When Allan arrived in Ponyville on wobbling legs, he only barely remembered to shift into his disguised form in time to avoid being spotted. However, it wasn’t at all necessary. The streets were empty, which was alarming, given that, judging by the position of the sun, it was midday. He’d been gone for an entire day? Geez. The others must be worried.
Rarity would be the easiest to find. She’d be in the boutique, either working on her designs, or having stopped to eat. Allan made his way over to the boutique and knocked on the door several times, but got no answer.
“Rarity?” He called. “Rarity? Are you there?” Still nothing. “Hmmm. I’ll try Pinkie.”
Sugarcube Corner was not busy, as it should be. In fact, it was downright deserted.
“Where is everypony?” Allan wondered. He took a little time to observe just how abandoned the town was, and started to become increasingly more worried. Why were the streets empty? Where were all the towns-ponies? Where could they have….gone? The faint feeling of worry, fear and sadness drifted through the streets, leaving a depressing cloud of emotional energy all around. What the hay…...?
Allan was able to make his way towards the source, and found out where everypony had gone. The hospital. The crowd was huge, full of worried, terrified, or downright depressed looking ponies who barely even noticed him as he made his way through the masses.
“Wh-what’s going?” Allan asked a nearby stallion.
“You don’t know?” He asked, a look of disbelief twisting his muzzle. “It’s Princess Twilight! She’s badly hurt!”
Allan felt his blood run cold. “What happened to her?” He asked, dreading the worst.
“She chased after that assistant magician from the Great and Powerful Trixie’s show yesterday, and got hit by a ightning bolt! I’ve heard rumors that she might be dying!”
Allan stared at him in horror. “Y-you’re serious?”
“Why would anypony lie about something so awful?” The stallion replied.
Alan's head spun, his body shook, and an awful taste rushed into his mouth. It was all his fault! And now Princess….Twilight was…….feeling so………..wooozy………..
*Thud!*
***********************
Chrysalis trotted through the hospital, unseen by any normal human who was not aware of the truth. She had forwarded her plans to fully take control of the hospital staff, and even many of the current patients, and had set up warding spells around the hospital, spells which convinced the pathetic humans that they couldn’t see her, or her children, or any of their ‘renovations’.
While the hospital still served as a hospital should, it was quickly being refitted to be both medical facility, and changeling hive, with the first hatcheries under construction at that very same moment. While human patients and visitors walked about, clueless, Chrysalis and her new drones were already everywhere. Three and a half weeks since day one, and already, her plans were moving along nicely. The hospital was now her base of operations, capable of receiving patients, as usual, and subtly inducting them into the fold, hypnotizing, and bringing them into the hive, as she had the hospital staff.
These hypnotized people would be the start of her expansions. She’d have them gather information, and then, she would use them start bringing more of their co-workers, superiors, and perhaps even their clientele into the hive. Within days, if she played her cards right, she could take control of the entire city.
The only problem was Katherine Ryder. Even with her little experiment with the girl, Chrysalis had not managed to get close enough to her to attempt to cast the memory spell on her, to make her forget what she had seen. She supposed she could pretend to be one of her parents, but the girl had already noticed one slip up. If she noticed another, she could pose a flight risk.
Chrysalis trotted through the hospital corridors, which were getting a fresh new coating of dark, emotion gel for paint. She headed through the maternity ward, drinking up the love of parents for their children. She did not drain them. Even hypnotized, they still had some will of their own, some small measure of autonomy.
The growing hive-mind connections between the Queen and her children were strong enough now for to send clear and coherent messages between her growing brood. The harvested emotions were potent, allowing for her children to grow to maturity in a matter of hours, instead of days, as had been the case in Equestria. She sent a message to her chosen second in command, the first of many proto-queens, lesser Changeling Queens who would serve under her by relaying orders to the drones. “I am leaving. I shall return shortly.”
The response was automatic, programmed into her. “Of course, my Queen. We await your return.”
Chrysalis nodded to herself before shifting form, pulling up her new hood, and walking off into the night’s dangers. There was something out there, something that she wanted. One last surprise for her soon to be guests. She grinned, as she sensed what she was looking for. Bingo.
****************
Fluttershy sat by Twilight’s bed, tears coursing down her face as she looked at her friends prone form, lying there unmoving, only the rising and falling of her chest indicating that her life had not yet ended. The physical evidence of the lightning strike was spread all across Twilight’s face, the least of the damage being the patches of bare skin from where the doctors had been forced to shave off her charred coat. Some of her mane had had to be chopped off as well. The worst of the damage though, surprisingly, looked almost pretty.
Spreading out from where her horn met her head, Twilight’s skin was covered in swirling, silvery lines that traced the positions of her nervous system and also her mana system- a system of conduits that ran through the body of every magical being, regardless of whether they could cast spells. The patterns would be invisible beneath her coat once it regrew, but the doctors had warned that they may never fade away.
The others were in a guest room, taking their turns to sleep. They had collectively decided that each of them should take a turn staying with Twilight, whilst the others got some rest. Fluttershy had taken over from Starlight, who had volunteered to go first, and was halfway through her shift.
She had found that she simply couldn’t stop herself from crying. Twilight was unconscious, Allan was missing, Trixie had shut herself in her wagon, and Spike hadn’t said a word to anypony, not even to Rarity. There was a lot to cry about.
The yellow pegasus blamed herself. She’d let Allan go out into town alone. She could’ve been there to stop him from accepting Trixie and Starlight’s proposal. She could have stopped him from running off. She could have…. She could have….
Her tears took over again, matting her coat and dripping onto her chest. Things had been going so well, and now it looked like all the progress that had been made was ruined. Allan was probably alone and terrified, Trixie most likely hated herself, and Spike looked ready to break down. Of them all, only he hadn’t left Twilight’s side, not even for a moment.
There was a commotion outside, and Fluttershy tried to ignore it, but soon, the loud voices and cries of shock and alarm forced her to investigate.
She slipped off of her seat, and walked miserably over to the window, and slid it open, poking her head out. The crowd outside had been so focused on the hospital since yesterday that any variation was worrisome. None of them were watching the hospital. Instead, they were all trying to get into a position to see past a small huddle of guards that surrounded a figure lying down, one that was a shining bronze colour, with electric blue highlights……
Fluttershy’s eyes widened, and before she even thought about what she was doing, she had leapt from the window, her wings snapping out, to carry her over the crowd towards Allan. Somepony must have noticed her, because the crowd parted just beneath her as she came in to land. She broke into a gallop the moment her hooves touched ground, heading right towards the guard ponies.
Of course, after finding a shapeshifter so close to the Princess, the guards were quite jumpy, and the moment one of them noticed her charging towards them, they reacted on instinct, firing a stun spell her way. With a startled “Eep!” Fluttershy dove beneath it, hooves instinctively covering her head.
Before a second spell could be fired, the company leader swatted the soldier on the back of his helmet, reprimanding him for reckless casting. After he had finished chewing the guards pony out, he turned his attention to the frightened Element bearer.
“Miss Fluttershy?” He inquired.
Fluttershy tentatively used a hoof to pull back her mane from her eyes. “O-oh, y-yes?”
“Would you mind if I cast a changeling detection spell on you? It worked for this one.” He said, gesturing to Allan.
“Go ahead.” Fluttershy responded.
The captain cave a curt nod of thanks, before casting the spell. When nothing happened, he nodded again, this time in satisfaction. “Thank you, miss Shy. Now, may I ask what you are doing out, here?”
Fluttershy paused, taking a moment to collect herself before giving her reply. “This changeling. My friends and I, we know him. He’s not dangerous. He’s our friend.”
The captain stared at her, disbelief etched into his muzzle. “This… weird, mutant changeling…. is your friend?”
Fluttershy found she didn’t like his tone. “Yes. His name is Allan, and he’s been living here for weeks already.”
The captain looked alarmed. “Weeks? Who knows how much damage he could have done? He probably brainwashed you!”
Fluttershy, in the past, would have faltered, start stammering that that wasn’t true. In the present, would not balk. She cleared her throat, regaining the captain’s attention. “Captain, what is your name?”
“Huh?” The captain stared at her like she had two heads. “What? Why do you want to know my name?”
“It’s easier if you just tell me, captain. I don’t want to have to keep calling you ‘the captain’, when you have a perfectly good name I could use.”
“Oh… uh, Steel Bolt, m’am.”
“Steel Bolt. I understand your concerns, but you did just cast a Changeling detection spell on me, didn’t you?”
“Well, yes, I did.”
“And that spell detects and reveals all Changeling magic?” She asked, her point plain to see.
“....Yes…..” Steel Bolt said, the answer dawning on him.
“So if I were hypnotized, wouldn’t my eyes have turned green and smokey?” She asked.
Steel Bolt finally got it. “Ah…..”
“Yes. Ah.” Fluttershy nodded and smiled. “I’m under no control, and, I am telling you, this Changeling is our friend. I’d like to take him inside so that he can rest, and hopefully, tell us exactly what happened to him after he went missing last night.”
“He was missing last night?” Steel Bolt’s suspicions rose again.
“Yes, and we know that what happened to Twilight was a natural lightning strike. Allan here had nothing to do with it.” Fluttershy calmly explained. Getting irritated wouldn’t help anypony. “Now Captain, could I ask for some help getting him inside?”
***********************
Allan woke to the sound of beeping heart monitors, and the taste of fear. He wondered where he was, and how he’d gotten there. It wasn’t home, that was for sure. Neither Fluttershy’s cottage, nor his Vancouver apartment had ever been host to that incessant beeping. The cloying, chemical reek of the air was enough to tell him he was in hospital, and the sense of so many intermingling emotions was overwhelming.
He blinked open his eyes, and slowly sat up- only to be rammed into by what felt like a freight train.
“Oh wowee! You’re okay! I thought you’d never wake up, and you’d only have dream us’s to keep you company, and that you’d….” Pinkie Pie squealed, excitedly blabbering on about all the ways that he would have been lonely in his dreams. He stared at her, expression blank, before a sad, relieved smile broke across his face.
“Heya Pinks.” He said. “I’m glad to see you too.”
“You are?” She asked, pulling back a little. “You usually don’t like hanging around me cuz’ I make you go all kooky!”
Allan smiled, wiping away a tear. “Just because I don’t hang around you as much doesn’t mean I don’t like you.”
Pinkie gasped, as if in surprise, before her eyes misted up and she dived in for another hug. “You don’t know how much that means!” She squealed, happily. Allan smiled. It felt good to just… let go for a little bit. To stop thinking about the things he didn’t have, and look at all the things he did. He had an awful lot to appreciate despite his misfortune, Pinkie included.
“So….uh, what did I miss? How long was I out?”
“Uh, y’all have been asleep for two days. Doctor said y’all had gone and drained yerself of magic.” Applejack explained. “Y’all made it back here and just keeled over. Gave the folks outside a real fright. They’ve replaced some of what ya lost now, so y’all should be okay.”
“I changed back? In front of them?” Allan winced. “That’s not good.”
“Nopony here blames you darling.” Rariþy said, attempting to comfort him.
Allan remained silent, his gaze fixed at the blankets that covered him. AJ and the others exchanged worried glances. They could see a conflict in him. He wanted to know, but hadn’t quite mustered up the courage to ask. He was afraid of the answer, but he also needed to know. After several long minutes of tense silence, he spoke again.
“Where is Twilight?”
********************
Twilight’s ears pivoted towards the door, hearing the knock of hoof on wood. She winced, reaching up with a hoof to adjust the glasses perched on her muzzle. “Come on in.”
The sound of the door opening, which consisted of squeaking hinges and creaking wood. The clip-clop of hooves on the tiles was a comfort, as it let her know where her guest was.
“Hello, Princess.” The youthful, male voice, with it’s Trottingham accent, was unmistakable, and she smiled, glad to know he was up and about.
“Hello, Allan.” She responded warmly. The lie slipped off her tongue before she could catch herself. “You look better.”
The silence she received in response was a long, pregnant pause, before the changeling spoke again. “I look like shit, and you know it.”
She didn’t, but she knew she couldn’t hide the truth from him. As an empath, he would sense her feelings and reactions, and would know the truth without ever having to speak a word about it. She sighed, lowering her head.
“Show me.” Allan said, quietly.
“Allan…”
“Show me.” It was less a request, and more of a command.
She sighed again, before activating her telekinesis, and removing her glasses. She didn’t know how it looked personally, but the doctors had described it to her after their examinations, and she knew it wasn’t good, even with the open wounds already closed.
“Is it permanent?”
Twilight bit her lip.
“Is it?”
She shook her head. “The loss of vision isn’t. I should have it back in a week.”
“And the patterns on your skin?”
Twilight flinched. The silvery lines on her face traced the path the lightning energy had taken along her veins and nervous system, and as such, spread over her entire face, spreading out from her eyes, which, until her enhanced, Alicorn cells regenerated, were a pale, milky white. The lines though, would never fade.
Her silence told Allan everything. “It’s my fault.”
“No, it’s not.” Twilight stated firmly, blinking her sightless eyes. “It’s not-”
“Yes it is.” Alan's voice was not raised, but it held a tone of firmness that denied any rebuttal. “If I hadn’t gone out there, you wouldn’t have followed me.”
“You were distraught!” Twilight protested.
He was suddenly beside her, sitting on the bed. “It’s no excuse.”
She blinked, ears lowering, and turned away from him.
“I’m sorry.” He said. “This is my fault, and now, thanks to me falling unconscious, everypony in town knows I’m a Changeling. I’ve ruined everything.” Twilight held out a wing for him, hoping to comfort him with a friendly hug. He didn’t accept it. “It would have been easier for all of you if Chrysalis had killed me.”
Twilight flicked her wing across where she thought he was, and was rewarded by a loud ‘thwap’. “Don’t ever say that again. You’re our friend, you ninny. How would not knowing such a nice guy be easier for us? How would it be easier for Fluttershy?”
Allan stiffened. “After yesterday, I don’t deserve her.”
“Idiot.” Twilight said, buffeting with her wing again. “She cares about you. I’d dare say, she even loves you. You don’t have to deserve her when she deserves to have an awesome guy like you around.”
Allan tried to tell her she was wrong, but Twilight was having none of that.
“As a Princess of Equestria, I order you to stop feeling so guilty, and go ask Fluttershy out on an official date!”
“What?!” Allan cried, leaping up off of the bed, landing with a huge clopping sound. “Wha-No! I’m not gonna do that! I don’t have to obey your orders, I’m not an Equestrian citizen!”
Twilight smirked, pulling out the letter that Spike had given her upon waking up. While the second part had been hastily added on, and was a royal version of ‘get well soon, it’s main intent was a correction of Allan’s previous declaration.
“Actually, Allan. This came from Princess, Celestia a day ago.”
He grabbed it with his magic, and Twilight could practically envision his stunned expression. Spike had read it to her, so she knew exactly what it said. Her ears twitched as his low murmuring of the words rose to full speech.
“.... I, Princess Celestia, after much deliberation with my co-ruler and sister, Princess Luna, and the Changeling King, Thorax, hereby declare that the Changeling known as Allan Ryder is henceforth, an Equestrian citizen, bearing all rights and responsibilities that go with the title, and that this matter is resolved, as of the twenty-ninth day of August, of the One thousand and seventh year of my reign……”
Allan stammered, trying so very hard to digest the news. “I- I- I’m an Equestrian citizen now?”
Twilight brought out the accompanying documents, which bore Celestia’s sun motif seal, Luna’ crescent moon, and even Thorax’s seal, which resembled a crown of holly, wrapped about the image of the King’s antlers. She presented them to the stunned stallion, who looked over the documents, which listed his date of birth as….his actual birthday, the 5th of November.
“Then…” Alan's face paled. Impressive, given that it was essentially a soft plate of chitin. Then your command…”
Twilight grinned. “Yep. As your Princess, I order you. Stop blaming yourself for this, and go ask Fluttershy out on a date.” The Princess paused, before adding: “After you apologize for scaring her like that.”
“That’s not fair!” Allan moaned, sinking down onto his knees. “After I’ve nearly blinded one of her best friends and yelled at another pony-”
Twilight’s voice cracked like a whip. “Stop blaming yourself and get out!”
Allan turned and fled.
*******************
Allan kept quiet for a lot of the way home. Once the doctors had had time to check up on him, with only some minor hiccups due his changeling biology, and a few more problems coming from the particular medical officers conducting the examination, they had discharged him. Apparently he was suffering from magic exhaustion, which was just another way of saying he overexerted himself, and now had to take it easy for a while.
Fluttershy was quiet too… quieter than usual. She kept glancing at him, and the ever present swirl of emotions that seemed to be her defining emotional state was once more churning around her. Tendrils of affection, worry and a smattering of fear and confusion were directed his way.
They were well down the path back home before either spoke.
“So, um, I wanted to ask….” Allan started, only to stop as Fluttershy tried to talk at the same time.
“Allan, I….uh….” Fluttershy also halted her words, turning her head away.
The silence reigned again, for a few minutes. Neither spoke, too flustered to do anything but continue walking.
What could he say to her? That was Alan's question. How could he start to explain his behavior, which had been, by pony standards, abysmal at best, and downright taboo at worst? It wasn’t as though she was… oh, for goodness sake! This was getting him nowhere!
Allan cleared his throat, and turned towards Fluttershy.
“Fluttershy I…..um, Fluttershy?”
The pegasus was standing a few yards back, her head lowered to the floor.
“Fluttershy?” Allan felt a little scared. Her emotions were tightly wound about her, to the point where he could not read them.
“Do….did you really mean what you said to Trixie?”
Allan's ears lowered. Shame flowed through his body, and he grimaced.
“In the moment? In total anger? Probably…..” Admitting it was not easy, but he couldn’t lie to her. “Now that I’ve calmed down? Had time to think? No. I wouldn’t want anyone to get eaten by a giant monster. Ever.”
Fluttershy was quiet for an even longer while, likely digesting his words.
“Will you apologize?”
“Uhm, yeah…. Yeah, I will.”
Again, tense quiet. “Do….. you want to ask me something?”
Not what Allan was expecting, but not an unwelcome chance to fulfill his part of the hard bargain Twilight had forced on him.
Allan stammered out his question, his voice warbling with nervousness, his eyes flitting about, and teeth nervously gnawing at the inside of his mouth repeatedly.
“Fluttershy….. Would you….?”
**************
“So I asked her. Not like I had a choice. If I disobeyed Twilight, I would have quite literally have been guilty of treason, and I have no doubt that sadist of a Princess would have little trouble converting her basement laboratory into a dungeon. (As if it isn’t one already!)
That pretentiously pompous purple pony! She forced me to do it!
…….Didn’t change how happy I felt when Flutters said yes.
Why she even gave me a chance is beyond me. I blinded her friend, scared her half to death, and told somepony I hoped they’d die, which Fluttershy wasn’t very happy about. She even made a condition for our date because of it! Well….two, actually. She made me promise to apologize to Trixie, and….ugh, spend the entire date as a changeling mare. She said it was a punishment of sorts. If I hadn’t been so damn happy, I’d have told her to bugger off.
That was three days ago….. I’ve now been here for a whole month. An entire month. I have to admit that I spent this morning crying. I’ve never been very good at handling my emotions, and I’ve never in my life been called ‘macho’, but I didn’t really think I’d just break down and cry like I did. Man, am I a wimp. Celestia keep me from ever getting into a fight, because I’d be useless.
Hopefully, this ‘date’ tonight will get me smiling again. I could use a smile about now.
Looking back on the situation with Trixie, I had handled it rather poorly. If I’d had more tact, hell, more of an actual thought process, Princess Twilight wouldn’t be stumbling around her castle, barely able to see more than five hoofsteps in front of herself. It would probably be funny if I wasn’t constantly feeling guilty about it. I’m going to go and apologize to Trixie, when I get the chance. That might not be for a while, seeing as she skipped town while I was unconscious. She didn’t tell Starlight where she was going, either.
Obviously, for the last three days, I’ve been dividing my time between setting up the date and recuperating. Not exactly easy. I want to do things the way I’d do them back home, but there’s only one movie theater in town, and the movies it plays there are kinda…..disappointingly bland. So, I’ve enlisted the help of Princess Luna, and Princess Twilight. They’re teaching me a spell that should allow me to project memories from my horn, which will allow me to take Fluttershy to see some of my favourite movies from home. I’m planning on Star Wars. Not the prequels, cuz those suck balls. Nah, always go pre 1999, and post 2005.
Any pony reading this won’t get that.
The ‘date’ is for tonight, and I’ve still got a shift at AJ’s beforeha beforehoof. I’d better show for both, because otherwise, I think the six seve multiple mares I’ve made friends with since coming here will give me hell. I’m getting images of stun spell’s, flying cakes and lassoo’s…...it’s not a nice thought.
Anyway, I need to get going. Those apple trees won’t buck themselves.
**********************
Allan's hooves slammed into the trunk of the tree he was currently harvesting, and smiled at the rhythmic sound of apples landing in the wooden buckets. Applejack had put him and Big Mac to working the east orchard together. When Allan had asked why she kept pairing the two up, she laughed, and told him that their friendly competitions to see who could buck the most apples got the work done faster.
“Besides. He’s learnin’ about y’all when yer here, and now that he knows yer work ethic, he’s startin’ ta respect ya more n’ more. That is a good thing. Trust me.”
Big Mac was matching him tree for tree today, grinning like a loon as the two repeatedly smashed their hooves into the tree’s thick trunks. He was definitely enjoying himself.
Curiosity niggled at Allan. Big Mac was a pretty good guy, so maybe he could give him some tips for the date.
“Hey, Big Mac?” He called. The red coated stallion looked over to him.
“Eyup?”
“Have you ever dated anypony?”
Mac looked surprised at the question, but where he once would have been suspicious, he now was merely intrigued. “Eyup.”
“I’ve… um, kinda asked Fluttershy out on a date….got any tips?”
Mac’s eyes widened, and he stopped his bucking so that he could think more clearly.
“Uhhh….” Allan was pleasantly surprised to hear something other than “eyup” and “nope” to come out of the stallion’s mouth. “....I’d just…….try to be nice, and relaxed. Miss Fluttershy doesn’t like loud, scary things. And don’t try anything….uh, physical.” He paused, before starting up again. “Me and miss Shy tried dating once, but I panicked and tried to kiss her. She was real nice about it, but that messed it up. We didn’t go on another date.”
Oh……. that might complicate things. If she found his plans to be a little too scary, then she may very well decline him! Or worse, never talk to him again! Oh no! oh , no nononononononono!
Big Mac watched the changeling’s inner panic rise, before he stepped in.
“Hey, chang-..... Allan.” Allan stopped, looking at Big Mac in awe. They were amicable, but Mac had never actually used his name. “Calm it down, now, ya hear?”
Allan listened, managing to wrangle his breathing into something far easier to manage as Mac continued to advise.
“Look. Miss Shy clearly likes y’all, so don’t bother tryin’ ta impress her. Just be nice, treat her right, have some fun, and be y’allself, ya hear?”
Allan finally quelled his panic enough for reason to take hold again, and Mac’s advice was enough to put him back on the long, winding road known as sanity. Mac was right. Allan just needed to remain calm, and follow Mac’s advice. Easy peasy. Yeah. Totally easy. Remain calm. Remain calm. Ooh boy. His emotions were not making this easy on him. His nerves were demanding that he go and make sure that everything he had prepped would work, and his emotions were screaming at him to bail and run, because he wouldn’t be able to pull it off and would alienate her.
Why couldn’t he just relax?
“Howdy there, sugarcubes! How’s the work goin’?”
And of course Applejack would show up now.
“It’s goin’ great.” Big Mac said. “Allan just wanted some advice.”
“Advice? Advice on what?”
Allan silently begged and pleaded for Mac not to say anything, but of course, siblings tell each other things.
“He’s goin’ on a date with miss Fluttershy. He was askin’ me for tips.”
Applejack’s eyes widened, narrowed in thought, then widened again, and she stared at the changeling.
Allan's worries immediately boiled to the surface again. ‘Bail, damnit! Bail! Get outta here! Run, you stupid bug!’ That, and other such thoughts rushed through his head, and Applejack’s stare was not helping at all. It became too much.
“ThanksfortheshiftgottagonowBYE!!!” The words tumbled out at rapid fire pace, and he turned to gallop away, his earth pony guise flaring away as he stretched out his translucent wings, ready to fly away, pronto.
A sudden tangle of rope entwining his legs informed Allan that Applejack and her lasso had other ideas.
********************