This story is a sequel to Let's Try This Again
Now that Fangheart has been tried, convicted, and sentenced, he's immune to any similar charges. Since his last trial was barely —if at all— fair, Twilight is looking to investigate Celestia's treatment of changelings and other emotivores.
Now that he's out of trouble for now, Fangheart wants full Equestrian citizenship and legal rights granted to himself, if not all changelings. And they may need it soon, as a plight is spreading through the hive, and changelings begin fleeing north to escape it.
But nothing is ever so simple. Fangheart gets... distracted, shall we say.
Rated Teen for kissing, changeling courtship rituals and (a) feast(s), crude humor, and zombie ant changeling fungi.
Chapters (11)
I must confess, I'm having a bit of a hard time feeling for this fellow.
Yeah, Celestia's behaviour towards him is atrocious (Tyrant Celestia is another can of worms, but let's leave that aside for now), yet at the same time he's also written to be some kind of super-being (half-Alicorn, half-Changeling royal, heir to both kingdoms, under Discord's personal protection, etc.).
So, despite what he's gone through, at times it can be difficult to read his complaining without rolling my eyes.
7344537 My apologies. He is growing less and less powerful as time goes on, and his luck is about to run out.
yeah I could see this happening.
7345118
I was merely explaining my reaction to him; there's no need to apologise for anything!
He's a bit cocky, that's gonna sting when it returns to him.
Well that escalated quickly.
Keep going! ;)
7391131 cocky? Nah I think that he thinks he's been through enough crap that he doesn't need to deal with anymore. Wouldn't you?
7416003 sure, but that doesn't mean you provoke people.
Awe courtship dance was cute.
At least the worker survived, it was beggining to sound like it wouldn't make it.
Keep going! ;)
Great! Can't wait for the next!
Huh, didn't know she was carrying. Maybe it could mature into a fertile drone?
Keep going! ;)
7423743 We'll just have to speculate until it happens.
7424863 predicting plot points used to be our favorite commenting activity on active Fics. Authors got annoyed though, so we're a bit quieted in that regard...
7425816 Why would anyone be annoyed? It's the most rewarding part of this process. That might just be me. I am, as my partner puts it, a strangeling. Speculate and guess all you like. It's fun to see what you guys think, and it indicates that I'm getting better at this. The more deeply my audience thinks, the better I'm doing my job as an author.
I have an important question for you guys. Please allow me to have some of your time. Click here to view the question.
7426405 well, in that case...
It seems that our reluctant Prince is certainly learning his infiltrator tactics (albeit slowly).
As the fungus appears to be unaffected by changeling transformation magic (or, perhaps more accurately, transformed changelings are not able to receive it) a potential way to extend defense against it is to have all remaining uninfected transform into pony form. However, it is likely that greater than 80 percent of the populace is already infected, so this of course isn't a solution, but having as many hooves available would be best.
We anticipate that whatever feeble government that managed to discard the Queen will still not accept help, so a great majority of the hive will be lost before cooperation is secured (due to time lost and the rapid rate of decay). Those that do remain may attempt to rejoin our unwilling Prince as a leader, but he will likely refuse, and instead attempt to dump them on the Crystal Empire.
After that the likelihood of the scenario drops to less than 26 percent chance, so I'll end my predictions there. That's one of approximately six ideas we have of how the next four chapters will play out.;)
7426788 This is the kind of thing that blows my mind. People have fan theories about something I'm writing. This is like... I'm not crying. I'm sweating through my eyes —and in need of a life.
7426798 Hehe you're talking to one who regularly reads ~12k words every day (despite 8k of those words being supplied every day by two authors, seriously, Damaged and David Silver are consistent at updates every day it's insane!). At least my fanaticism usually doesn't draw attention
Silly drone! Many have tried escaping their nature, none have truly succeeded...
Meanwhile Twilight's going to be like "how hard could it be to follow a list?!" and hopefully realize what actually happened instead of self paralyzing with despair at his possible betrayal...
Keep going! ;)
Well at least he's setting up alibi. Wonder if Twilight is searching for him yet.
Keep going! ;)
If Twilight manages to find him there, I'm hoping she's gonna turn that place upside down. Because while it sounds kinda nice, to me it's the devil in disguise. Or something like that.
Interesting, so she hasn't moved on. That could complicate things, though perhaps she can provide some of that prestige he needs?
In any case, the gears keep turning...
Keep going! ;)
Cant wait for the next!
Well there's opportunity here. He should be able to maneuver himself into speaking somewhat privately with Pick.
So we've met the would-be queen. That changes things a bit, we thought she was a bit farther away... Timescales need to be adjusted now...
Keep going! ;)
Can't, can't not post this video.
7486155 Thank you. I was waiting for this to happen. I might even make a third one called The Ashes of Disaster.
The Proposal has been shared! Pick is rightly skeptical, but should come around eventually. After all, a civil war fought right after a coup is dangerous for both sides...
Keep going! ;)
Fangheart seems to zone out in the most inopportune times. The matriarch (whoops, forgot her name) definitely senses something is off. It appears to us that she's keeping alive the adage, "keep your friends close and your enemies closer".
It appears the Princess of Friendship has utterly failed to mount a search and rescue for him. You would think news like that would have circulated...
Keep going! ;)
7520586
There's a reason for that, I promise, not that I'll explain why just yet.
7529651 she's been stuck in Equestria Girls? :p
Remorse over a single ant? What are you a Jainist?
7577731 No, I'm just a person with a very —often overly— powerful conscience.
7577814 you probably live in the first world and the thought of raising and butchering your own food horrifies you :P
7578030
I have a genetic disorder that takes eating meat off the table. I've never eaten meat in my life, and I never will, because it would give me brain damage —I wish I was making that up.
On the bright side, said disorder makes me a changeling. There's an explanation of that on my user page.
So, in short; yes, butchering my own food horrifies me, because if I'm eating something that needs to be killed, something's gone terribly wrong.
Twilight?
OMG Fangheart is the biological son of the Matriarch?!? that... Changes things...
Is that a hint of Twilight we just saw?
Important things happened here...
Keep going! ;)
7578054 I know which disorder your talking about. My cousin has a child who has that condition. (Or something similar). Basically there are a bunch of proteins his body can't digest. If he were to eat them, they would build up to toxic levels within his body.
7769749 MSUD, PKU, HyperPHE, the list goes on and on. The formula is a pain, and I'd be rich if I had a cent for every pity apology I've gotten for the diet —unless I received them in pennies, because pennies suck at their job— but it's worth not having the mental capacity of a rock.
Oh, codiceps fungi. Fun.
8167766 Yeah, the Chapter 2 author's notes explains why I put the Cordyceps fungi in here.
Why is this cancelled? It looks like it could have good potential to have a happy ending.
7577814
Cordyceps is a very nasty thing and extremely scary to think about especially since it has the potential to hinder the immune system
8861371
Truth be told, I moved on. I have an ending in mind for the whole story. Things have just been a lot in the past eight years. I still have this page bookmarked on my browser, and I visit sometimes. I can't yet promise that I'll finish it. I'd rather fine-tooth comb and revise the old chapters first. I have improved as a writer over the past — oh god — seven years.