I wake up to hear a relatively heavy knock on my closed door. Having a lone window in my room like the guest room, I use the pouring daylight coming from it to see my analog clock.
7:24, the second hand having just moved past the 1.
I guess I went to bed quite a bit later than I intended because I feel so tired.
Well, no matter. I walk to the door and open it, only to see Queen Chrysalis and Aita behind it.
“O-oh. Hi, Aita, Queen Chrysalis.”
“Greta, Lasti. I wanted to drop in before I return to the hive. I don’t suppose you have any plans?”
“Not really. So, uh, do you know exactly how long it should take before you get your hive back?”
“Well, a few days at the very least would be nice. But given how Carina and Carve are part of the changelings I have left, and that they have special assignments apart from the other dozen of them, there may be a substantial fluctuation.”
“Okay. Actually, I do plan on visiting Pane after I get my breakfast. I want to talk with her.”
“What is this talk going to be about?”
“When I told her about you being in the storage barn, she decided to walk out on the trick or treaters. I thought it was a little, uh... what’s the word I’m looking for?”
“You’ll be likely to find it before you talk to Pane about the matter.”
“Well, okay. In case you two come back for the night, I’ll prepare a proper sleeping nest for each of you.”
“Actually, Aita told me that you portrayed quite the responsible behavior to him, and that you came right away and helped him when he was struggling to get his beauty sleep. Are you up to watching over him for the day? I understand if you aren’t though.”
“Sure, I can do that. Carve’s lived here for five years, so I know how to care for a changeling.”
“Alright. I suppose you want me to stay here with Aita before you return home?”
“Actually, I’ll take Aita with me. I’ll get something for him on the way home.”
“Hmm... that sounds fair enough. Farewell, Aita. I trust you, Rusty Flashlight. Care well. Lomenalada.”
And with that, Queen Chrysalis walks out of the house, leaving me with Aita. I walk over to the kitchen, Aita following suit as I grab a tub of butter from the fridge, then a slice of cinnamon bread from the table.
“So, where are we going, Rusty?” Aita asks as I spread the butter on the bread, now ready to eat.
“After I have breakfast, we’ll start heading to Pane’s house so I can talk with her. So, what do you feel like having on the way back?”
“I don’t know, actually. Nothing I had in Wisconsin tasted very good.”
“Eh, maybe the treats from here might, well, change that. So, what place do you commonly find the most love put into food back in, uh, Wisconsin?”
“Uh, I think it happened the most at the local bakery. And even then, it didn’t happen that much.”
“Alright. I think you might like the bakery here in Las Pegasus. We’ll swing by it on the way back.”
Aita nods while I swallow my last bite.
“And, one more thing Aita, do you mind putting on that disguise from yesterday. Ponies might gawk at me if they see I have a changeling around other than Carve.”
Aita chuckles.
“Would all of them act like Celestia?”
“You know Princess Celestia, Aita?”
“I only met her once, a few years ago, which I still admit was pretty scary, especially when her guards wanted to talk to me.”
“Well, we’re in the present, so it doesn’t really matter now. Right?”
Aita nods.
“Good. I guess it’s time to get to Pane’s then.”
;=;
When I arrive at Pane’s house with a disguised Aita in tow, I knock on the door.
Come in, Rusty!
I open the door, in response to the call, to find that Pane is in the medium sized, fully furnished living room, looking at her calendar on the left. She looks to be levitating a marker before she puts it down on a nearby stand and walks over to me.
“Hi, Pane.”
“So, what’s going on?”
“Not much. Though I do want to talk to you about something.”
“Yeah, what is it?”
“Pane, you know about what happened last night, right?”
“Yep. You gave out the candy to the trick or treaters. Right?”
“It’s not about them. After the whole Nightmare Night thing, I thought about you leaving on me and them. Don’t you think it was a bit uncalled for?”
“No. If Chrysalis is there, I ain’t.”
“I know you don’t trust Chrysalis. But the whole night, she was just sleeping in the storage barn. She didn’t come inside until I woke up this morning. I really don’t think that sequence of events would’ve changed if you were with me the whole night.”
“Yeah, but you still didn’t mind me leaving, right?”
“Not initially. But I did start getting a little lonely near the end of Nightmare Night.”
“So, your point?”
“My point is that leaving me to help out the trick or treaters was unnecessary. I’m not asking you to be next to Chrysalis, but she shouldn’t be a reason alone that we can’t spend a pastime together, like what friends usually do.”
“Rusty, why are you telling me this?”
Suddenly, Aita interrupts our conversation, looking to have been made angry.
“Because Chrysalis isn’t as bad as you think!”
“Pane, how long ago was it that you first encountered Queen Chrysalis?”
“Over five years ago?”
“Exactly. The only reason Chrysalis gave you a bad impression was because you may have happened to meet her in the flesh at the wrong time."
Pane looks at the floor.
"Listen, Pane. What happened that long ago really shouldn’t be any reason to avoid her. You have ample time to meet her tonight if you so choose. If you want to come over to my house now, you can get something at the bakery on the way over. And you can always come over later on as well. Otherwise, lomenalada.”
And with that, I turn around and head out of Pane’s house, Aita soon following suit. However, a few hoofsteps before the end of the yard...
“Wait.”
I look back at Pane, who is now wearing a saddle bag, and standing at the edge of her doorstep.
“I-I want to go with you two.”
“Alright! Now, you’re talking. Let’s go.”
So now, the three of us finally start walking over to Greta Scone Corner.