words. “You’re not changing everything. You’re hardly changing anything! And she’s supposed to represent Loyalty, right? You’re still the same pony she thought you were, you just look different, that’s all.”

“You seriously think it’s going to be as simple as that? It goes further than just looking different; I’ve been feeding off of her daily, lying to her face at every encounter, and leading her on for weeks. If she doesn’t buck me into next week after she finds out, it will be a legitimate miracle.”

My brother smirked evilly as he spoke. “It sounds like she already wants to buck you into next week.”

I rolled my eyes back for lack of a satisfying retort. “Anyway, what do you think of this? Are you okay with showing yourself?”

Kuva was silent for a while. The trees around the path we walked had thinned significantly by the time he answered me.

“If everything goes according to plan, and their Princess is as forgiving as you say she is, then... yeah, I’ll trust you on this. You do know that something is going to horribly fuck up, though?”

“Of course something will go wrong. Something always does. Then again, we’re both still alive, aren’t we?”

“That might change if the rest of the town gets wind of us. Last time I got caught feeding, Baltimare went into a city-fucking-wide lockdown. Luckily, I was outside the walls by the time they got the gates closed and Pegasi in the air, but still...”

I knew what he meant. Ponyville’s residents may have, at the very least, accepted me, but the Siege was still fresh in everypony’s heads. “That’s why Celestia will be there. If things do happen to get out of hand, she alone should be able to calm them down. When’s the last time you heard of a single pony in Equestria disliking or distrusting her?”

He shrugged in a non-committal way. “I guess. Like I said, I’ll back you on this, if only because I really have no other options. Just one question...”

“Shoot.” I answered, observing the morning sky once more.

“Say everything goes perfectly. Twilight and her friends don’t give a shit about you being a Changeling, everything is fine and dandy, et cetera. What happens next?”

“Well like Celestia said, eventually, getting Equestria to accept Changelings in general would be the master plan, though that will take years.”

“And how would you do this, the whole ‘Let’s Join Hooves and Be Happy!’ plan? Don’t tell me you’re going to fuckin’ wing it?”

“No! There’s too much at stake for that! Believe me, Twilight, the Princess and I will think of something. Obviously, we have to start small, with select groups of ponies, then move onto the town, and other towns from there.”

“And what about us?”

“You’re going to stay with me? I would have thought you wanted to go back to the hive-”

“No, Peili, I mean, what about Changelings? You’ll have to make them a part of the plan as well, or opening everypony’s minds to the idea of “all Changelings are friendly” will blow up so hard that I honestly don’t believe Equestria will ever recover from the resulting invasion. Her Majesty won’t let something like that pass up.”

I actually stopped short, pondering his words while staring at the dirt of the forest while my mind raced ahead. “Oh, shit, you’re right.”

What was that, the third time you’ve ever used a cuss word?

This is serious, and Kuva’s absolutely right. The hive completely slipped my mind. We’ll need to find a way to get them on board before going full-scale.

The hive can’t attack us. Not really. Full-on invasion, they’re dead, and they only take a small percent of Equestria with them. Which means that any diplomatic solution would be the best route for both parties.

“Celestia’s not stupid; she’ll have thought of this before, and might even have a plan ready. Even if she doesn’t, we can make plans. But you’re right, Kuva, that’s got to be the next priority.” I raised my head, coming level with his eyes. “Whatever I used to think about you, you are one of the most intelligent beings I have ever met.”

He gave me a backwards smirk, tilting his head and quirking a brow slightly. “And just what did you used to think about me?”

I pretended to look like I was shying away from the question, breaking eye contact and grimacing slightly. “Well, it’s not like you figured out which tunnels led up to the surface and which led to the main Antechambers until you were almost two...” I glanced at him, and seeing his mouth wide open in shock brought an internal smile to me. “But hey! Look at how you turned out! Almost able to feed yourself, and you sort of know how to throw a punch!”

Kuva turned away, biting his lip and smirking slightly. He knew I was joking, but his lack of a retort would be driving him crazy.

“Know what?” He bust out laughing, pushing me with a bit of force and snapping his uninjured wing against my ribs. “Fuck. You.”

I laughed along with him, glad that, even though I had nearly crippled him, we were still brothers.

We settled down fairly quickly after hearing a rather ominous growl from close by, as well as a very putrid odor, and we both agreed that the denizens of the Everfree Forest were not creatures you wanted to be attracting attention from. Words were exchanged very quietly from then on.

We didn’t have to maintain our pseudo-silence for very long, however; the trees and canopy around and above us were thinning out very rapidly, and the trail beneath our hooves was well defined. After another minute of walking, the silhouettes of buildings could be seen.

“Can you shapeshift without trouble? Twilight is the only one who knows about you, and we’re in no condition to be fighting off a town full of ponies.” I asked, crouching behind a tree and adopting my standard Pegasus form.

We both eyed his splinted wing nervously, familiar with the effects shifting while injured could bring. None of the effects were altogether pleasant; extreme pain, the re-breaking and re-opening of limbs and wounds, and other things like that were common when adopting another form with recent injuries.

“Help me get this off, first. My wing’s gonna change shape and bust this open.”

I slid out from under his leg, telling him to sit on his flank and relax. I examined the splint, looking for buckles and knots in order to figure out how, if possible on his new wing, to reattach it. I found that Zecora had made it simple enough, and a few seconds and some knots pulled later, I had it disassembled.

“What about the bandage?” I asked, laying the wooden splint on the dirt.

He shook his head, glancing at the white wraps. “I’ll make my leg the same size. Any preferences?” He asked, in reference to his transformation.

“Obviously, it will help your wing if it were to stay visible, so be a Pegasus. That will help with keeping up the appearance of being brothers. Darker colors, similar eyes, standard things like that. Other than that, it’s up to you, but don’t forget the Cutie Mark.” I displayed the one I chose for myself a month ago, a rectangular, silver mirror.

He thought for a moment, nodding his head a few times and taking a deep breath. “This might really suck.” He was understandably nervous, and I pushed a medium-sized branch over to him. “Thanks a bunch. If it weren’t for you I wouldn’t be going through this shit right now, anyway.” He commented dryly. I let his remarks slide, knowing that I’d be saying very similar things if we were to swap places. He picked up the branch with his serrated teeth, glanced at his injured limb once more, and shut his eyes.

The branch was splintered instantly, but the rushing sound of his shift did not obscure the cracking at all. His higher-pitched whine quickly petered out into a snarl, and his good foreleg shook slightly, almost synchronized with his growl.

Before me stood somepony that I would absolutely call my brother. Kuva had a dark greenish coat with a slight grey tinge, as well as no additional markings anywhere that I could see. When he finally opened his eyes after a moment, they matched the standard teal of a Changeling’s eyes perfectly. His hair was the same shade green as mine, with lighter, faded highlights and streaks. The mark on his flank scared me a little, however; Kuva had chosen a green flame to be his personal symbol. Although Cutie Marks were very ambiguous by nature, his was a little too resemblant of the fire that flashed when Changelings shifted for my taste.

The odds of somepony recognizing the fire and making the connection to Changelings are ludicrous. He’ll be absolutely fine.

“Fuck me!” He snarled, baring his now-flattened teeth. We both looked at the extended, feathered wing he had kept outstretched, and surprisingly, I wasn’t disgusted with the sight before me. Sure, there were slight ruffles in the same place there had been tiny, hairline fractures in the membrane, but other than that, the wing looked fine. There was no way for the splint to fit over the new limb, though; his Pegasus wing was almost double the size of his actual wing.

“Are you good, Kuva?”

His leg had stopped its rapid shaking by now, though his breaths were still deep. “Yeah.” He muttered through clenched teeth, clearly not intent on conversation.

I left it at that, nodding and moving back to his injured leg after destroying the splint. Though there was little chance of anything finding it and an abysmally small chance of its purpose ever being discovered, years of a lifestyle of secrets had taught me to cover any and all tracks.

“Okay, let’s move.”

Emerging from the wooded area, my brother and I crept out into civilization after seeing nopony else on the streets. Though we were both disguised, I had no doubt that we would be the center of attention anywhere in Equestria due to our predicament.

Kuva nodded, walking alongside me again. I steered us to the left once we hit an avenue, recognizing Sugarcube Corner and making a path to the library. What struck me as extremely odd was the fact that there was absolutely no life on the walkways of the town. I understand that Ponyville was not a bustling city of thousands of inhabitants, but there were no vendors open, no lights over restaurants, no paperfoals going about... Absolutely nothing.

“Something is very off right now.” I whispered. I kept my voice low as a reflex; suspicious places warranted caution on all levels, including the amount of noise one made. “Come on, let’s keep going.”

I picked up the pace, making sure Kuva could stay with me, of course. I looked at every storefront, in every houses' windows, searched every alley as we passed. The only thing to cross our paths was a lone cat. It mewled, inspecting us, but hastily took off after we showed it no interest.

Kuva slowed down slightly. “Peili, check out Canterlot.” He indicated the distant castle with an upward nod of his head.

We stopped about a block before the library as I turned my head to observe the capital. Large explosions of color decorated the sky around the high towers, and if I closed my eyes and concentrated extremely hard, I could just barely hear the sounds of cheers echoing over the empty, otherwise silent countryside.

“Do you hear that?” I asked, turning to Kuva. He nodded, brow furrowed and eyes shut while he focused. “If there are fireworks, then nothing overtly horrible could have happened, right? Maybe we just missed a holiday or something.” I spoke more for myself than my brother, hoping desperately that everything was fine.

Moving on after another moment observing the castle and the apparent celebration, Kuva and I reached the front doors of the library. I didn’t expect anypony to answer if I knocked, but I told Kuva to do so anyway while I flew up to the balcony. There was a loose pane of glass I had used to enter before that Twilight could easily fix with her magic, and I knocked it to the floor with a shove from my shoulder. Charms placed along the walls of the library would eventually alert Twilight of a break-in, but I doubt I had to worry about that yet.

I called out a few times for Spike and Twilight, but I got the exact reaction I expected; nothing. I could hear Kuva knocking on the door below, but as I made my way to the staircase from Twilight’s room, I noticed that same embroidered notebook from the night before Kuva found me. I could still sense the slight aura of magic pouring off of its pages.

That book creeps me out. Something’s up with it.

Even if I had wanted to touch or read it, Kuva was still pounding on the door below, and caution should always be placed over curiosity. I tore my eyes off the book, trotting down the stairs to the main room.

“I’m here, Kuva! There’s nopony-”

My heart leapt into my throat when I caught sight of the wooden floor beside the central table. Burned into the oak was Twilight’s Cutie Mark, a perfect, pony-sized replica on the floorboards. I couldn’t smell anything resembling fire or smoke, but there was no doubt about the heavy, lingering aura of an extremely powerful spell.

What the hell happened? Nopony in town, that weird book, and now this?!

I felt every limb go cold, and I swore, my heart froze over. Is Twilight dead?

I sprinted over to the door, pulling it open and all but dragging Kuva inside. He might have started to protest, but I couldn’t even hear him at this point; there was a slight ringing in my ears, along with a near constant buzzing from my left wing as it twitched.

“Kuva, listen to me! I need to get over to Canterlot right now and see what happened to Twilight and everypony else. I’ll be back as soon as I figure everything out. Don’t touch anything, especially the burn mark or the blue notebook upstairs. I’ll be back!”

Honestly, I don’t remember taking off. I can’t really remember anything past seeing Kuva’s bewildered face, but I suddenly felt strong winds in my face. The Castle was straight ahead of me, and thanks to Rainbow’s workouts, I could probably get to the capital in about ten minutes if I pushed myself.

The breeze felt like it was against me, but I was pushing myself as hard as I could at this point, so it was difficult to tell. The fireworks had died down, but in their place, I could make out another shape above the towers of the castle. It was too far away to yet be distinctive, but even so, if it was near the city, it must know what was going on. I changed my course slightly, moving to intercept whatever seemed to be heading towards me.

In a few moments, I could start to make out the colors of the... chariot, I think. There seemed to be Pegasi in front of the larger object, and as I got closer, I could make out the shape of another pony behind the two guards. The other pony was sitting on a gold and purple carriage, emblazoned with a magenta star, and I could see her lavender wings flared out to either side. She stood abruptly, presumably seeing me, and a wave of her hoof had the chariot hovering in the air.

I slowed down as my brain quickly registered the details of the mare on the chariot and the symbol of the front.

Lavender mare, six-point star, wings, horn... It wasn’t until the mare and I were within twenty feet of each other that it clicked.

“...Peili?”

Twilight looked absolutely dumbfounded at my presence. Her face and wings were really the only things I could see of her, and her voice was nearly drowned out by my heartbeat in my ears.

Before I knew it, the wind was stinging my face again. There was a mountain range in front of me, and the Everfree to my left. My destination wasn’t really set, but it was a safe bet that it was on the opposite end of the world from the Alicorn with Twilight’s face.

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Author's Note

Proofread and edited by Spiderpony14.
Well, this story seems like it's picking up some steam. Remember to comment and thumb it up or down!