//------------------------------// // Chapter Six: In Which I Earn My Cutie Mark. Sort Of. // Story: A Draconequus's Destiny // by TheOnlySaneDraconequus //------------------------------// Chapter Six: In Which I Earn My Cutie Mark. Sort Of Thorax started to stir around dawn.  I unwound from around him. “Morning.” Thorax yawned widely, flicking his tongue out a few times. “You really don’t sleep, do you? I had the strangest dream. A giant furry boa constrictor was slowly crushing me to death as it whispered sweet nothings into my ear.” I chuckled nervously. “Heh. I uh, might be able to explain that one…” “Then Princess Luna showed up, and started laughing so hard I thought she’d burst. “That one, I can’t explain.” Thorax stretched like a cat. He stood up, and gave his wings a few buzzes to wake them up. He then stiffened, and his eyes went wide. “Oh, no. Did we …?” I scoffed. “On the first date?! Heaven forefend. I was a perfect gentlecolt.” Thorax relaxed as his memory of last night started to return. “I’m very sorry, a bed would have been better, but it had been a long night, and I didn’t want to wake you. You weren’t too cold?” Thorax shook his head. “Actually, no. It’s fine by the way, even I’ve had to sleep outside before. All part of being a Changeling.” I retrieved my jacket, and slung it over my shoulder. “Shall we head back? We probably should have been back hours ago.” Thorax nodded. When we arrived at the Palace, Cadence was waiting. Since I rarely wore clothes, it didn’t bother me to take off my tux and paw it back to her. “Sorry about the grass stains on both tuxes. It was an interesting night.” “It’s … fine,” Cadence said hesitantly, with a slightly phony smile. She then genuinely smiled. “So, how was it?” “Really nice, actually. We had a nice dinner, he gave me the grand tour of the Empire, we stayed out late talking, Moosey fell asleep, and I watched the stars for the rest of the night.” Cadence smirked evilly. “And?” “And nothing. Sorry to spoil any clopfic fantasies of yours.” “What is that supposed to mean?” she asked. I waved a paw. “Nothing relevant, forget I brought it up. Seriously, forget it, it’s horrible.” “Wait a minute,” Thorax said as his brain processed the conversation, “Moosey?!” I smirked. “If we ever become coltfriends or more than that, that’s what I’m calling you. You have no say in the matter.” I smiled, showing off my half-set of fangs. “I can think of far worse nicknames, believe me.” I then tackled him in a bear hug, which, given my two bear arms, was kind of literal. Thorax squeaked in surprise. “Thank you for a wonderful night! You’re amazing! (and completely cute, but that’s not important right this second.) *Ahem.*” I faced Cadence. “I’ll deny I ever said this, but thank you for helping me to get over myself. It means a lot, and made a big difference.” Cadence nodded, a warm smile on her muzzle. “Now, I know the two of you have kingdoms to run, and I have a train to catch back home…” “Ticket!” called Cadence, levitating my round-trip ticket over. “Oh. Right. Duh.” I grabbed the ticket. I faced Thorax. “If you’d ever like to go on a second date, my current address is the Castle of Friendship, Ponyville. Unless I suddenly develop a personal realm, that’s not likely to change, and I’ll let everypony know when and if it does. Au revoir!” As I was rushing to the station, Thorax flew overhead, and gave a cheery wave, that same adorkable smile on his muzzle. I boarded the train, and settled in for the long ride home. As the train chugged southwards to Ponyville, I had the stupidest grin on my muzzle, and was humming some old Earth love songs. When I got to the castle, I found Twilight waiting for me. “So, how was it?” she asked with a sly grin. “NEVER INTERFERE IN MY LOVE LIFE, OR LACK THEREOF AGAIN!”  I bellowed. Twilight took a few steps back. “Sorry, I need to work on my ‘indoor voice.’ I get that your sister-in-law is the Princess of Love, and that you and she were only trying to help, but you and she are way too eager to play matchmaker. You can’t just ambush someDraconequus into a date just because they say they’re attracted to someling! There’s a lot more to a relationship than just basic attraction!” “Even I know that,” Twilight said. Shen then smirked. “But, how was it? I smiled, and sighed happily. “Wonderful. I swear, he’s perfect.” Spike stuck a claw in his mouth in the ‘you make me sick’ gesture. I looked at him. “Oh, you’ll feel this way about somepony too someday, don’t worry.” Spike rolled his eyes. “Yeah, but I won’t be all mush and goofy like you.” I gave Spike a wide, evil, lazy smile. “One word: Schmarity.” Spike’s eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. “H-how do you know about that? We haven’t had a Guy’s Night the whole time you’ve been here! Did Discord-?” “Discord kept his word. He’s a rude, interfering, inconsiderate, semi-sadistic pest, but he’s not a liar. Some of the time, anyway. When it suits him. I have half a beard, two hearts I’m very clever, and I just know things. Don’t question it.” I then examined Twilight. “Judging from your frazzled mane, the dark circles under your eyes, and the overpowering smell of coffee, I deduce that you had one of your infamous study sessions while I was away last night.” Spike rolled his eyes. “Tell me about it,” he muttered. “So, which mystery of the universe did you unravel this time?” I teased. Twilight beamed. “Actually, I think I might have figured out you!” “Really,” I said drily. Twilight levitated an enormous stack of scrolls and papers over to me. “Yes! I spent part of last night going over all of your notes from the past several months. When it comes to just the scholarly theories, you’ve got an impressive understanding of the intricacies of magic. (I’m a great teacher.) But you can’t actually use Alicorn/Unicorn or Harmony magic. At all. When Discord can be somewhat serious, he tries to teach you Chaos magic, but you can’t use that either, because it’s just not in your nature.” She looked at me with a broad, and only slightly crazed smile. “So, around the fifth cup of coffee, it hit me: what if you tried to combine them, and use both Harmony Chaos magic at once?!” She beamed, and clapped her hooves together excitedly. “Huh.” “What?” “Oh, it’s just something Thorax said about my voices last night while he was showing me around. He said that they were like opposites working together to form a whole, and I love binary opposites, so I took it as a compliment. Harmony and Chaos magic, are certainly opposites, but they do form a complete example of magic. Wouldn’t Harmony and Chaos magic cancel each other out though?” Twilight shook her head. “Not necessarily. They have a lot more in common than most ponies think. If you research it, it’s quite surprising. Ponies just aren’t built to naturally use Chaos magic, so we don’t always think about it. Both kinds of magic have the same end goal in mind as they’re being used, they just approach it from opposite sides. Because ponies can’t really use Chaos magic, nopony’s ever tried to use both types of magic at once before. Think of what could be learned from this if it’s successful!” I raised an eyebrow. “So, according to your theory, in order to say, levitate a glass of water, I’d have to be thinking two completely different things at the same time?” Twilight nodded. “I didn’t say it would be easy, I just said it might work for you.” “Might. That’s reassuring!” Twilight waved a hoof. “Worst case, you blow something up. It’s not like I’ve never done that while experimenting.” “‘Blow something up.’ Given my levels of power, that could be Ponyville.” “I am almost certain that won’t happen.” “Okay, but I’m not explaining to the Princesses why ‘The Friendliest Town in Equestria’ is now a smoking crater.” Twilight rolled her eyes. “Wait. What did you say? Levitating a glass of water? That’s brilliant! Levitation is one of the most basic of spells, so it should be perfectly safe, even for you!”             She dashed off, and returned with a glass of water. Spike in the meantime, had put on a hoofball helmet, and tied a pillow to his stomach, and another to his back. He was hiding behind an overturned table. Starlight was hiding with him, chewing her hooves.             I rolled my eyes. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”             Twilight cleared her throat. “Now, you do understand how levitation works, right?” she asked somewhat patronizingly.             I growled in annoyance. “Twilight, by this point in my studies, I’ve got enough magical theory down that I could potentially turn Equestria inside out if I wanted to.” There was a crash as Starlight and Spike dove for the same patch of floor. “Yes, I know how levitation works,” I snapped, “I just can’t manage to actually do it! Besides, combining two opposing types of magic in my head is going to take some very creative thinking.” Twilight ignored my outburst, set the glass on the floor in front of me, and looked at me expectantly. I sighed, and started concentrating. OK. So as far as I understand it, Harmony/Unicorn magic involves drawing on the natural magic that flows throughout the world, and bending that magic to achieve a desired result. According to Discord, Chaos magic involves drawing on your own power, and then forcing reality to accept your end result. Can you even combine the two? They seem totally different. Actually, they both involve drawing on a source of power to achieve a desired result. For being opposites, they’re actually pretty similar. Most opposites are if you stop and think about it. OK, stop overthinking this, and concentrate! I focused on the glass in front of me. I then tried to draw on both my power, and the natural power around me. I asked/commanded reality to raise the glass, while visualizing the glass levitating in my mind. All these different thoughts at once gave me a slight headache, which started to wear off right away. To my surprise, my horn started to tingle slightly. It felt hot and cold at the same time, which shouldn’t have been possible. I tried feeding these feelings into each other to see what would happen. An unfamiliar aura surrounded the glass, it looked very strange. Half of it looked like a black shadow, and the other half was like a bright white light. The glass quickly shot up, and hovered at about arm height for me. I reached out, and took it. When I stopped concentrating on the levitation, the half-‘n-half aura disappeared. I realized that it was my magic aura. I blinked in surprise. A wide grin split my muzzle. “I-I did it! I can’t believe it worked!” Twilight beamed at me with sparkling eyes. “I knew you could do it! How’d you finally manage it?” “It was a bit easy. I just had to think in terms of opposites, actually. Harmony/Chaos, up/down, stuff like that. It’s sort of cool to think of magic in terms of dualities, and somehow that works!” I drank the water. Mmm. I forget even the tap water’s better in Equestria. I know Spike is probably thrilled I didn’t blow up or flood the town just by raising a glass of water. Ooh! Spike! He is a baby dragon, even though he’s only about seven years younger than me, which is a bit weird. Baby dragon. Hmm…  I pulled at my half-goatee, thinking about something. I wonder… I thought. I grinned evilly as I focused on a result. I snapped my fingers. In a flash of light, the table shattered, and a fully-grown dragon filled most of the room He had a long green beard, and was wearing dragon-sized glasses. He looked several centuries old. Spike looked down at the floor from his new height. “Starlight?” he croaked with wonder. Another finger snap, and Spike dropped to the floor, back to his normal age. Twilight’s jaw almost hit the floor, and she stammered for a minute before saying, “You went from basic levitation to an age spell?! Do you have any idea how advanced that is?” I nodded, “Yes, I know it’s hard to pull off, but I just had to think of the old/young duality and it worked. For my next trick…” I snapped, and put the table back together. “Ta-da! Broken/whole.” I smiled a bit crazily. “Why, in all these months did I never think to define things by their opposites?! It just makes so much sense that way!” I pointed to the far wall. “Here/there!” There wasn’t a flash of light, or any special effects, I was simply at the other end of the room. I glanced out the window, and started to mess with the sun and moon. “Day, night, night, day. This is awesome!” If Twilight’s jaw had been any lower, it would have been in the basement. “T-that’s that’s Discord level magic!” she stammered. I shrugged. “I am a Draconequus, and you and Discord said I had a lot of power. I didn’t think it would be this easy to pull things off.” My eyes widened. “Uh-oh. I’d better go and apologize to the Princesses for that.” The next moment, I was in the Throne Room of Canterlot Castle. The Sister were surprised see me teleport. “Hi,I’msorryformessingwiththesunandmoon,I’mstilllearning,bye!” I said in one breath. I was gone again. I sporadically teleported all over Equestria, just to see the sights I hadn’t yet, although I didn’t stay anywhere for more than a few seconds. I was nearly eaten by monsters three times. I then ended up in the garden outside the Changeling Hive. Thorax had gotten back to the Hive before I got back to Ponyville, and was busy holding court. I was right behind him, and because my teleportation didn’t have obvious special effects, he hadn’t noticed me yet. Despite his size, I picked him up and cradled him. He yelped in surprise. “Hiya, Moosey! I have magic now, I can use it now! Watch this!” I turned the Hive from something flowery and semi-organic to something that resembled a space station. The Changelings noticed, and murmured in shock. I snapped again. “Don’t worry, I put everything back exactly as I found it! I can make what I imagine real, that is epic!” Thorax managed a weak smile. “That’s … great, Draco! I’m really happy for you. Can you please put me down now?” “Oh! Sorry.” I set him back on his hooves. Thorax rubbed the back of his neck, a blush showing through his fur. “Err … could you not call me ‘Moosey’ in front of the other Changelings?” The Changelings who heard this snickered. “I – uh don’t mind it if it’s just us though. Hmm. I’ll have to come up with something to get you back for that nickname. I’m so glad you finally figured out how to use your magic, Draco.” “Thanks! I am too. Huh. I’ve just got this feeling about myself, that Draco doesn’t quite fit me anymore.” Unseen by me, my eyes flashed white. I grinned, happily, and slightly stupidly, and started to chuckle. “EUREKA! I’VE FINALLY GOT IT!” I snapped my fingers, and in a flash of light, the mane six, Starlight, Spike, and Discord appeared in front of a nearby bush. Discord was wrapped in a yellow towel, with a pink shower cap that still had suds on it, I guess I’d caught him at a bad time. Pinkie’s eyes grew wide. “Wow! You can do teleportation stuff now?” “Yeah, he just figured it out five minutes ago,” Twilight snarked. I ignored that, and raised my arms, overdramatic as always. “Mares and gentlecolts, fellow Draconequui, Changelings of all shapes and sizes; I have an announcement. I’ve finally earned my name! I’m Secundus, the Spirit of Duality!” I smiled so widely, I thought my face would tear in two. Discord scoffed. “Well, it’s about time you figured that out! I could have told you that the day you made that speech after your song and dance act that day! It’s been months!” He snapped his talons, his clothes disappeared, and his fur dried. He looked at Twilight. “Honestly! Foals today! When I was young, a Draconequus knew its name as soon as it could talk.” He sighed theatrically. “You knew that long ago?” I asked in slight shock. “Well, I’ve been around for eons, so my educated guesses have gotten to be really good. However, I couldn’t have told you because ‘He has to find it on his own, free will, strict noninterference policy, red tape, yada, yada, bleh.’” He gagged slightly at the end of that. Thorax put a hoof on my shoulder, a wide smile on his muzzle. “I’m really proud of you Dr- er, Secundus. You earned your name, and found your magic, that’s amazing! This is the biggest day of your life, right?” Discord nodded with a slight smirk. Thorax then blushed straight down to his neck. “Plus … I, uh, I was thinking this morning, and I’d like to officially be coltfriends,” he mumbled. It was said so quietly I knew I was the only one who heard it. “Really?” I asked. Thorax nodded. I tackled him in a hug. “Thank you!” Thorax turned to address the crowd, with me still clinging to his neck. “You know what this calls for?” he shouted. “A party?” asked Pinkie, pulling her party cannon out of thin air. “A hoedown?” asked Applejack “An awesome magic show?” asked Rainbow Dash. “A research paper on Draconequine magic?” Twilight asked with stars in her eyes. Everypony, everyDraconequus, and everyling turned to stare at her. “What?” she asked. Thorax gently detached me from his neck, and spread his hooves. “A Gourd Fest!” he proclaimed. All the Changelings cheered, and quickly scattered. Twilight, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Starlight, Spike, Discord, and I were left staring at Thorax. He laughed, a nervous grin on his muzzle. “I’m not kidding when I say it’s more fun than it sounds!” He beckoned us over. “Come on,” Thorax called, “I’ll show you all how it works!” As we all walked or trotted, Thorax said softly, “I think this could count as our second date, if that’s alright.” I smiled and nodded. I kept turning my head and neck to admire the new gardens here, the Changelings had completely transformed the Badlands. There was ivy curling everywhere, there were vines, and several species of flowers I hadn’t ever seen, or even come across in a book. There were bees busy at work, and I could swear I saw a rabbit that ducked back into the bushes. Changelings flew overhead, sparkling like living jewels. “It’s very peaceful here,” I commented, “It’s … tranquil. It’s so colorful too! I’ve always liked lots of bright colors together, it always cheers me up. This is honestly one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen.” Thorax raised an eyebrow. “You make it sound like you want to move in.” I stopped dead in my tracks. “What?! Thorax, we’ve know each-other for two days! I didn’t – ugh! All I meant was I like what you’ve done with the place!” I covered my eyes with my paw. “If I could just learn to stop talking, my life would be so much easier,” I muttered. Rarity whispered to Fluttershy, “I must say, their relationship is progressing rather quickly.” Fluttershy nodded. “Yeah,” Spike scoffed. I started walking again, my face still a bit red. “Actually Thorax, I’m very curious about what it’s like on the inside of the Hive. Is it true that it’s never exactly the same twice?” “Sort of,” replied Thorax. “The rooms stay in the same place mostly, some of them do move around a bit though. It is true that the ways you can get around the Hive are so random they’re almost never the same. Everypony else has seen it already, but maybe I could give you a tour sometime?” “I’d like that. Are you going to give me a tour on all our dates? I should get you one of those ‘tour guide’ caps.” I looked at his head. “Oh. Horn. Giant antlers. Hats wouldn’t really work.” I rapped my knuckles on my slightly oversized horn. “Hats wouldn’t really fit me either. Shoot, I love hats.” I felt something being placed on my head with my ears sticking out the sides, it actually fit over my horn. “Hmmm….” said Discord. “You know, tops hats are really your style!” I reached up, and pulled the hat off my head to examine it. I burst out laughing when I saw it. Half of the hat was white; the other half was black. The band around it was in the opposite colors of the halves of the hat; black on the white side, and white on the black side. It reminded me of Two-face’s suits. I chuckled again. “It’s … perfect, thank you. May I keep it?” Discord looked affronted. “It was a gift! I expect you to keep it! Besides, you’re officially a Draconequus now, so we’re,” he counted on his fingers for a second, “… second cousins now. It’s more complicated than that, but the metaphor still works.” He put an arm around me and grinned evilly. “Just wait until the family reunion!” He then pulled on his beard, looking rather thoughtful. “Actually …” I shot him a quizzical look, but he didn’t say more. We approached a large patch of garden. A Changeling guard walked up to greet us, and glared at me with unconcealed contempt. He was a deep blue, with violet eyes, red and blue wings, and large red antlers. “So,” he said flatly, “you’re the one my brother hasn’t been able to shut up about all morning.” “Pharynx,” said Thorax warningly. “My brother can be a bit of a soft-shell sometimes, and doesn’t know much about the world,” continued Pharynx while paying no attention to Thorax. “Pharynx!” said Thorax in a louder tone. Pharynx flew up to meet my eye level, and jabbed a hoof into my chest. “If you hurt him, I swear I’ll kick you ten ways to Tartarus.” “Pharynx!!” shouted Thorax. I stared at Pharynx for a few seconds, then reached out a paw, and shook his hoof. “Deal!” I said with a smile. Thorax’s jaw dropped. “W-why would you agree to let my brother beat you up?!” I glanced back at everypony. “Would you all excuse us for a minute?” I clicked my fingers for dramatic effect. *BAMF!* “Why is everything blue?” Thorax asked in a confused voice. “I slightly phased us out of synch with them. It’s harmless. Mostly. Here’s the answer to your first question. In the first place, Pharynx is only trying to protect you. I can appreciate that, you’re his younger brother, and he doesn’t know anything about me. In the second place, Pharynx only said he’d hurt me on the condition I hurt you first. I know what it’s like to be hurt by someone you care about. That’s not something I ever want to pay forward. Have you ever been in a serious relationship?” Thorax shook his head. “Not unless you count disguising myself to feed on another pony’s love,” he said with a weak smile. “Right. I haven’t been in one either. This is the furthest I’ve ever gotten. I really care about you, and ... well, … you’re touchy-feely enough that I hate to think what my breaking your heart would do to you. I don’t have an older brother to protect me if you wind up breaking my heart, but I know myself well enough to know that I’d most likely pull the ‘Mad God’ routine.” I shuddered. “I don’t even want to imagine what would happen if I ever went down that road. I’d be much worse than Discord, that’s for sure. “Anyway, the point I’m trying to make is that if I did wind up ever hurting you, I’d think I’d need a swift kick in the flank as well, so I can understand why Pharynx would. Did any of that make any sense at all?” Thorax nodded. I clicked my fingers again. *BAMF!* I gave the surrounding area another look. “All joking aside, this place would be great to live in. Er… if things ever progress that far in our relationship, that is.” Discord squished Thorax and I together in a bear hug. “Oh, I love it when romance turns awkward!” he chortled. “Romance is chaotic enough on its own, but add some embarrassment, and it’s comedy gold!” A thought struck him. “Oh! Speaking of living arrangements, Secundus, every Draconequus has a personal Realm, and yours should be done cooking by then end of business today.” “Cooking?” I asked. “Well, I suppose I could use all the appropriate techno-babble, but you won’t understand it for a few years, and I don’t want anypony’s brain to explode,” Discord said with his usual tact and diplomacy. “Oh!” said Thorax, “We don’t want to miss the Fest!” He and I wriggled out of Discord’s vice of a grip. “This way,” said Thorax while waving us over. We spotted the rest of the Changelings on the other side of a low ridge. I let out a low whistle. “Rainbow would likely disagree with me, but that is cool.” I had been expecting some sort of cheesy harvest festival. This was a harvest fest, but it wasn’t like any I’d ever see before. The gourds might have been garden-variety for Changelings, but I’d never have been able to dream up vegetables like these. The color and pattern of each gourd changed rapidly, like the skin of an octopus. Things got really fun once you picked them. Almost the instant a Changeling picked a gourd off its vine, it began to rapidly change size and shape, going through some really imaginative forms before settling into one shape. One Changeling’s gourd had changed into a floating abstract sculpture that conjured music from thin air. One Changeling’s gourd had turned into an animal that looked like a foot-tall, green-furred sasquatch. Another Changeling’s gourd had turned Cinderella-style into a coach, which had a vegetable powered internal combustion engine. We all stopped and stared, our mouths hanging open. “It’s … beautiful,” said Discord, enjoying the chaotic side of it. “It really is,” I said, loving the artistic side to it all. “That. Is. AWESOME!” said Rainbow Dash. She flew to pick a gourd so fast there was a “Boom!” sound. Her gourd turned into a sky-blue, vegetable, pony-sized racing car, complete with a helmet. “This is amazing.” I said. I looked at Thorax in surprise. “Everyling’s doing this just for me?” “Well, for you, and for us,” Thorax said with a wink. Now it was my turn to blush. Rainbow dash was busy racing the Changeling with the souped-up coach. I heard a shout of “So! Cooooooooollllllll!” coming from her racecar. “What makes the gourds change into such amazing shapes?” I asked. “Actually, we’re not sure how they evolved this way. The soak up love in their final form, then use that love to form seeds for the next generation. We do know that their chosen final form is based on the picker’s personality.” Thorax informed us. Twilight nodded. “Sympathetic magic,” she said. Then her eyes went wide. “Augh! Paper! Pens! This has never been documented in pony culture before, I need to take notes on all of this!” I conjured up her requested supplies. Over Twilight’s furious scribbling, Thorax said, “We used to use these in combat exercises. After Chrysalis left, we started to use them just for fun. They only last a few hours once they’ve been picked, but it’s a fun few hours.” Everypony rushed to pick a gourd before they were gone. Fluttershy’s became a giant green-furred rabbit that picked her up and snuggled with her. Pinkie Pie’s became a shape-shifting balloon animal. Applejack’s was a great looking Stetson with an apple-shaped jewel in the band. Rarity’s was a nature-inspired dress and tiara. She swiped some paper and a pencil from Twilight, and began to sketch some ideas. I was expecting Twilight’s to turn into a book, but was surprised to see it turn into a framed painting of her friends. It did make sense though. Starlight’s turned into a giant kite, that kind that seems to change shape in the breeze.  Spike’s was a small doll of Rarity. Thorax and I were the last to go, and we stood back to back so that we could surprise one another. My gourd took a full five minutes to make up its mind on a shape, even turning into a question mark shaped squash at one point. When it finally settled on its chosen shape, it was small enough to fit into my paw. “Oh,” was all I could manage to say about it. Thorax turned to face me with a concerned look. “Are you OK? Your emotions just crashed and burned.” “Yeah. They do that sometimes,” I said in a slightly hollow tone. “I flip from happy to sad and back almost instantly.” I gave a low laugh. “Guess that fits in with the ‘Spirit of Duality’ part pretty well. If you can sense my emotions, that must be horrible to be around.” Thorax put a leg on my forearm. “It is not horrible, it just makes me be concerned for you. What even happened?” Wordlessly, I passed him my gourd. He examined it critically. “It’s a bit big for a marble, it’s almost the size of a tennis ball,” he commented. I took the blue, green, and white sphere back. “It’s, uh, it’s home. It’s my home, from before I came here. It’s a planet called Earth. It’s probably the most messed up … and the most beautiful planet there is. It’s wonderful.” “You don’t exactly look overjoyed to see it,” Thorax said. I managed a genuine laugh at that, and my mood started to improve. “No, I am happy, it’s just … lots of memories, you know? I’m from right about … there,” I said as I lightly tapped the globe with the tip of a claw. “Give or take seventy miles. I think this poor gourd is going to be fed bittersweet nostalgia instead of love.” Thorax laughed at that. “Boy, you weren’t kidding about changing moods rapidly.” He rubbed his horn, looking like he had a headache. “That is going to take some getting used to.” I draped a white sheet with eye holes cut into it over myself. I waved my arms around, and moaned, “Flee! Flee this relationship while you still can, lest you face an untimely doooooommm!” Thorax was having trouble breathing he was laughing so hard. “You GOOF!” he shouted as he punched me in the stomach. He calmed down a bit. “Did you actually mean it that I shouldn’t be in a relationship with you?” I smiled. “No. Not at all. It’s an amazing gift to find someone who can break me out of a funk like that.” There was a screeching of breaks, and some dirt and grass flew up. “Hey! Lovebirds!” shouted Rainbow Dash. “You coming, or what?!” “Be right there!” Thorax and I shouted in unison. “What did your gourd turn into?” I asked Thorax with interest. He held it up. “It’s … a bit foalish, but it reminds me of a good time.” It was a model zeppelin, the kind that ponies would use for very long-distance travel, or if they didn’t qualify for a royal chariot. “When I was a hatchling, one of these passed over the Hive, and I started dreaming about sneaking aboard, and going somewhere wonderful in one.” “Heh. Looks like I’m not the only one to be bitten by the nostalgia bug today. You know what this is missing?” I asked as I wound up the propeller with a finger. “No, what?” “This!” I let the mini-zeppelin go, and it shot off like a rocket. Thorax’s eyes widened, he smiled, and his wings buzzed open. He stuck his tongue out in concentration, and shot off after the toy, matching its speed and course perfectly. Technically, it wasn’t the kind of model that was designed to fly, but I figured I was allowed to cheat to make my coltfriend happy. As I watched Thorax chase the flying toy, I chuckled. Looks like I’m not the only one around here who never quite grew up. He just gets better the more I find out about him. I wonder what he even sees in me? Thorax landed in front of me, slightly out of breath. “That was -whew!- great! Thanks! Give me, … oh, about five minutes, and I’ll take you on a tour around the Hive. I’m not wearing any silly hats though.” After getting his second wind, he flew off again. Friendly laughter that somehow sounded sinister at the same time came from behind me. I saw Discord standing by himself near a group of trees. “You two are absolutely adorable!” he said, offering me a bucket of caramel corn. “Thanks,” I said, meaning it. I took a pawful of the popcorn. “What did your gourd turn into, pray tell?” Discord blushed slightly. “What in Equestria makes you think I picked one of those revolting things?” I smirked, raising an eyebrow. “Than what’s that you’re desperately trying to hide behind your back?” “None of your busine-” I sprang towards him. “NO!” Discord shouted, disappearing in a flash of light before I could see. I sniffed the air twice, working something out in my head for a few minutes. I then popped up behind Discord, we were standing in the middle of a lake of lava. Discord was surprised to see me. “So … you’ve figured out inter-dimensional travel now, hmm? Goody for you.” He grinned evilly, and lightning crashed down around him. “Try to keep up, Splits!” He was gone. I chased him across a planet covered in ice and snow, a large desert, and something that looked like New York City, but with animals instead of humans. I noticed that I was now a bright yellow lion in jeans and a t-shirt, I guess to fit in. A rabbit in a blue Kevlar uniform shouted, “What do you think you’re-” I gave the fox in a matching uniform behind her a curious look before disappearing again. It took me a minute to pick up Discord’s trail again. I finally pried Discord’s gourd out of his talons in the middle of a jungle on some planet somewhere. “Don’t! Just- oh, sweet Chaos,” Discord muttered between the fingers covering his muzzle. I examined the gourd for a minute. “It’s actually pretty good. For being a semi-intelligent vegetable, it did a really nice job on the dress.” In my paws was a small sculpture of Discord, wearing a tux, dancing with Fluttershy, who was in a simple white wedding gown and vale. I pawed it back to Discord, and sighed. “Look, just because I ship the two of you doesn’t mean I’m going to play interfering matchmaker. I tried that with Spike and Rarity, and wound up in trouble for it. I am perfectly fine with you telling her how you actually feel about her on your own good time, provided it’s before her fifty-first birthday.’ Discord nodded. He then straightened up, and put an arm around me, his usual smirk back. “Sssoooooo, who do you ship dear widdle Twilight with? Do tell, while it’s just the two of us. I have been known to keep a secret on occasion.” My head tilted as I thought about it. “Honestly … I never really made up my mind about her. As far as I know, she’s into stallions, but most of them are already taken. The one stallion the fandom sometimes pairs her with who is available is pure evil, and was blown to smithereens by an Act of Love, so I don’t see that working out well. It would be fun to watch, however.” “Huh,” was Discord’s only reply. I snapped my fingers, returning us to Equestria, back in the same spot by the Hive. Discord looked around, seeming startled. “The fact that you can manage to out-warp me worries me deeply.” “Tell me about it,” I muttered. “Now that I’ve got the power, what do I actually do with it?” Discord leaned over to whisper something in my ear, before changing his mind and standing up again. “You’ll find out,” he said with a genuine smile, eyes glinting slightly. Thorax spotted us, and trotted over to us quickly. “There you are! I’ve been looking all over!  If my timing’s right, we only have until sunset, so we’d better get on with the tour right away.” “Why, what happens at sunset?” “The best part, so I want it to be a surprise.” He grabbed my paw, and started to pull me towards the Hive. “Bye you two crazy kids!” Discord waved cheerfully before heading down to meet the others. Thorax stopped me by a side of the Hive. “Er, there isn’t really a front door to speak of,” he said. He then started counting under his breath. “Three, two, …” an entry opened in front of us, large enough for even me to get through. “Ok, that is cool.” We walked in. The inside of the Hive was made of a greyish-blue porous stone that seemed almost alive. It would have put the Hogwarts Castle staircases to shame. Everything was moving, new entries to other rooms opened and closed at random, walkways would form, change position, and disappear, and even the walls seemed to shift slightly. Hanging from the ceiling were what might have giant glow-worm lures, it looked as the stars were suspended in the air of the room. Thorax looked very flustered, he was showing his date his home after all. “It’s, well it’s, um, it’s-” “Beautiful,” I finished for him. Thorax blinked in surprise at my words. “Yes. It is. Most ponies get dizzy the first time they see it. You really like it? Most ponies still find it kind of creepy.” “It’s not creepy, it’s just not what most ponies are used to. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s a bit like being in a maze that moves itself around, which, if you’re not in a horror film, would actually be kind of fun. I do like it, yes.” Thorax breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled. “I’m really glad you like it. Sometimes, even we get a bit lost in here, so this could take a while.” “Worth it,” I said, holding Thorax’s hoof. Thorax led me to a nearby wall, an entry opened up. It wasn’t quite tall enough, and I forgot to duck. “Ouch!” My horn took a small chunk out of the wall above my head. As I was rubbing my horn, the hole filled itself in. A thought struck me. “Uh, Thorax? Is this place alive?” Thorax laughed nervously. “It’s funny you should ask. Noling’s exactly sure, the Hive was originally built by Chrysalis and the Changeling elders. They aren’t around to ask. We just had to find out how to work with it.” “OK, I’m filing that under ‘do not think about if at all possible.’” Thorax looked up, and pulled me through the “door” just as it closed, narrowly missing my tails. My jaw dropped. “Whoa! Was Escher your architect?” “Who?” asked Thorax. “Oh, sorry. He was a graphic artist from Earth who loved to create impossible shapes. He would have loved these stairs.” It was true. We were in a large, multi-leveled chamber that could have been straight out of an Escher lithograph. There were stairs meeting at every angle, slowly changing locations, and growing and receding at random. “Are you crying?” Thorax asked with shock. “It’s liquid envy. This place is amazing.” “Uh, this is just the hall. On with the tour?” After a minorly physics-defying walk, we came to a chamber filled with long tables and stools. Every wall was crammed full of cupboards. “So, weather permitting, we usually hold it outside, but this is the Crafts Hall. Do you enjoy crafts?” “Very much.” Thorax grinned, and clapped his hooves together. “Great! I am totally inviting you over for a crafts night! The rest of the Changelings would love to see what you do!” He looked at the wall behind us. “This way, … I think.” He pulled me in a generally downwards direction, aside from the time we walked up a wall. “This is the kitchen!” “This is the kitchen for the entire Hive? It’s the size of the kitchen in my last apartment!”  Thorax shrugged. “Changelings don’t need to it anything other than love. Most Changelings find regular pony food a bit disgusting.” “Have they never heard of chocolate? Anyway, you like material food just fine.” Thorax gave me a wry smile. “I’m the weird one, remember?” I smiled. “Which is why I like you.” He blushed. Then looked at the ceiling above us. “This way!” I lost track of all the twists and turns we were taking. “You guys really need to make a map of this place. Oh. Right. Changeling Hive.” We came to a large, dark chamber with more of the Changeling lights suspended from the ceiling. An orange and blue drone was at the other end of the room, watching over … I think they were eggs. A soft lullaby came from a gramophone in the corner. “Where do the eggs come from? Do you lay them?” I asked, knowing that Thorax was a male. Thorax gave a slightly strangled smile. “Well, technically I can change genders if I want to, but … let’s just say I like myself the way I am. These days, Changelings actually start families of our own, instead of one Queen laying broods. We care for our offspring the way ponies do, but we still raise our kids slightly communally. Our species has changed several key aspects literally overnight, and, well, some things we’re still figuring out.” I nodded. “That makes sense. Sorry for embarrassing you.” He waved it off. He then pulled me up and through two walls, then to the right and up a flight of stairs. There was a very long hall, filled with several chambers. “Right! This entire section is Everyling’s rooms and sleeping quarters. I don’t want to intrude on anyling’s privacy, so I’ll just tell you it’s here.” I noticed set of wooden doors built into a wall that seemed fairly permanent, location-wise. “What’s in there?” Thorax looked uncomfortable. “Uh, that’s my room. A private room sort of goes with being king. It’s a bit of a mess, so I’m not going to show it to you.” “How disappointing,” I rumbled lowly with lowered eyelids. Thorax let out a “Meep!” and dragged me out of the hall so fast my hoof left skid marks on the floor. I started to chuckle a bit. The rest of the rooms were mostly Changeling rooms and storages halls, plus the demolished throne room, the Feelings Forum Hall, and some balconies. After the tour, Thorax asked, “Any questions?” “Do you have a library?” Thorax shook his head. “No. I don’t know if the Changelings would want one. It’s a lot of work to put another room onto the Hive, and we’ll only do it after a majority vote.” I smirked. “A democratic king. That’s a bit of a contradiction. Right up my alley, then. How do you put an addition on the Hive? I thought you said you didn’t know how it worked.” “We don’t have to know how it works to know how to work with it. We can put an addition on, but it takes several weeks. Plus, we’d have to buy books, shelves, the works. We don’t exactly have a roaring economy as a sovereign state.” “That makes sense. Just out of curiosity, are you a reader?” Thorax blinked. “I … don’t really know. Maybe?” I folded my arms. “Which house in the Harry Trotter series are you?” “Hooflefluff.” “What’s the best way to get rid of a boogeystallion?” “Put a blanket over his head so he thinks he doesn’t exist. The blanket should preferably have fluffy bunnies.” “How do you kill the dust witch at the Pandemonium Shadow Show?” “With a smile.” “How do you get an ocean the size of the universe to fit in a bucket?” “You ask nicely, and get Old Mrs. Hempstock to help with the heavy lifting.” “The Infinite Improbability Drive is powered by-?” “A really hot cup of tea.” “How do you serve Looking-Glass cake?” “Hand it around first, then cut it.” I gave a huge smile, and swept Thorax up in a hug. “Yes! You’re a reader! I’m so happy, that would have been a major deal breaker for me.” Thorax smiled back. “I’ve never met anyling who’s read all of those too,” he said with surprise. I set him down, and laughed. “Yeah, my immediate family collected books the way most people collect oxygen. I didn’t exactly have a choice in whether I would be a bookworm or not. What’s your excuse?” Thorax rubbed the back of his head. “Well, it was almost four years between the time I left the Hive, and the time I met Spike and all my friends. It was hard to be on my own that whole time. One day I stopped at a library, and, well, I fell in love with books. They … I don’t know how to put it…” “They make good substitute friends when you can’t be with your real friends. They take you out of a bad situation, and put you somewhere wonderful, where you can live a life of adventure and wonder, since sometimes real life isn’t enough.” Thorax gave me a look I couldn’t quite place. “Et tu, Secundus?” I gave him a noogie. “Yeah. Me too. I don’t need to drag it all up again now.” I tapped him on the head. “You’re it!” “Huh?” I rolled my eyes. “Don’t tell me you’ve never played hide-and-seek before!” Thorax chuckled at how foalish I was acting. Then his eyes narrowed, and he smiled. Despite the bright colors, and lack of fangs, he still could have a scary smile. “OK, but I should warn you, I am a master of hide-and-seek! Prepare to go down in flames!” “For the honor of my house, I accept that challenge!” Thorax’s smirk grew. “Actually, why don’t I hide first? Give you a taste of what you’re up against.” “Done. You have one minute.” He flew out of the room, and I began to slowly count to sixty. I began to meander about the Hive, trying to remember where everything tended to stay for the most part. After doubling back from a storage hall, I came into an empty chamber. Amid the Changeling lights was an enormous stalactite. I sniffed a few times, trying to be sure of something. I then walked up the wall, across the ceiling, and pulled a feather out of thin air. I started to tickle the stalactite mercilessly. “AUUGH!” it screamed as it started laughing. In a flash of green fire, Thorax was in front of me. I called of my attack. “What is this need of yours for rocks, Thorax? Have you no identity of your own?” He was still chuckling a bit. “How’d you know it was me?” I smiled. “You still smelled a bit like yourself. I’ve got much better senses than ponies, you’ll have to up your disguises.” We both descended back to the floor. I poked Thorax on the snout. Despite not having fangs, he still bared his teeth, flicking his tongue out of his mouth. “Never boop a Changeling!” he hissed lowly. He then blinked. “Ohmigosh! I’m sorry about that, I-” “It’s fine. I’ll remember that, I promise.” Thorax gave me a smug look. “Your turn! Let’s see you do better!” “I can’t.” “One minute! Go!” I fled. Thorax wandered the halls. As he was passing the kitchen, a yellow and green teenage Changeling passed by him. “Afternoon!” called Thorax. “Afternoon!” chirped the Changeling. Thorax sauntered over to the colt. He then tapped a hoof on his nose. “Boop!” I was then back to my normal form. “Ok, how did you know it was me?” “I know all the Changelings by face and name, what sort of king do you think I am? That and you’re a little giddy from love,” he teased. I folded my arms. “Sensing emotions is cheating,” I huffed. I then looked at Thorax. “One … two … three …” he was gone. I searched almost the entire Hive, before winding up near a recently-opened entrance. “Hiya Secundus!” called Pinkie Pie. “How ya doin’?” “Really well. How’s everypony doing?” “Great, it’s a super funtastic party!” She teared up slightly. “Balloonsy flew away, but eventually, you have to set them free. Oh! If you’re looking for Thorax, he went that way,” she said as she pointed. “Great, thanks!” I gave her a wave, and followed the direction she was pointing. After three rooms and a hall, I doubled back the way I’d come. Pinkie was chattering happily to a Changeling about snickerdoodle recipes. I tapped her on the withers. “I commend your acting skills, … King Pie.” With a ‘fwoosh!’ Thorax was back. “I made sure I even smelled like Pinkie! What gave it away?” “Nothing. I just got a feeling.” Thorax grinned. “Sixty … fifty-nine … fifty-eight …” I turned and ran. Thorax had to search the entire Hive to find me. He walked into a large room, and looked around, before doing a double-take. The room was lined with bookshelves, had a cheery fireplace, a comfy armchair, and a table with a plate of freshly-baked scones on it. “Uh, Secundus?” In a flash of light, I was back. “What were you in there?” I shrugged. “The whole room. I just stuck myself in-between two others.” “You can be an entire room?!” “Mmm-hmm. It feels weird to have somepony walking around in you.” I held up a plate. “Scone? They’re surprisingly good.” Thorax took the scone without saying a word. Somepony cleared their throat behind him. It was a green and blue Changeling with yellow eyes.  “Thorax?” she said, “You two have missed almost the entire Fest. It’s almost time, are you coming?” Thorax gave me a panicked look. “Oh, no. I threw this whole thing for you, how could I have let us miss it?” He grabbed my paw, and once again led me through the Hive. “Uh, do you remember where we came in? I dropped my gourd on the grass, and my hat as well. Do you know where your gourd is?” Thorax nodded. We ducked left, right, up, around, and took a sharp downwards angle, before we came to an outer wall of the Hive. A “door” opened up just as we arrived. This time I remembered to duck. When we got outside, the sun was just beginning to set. I scooped up my globe from where I’d dropped it, and put the top hat Discord had given my on at a funny angle. Thorax snagged his Zeppelin out of the air as it passed overhead. I noticed that all of the gourds were starting to lose their shapes, they looked like they were liquifying a bit. Slowly, a bit like a bad stop-motion animation, they grew or shrank back into their original gourd shapes. They were still shaking a bit. Discord spotted us. “Where have you two been? We all had a simply amazing time. It’s really just too bad you missed out on it.” I blushed. “We were, um, playing hide and seek. It was my fault.” Discord smiled. “Ah, youth. I can still remember some of the games I played. Aren’t games wonderful?” Given Discord’s idea of a fun game, I declined to comment. He looked at us with interest. “So, who won?” “It was a bit of a draw,” Thorax said, “Although Secundus has some amazing tricks up his sleeve.” As the sun dipped below the horizon, the gourds started to shake even more, before the tops split open and the seeds shot into the air. *Boom! Boom! Pop, pop, pop!* They were turning into fireworks that changed colors. The seeds were the kind that have a leafy propeller attached, and they spun lazily downwards. The Changelings started to gather the seeds up so that they could plant the next crop of gourds. “That was completely amazing. Thank you.” Thorax put a leg around me, and leaned into my side. A few seconds later, I heard a chiming sound, and started to shake like I had really bad hiccups in time with the chimes. I felt something in my mouth, reached in it, and pulled out a pocket watch. Thorax raised an eyebrow. “That wasn’t there when I got up this morning,” he said in a flat tone. Rainbow Dash looked at us with a crinkled brow. “You were there when Thorax woke up this morning?” she asked in an accusing tone. I sighed, and rolled my eyes. “It was a long night, he fell asleep, I don’t need sleep, I didn’t want to wake him up, and I thought he might get cold, OK?! Don’t read too much into it! Nothing happened!” Thorax looked at me with lowered eyelids. “Would you have wanted it to?” he purred. I hid behind Discord. I showed Discord the pocket watch, which was still loudly chiming. “What’s the deal with this thing? I don’t swallow clocks. Any advice?” “Oh. I didn’t realize how late it was. It just means your realm is finally ready to be seen and moved into.” He rubbed his paw and talons together in excitement. “I can’t wait to see what you got! It’s like Hearths’ Warming, only better! Come on, show us where you live!” “Exactly how do I do that?” Discord rolled his eyes. “I was there when you figured out dimension-hopping. Just think ‘Home.’” I concentrated, and did as he said. I had to remember to take everypony else with me as well. Reality sort of blurred around us, and we were standing in front of my house. I was flabbergasted at what I saw. The house was an extra-long ranch style house, but that was the most ordinary thing about it. For one thing, it was floating on a chunk of earth in space. For another, it was split in half. The space the house was floating in was night on the left side, with stars stretching away as far as the eye could see. It was like being in the middle of a galaxy. The right side of the dimension was a bright blue sunny sky, with clouds drifting serenely through it, disappearing as the hit the divide into night. The house was every bit as split as the space surrounding it. The walkway was a checkerboard of black and white hexagon tiles that stretched past the ground the house was floating on, as they got further away from the ground, they drifted apart, and started floating. The left side of the house that was on the side with the night sky looked condemned. The windows were broken, the porch and walls were unpainted and cracked, there was dust everywhere, and there were several spiderwebs, but no spiders. Several tiles were missing from the roof. On the ground in front of this half of the house was a massive dead oak tree, and the grass was dead. The right side of the house in the sunny sky looked brand new. The porch was painted a gleaming white, the window had sunny yellow boarders and window boxes with tulips. The windows were freshly cleaned. The grass on this half of the ground was a vibrant green, and there was a patch of daisies and poppies. All I could say was, “Well, it certainly fits.” I walked up to the front door. The door was blue on the right side, a faded orange on the left. Over it, carved into the wall was a stylized yin/yang symbol. To the right of the door was a small plaque that read: “Secudus: Spirit of Duality.” Experimentally, I pulled the doorbell cord. It was just a basic pattern of chimes. I tried the rusty door handle, it just rattled around. I held out a paw, and pulled a keyring out of thin air. The keys were all old-fashioned skeleton keys, but not all of them were made of metal, one was made of ice, one was a key-shaped flame, and I didn’t know what one of them was made of. It took a minute, but I found the front door key. I wiped my paw and hoof on the mat, before walking in. Everypony followed behind me. “Whoa, Nelly!” said Applejack. Pinkie squealed excitedly. Fluttershy said “It’s-” “Bigger on the inside,” Twilight finished for her. “How is that possible?” Discord handed her a picture book entitled: “Breaking the Laws of Physics 101: A Guide for Young Draconequui.” Twilight opened the book to find a painting of herself with an unamused expression, and the sentence, “A good magician never reveals his tricks.” She rolled her eyes. I was having trouble taking everything in, it was a lot to process. There were at least five floors, the main staircase near the entry cried out for Scarlett O’Hara to make a dramatic entrance down it. Directly to our left was a sitting room, full of ripped furniture and dust. Interestingly, the windows on the left side of the house weren’t broken from the inside. The whole house was full of warm wood, and lots of shelves to put things on, there was a thick grey carpet on the floor. The left side of the house was a bit of a mess, but it didn’t look as haunted as the left outside of the house. To the right was a long hall, full of different doors. I whistled. “It’s going to take me days to explore all of this. This is all mine?” Discord nodded. “Unless you let someone move in with you, yes, this is your bachelor pad. Pretty nice, if I may say so.” I gave a snicker. “What?” asked Twilight. “Believe it or not, I’ve always wanted a house that was like this, but … this feels more like an office than a home. It’s very nice, but a bit empty.” Discord folded his arms. “Well, you’re not legally required to live here, you can live anywhere you want, provided you can find a place. You might have to use this place for official functions as the Spirit of Duality, but, if you’d rather live somewhere else you can. Personally, I love my realm, it’s so me.” I shook my head. “No, I’m sure I can make this work, it’ll just take some getting used to.” I looked a Twilight. “I’ll be by tomorrow to pick up my things and move in.” “What time?” “At a genuinely reasonable hour, I promise. Say eleven?” Twilight nodded. Thorax had wandered down the hall, and was looking about, with an expression that could have been anything. I walked over to him. “Well, what do you think?” Thorax frowned. “I guess it’s perfect for the Spirit of Duality, but … it’s not you. You’re right, it does feel a bit empty. I don’t know, might just be me thinking that.” I shrugged. “Well, maybe you could all drop by from time to time.” I looked at Discord. “Can they visit under their own power?” He nodded. “Yep. I have a door built into a tree in the Everfree that leads right to my front porch. How do you think Fluttershy drops by for tea, flying? You can find a way of getting ponies or other species here if they ever want to. It can be anything.” “Hmm. Well, I don’t really have a place to put a door or a permanent portal. Maybe a password? I know, if any of you want to visit, say ‘Dichotomy, dualism, duplex’ twice, and a portal will open up for you.” “Dichotomy, dualism, duplex,” Applejack muttered under her breath. “Got it. Does it have to ben in fancy, though?” I nodded. “I wanted it to be something you hopefully wouldn’t say accidentally in everyday conversation.” “Oh. Well, ay guess that makes sense. It’s gonna take me a couple tries to remember that password, though.” “How about I give everypony a business card with it written on the back?” Rainbow Dash nodded. “Yeah, that’d really help.” “Mmm-hmm,” said Fluttershy. I passed everypony a card. Twilight yawned. “Well, it’s been a great day, but Spike needs his sleep, and Starlight has a full schedule tomorrow. Can you send us all back home?” I nodded, trying to remember where I’d pulled them all from. As I got my fingers ready to snap, Thorax said, “Before you send me back to the Hive, can I do something with just me and you? Official Royal Changeling business.” I nodded. “Thank you all for a great day, and goodnight.” I snapped my fingers, and sent them all home. Thorax opened the front door, and walked out onto the lawn, I followed. “Well, the sky here is beautiful,” he murmured. He then faced me. “Kneel, please.” I knelt. “Er, could you bend down a bit?” I did. He tapped a hoof on each of my shoulders, and proclaimed, “By the power vested in my, by me, as your coltfriend, I hereby dub thee ‘Sec’ for such occasions as I wish to use a nickname.” He smiled. “I couldn’t think of a good revenge for ‘Moosey.’” He gave me a quick hug. “Goodnight. Thank you. I’ve got to get back now.” I nodded, and sent him back to the Hive. I closed the door, looking around my house. This … is going to take some getting used to.