Chapter 10: Renewal
Chapter 10: Renewal
The bitter emptiness of hunger was gone. Instead, as consciousness slowly returned to her, she felt the faint, comforting feeling of energy flowing through her, filling her. Even through the groggy haze, the sleep still clinging to her senses, she recognized the wonderful feeling. She had never been so drained, so hungry. To feel that energy inside her again, however small it was, was almost blissful.
Slowly, she grew aware of her surroundings. Her brain was slow to recognize the soft, golden glow of sunlight filtering into the small, dusty room, and even slower to piece together where she was. She had woken in Starry--no, in Ceymi's bed. The faint tension that had begun to creep up quickly faded away as recognition came. She was safe.
She couldn't quite remember how she got there, but that wasn't important. She was there, safe, disguised.
Meadow sat up, or more correctly, she tried to. A soft groan escaped her lips as her back left the bed, and she collapsed, every muscle protesting against the movement. She lay there, sinking slightly into the old, soft mattress, taking several minutes to build up the resolve to push away the thick blankets and try again. She groaned again at the complaints of her body, but she forced herself up to sit on the edge of the bed.
She wavered slightly, ready to topple over at any moment. Even just sitting there, even with the fresh emotional energy and a full night's sleep in a comfortable bed, she could barely keep herself upright. She felt so weak. So drained. The fatigue clung to her, the deep aches and bruises telling of just how badly abused her body was by the experience.
It took her even longer to force her way to her hooves, her injured leg--most injured, anyway--giving out the moment she put weight on it, nearly sending her face-first to the floor. Recovering, she grit her teeth, and deliberately placed the hoof down again, leaning more of her weight on it. If her body didn't want to cooperate, she would will it to obey her. Her leg wavered, a dull pain building through the limb, but it held.
On unsteady hooves, Meadow slowly limped to the door, grasping the knob in her teeth. She didn't dare use her magic right now, not with how foggy her mind was. As the door opened, the faintly dusty scent of the rarely-used room was washed away by a wonderful smell: freshly-cooked pancakes. She took in a deep breath of the long-absent, but fondly remembered scent, before hobbling her way closer.
Years had passed since the last time she had walked down the hall she found herself in, but she remembered her way. Attention to detail was one of the many things Ceymi had drilled into her head. It certainly didn't hurt that the house was small and simply laid-out, nor that there was such a delicious scent to follow.
Gray Oak turned from the griddle as she entered the kitchen, eyes widening a bit in surprise. "Meadow!" The pancakes momentarily forgotten, he hurried over to her side, raising a leg to help support her. "You shouldn't be out of bed. You're in bad shape, you need to be getting rest, not running about hurting yourself more!"
"...'m fine," she mumbled in reply, trying to force her way to the table.
"No you're not," he said firmly, but despite his protests, he helped her along to the nearest chair. "You're trembling, and you can barely stand. You need to be in bed recovering."
No I don't, she thought. I need food. "Hungry," she croaked, surprising herself by how weak her voice sounded.
"We can bring you food in bed, little filly. You don't need to go pushing yourself like this." Yes I do, she thought, slowly settling herself onto the chair. She groaned softly as the weight came off her hooves.
It was Misty that spoke next, in a quiet and unsteady voice. "At least promise you'll rest once you've had some food?"
Meadow looked to her side, only now noticing Misty sitting there, bundled up in blankets and clutching a steaming mug. How... how did I not notice her there before? Meadow blinked, turning to glance toward Gray, and tried to ignore how the whole room seemed to lurch with the movement.
The words finally made their way through the thickness filling her head. "Oh. Uh, yeah. I'll rest. I just... I'm so hungry..."
Misty nodded slowly, leaning back in her chair to gingerly sip at her drink. Her eyes were half-lidded, almost withdrawn, her complexion a bit on the pale side. She looks terrible, Meadow thought. How much did I feed on her, last night? Memories came in fragments. She remembered cradling hooves supporting her body. The feast of emotion that she gladly devoured, so wonderful after the long hunger. Misty, exhausted, excusing herself. Herself staggering through the dimly-lit hall, helped into the bed by Gray. Blackness.
Meadow could still feel the sympathy and concern coming from Misty. Even as drained and exhausted as she must feel, the mare still held such a strong feeling for her. Meadow could have likely fed until Misty was nearly unresponsive, but instead, she pressed back at the wisps of emotion. Better to let her recover for later. The slightly fainter emotions coming from Gray Oak would suffice for now.
Meadow realized she must have zoned out when a plate of pancakes was set before her. She blinked, trying to focus on it for a moment, before giving a soft, "Thank you."
Gray returned to the griddle as she began to eat, and a moment later, Misty spoke again. "It was so... so shocking to see you there on our doorstep, again, and looking so..." she trailed off, face scrunched up in a wince as she raised a hoof to her head, rubbing at her headache. "...What happened?"
Meadow used the mouthful of food to delay a moment, trying to force her sluggish brain to think faster. The thought of speaking without fully thinking out the consequences of what she said was vaguely terrifying. It went against everything she had been taught, everything she had practiced. Despite that, she had to answer, even though she knew she wasn't thinking clearly. The best she could hope for was to go with the truth. She'd just have to omit any details that might give her away. No mention of seeking out the hive, no details of her real injuries, cracked carapace and all.
Or flying. Definitely no flying. That would be bad.
Reluctantly swallowing, she finally spoke. "I was... well, kind of on an expedition in the Everfree Forest..."
She felt the sudden fear coming from Misty, her exhausted eyes widening just slightly. "Oh. Oh, no. W-what happened to everypony else?"
Meadow quickly shook her head, a hoof gripping at the table when the motion made her dizzy. "No... nopony else. I was on my own."
"What?" Misty's eyes widened more, mouth dropping open. "Oh, Meadow Song, how could you do something so dangerous and... a-and so foolish?"
Meadow's ears pinned back. A voice in the back of her head was saying that she should be offended at being criticized so by a pony, but she just felt too tired to do so. The fact that it was an entirely valid and accurate criticism certainly didn't hurt. Ceymi's criticisms would have been far harsher, yet perfectly well deserved. "I was just... so eager to get out there," she said with a sigh, eyes turning down to her pancakes as she idly poked at one of them. "I had the opportunity, everything seemed right. So I just went." She sighed, taking another bite of her pancakes, trying to distract herself with the taste.
"A little patience can go a long way," Gray noted from the griddle. A hint of irritation rose up in Meadow, but it guttered and died almost as swiftly.
"I know you must feel so eager to get out there," Misty said, smiling as she tilted her head to indicate Meadow's cutie mark. "I remember how Starry was. She wanted to get right out there too, start finding lost civilizations and ancient ruins, but she knew better than to go rushing into it, even despite how badly she wanted to. She knew she couldn't do everything on her own, so she took her time, planned, and organized a whole expedition. You just need to take it a little slower, is all."
And I know how well that turned out, Meadow thought grumpily, until another thought suddenly struck her: an expedition. A team of ponies to give security from wildlife, to carry supplies, and more importantly, for food. She didn't need to stock up on love here in Equestria before she set out. She could bring it with her! Food, that is, emotional food, was the one limiting factor to her exploration. She could eliminate that limitation, just like that.
Of course, that meant bringing ponies along. They couldn't be told what they were really looking for, of course. She'd have to come up with something else, but that would be easy. She could just make up something about rumors of some lost city or some nonsense like that. The ponies certainly couldn't accompany her to the hive itself, though. At best, they could follow to the edge of the forest, perhaps setting up a base camp there for her to explore further. Although even that might be too much. If she just disappeared, having found the hive, they might go looking for her. They might even go back with word of her disappearance, encouraging more to go looking for her.
She frowned a little as she continued to eat. Leaving ponies with even a vague idea that something interesting lay hidden in that area would be unacceptable. She could keep the destination of the expedition secret, but those ponies would know where they had been. Then again...
Meadow slowly smiled. They could only tell other ponies where they had been if they made it back. What could be better than an Infiltrator showing up with a full load of love, and several ponies to sustain the hive? A small expedition of three or four other ponies would be a substantial amount of food for the hive. The whole feeding chamber had only, what, twenty cocoons? Less? Bringing along those walking love-generators would be a huge boon, both to herself and the hive.
All she needed to do was gather a few ponies willing to go with her, and acquire the gear needed for the trip.
The smile suddenly vanished.
And that means I need money. Again.
When breakfast was finished, they all made their way to the living room. Gray had initially insisted that she go back to bed, but she had pleaded with them until they let her lay on the couch, instead. Claiming that she had spent far too much time alone, and just needed to have some company after the "traumatic" experience in the forest, had made for a strong argument. Tearing up as she said it sealed the deal. Gray's slowly-growing headache and feeling of lethargy probably helped some, too, leaving the stallion too weary to argue against her.
Meadow did not at all feel the need to be resting, not anymore. The sympathy she had been taking in had done wonders, clearing up the last of the fog in her mind, pushing the fatigue slowly out of her body. Despite that, she recognized it would probably not be the best impression to be active and energetic when her hosts were so worn-down.
She was not, however, lying about needing company. She had been drained almost dry, and it was taking a lot to replenish her reserves after such a strenuous exertion. The energy she had taken in had been mostly burnt off to mend her body. Despite feeding so well off of both of them, she found herself still hungry. Sadly, in their weakened state, Misty and Gray were giving off rather diminished emotions, limiting the amount she could pull from them. At least she didn't have to worry about draining them too much, this way.
Once they had all settled in, the questions started.
Despite looking like she was close to nodding off, Misty was very curious to hear what Meadow had been up to, while Gray simply sat back quietly, listening. That posed a slight problem. Almost everything interesting since leaving the orphanage was stuff that she really didn't want to tell them about. She doubted that discussing the finer points of burglary would go over well, nor the methods for gaining popularity in nightclubs. Or Cherry Runner. She didn't want to even think of that.
As a result, Meadow found it rather awkward, a rambling discussion of all sorts of minutiae that wasn't terribly interesting. She told them about meeting Wheatstalk and getting a small job there. She spoke of some of the more interesting people she had met. Misty seemed particularly interested when she heard of Balance Line, prompting a conversation far too long for such a boring pony, and yet Misty seemed so excited about it. "I'm so happy for you," she had said, only to be disappointed to find out that they were not a couple anymore. And never were, Meadow wanted to correct, but she kept quiet. Best to leave the misconception in place rather than prolonging that topic.
Mentioning the time spent sleeping in an alley might have been a bit of a mistake, however.
"You what?" Misty said, surprise clear even in her voice. Gray, rather more restrained in his reactions, merely raised an eyebrow, though the feelings coming from him were every bit as strong.
Meadow blinked at that reaction. Sure, she knew it wasn't "proper," but she hadn't expected the strength of reaction it drew. "It wasn't any worse than when I was camping in the Everfree," she said quickly. "Rather better, actually. Well, except when it rained. And it was a lot cheaper than an apartment."
Misty looked anxiously at her. "Have you been homeless since you left the orphanage?"
"Oh, no!" Meadow smiled, trying to look as reassuring as possible. "It was just for a couple nights. I had an apartment for the rest of the time."
Misty's questioning look lingered for a few moments, as if searching for something, before finally relaxing again. "And this apartment, do you still have it?"
"Oh. No, I left the place when I went out to the Everfree."
"How about your job?"
"Er, no."
Misty's questioning look returned. "Do you at least have some money saved up?"
The sight of Meadow's ears folding back and her awkward look answered the question as well as words.
"Oh, Meadow," she sighed. The room grew silent, a silence that Meadow felt was cruelly judging her failure. She barely caught the sight of Misty looking over to Gray, who nodded very slightly.
The old mare gave a slow sigh. "Meadow, if you need a place to stay while you get back on your hooves, you're welcome to stay here with us."
Meadow's ears perked up as she turned to look back to her. As she began to open her mouth, Misty weakly raised a hoof to cut her off. "We have the spare bedroom, and I'm not going to put you out on the streets when you don't have a place to say. Sending you away to... to the orphanage, it's something I've always felt bad about. I know it was the right choice, we couldn't have taken care of a foal on our own, but it didn't make it any easier. Consider this a bit of a way to make up for it."
"Thank you," Meadow replied, a very genuine smile on her face. A comfortable bed to sleep in, and all the love I could ask for. This couldn't be more perfect!
"It's not a free ride, of course," Gray added. "You're old enough to be responsible for yourself, even if you might have made some questionable decisions in the past. You'll have to pull your own weight, but we'll help you out. Sound good?"
"Yes, of course!" Even without knowing exactly what they expected of her in exchange, it was too good of a deal to pass up. A bit of hard work would be well worth the food she was getting.
"We might even be able to help you get some work," Misty said. "So many ponies need help these days, after all, and I'm sure a fit young unicorn like you could do wonders around town. It might not be much, but it should do until you can get a real job."
"Thank you," Meadow repeated.
Misty nodded, then let out a deep yawn. "Oh, dear. Well, you rest up. I think I might just go take a nap. I wouldn't want to be all worn out and tired for the gathering tomorrow."
Meadow let curiosity get the better of her. "What's going on tomorrow?"
Standing, Misty stretched and groaned softly. "Oof. Oh, Red Ridge is holding a big potluck for everypony that's coming to help raise the new barn, since the last one disappeared."
There was a soft chuckle from Gray, while Meadow simply blinked in surprise. "...How does a building disappear?"
Gray was chuckling a little more as Misty answered. "Oh, we had a real nasty storm blow in from the Everfree a few nights back. Tore shingles off half the houses around. Even that emergency weather team from Cloudsdale couldn't keep the thing under control. Anyway, Red was hunkered down in his house that night, and he heard all this crashing and such past the wind. When morning came and the storm was passed, he looked outside, and just like that, no more barn."
"Probably blew off with the wind," Gray said, his chuckles finally under control.
"Maybe not. Stargazer said she saw the silhouette of something huge come out of the forest near his farm, followed by the sound of wood breaking. Might have been another monster."
Gray waved a hoof dismissively. "Oh, Stargazer sees a lot of things. Remember when she said she saw a bunch of stars walk out of the forest and steal Honeydew's chicken coop?"
"It could have happened," Misty said, somewhat defensively. "Stranger things have come out of the Everfree, and you shouldn't dismiss her just because it sounds unlikely."
"Even when the chicken coop was still right where it belonged?"
Misty smiled. "Maybe the stars felt guilty and put it back?" That prompted a good-natured laugh from Gray. "Besides, we haven't seen that hydra for years, it's got to be due to come back."
"Wait, a hydra?" Meadow blurted, suddenly shocked by the topic. She'd been much too close to a hydra to take them as lightly as these ponies were.
"Oh, yeah," Misty said with a casual nod. "He used to wander by, looking for food. Ate a few grain silos in his time. Haven't seen him for a long time, but maybe he got hungry for another building."
Meadow stared at them, which prompted an unconcerned shrug from Gray. "Lots of strange things come out of the Everfree," he explained.
She simply lay back, rather concerned by this development. Right. So not only are ponies ridiculous, they also seem to have no sense of self-preservation. Then she looked around. ...And here I am, living right among them in a house on the edge of the Everfree. I must be crazy.
Red Ridge was a fairly simple-looking earth pony, with a coat color befitting his name, short brown mane and tail, and a cutie mark of a hammer. Anything he might have lacked for plainness, he more than made up for in the quality of the gathering he had organized. At least forty ponies were gathered around, and a set of long tables had been set out for all the food that had been brought along. Everywhere, ponies were mingling, gossiping, and laughing, and Red Ridge's deep voice and deeper laughter seemed to carry over the whole crowd.
In some ways, it reminded her of the time spent at the pub and nightclubs. Less music, but more (and better) food. The average age of the crowd was rather older, too. Despite those differences, it was familiar. A large crowd of ponies gathered around, all having a good time, the perfect hunting grounds for a weary changeling.
Better yet, she didn't even have to work at it. Misty and Gray took her around, making introductions. All the ponies seemed immediately friendly, and even more so when she was described as a friend of their daughter's. The group proved to be a very caring one, and Meadow quite happily fed on the plentiful emotions.
By the time everypony was gathering around to do the actual work that they had shown up to do, she was feeling rather wonderfully full. That proved quite handy for making a good impression. With a friendly smile, she threw herself into the work, burning off a fair portion of the energy she had gathered to help with the heavy lifting, her magic doing the same work as several other ponies and earning some very happy compliments. Even with the lingering fatigue--which was vanishing quickly in the company of so many friendly ponies--the work was easy for her.
It was getting dark by the time they were done erecting the building. The gathering took on an almost celebratory air, and by the time it was done, everypony was stuffed and quite ready for sleep.
The next day, Meadow set out, under Misty's directions, to help out one of the elderly couple's friends. The directions were simple enough, and soon she was trotting up to a weather-damaged cottage. A knock on the door was answered moments later by an old, faded-gold earth pony mare, who smiled broadly. "Ah, Meadow! It's so good to see you again. Did Misty send you over?"
"Yep," Meadow replied with a friendly smile, enjoying the friendly feelings coming from the mare. It was such a pleasant surprise to still receive such positive feelings from somepony she had met only once before. "She said there was something I could help out with?"
"Oh, yes," Honeydew said, gesturing up with her hoof. "That storm we had tore up my roof something awful, just ripped off whole bundles of shingles. I've gotten the replacements, but I'm not quite as young as I once was, and I'm not quite sure I trust myself atop a ladder all day long. I suppose with your magic it should be nice and easy, though, considering what I saw of it yesterday!"
Meadow took a step back to look up at the roof. She still wasn't very familiar with pony architecture, but it lacked the symmetrical, unbroken pattern that many other roofs were sporting, and there were a few patches where the wood of the roof was completely exposed. "Well, I might need some instruction on what to do, I've never worked on a roof before. But that should be pretty easy."
Under Honeydew's instructions, she was soon levitating shingles into the gaps and hammering them into place. It provided an interesting challenge, accurately hammering nails up on the roof while she stood on the ground. After the first few had proven the task to be simple enough, the two of them fell into chatting while she worked; Meadow talked a little of her time in the Everfree Forest, leaving out all the worst details, while Honeydew talked at length about the goings-on there in Hoofington. Honeydew even provided some lemonade and sandwiches.
By the time Meadow left, she felt quite pleased by how things were going. The work was quick and simple, and better yet, it was the kind of work that built appreciation and even friendship in these ponies. It ingratiated her with them. So long as she gave even a little effort at this, she would never go hungry. She even began to entertain thoughts of slowly impressing more and more ponies, until she had gained the favor of the entire town. A whole town, all giving their love freely to her.
No, it wasn't like her time in Manehattan at all. If anything, it was more like her time in the orphanage. For some reason, that thought brought out a smile.
Sadly, she didn't earn any bits for helping Honeydew out, instead receiving a large, freshly-baked blackberry pie. It wasn't what she had been hoping for, of course. Pie doesn't pay for an expedition into the Everfree Forest. It was, however, delicious, which mollified her somewhat. Gray and Misty were quite happy for the tasty dessert after dinner.
In many ways, it seemed life in Hoofington was very simple and quiet, at least to judge by Misty and Gray. When they were not visiting or hosting friends, they would usually be found sitting in the living room, with Misty knitting, and Gray either thoroughly reading through the newspaper or reading from a book. He even had quite the stack of older papers, gathered for recycling. Meadow looked through them one night, finding that almost every issue for the past two weeks had discussed the "vicious" attack on a security guard in Manehattan. A couple even included sketches of the suspect, showing a rather accurate portrayal of Coal.
While "simple and quiet" could easily mean "dull and boring," it also meant she had plenty of time to herself, time that she could put to good use. There were few expectations of her, and other than bringing home some food and money from her assistance around town, she had no responsibilities or obligations. Instead, she had plenty of time to plan and prepare.
The most basic preparation, and the easiest to do, was exercise. That would have proven difficult in town; it's hard to exercise one's wings when they aren't physically there, and shape-shifting to bring them into existence would bring all sorts of other problems. Fortunately, the Everfree provided the perfect training ground.
Meadow Song trotted through the thick forest with a casual air that few ponies could match, given the location. Even among those living right there on its border, it was discussed in wary tones, a source of mysterious danger. Few ever crossed over its borders, with most of those being pegasi, who kept themselves well above the treetops and anything that might lurk beneath them. It made for the perfect secluded getaway, where no prying eyes could watch.
About a mile into the forest, in a tiny valley, she decided she was sufficiently safe from observation. She looked around for a bit, before finding a fairly distinctive outcropping of rocks beside a tiny stream. Exercising her hidden and disused natural form had been the primary purpose in going out there, but there was another, even more important reason.
Her magic pulled at the ground at the base of the rocky outcropping, eventually excavating a small hole. Into it, she placed a small, wooden box, her stolen map folded inside of it, and replaced the dirt. The papers had made much speculation over why the mysterious assailant, who had only stolen money before, had that time instead stolen part of a map. Fortunately, the fragment had covered almost half of the Everfree forest, which would hopefully be too much territory for the Guards to actually investigate. Despite that, the thought of giving even a weak clue as to where the hive was located brought out a guilty feeling. I should have torched the rest of the map, she thought as she looked down at the mound of dirt. It was careless of her. Holding onto the map, the only thing that could possibly link Meadow to the attack, was even more careless.
Meadow paused at the thought. No. No, it's not. It's not even close! She grit her teeth, ears folding back. It would be an inconvenience and most. How could I think something so selfish? I might have endangered the whole hive with my carelessness, and my biggest concern is that I might have to abandon one of my disguises if I'm found out?
She snorted angrily and turned away, determined to move on to the exercises she had come out here to do. Green flame flashed, stripping away the disguise to reveal his true form.
Nictis scowled, even as he looked down at his own hooves. It was so many years since he last saw the hive. So much of his time growing up, and his entire adult life, had been spent among ponies. He was constantly surrounded by them, immersed in their culture, assaulted by their ideas. He had grown accustomed to their easy life of luxury, enough to miss it when it was gone, despite his determination to stay strong and focused. He learned to think more and more like them, so as to disguise himself more naturally, but now...
Am I forgetting how to be a changeling?
He grumbled and spread his wings, taking to the air with a soft buzz. He had exercises to do.
The next step in preparations was planning, which proved to have one significant problem: Meadow had no idea what a proper wilderness expedition needed.
Fortunately, she knew how to solve this. All she needed to do was visit the library.
The Hoofington library was a small building, with an air of disuse about it, despite the very friendly presence of Silverlight, the mare who oversaw the place. She was quite happy to help out, quickly searching out several books on the history of exploration. She seemed even more pleased when Meadow asked specifically for any that included the more technical details. The elderly mare seemed so happy to see somepony so interested in knowledge.
And so, Meadow spent many of those quiet evenings sitting quietly in the living room, sharing the company of Gray and Misty while she read from the books she had checked out, pausing occasionally to make notes in the small journal she had purchased.
Meadow was studying a new book, almost two weeks after her arrival in Hoofington, when Misty returned from a lengthy errand with a small box.
"These are for you," Misty said, smiling broadly as she set the box on the coffee table before Meadow. "Something from the orphanage."
Curious as to what the orphanage could possibly be sending her, Meadow took the box in her magic. Opening it, she found that it held a bundle of letters. Each had a name, some that she knew well, others that were only vaguely familiar. Thunder Chaser, Limelight, Blueberry, Cotton Candy, and so many others. The name that caught her attention the most was, of course, Spark Wheel.
"Crimson Heart told me that she sent a letter to each of the children who wrote for you, to let them know what had happened. She kept the letters with the hope that someday she would be able to deliver them. She was so happy to hear that you had been found and that you were well."
"Thank you," Meadow said softly, staring at the letters for a moment before curiosity overtook her. She pulled out Spark Wheel's letter, opening it.
Dear Meadow Song,
I just finished unpacking. Manechester is kind of weird, but nice so far. I think it'll be a while before I can think of this as "home." I was so worried that I'd never be adopted, and now that I have, I'm feeling a bit lost. It's a little scary, but a little exciting, too.
Sunseeker and Willow Leaf seem very nice. I don't know if I'll be able to think of them as my parents, but they're very friendly, and seem very happy to have me. It's all a bit much to take in, so I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Other than exhausted. I've been bouncing around all day in excitement. I should be asleep, but I wanted to write you as soon as I could. So I guess I'm really, really happy, even if I'm a bit worried, too.
This letter is kind of a mess. I think I'm rambling. Sorry, I've never been good writing letters, even after all the letters to Cotton and the others that we wrote. Can you ramble in writing, or does that only count for speaking?
It's weird that I have to send a letter in order to talk to you. I guess I got so used to you always being there that it seems so strange without you here. I hope I can see you again.
Your friend,
Spark Wheel
Meadow searched out a fresh piece of paper. She would read each of the letters and reply to them all, of course, but this one came first.
The days passed easily, almost routinely. It was the kind of simplicity that might be boring, if not for how well things were going. A few hours of light work gave her all the food she could need, while her exercise and planning continued at a good pace. She could fly steadily for over an hour now, and was making steady progress at improving that.
It almost made up for the sudden realization she had one day, during those exercises, that she had been very stupid. She could shape-shift. That meant she could have changed into a perfectly-fit pegasus, complete with well-toned flight muscles. The kind of pegasus that could fly all day long with hardly any fatigue, who could, say, handle a flight across the Everfree forest with ease. She was very glad that noling was around to observe the rather embarrassing realization that she had overlooked a solution that was so basic that it could be described as intrinsic to her very existence as a changeling.
Ceymi would have been so disappointed.
That did not stop her exercises, however. If anything, it spurred her on. After all, now it would be a point of pride to fly back to the hive in her natural form. It's not because I forgot something so simple, it's because this is just the right way to do it. Yeah.
Despite that embarrassment, it was a pleasant time. Not only was she well-fed on the affection of those she helped, but she had a good place to stay, company that was pleasant yet quiet and unobtrusive--letting her soak in the gentle affection while not disturbing her studying--and physical food that she could only describe as incredible. Gray certainly knew how to cook.
Yet none of that brought about quite as much happiness as when a letter arrived, addressed to her. She took it, flopping back on the couch to read.
Dear Meadow Song,
It's so good to hear from you! When Crimson Heart wrote me to say that you had left, I was so worried. I guess I shouldn't have been too afraid, though. You've always been so capable, I know you can take care of yourself. I guess I was more worried that I wouldn't hear from you again. Getting your letter really made my day!
Can I ask what happened? I imagine you've been up to a lot more interesting things than I have. I've been having a good time, Manechester is actually really nice, but I figure you've probably got some good stories by now.
I've missed being able to talk to you. I'm so happy that I can at least write to you again.
Your friend,
Spark Wheel
Meadow smiled. No matter what other setbacks she might have suffered, the letter was proof that she was not some incompetent failure. She had built up a bond with a pony that had stayed strong after most of a year's absence. If that was not proof that she was a skilled Infiltrator, then what was?
"Thanks again, Sapwood," Meadow called out as she shut the front gate of the little home, happily tucking a little pouch and its twenty bits into her saddlebags. Twenty more bits toward the expedition fund, she thought with a smile, before adding, only several thousand more to go...
"Oh, like you should be thanking me," Sapwood replied from the door of the house, the yellow mare giving a soft laugh and a dismissive wave of her hoof. "I can't imagine how long it would have taken us to get that all done without your help. You're a lifesaver!"
"I'm just glad I could help. You don't need to pay me for it." Please, please, please, of all the lies I tell, don't believe that one.
Fortunately, Sapwood just waved her hoof again, letting out a cheery laugh. "Nonsense! I'll always have something to give to anypony who's so generous and helpful with their time. In fact, if you'd like to make even more, then make sure to come by next week. We're starting up the early preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration, and we could surely use your magic to help!"
There it is again, Meadow noted. Sapwood was now the third pony to mention preparing for that celebration. "Isn't that over a month away, still?"
"Oh, of course," Sapwood said with a nod. "But we want to make sure this celebration is as grand as possible. We wouldn't want to disappoint the Princess, after all!"
Right. Wouldn't want to hurt her Highness's precious ego by not putting enough effort into her own personal holiday, a holiday that she created just to remind everypony of how great she is. You'd think raising the sun every day was reminder enough, but no...
Banishing those thoughts, Meadow put on a smile. "Of course not. I'll be sure to be there!"
As she trotted off to home, the thought kept building. Something seemed off. She'd seen several other Summer Sun Celebrations, but there was never so much focus. Okay, so there wasn't much focus yet, just a few mentions of planning to start work early, but why so early? Even the longest preparation she had seen before had been just shy of a week.
Maybe Hoofington is just weird that way?
The thought was still bugging her when she arrived. Gray nodded to her from his chair, barely even looking up from his book, while Misty greeted her, giving a soft hug. They made their greetings and shared the usual chit-chat. How was your day? Good. How about you? The same. Etc.
This time, however, Meadow had another question. "So how come I'm hearing so much about preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration? I've already gotten asked by several ponies to help out, but it seems like it's so early for that.
"Oh, sure, it's early, but we want to make sure to make this year's celebration as perfect as can be," Misty replied. "Best to get started early, and all that."
"Well, sure," Meadow said, "But why?"
"Didn't you know? This year is special. Hoofington is hosting the Celestial Progress for this year's Summer Sun Celebration!"
"Celestial... Progress?" Meadow asked, a creeping sensation slowly rising through her limbs.
"Yes indeed," Misty replied as she slipped a foreleg around Meadow's shoulders, the once-comforting gesture suddenly feeling dangerously constraining. "Aren't you excited? You're going to meet Princess Celestia!"
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...Chapter 10 fought me. For some reason, it was just hard to get everything down and done right, and then there was some more delays before it got the final pass-over before publishing. But, here it is!
The various delays do mean that I've already gotten a fair bit of the next chapter done already, and it's being much more cooperative. Plus, well, it starts on a fun scene.
So the next chapter should be out much quicker. That is, if I manage to stop distracting myself with random things, such as trying to work out Twilight's magical power through analyzing certain scenes from the show (For those who are curious, the minimum peak power output of her levitation appears to be around 60 MW, with a minimum energy reserve of 180 MJ. And that was in Season 1. Actual values may be significantly higher, particularly with two more seasons of improvement).
IT'S ALIIIIIVE
2163067 - You may be interested in the previous results of similar research.
About the story: MOAR!!!
Hm. There's not really a whole to say about this one, it seems... One thing, though: with that reminder of Spark's existence, I'm now expecting him to play a larger role down the line... What, though, I have no idea beyond "maybe it will have something to do with the meeting with Princess Celestia...?" and even that I'm sure is wrong...
Wait... one more idea: Maybe Nictis is going to take him on the (doomed) "expedition"? After all, as a Changeling, he still doesn't consider Spark anything more than part of a, so to speak, "successful hunt"... Oh, I hope I'm wrong, but this seems far more likely than my first thought...
oh buck one of the first lessons he/she learned was to always be weary of the princess if she were to figure you out then you are most certainly dead
i love this story but one thing are changelings gender neutral or something becuse nictis is a he but as a pony he a she so can changelings choose thare gender or somthing but great story
2163246
Oh no! More distractions! No, I must stay strong and keep writing... even if it has such tasty, tasty maths!
Oh no, it's making me want to make screen-grabs and do by-pixel measurements to double-check my own (assumption-filled) calculations! Must... keep... writing!
(More seriously, though, that's kind of awesome, thank you! And even if I disagree with a few of the methods, that definitely seems in the right order of magnitude)
2163372
Yep, he will. Have a larger role, I mean. I won't spoiler anything past that, other than to note that one of your thoughts makes me think of one of the things I am doing. Yay vagueness!
2163750
The Queen and Princesses are female, the drones are male, and yes, they can change their sex. It leads them to have a rather looser relationship with gender than most species, as they can effectively change it as desired, and not having any hangups with their own gender makes it easier to deal with potentially impersonating the opposite sex, and with the social aspects of gender. It's one of the ways that their thinking is a bit alien.
Yikes....Things are going to go horribly wrong.
And be her personal sex slave..... Oh joy.....
And if this is Pre Season 1.... Well... I can imagine Nightmare Moon will only be too joyful to torture the heck out of her first changeling... Hehehe....
And then Meadow's hero comes in to save the day, where then she finds herself growing affection and feelings for him, dividing Nictus further. Her Hive? Or Her Lover?
Choices.... Kehehehe.
2163246 Curse you and your ability to make me click links and read everything!
denver.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/img/mlfw8757-Dahell_Twi.png
I don't see why Meadow Song would be so worried over the Princess herself showing up in town, she can always "disappear" for a day or two until said Princess is long gone. And being a good actor, Meadow can certainly come up with some plausible excuse for her absence when the dangerous Everfree Forest is right next door.
What should worry Meadow the most is getting tied down so she can't make herself scarce during the event.
I've noticed that Nictis tends to have a self centered view of things, especially when thinking through problems. He doesn't think about outside variables enough and thinks if he is simply strong enough he can take on the world. I'd say the last chapter is a decent example of this, he went into Everfree ignoring possible danger and with no contingency plan.
What made me think of this is how he thought disappearing on the expedition would make the ponies look for him, then decided not letting the ponies go back would be better, despite that bringing up the same problem of missing ponies.
He may want to work on that if he is ever going to get anything done in the long term.
2164947
Yeah, Nictis is kind of naive and inexperienced about a lot of things, and really not too good about making thorough plans as a result.
That said, the expedition plan is probably one of his better plans. The idea is that he'd hire some ponies to go with him "into the Everfree Forest," but not give any details as to where he was going. The ponies will surely be missed, but the Everfree is huge, probably too huge to search. And even if they do search the Everfree, what they're looking for won't be in the forest. So his plan might actually be good! For once...
2164475
Yeah, that'd be a good plan. Then again, see the above about Nictis's ability at planning...
(I'm really liking the next chapter so far. At the very least, it's fun to write)
2163881 - definitely seems in the right order of magnitude. There is one critical bit of analysis missing: the error analysis (see e.g. this or this (section "Partial derivatives")).
Meeting... Princess... Celestia...
You are so screwed.
You know, I still don't understand why she (is Coal a mare?) only took part of the map. I mean, wouldn't it help the hive more complete?
This chapter is rather nice, and Nictis has at least another three years to go. (Hoofington ---> Ponyville---> Episode 3)
Maybe more...
You're going to meet Princess Celestia!: That made me laugh and laugh. MOAR!
2168630
Nictis wanted that section because it was a good, detailed map that would help him navigate to about where the hive was. While the hive might be able to make use of a highly-detailed map, remember that it was huge. It would take longer to pull down the entire map safely, rather than just quickly tearing out a small section (While the guard is bleeding out nearby), and it would be both heavy (At least 20 pounds, maybe more) and bulky (I doubt it'd fold up well into a saddle-bag). And really, if the hive wanted a good, high-detail map, they could do what Nictis probably should have done and gone and bought a map (And if he hadn't been so excited and caught up in the moment, he might have even thought of that). Sure, a proper atlas is expensive, but who cares when it's somepony else paying for it?
2173029 Just how big is this map? Floor to ceiling, wall to wall? And she (?) mentioned that it was insanely accurate, and that she (?) hadn't seen one that detailed.
2177777
It was described as about 10 yards long, and reaching from the top of the counter to the ceiling in a room that was about 4 yards tall. It's less a "map" and more an extravagant wall decoration for a very expensively-furnished office. The size let it be very detailed, but Nictis hadn't really looked into maps before then. He could probably find a high-quality map of similar detail (If smaller size/scope) if he spent the time looking for one, though it'd be expensive.
2178001 That makes more sense, I just can't believe I missed a detail like that.I am interested that you rarely use the name Nictis, but it is the default in your comments.
2178345
The way he changes name and sex makes it a little tricky referring to him sometimes. Here in the comments, speaking of him in general, I prefer Nictis simply because that's who he is originally, under the various personae he might take. In story I use the name (And pronouns) fitting the form he's currently in, not only because it keeps the disguise clearly in view for the reader (It could get a little strange if everypony were referring to Nictis's Meadow disguise as "she" while the narration is using "he," for instance), but it also fits with how Nictis thinks. Part of the Infiltrator training that was drummed into his head was how much an Infiltrator needs to get into the role they're playing, to think of the disguise as themselves. When Nictis is disguised as Meadow Song, he considers that to be his "proper" name at the moment, and he thinks of himself as female (And gender-changing changelings made that sentence awkward to write for some reason). After all, nothing screws up a disguise as quickly as trying to say the wrong name, or getting your own sex wrong.
Nictus don't draw attention & don't look her in the eyes, if Luna's coming the same apply-if not more so.
how close is hoofington to ponyville?
dashy just asked if you were a spy,
Oh dear...
Celestia might not be omniscient, but she is not a fool.
Hopefully, Nictis has learned enough.
I shall read on.
...oh crap. There's one pony who can recognize Coal and link her to Meadow
I'm betting we haven't seen the last of Big Shot.
*cue the internal screaming*
One correction:
> to help out on of the elderly couple's friends
"to help out [one] of"
So at what time does this take place? I realize that this is before episode one, but how long before that would happen?
3624185
And the irony from the Season 4 opener that Celestia HATES this Holiday at this point in time, due to it celebrating her greatest failure.
3620364
Sonic Rainboom when Nictis "explored" the town with the princess, while the Changelings only know 1 Alicorn (Not knowing about Luna after her return is more then unlikely) means it was Dash's filly-bbom.
then add the few years and you have it.
Hoooo boy.
Honeydew...Honeydew...Honeydew...Honeydew...Honeydew...
Is it JUST a coincidence that this happens to be Simon's Minecraft character's name? Seriously.
YOGSCAST!!!
5574695 Must also be a coincidence that it's a type of melon.
5574695 dude. Calm down. You are talking about a female horse that can speak, not a dwarf of khaz modal, one of the heroes of minecraftia. Chill.
3660013 what sonic rainboom
5574695 it could be the muppet honeydew
6893399
While this post is over a year old, it is a legitimate question that was never answered. The rainboom happened in chapter two.
Emphasis mine.
used to
a daughter of their friend's
I find it bizarre that every fic writer gets this wrong. The Summer Sun Celebration happens on the Solstice. Which is the first day of Summer. Not the middle of summer.
Heck, MIDSUMMER isn't even in the middle of summer. It's a few days after the solstice.
8263355
The summer solstice, which is the longest day of the year (June 21) is both known as the first day of summer and also as midsummer.
Astronomically, midsummer is the same day as the solstice, but where it is celebrated, the traditional day is a few days later.
Either way, confusion is probably normal.
Well, of course things were going too well.
Makes me think, where in the time line are we?
9824531
Right now, we are btween four and five years after the mane six get their cutie marks. Based upon the nod to Rainbow Dash's first Sonic Rainboom when Nictus first arrived at the village.
Ah yes. The time comes to meet the Princess herself. I wonder if she'll suspect you as much as she did Sky? Time will tell.
Celestia is coming to town!
nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/memecreator-cdn/media/__processed__/fcf/template-custom-meme-907-0c6db91aec9c.jpeg