ACE’s eyes flew open and he shot up out of bed. Inkie Pie was nowhere to be found and the numbness had left him. He sighed, maybe today would go by without any drama and he could the work done and be on his way. Whoever that colt was, he was right, it was dangerous for him to stay here.
ACE found the pie sisters in the dining room eating breakfast. Inkie sent him a warm smile and Blinkie winked at him. ACE could see love radiating off of Inkie, he could also see the collar glowing red, corrupting the love with the poison that was even now starting to make his body go numb. ACE turned around and headed back to his room.
“You’re not going to eat?” Inkie asked him.
“I’ll be just a sec” ACE replied. “You two go ahead and get started on the rocks without me I’ll join you when I finish.”
“You okay?” Inkie asked with a worried look.
“I’m fine thanks.” He was the exact opposite and he knew it. Still, he had promises to keep.
Inkie headed outside followed shortly by Blinkie. When he knew for sure they were gone ACE snuck out the back door and headed to a building at the back of the farm. Before he got back to the sisters there was something he wanted to look into.
ACE reached a long cylindrical storage building near the back of the farm. According to Pinkie’s story she got her cutie mark here when she threw her family a party for the first time. He opened the door and looked inside. The building was empty and dark. Using magic, ACE created some artificial light and discovered the building was covered in old web covered streamers, and airless deflated balloons on dirty string. The table in the center was covered with a table cloth that had been torn to pieces, and on top of that was a small box. That had to be what he was looking for. He looked over the small box but to his dismay, the box was locked. ACE fuddled around in his pockets until he found his deck of cards, digging through them he found an Ace of Spades and concentrated on it. The card glowed a musty grey color and the picture quickly changed from a spade to an unlocked lock.
“This should do it.” ACE whispered as he tapped the card on the box, after a quick ka-chink the box opened up. ACE tucked the card back into his deck and looked into the box. Something was wrong, the box was empty.
“Looking for this?” ACE turned to find himself looking at the mysterious unicorn colt from before. The colt was dangling a key in the air next to him with magic.
“If you know about the collar you know what that is, now give it to me!” ACE demanded.
“I can’t do that ACE” said the colt coldly.
“Why not?” Asked ACE startled at the colt’s response. “If I remove the collar I can get rid of it, you told me I needed to avoid the spell on the collar, what better way than to get rid of it?”
“If I let you do that there will be nothing to stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life.” As the stranger said this, ACE noted that he was carrying a bag with him this time. He must have planned on leaving with the key. For Inkie’s sake ACE couldn’t let that happen.
“So what you’re clairvoyant now?” ACE spat out bluntly.
“I don’t need to be to see what you are doing.” The colt returned just as bluntly.
“Why are you so interested in what I do and don’t do?” ACE asked inquisitively. “What I am to you?”
“I cannot tell you yet, but I will very soon.” He responded. “What I can tell you is that your entire future will change if I give you this key. One mistake will lead to another and soon even your dormant powers will leave you.”
“There’s nothing DORMANT about my power” ACE riposted. “As a unicorn I can bind spells to cards, as a changeling I can create illusions. That’s all I’ve ever been able to do.”
“There is more to this than you know ACE.” The colt warned ACE, his tone getting fiercer and more aggressive as the conversation escalated.
“Then I suggest you give me that key, so I can get on with my life and figure it out for myself.” ACE again demanded.
The colt shrugged, he had spent enough time here. There were other matters to attend to, and if ACE was going to make the decision the colt thought he was, there was much he would have to be ready to correct. He tossed ACE the key to Inkie’s collar and turned away from him vanishing into a black mist.
ACE picked up the key and stared at it. He held it in his hooves as he looked it over; it seemed like just a regular metal key. It was rather big compared to average keys but besides that it was nothing too special. ACE hoped that this was really what he thought it was.
As he was walking back to the girls ACE began to hear shouting he made his way back to the Pie sisters only to find them arguing with Ravewind of all ponies.
“For the tenth time I don’t mean the tennis player! I’m looking for a white unicorn with a reddish brown mane his name is A, C, E all caps you can’t miss him he has a weird name!” Ravewind seemed to be growing more impatient, and louder as the conversation went on.
“Why does everyone keep saying my name is weird?” ACE asked the rest of the group as he approached it.
“ACE!” Ravewind ran up and hugged his good friend “We’ve been looking all over for you!”
“Good to see you too Ravewind” ACE nudged his friend off of him and brushed himself off after the borderline tackle.
Ravewind glared at the pie sisters. “So he was here!” He shouted at them.
“So what if he was?!” Inkie Pie shouted back.
“So you were lying to me!” Ravewind responded, once again with a shout.
ACE stepped between them if anything to stop the noise.
“Inkie, why didn’t you tell him I was here?” He asked using a calm simple tone hoping to quiet down the two ponies.
Inkie sighed. “I’m sorry ACE, but we’re not done with the harvest yet and I didn’t want to risk losing you.”
“And you’re not going to, I made a promise and I intend to keep it.” ACE said more sharply this time. Inkie nodded with relief, but Ravewind wasn’t so happy.
“ACE what’s going on here? We have somewhere we need to be remember?” Ravewind stared confused at his friend.
“I know,” ACE responded “but I made a promise to these girls and their dead mother that I would help them get this work done. We’re almost done we only need a day more then I’ll rejoin you guys and we can get back on track.”
“What’s going on here?” The group turned to see Chroma Sketch and Lilly who had finally caught up to Ravewind. When Lilly saw ACE her expression changed completely. She became cheerful and overjoyed and rushed up to hug him.
“ACE I can’t believe you’re actually alright! I missed you so much!”
“I missed you too Lilly,” ACE replied “sorry to worry you all.”
Ravewind turned to Chroma and filled the group in on the situation. “Well apparently ACE has been keeping himself busy while we’ve been out looking for him.” Lilly and Chroma looked at Ravewind confused then back to ACE with the same expression.
ACE sighed and pointed to the Pie Sisters. “Everyone this is Inkie Pie and Blinkie Pie, Pinkie Pie’s older and younger sisters. When I got separated they found me and took me in. I’ve been helping them on the farm as a way of saying thanks.”
Inkie and Lilly looked at one another. Same hair style, same face, same taste in jewelry, the only real difference was their color schemes. Inkie took an immediate disliking to Lilly and frankly Inkie was making Lilly feel uncomfortable. Lilly walked up to ACE and started to softly speak to him.
“ACE that’s all well and good but we need to get going, I don’t like that grey one.”
ACE whispered back to her. “I know we need to get to Baltimare as soon as we can Lilly, but I made a promise to help these two. I only need one more day to finish the work here then I’ll be able to go.”
“You can’t be serious,” Lilly said in a suddenly louder tone. “ACE we really can’t stay here.”
Inkie glared at Lilly and stepped in between them two “And who are you to tell ACE where he can and can’t go?” She demanded to know.
Lilly glared back. “I happen to be ACE’s girlfriend!” She shouted.
Inkie Pie took a couple steps back and she and Blinkie exchanged looks then both nodded in unison.
“You all need to leave, now.” She demanded.
“I’m not leaving without ACE.” Lilly shouted smashing her hoof into the ground.
“Well I can’t afford to spare ACE until we get this work done!” Inkie responded making the same gesture with her hoof.
The two mares glared violently at one another, both looking like they would jump on one another at any time. ACE found himself having to separate the two like he did with Inkie and Ravewind. ACE looked at Lilly with a serious yet slightly irritated look.
“Lilly, I’m staying here. I made a promise and I intend to keep it.”
Lilly took four steps back, and tears began to form in her eyes. “ACE you can’t be serious? You may have made a promise to her, but what about your promise to me?” She asked him.
“I’m sorry, Lilly. I’ll rejoin you all as soon as I’m done here.” ACE could feel the numb feeling in his body returning. Inkie’s ever increasing interest in him was becoming increasingly poisonous, but he had to finish this.
Lilly shook her head. “No, just forget it.” Everyone’s attention suddenly shot to Lilly. ACE especially.
“What do you mean?” He asked her.
“If you want to stay here then stay here, but I need to get to Baltimare with or without you. If you’re not coming then I guess we’re through.” Chroma Sketch, and Ravewind’s jaws both dropped.
“Did Lilly just break up with ACE?!” Ravewind asked rather loudly. Chroma simply nodded.
“If that’s how you feel then I guess I have no choice” muttered ACE to Lilly who began to cry in response. ACE turned around and began to walk towards Blinkie and Inkie but to his surprise he heard Lilly yelling to him not even a few seconds later.
“You’re an idiot ACE, do you really believe Inkie will accept you? I mean the REAL you? She won’t because I’m the only one who ever will!” ACE turned back in a panic just in time for Lilly’s hoof connect to his face and knock him to the ground. Ravewind and Chroma both rushed over to restrain Lilly while Inkie and Blinkie both put themselves between her and ACE.
As ACE started to get up a fizzling noise began to radiate from him. Everyone turned to face him and saw that his face had blurred and was misshapen like paint that had been washed with water. Lilly managed to shake off Ravewind and Chroma who were both distracted and perplexed by what they were seeing. She stared at ACE for a bit, and then slapped him again in the same spot. The fizzling noise escalated and ACE’s magical disguise wore off revealing his true form, the Lord Amethyst the Changeling Prince.
Everyone stared at ACE completely shell shocked. Lilly took a couple steps back and began to lightly cry again.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
“What are you talking a…” ACE was cut off by the sound of his own voice. The buzzing raspy insect like sound in his voice only meant one thing. He had transformed back to normal.
“Oh no…” He looked at Ravewind and Chroma who were staring at him with a mix of surprise and terror. The he looked at the Pie Sisters who only showed terror.
Ravewind jumping to the wrong conclusion as usual glared at the sisters. “Is this some kind of a joke?! What did you do with the real ACE?!”
Lilly turned around and faced her friends pointing back at Amethyst. “This IS ACE Ravewind. ACE is a changeling, his real name is Amethyst.”
“How long have you known this Lilly?” Asked Chroma.
“For a while now,” Lilly responded. “Since before I met you or Ravewind.”
“And you just went along with this?!” Ravewind yelled at her. Lilly backed off a bit and Amethyst stepped up between the two of them.
“She knew you would react this way as did I, so we elected to keep my true form a secret. I apologize for the deceit but Lilly would never have become a famous singer if everyone knew who she was really dating.”
“You can’t be serious.” Ravewind was about to yell some more but Chroma Sketch raised her hoof in front of him.
“Ravewind it’s okay. If ACE was bad something would have happened to Lilly by now.” She didn’t know that something had happened a long time ago, but it was nothing she needed to know.
“But why, of all the ponies in the world you could be dating, why did you settle for…” Chroma glared at Ravewind “er, choose a changeling?” Ravewind at this point had simmered down almost completely.
Chroma answered him again. “Ponies do strange things when they’re in love.” Chroma winked at Ravewind who in turn rubbed the back of his neck with his hoof his face turning slightly red.
Amethyst turned to face Inkie and Blinkie who had both taken several steps back away from him. “Inkie I’m sorry, I never planned on you finding out.” He tried to approach the two of them but they both retreated back another step.
“Get out.” She demanded. “Just get off of our farm. We’ll do what’s left ourselves.”
“Inkie this doesn’t change anything, I still want to help you.” Amethyst pleaded with the two sisters but as he took another step forward Blinkie put herself in front of him and her older sister.
“You’ve been stealing love from my sister this whole time haven’t you?!” Blinkie Pie proclaimed. “This whole time you’ve just been using us to grow stronger! We know how Changelings work! You’re just an evil buzzing insect looking for anyone who will feed him!”
Amethyst froze in his tracks. Were ponies really still this afraid of the changelings? The devastation that happened at the wedding had come and gone a long time ago, but for the hysteria to have reached all the way out here, and for it to have lasted this long. Perhaps his dreams were nothing more than just another one of his illusions; a mistake, just like him.
“There’s no way I can convince you, is there?” He asked Inkie.
“No there isn’t! You’re a dirty evil marsh fly and I want you off my farm!” Amethyst could see right through Inkie’s feigned aggression, but it wasn’t a gamble he wanted to take. He sighed and closed his eyes, his curved scythe horn began to glow a bright green causing everyone to take a step back from him. Suddenly a key appeared beside him and he tossed it on the ground next to the Pie sisters. Blinkie walked forward and picked it up holding it in her hoof.
“Is this?” Amethyst nodded, he already knew what Blinkie was going to ask. He turned away and started to walk into the nearby woods pausing only for a second to look at Lilly.
“I’m sorry,” and with that Amethyst took to the air departed his wings making a faint buzzing noise as he left.
Inkie and Lilly both stared off into the distance where Amethyst had left. Chroma sighed and walked up to Lilly smacking her in the back of the head with her hoof.
“What are you doing? Go get him! You have a promise to keep!”
Lilly stared at Chroma not entirely sure what she meant, then it hit her and her eyes widened. Without a second thought she raced off towards the woods after Amethyst. Chroma turned to the Pie sisters and nodded to them.
“Thank you, for watching over our friend.” The sisters made no response and Chroma and Ravewind departed after Lilly.
~~~
Lilly caught up to Amethyst and tackled him to the ground, before Amethyst could say anything Lilly was in his arms kissing him. His Insect shell-like body was cold but it was a chill that Lilly had become accustomed to.
“Lilly I...” Amethyst began to speak but Lilly interrupted him.
“It’s alright, I’m not mad anymore.” Lilly smiled at Amethyst who just stared at her confused. “Remember when I said you had a promise to keep to me? Well I realize now that promises work both ways. You made a promise to stand by me, which means I have to stand by you as well.”
Amethyst smiled for the first time since he could remember. Anyone could make him smile as a pony, but only Lilly could make him smile as a changeling.
“Now come on get your disguise back on, we still have a job to do.” As Lilly said this she pulled her changeling boyfriend out of the grass, and he transformed back into ACE as soon as he got back up.
Chroma Sketch and Ravewind caught back up with the couple. Chroma smiled happy to see them both back together. Ravewind on the other hand walked up right next to ACE and stared at him.
“What’s up?” ACE asked him.
“So you’re a changeling?” Ravewind asked back.
ACE nodded.
“That would explain why your name is so weird.”
Chroma and Lilly both looked at each other then began to laugh hysterically at Ravewind’s comment. ACE simply smacked his hoof against his face and sighed.
“Would someone PLEASE explain to me what by Celestia’s wings is so weird about my name?!” ACE demanded. Lilly simply smiled, walked up to him and gave him a hug.
“Nothing dear,” Lilly kissed ACE on the cheek “nothing is weird about your name.”
ACE, Lilly, Chroma Sketch, and Ravewind departed from the forest and continued onto Baltimare. For the entire rest of the trip Ravewind badgered ACE with question after question about the changelings. It was annoying to say the least, but at least he wasn’t asking.
“Are we there yet?”
“NO!” Everyone answered in perfect unison for the hundredth and one time.