//------------------------------// // Chapter 13 - A Full Recovery // Story: Servant of the Queen // by A bag of plums //------------------------------// “There’s my niece!” Silver Rose was suddenly grabbed as soon as her front doors opened, her body crushed into a big hug as her aunt swung her around, clearly excited about something. “W-What’s... the occasion... Aunt Psithyra?” Silver gasped for breath. Her aunt finally put her down two meters away from the doors and patted her uniform down. “I was waiting for you to return before I do it. I finally have enough love to transform! You mentioned you wanted to see it, so I waited!” “Really?” Silver was thrilled to hear it. “Can… can we do it now?” Psithyra shrugged. “We could, but I’d rather not ruin the carpets around here. Maybe it would be best to do it outdoors, somewhere quiet and secluded.” “We have the courtyard,” Silver suggested, pointing to the door. “But you’ll have to do them away from mother’s prized bushes. You know how she gets.” “You’re right about her,” Psithyra chuckled and put an arm around Silver. “She’s out filming some movie, but she’s seen me do it a dozen times, so she doesn’t need to be around.” Silver Rose brought her aunt out to the courtyard, stopping in the middle where she had her swordsmanship lessons. The only thing in the way was a fountain, but that couldn’t possibly be damaged, could it? Silver’s aunt slowly walked into the center of the courtyard, her fingers hooked and tensing. Placing one hand on her chest, Psithyra breathed in and out, in and out. And then suddenly she burst into green flames, the viridian conflagration engulfing her entire body and sending out a faint shockwave of green energy that ruffled Silver’s clothes. Still faintly visible in the inferno, Psithyra let out an earsplitting roar, half banshee scream and half guttural growl. Hearing the scream, Silver felt her heart begin to beat faster, her own fingers drawing into hooks. Roughly five seconds later, the flames began to die down, and Silver could finally see what had happened. With emerald flames still escaping from her nose and mouth in pants, Psithyra had been replaced with a blackened, streamlined figure with long purple hair that fell to her feet and three inch long talons on each of her fingers and toes. Both her fangs were out, and longer than they usually were, with a milky liquid dripping from each of her points, pattering onto the stone below. Her eyes glowed like twin lanterns, scanning the area before finally locking on to Silver Rose. “Umm… Aunt Psithyra…?” Silver took a few wary steps back. She didn’t deny she was feeling a little scared as her aunt stared back at her, but at the same time, thrilled to have seen such a transformation. Psithyra held up a finger, then opened her mouth wide and belched out a damp green fireball into the air. “Ahh,” Silver’s aunt said in a more pronounced version of her changeling voice. “That felt good.” All of Psithyra’s clothes had burnt off, but somehow, her underwear had been unscathed. Silver Rose still took off her school blazer and handed it to her aunt, though she had approached her slowly. “Thanks, and don’t worry, I’m not going to bite,” the purple haired changeling accepted the blazer and draped it over her shoulders like a cape. “It’s a little small, but whatever works.” “That was…” Silver struggled to find the words for it. “Stunning,” she said at last. “I mean, mother did tell me what a changeling transformation consisted of, but to see it for myself… Wow. Just wow.” “It sure is, my little niece…” Psithyra stepped forward and collapsed against Silver, putting an arm around her to keep herself up. “Phew… Now I’m a little tired. These things don’t come easy. They drain whatever love you’ve stored up. All of it.” “But at least your injuries are gone, right?” Silver gave her aunt a big smile. “Yup,” Psithyra flexed her fingers on her left hand, the claws clicking against each other. “Much better. Why, after I trim back down, I can finally put on the disguise I’ve been waiting to use.” “You mean your Ivory Wings one?” “That’s the one. You know, back before I knew your mother was Ebony Wings, I had made that disguise in hopes of ruining her acting career. I was going to be a better version of her in every way. Somehow… that all worked out well, huh?” “It certainly did, Aunt Psithyra,” Silver giggled as she brought her aunt upstairs. “You always have everything covered.” “Well, except my body, hmm?” Psithyra joked. Silver shared a laugh with her aunt. “But… umm, how did your underwear not burn off? Are they made of something special?” “They’re made of fireproof material. I had somes sets made while I was in the East.” “Woah, cool,” Silver marveled as she pushed her aunt’s room door open. “Do you-do you think you could make one for me? It sounds so cool.” “If I can find the right materials, sure!” Psithyra pinched Silver’s cheek with a claw. “You’re my favorite niece, remember? Whatever you want!” “Thanks, favorite aunt!” the young changeling rubbed her cheek. Her aunt’s claws were sharp. “Here, let’s get you to your bathroom. Do you need help with, umm… trimming?” “No, I’ve got this. Why don’t you go change out of your uniform? I’ll rejoin you once I’ve finished cutting everything back down to size.” “Oh, sure,” Silver accepted her blazer back from her aunt. “I’ll be in the living room when you’re done!” Silver Rose headed back to her room and changed out into her red tank top and black skirt, giving herself some time on her bed to just lie back and rest, squeezing Mishter Schniffs. “What a day it’s been, huh Mishter Schniffs?” she looked up at her white engraved ceiling. “So that’s what fencing is… I really need to brush up on that, hmm?” “You sure do, Silver Rose,” her doll said. “Just remember, it is nothing like your sword training. Less barbaric and less agile. You don’t need to jump all over the place.” “That is true…” Fencing was evidently a much safer sport. The tip of the foil wasn’t even sharp. She’d be able to enjoy this without having to worry about injuring her opponents too badly, that is, if she could learn to abide by the rules. “What do you think, Mishter Schniffs? Can I get it right?” “You’re a bright changeling,” Mishter Schniffs said with a nod of his little head. “I’m sure you can do it.” “You’re awesome, Mishter Schniffs,” Silver hugged the stuffed toy to her chest and curled up around him. “I’m glad mother had you made all those years ago…” Silver Rose still vaguely remembered the day her mother had surprised her with Mishter Schniffs. She was still in a cot back then, but she had accepted the toy with much gladness, keeping him in great condition, even to this day. He had been her only friend back then, and was still her best friend, even after she’d met the sirens and her CPA friends. No matter what, she could always count on Mishter Schniffs to make herself feel better, even if she had to speak for him. “You always smell so good, Mishter Schniffs…” Silver inhaled his aromatic scent and closed her eyes. Silver hadn’t realized she had dozed off, finally stirring from her sleep. She pushed up from her bed, one arm still around Mishter Schniffs as she rubbed at her eyes. “What time is it…” she got into a sitting position and leaned her back against the wall. “Almost dinner time, my dear,” Psithyra answered her, sitting at the edge of her bed, only, it wasn’t her aunt. Instead, Silver was looking at a woman with snow white hair and light blue skin. She had on a simple black shirt over blue shorts, a pair of rimless spectacles and her hair was done up in a ponytail. Silver recognized the look from the picture her aunt had shown her before. “Aunt Psi- I mean, Aunt Ivory!” Silver quickly guessed, scooting closer to her. “You’ve already gotten your dye on!” “You were asleep for two hours,” she put an arm around her niece as she stopped beside her, her stuffed toy still in her arm. “And I thought the faster I got this out, the faster you could all get used to it.” “Surprised anyone in the house yet?” “Adagio and Aria had no idea who I was,” Ivory chuckled lightly. “They thought I was a new staff member or something. Sonata saw right through my clever disguise though.” “I guess she knows you too well, huh?” Silver leaned against her aunt. “She does, but enough of me, dear. Come, tell me more about this doll of yours. Your mother made it for you, yes? You seem to like it very much.” Ivory inhaled deeply. “Smells… nice.” “Yeah…” Silver hugged Mishter Schniffs close, snuggling the plushie up to her face. “Mother made him for me when I was still a baby. He’s been with me ever since.” “You’ve kept him in very good condition,” Ivory commented. “Especially for something that’s been with you so long.” “He’s my best friend, Aunt Ivory,” the pink haired girl smiled. “Whenever I’m troubled or when I need someone’s opinion, Mishter Schniffs is always here for me.” “Even after the new friends you’ve made in school?” “Well, they don’t understand me like Mishter Schniffs does. Mishter Schniffs is my best friend.” Ivory Wings nodded slowly, the smile on her face never faltering. “I like to make dolls too. I left most of mine back in my Manehattan penthouse though.” “Aren’t you going to get them?” Silver tilted her head. “Actually, what are you going to do with all your stuff there? Including the building.” “It’s still mine, so we can use it as a summer home, or whenever you want to go to Manehattan. It’s big enough for all of us.” “That’s cool, Aunt Ivory. But… a summer home in a city? Don’t you normally go out to some remote place for that?” “As for my possessions, I’m sure a few trips to and from Manehattan should be sufficient to move most of my stuff here,” Ivory shrugged. “You have to come see my halls of history though. So many artifacts about our past there. I can give you a tour.” “If mother will let me…” Silver blew at her fringe. “For now, it’s still simply to school and back. Nothing else.” “Well, I’m sure that if you can convince your mother that you’ll be a good little changeling, we can see about you getting some time out on the weekends? Let’s try for that.” “I heard you talked to her about that,” Silver said, then wrapped an arm around her aunt’s waist. “Thanks, Aunt Ivory. You’ve already done so much for me.” Ivory smirked. “Why wouldn’t I? You’re such a sweet girl. I’m good with kids, you know?” “You are?” Silver looked at her. “I didn’t know that.” “It comes from having a son of your own,” Ivory looked up at Silver Rose’s ceiling. “I never liked kids, but Morn showed me a whole new side of things. I just wish he was still here today…” “I wish I could’ve met him,” the young changeling looked at her doll. “He’s like me, isn’t he? Part changeling.” “Yes, but also no. His changeling traits were somewhat more regressive. Yours are more dominant. I suspect that’s because you were sired from the queen, and not from a servant like myself.” “But he’s still only part changeling,” Silver mentioned again. “He would’ve been able to understand the stuff only a half-changeling would get. Uh, no offense, Aunt Ivory.” Ivory sighed and leaned back. “We never made him aware of why he was different to the humans around him. I don’t think he even knew he was part changeling, up till the end. It was a lie we perpetuated. Morn Dread only knew himself as an extraordinarily gifted human.” “Aww…” Silver kicked her feet back and forth. “Well, at least I have you and mother to guide me along.” “That you have, Silver. That you have.” Sunny Flare leaned back in her seat and closed her English textbook, sighing with relief as she eyed her homework. “I did it…” she let her mouth form into a smile. “I finished it all.” As a Shadowbolt, Sunny felt like she needed to place herself at the top of every class, not just in her athletic skill. And she did hold fast to her words. She was one of the top students in every class she took, acknowledging her superior skills over her classmates, except for one particular class. English class. Sunny didn’t know why, but she seemed to struggle with grasping the fundamentals of the only language she spoke. It isn’t even that hard, she had told herself many times, but she couldn’t deny that she only scored an average in that class. Sugarcoat had taught her some easy ways to remember her work, but sometimes, they still weren’t enough. Then there was poetry. Sunny Flare didn’t know if it was a common problem, but no one really seemed to get it, especially herself. She had decided that whoever had come up with the idea to study poetry was most likely some sort of mass murderer. Finally given the chance to let her mind wander again, Sunny found herself thinking about Silver Rose. Fortunately for her, Silver wasn’t in her English class. If she were to ever find out that Sunny didn’t excel at this... The mulberry haired girl balled her fists and frowned. In less than a two weeks, Silver had already stirred up so much for the Shadowbolts, in the form of superior skills and abilities. Sunny also had to thank her for the sprained ankle, though it was partially her own fault for trying to knock Silver down. “Who are you, Silver Rose…?” Sunny muttered. Being the leader of the Shadowbolts meant keeping up on all the latest gossip and news, but until Silver Rose had enrolled at CPA, no one had ever heard of her. Most unusual for the child of a celebrity, especially one as prolific as Ebony Wings. True, Ebony Wings was remarkably tight lipped about her personal life, but even then, hiding another daughter would have been downright impossible. And why keep her a secret? Moonglade was paraded around at movie premieres and at award ceremonies, but Silver Rose had never once been seen. Why is that…? Sunny had heard from Indigo that Silver Rose had been living with her aunt, out of Canterlot until now. Perhaps that was why she was never heard of, but surely someone would’ve found out about Moonglade’s sister, right? If it was anything, the paparazzi were good at sniffing out information, even for the weirdest things, like whether a celebrity preferred chicken over beef. Come to think of it, she’d never heard of this aunt until now either. “So you’ve come out of nowhere, Silver Rose, and you think you can take the school for yourself?” Sunny said out loud. “Well, you can’t. We’re the best CPA has to offer. We’re the Shadowbolts.” Sunny still remembered the new girl had helped her to the nurse’s office after she had sprained her ankle. She didn’t know what that was all about, but she didn’t like it. Sure, it was nice to have someone help her get there when the other Shadowbolts didn’t, but she didn’t trust Silver’s reasons for doing so. It was likely a ploy to get more popularity amongst the student body. She thought back to the plans she and Sour Sweet had tried to concoct. So far, they’d gotten nowhere. Sunny wanted something big, something so embarrassing that Silver would learn not to interfere in Shadowbolt business. The trouble was, pulling it off would require her ankle to be in better condition, so like it or not, she still had to wait a long time before she could pull something off to wipe that smile off Silver Rose’s face. “You mark my words, Silver Rose,” Sunny whispered. “I’m not done with you yet.”