//------------------------------// // Soo...When Do I Get To See Twilight? // Story: My Little Changeling -- "I" is Magic // by Wing Dancer //------------------------------// Shining Armor was ready to start considering weaponizing the tomes spread out in front of him at that point. “Soo...when do I get to see Twilight?” That question. The same question each and every day. Spoken in the same manner, accompanied by the same innocent, toothy grin and eyes as wide as plates. Sometimes, although not too often, supported by a quivering lip or pleadingly raised hoof. That was the bane of Shining Armor’s existence ever since Princess Celestia left his office with Chip’s...thing in tow. It took a couple of days for him to select out a new carpet, having burned the previous one with the most potent fire spell he could muster. He swore the thing hissed and moaned at him as it dissolved into dust. On top of that, Cadance had to postpone their date due to some princess business in the south. He believed her when she said that she had no choice and would choose to be with him over any petty mission of peace, if she had any say in the matter. Her describing in explicit detail how she’d buck his brains straight out the solar system upon coming back didn’t help much for his agitation. Still, Chip and his nagging took the cherry off the captain’s metaphorical cake of woes. The changeling knew full well how the captain felt about his questions, going so far as to even explain how it was his plan to finally wear out the guard and prod him into arranging something. “You have no concept of shame or decency, do you?” finally asked Shining. “You don’t care that you’re asking me, Twilight’s big brother and best friend forever, the Captain of the Royal Guard, to arrange a date for you with my little sister?” “I do care!” protested Chip, putting his forehooves on the desk and leaning way too close to Armor’s face. “I read that it’s good to gain the approval of the ones close to the mare. And be persistent when asking. Then that means you are serious.” “S-Serious?” stammered the taken aback stallion. “Whoa, hold it right there buster.” With a firm shove he sat the changeling back in front of his desk. “I ain’t approving anything! This is my little sister you’re talking about! I-I won’t have just anypony coming close to her!” Chip cocked his head. “We’ve been pretty close before. We even switched bodies, remember?” he said, his forehooves moving in a circular motion. “Besides, she said she wanted to ask me questions. I wanna ask some too and continue with my pony research.” “Oh, shut up with that research crap,” huffed Shining. “You’re sure as hell not researching anything on my little sister! Here! I’m a pony, you can ask me!” he shouted, poking his chest with a hoof. “But you keep ignoring my questions!” retorted the agitated Chip, again climbing the desk. “Because you keep asking indecent ones!” “Twilight would answer them!” “No! Nu-uh! I’ll have your head on a pike if you even think about asking her anything related to...t-to that!” “Well then, sir, would you like me to fetch your spear right now?” “Why you-!” * * * Rumors had a life of their own, most of them trying to be as raunchy as possible. Each re-telling gained new, lewd details that mirrored the desire of the teller to be the center of attention. Right now, the general consensus was that Captain Shining Armor had a very kinky night with his mysterious fiancee. The numerous lacerations, a ripe shiner and his limp only gave more credibility to the story. The stallion himself tried to be as dignified as possible - despite his condition he kept up with his platoon, making the snickering ones do double the amount of rounds. He was torn on the subject of Redberry though. The changeling put up an admirable fight, Shining had to give him that. Where Armor had the upperhoof in skill and experience, Chip challenged him with instinct and raw power, even in his pony form. The two managed to ruff up the fresh new carpet, leave a sizable hole in the side of the desk and knock down several priceless portraits in their struggle. It was kind of therapeutic in a way - all his anger, the tension and composure he had to keep during the day funneled into fierce strikes, kicks and even on a single occasion bite. The pain he received in kind washed over him, letting him scream out the fear of his future life in the shadow of a Princess, the looming pony-changeling conflict and the much more imminent issue of implanting Redberry into the secret elite forces of Equestria. He was finally at peace. No amount of exercises could blow away the dark clouds over his mind, contrary to a good old fashioned mutual smackdown. The two fought for some time, the captain finally yielding to the changeling’s superior stamina. They both panted and licked wounds afterwards, although the shapeshifter was most likely just mimicking his motions - he didn’t have a single scratch on him in the morning and was as brisk as ever. There was also something else entirely - he begun to truly like and respect the changeling. His ways were different, he was an insufferable child and utter twat at times, but he seemed to understand the rules of an honorable brawl. After all, he could have assumed his true form and shred the guard to tiny bits with his razor teeth. Instead he took his blows with dignity, giving back as much as he took if not more. Chip felt a lot better too. The exercise he and the captain engaged in yesterday was much more fulfilling than running miles upon miles with his training gear. There was something more personal and challenging in tackling a live opponent. Not to say that Master Nindo’s hoof to hoof classes were boring, but the rules there were much more strict - with Shining Armor, it seemed to be all out as long as nopony got seriously hurt. During the cheerful brawl, he felt every shift in the captain’s mood - first anger, followed by frustration, the breaking point being self-doubt that turned into courage and finally joy when Chip let his guard down more than he normally would. Ponies were really weird creatures - one could apparently alter their emotions even without using changeling magic, although he would not even think about beating up Twilight to cheer her up. Now the captain exerted confidence, a sense of fulfillment and contentment that was absent from him for a longer time. He was proud that he managed to help his friend, even if the matter of arranging a meeting - or date, as he’d prefer to call it - remained unanswered. * * * “Shining Armor, you look like you were fighting a manticore. What happened?” asked Celestia, looking over the stallion with worry. The Princess already finished her duties for the day, the glorious setting of the sun a task she performed not a few minutes ago. “You’re not far off, Princess,” smiled Shining. “I came here with a request. Our mutual friend needs something again.” The Princess nodded. “We are doing our best to look for items that may have sentimental value to somepony. It is extremely hard to ask somepony to part with their treasures. We are also still looking for somepony who loves the act of cooking in itself, not the ones they prepare meals for.” “I understand, Princess,” nodded the captain. “It is not about that this time. Redberry...I mean, Chip has been a royal pain in the...flank ever since he got that letter, my lady. He keeps requesting to meet my sister.” “Oh?” Celestia raised a brow. “And?” “While I am still on the fence with the idea of...the likes of him meeting with my sister...alone...I believe that he will not stop asking until his wish is granted.” The Princess did her best to mask her surprise. She was actually counting on Shining to deter the changeling from meeting Twilight, as that would cause a lot of complicated moves to be made to ensure the secrecy of the meeting. It seemed that the shapeshifter’s talents in persuasion extended beyond that of his magical prowess. Which, as an attribute of the race itself, was unsettling. “I’m afraid we will have to ask him to wait until he’ll be given proper leave rights, which could take months...” “Princess?” asked Shining, stunned. “You mean to tell me that-” “I would not dare lie to him,” cut in Celestia, flaring her wings. “He has been nothing but helpful and dedicated to us. Still, in our current situation, we would risk too much trying to immediately attend to his every whim.” She let her ears drop to the back of her head. “For him, of course, even a few months may seem like an eternity. From what I gather, his kind does not live nearly as long as we ponies do.” “I see...heh. So that’s why he’s being so...urgent about everything. His impatience isn’t simply a foalish desire to get something done for the sake of it...” “No. Sometimes, it’s hard to guess if he’s just a child, or really skilled in hiding his true self. In the end, he asks so little for what he has already given us...” * * * Chip was pacing around the magically encased office in a circle. He followed the outline of the new rug, noticing a few darker stains here and there, probably left from yesterday’s battle. The changeling never knew that blood could leak from someone’s nose when bucked hard enough. The pony body was so squishy and could ache in so many places, it was a miracle the equines actually willingly signed up for service. If Chip didn’t have the comfort of his chitin to retreat back to in dire need, he’d probably not even consider putting himself through such torture. His musings were interrupted by the doors opening and Princess Celestia entering the room. Chip’s smile faded as soon as he noticed the serious face the monarch had, along with the guilt he felt on her. “Chip, I’m awfully sorry,” she said, cutting straight to the point. “I promised you a meeting with Twilight, and I will make good on that promise. As things stand now, however, I cannot allow the two of you to meet. Not yet at least.” His lack of a response made her look away for a split second before continuing. “I understand that she is important to you. I would like for nothing more than to unburden you of this mission and let you continue down your own path. If you have a better idea on how to verify Silverline’s allegiance and counter the invasion that he spoke of, I will personally trot down to the recruitment office and eat your guard application. If not, then, sadly, this is the only alternative we have.” “Princess...no, I’m sorry-” “No, Chip,” retorted Celestia, coming in closer and putting a hoof over the colt’s shoulder. “You have nothing to be sorry about. I am fully aware that this situation arose from my own thoughtlessness. I should have patiently waited for you and Twilight to finish your research. Instead, I let my doubts get the better of me, risking the lives of ponies and making our struggle what it is now - a chain of guesses.” “Princ-” “I promise, on the sun and moon alike, I will do whatever it is in my power to assist you in whatever path you choose - once this is all over. For now I can only offer my deepest apologies for putting you in this situation.” The regal mare slid forward on her forehooves, keeping one of them curled up and flaring her wings in a bow. “N-No, I-I-,” stuttered the changeling, dancing on his hooves in rising panic. “I-I didn’t mean to do this! Y-You don’t have to-” “I already told you before, Chip. It is my duty as ruler of this kingdom to be just. You came to us and endured our interrogations, mistreatment and suspicions. We had you share the secrets of your race. Now, we are forcefully putting your life in danger to rectify the mistakes of a ruler that didn’t know better.” “B-But Princess!” yelped Chip, smashing his head against the soft rug, lying in front of the regal mare. “Y-You have shown me nothing but kindness! You took me in, let me walk amongst you! If anything, it is me who should be grateful for your benevolence. I have never had a better time in my life than I am having now. You gave me a chance to be somepony else, to do something I wanted, not the hive...” He raised his head and smiled. “You taught me more than I could ever imagine possible. It is only fair I return the favor. I’m sorry for causing such a fuss over...well, wanting to see Twilight Sparkle.” “Do not be sorry for your heart’s desire,” smiled Celestia. “All I ask is for you to trust me with the matter. For now, though, I believe it would only be polite to reply to the letter that your friend sent you, hmm?” The changeling’s eyes widened as a huge grin bubbled onto his face. * * * Twilight drowsily swayed on her cushion, the lectern she was leaning over for the past few hours closing in on her muzzle by the minute. The scent of parchment and ink filled her nose and lungs to the point she believed that any deeper sight would have her coughing black smoke. Her current research partner, Princess Luna, was on the other side of the room, studying through the gathered knowledge about changelings. This was her third reading of the papers, carefully regarding all the diagrams and tracing the arrows that formed chains of thoughts. “It would have been easier to just have Chip himself answer all our questions,” remarked the regal mare. “It is such a shame he is only one. His presence seems to be critical in many places.” “Too true, Princess,” sighed Twilight, her face comfortably snuggled between the soft papers. “I wish he was here.” Luna smiled softly, putting away the pages and walking over to the half-asleep librarian. “You like him, don’t you Twilight?” “Of course. He is my friend.” “Just a friend?” Twilight groaned and turned to lie on the other side of her face, away from the princess. “I don’t know. He’s not like Big Macintosh or Shining Armor. I just...” The mare focused her eyes on an envelope that levitated into her field of view. The delicate blue aura placed it right in front of her nose. “What is it Princess?” asked Twilight, picking herself up with a groan and inspecting the letter. “It’s from him. He was unhappy that you two could not meet anytime soon, so he decided to write back to you.” Luna smiled again seeing Twilight liven up a bit. The element of magic rubbed her eyes and took a deep breath before scooping out the contents of the envelope. It was written in blue ink, the words scribbled slightly unevenly to her trained eyes. “Dear Twilight,” it read, ”thank you for your letter. I was really happy to hear from you. Everything is going alright here. I think I managed to make friends with your brother, Shining Armor. You never told me you had a brother. You should tell me how it is to grow with another pony sibling sometime.” Twilight smirked and shook her head slightly, continuing: “Princess Celestia told me that it would be some time before we would be allowed to meet. I hope you’ll still want to meet up by then. Also, thank you for your doll - it was delicious and I thought about you while eating it.” The mare’s brows first shot up and then furrowed as she scanned the text further. ”Don’t worry, your doll will be alright, as soon as the Princess extracts it from the hive material. I wanted to send you a sample so that you could see, but the Princess told me not to do it, because it is apparently very gross and she would not deliver my letter then.” She giggled, moving on to the last paragraph. “I hope this letter was okay. This was the first one I ever wrote to anypony and the Princess didn’t want to tell me what to write, so I just wrote what came to mind. Please write back soon, because the Princess said it would be okay for us to write letters back and forth like this, as long as I did my job properly, which I will of course. XOXO (I hope this is appropriate), Chip the Changeling” Twilight blushed a little, turning the page around out of habit. To her surprise she noticed a post scriptum on the back. “He really doesn’t know how to write a letter,” she giggled. ”P.S. I’m just curious if you had an answer for my question from the note I left some time ago. I hope it wasn’t too weird that I left it on your bed while you were sleeping, but I really wanted to see you again back then. I still do. Anyway, no pressure. Was just curious. Take care!” “Note?” mused Twilight, tapping a hoof to her chin, looking at the night princess in puzzlement. “While I was sleeping? What? When?”