Queen Chrysalis moves with purpose into the dungeons. The guards at the door salute her as she passes, making her way to the last cell in the block.
There, still trapped in a cocoon, and still very much conscious, is Princess Celestia.
Chrysalis smirks. With a bit of magic, she peels away a small opening over the pony's mouth. The changeling begins, "Let's you and I have a talk, shall we?"
Celestia frowns. "I have nothing to discuss with you, fiend!"
Chrysalis fake-pouts. "Aw, don't be like that, Celly. I know you like to talk with your enemies — love and tolerance, you call it?"
The princess pauses. "What do you hope to achieve with all of this?"
"Oh, not much; just complete assurance that my Hive and I will never starve. And what better way than to capture hundreds of thousands of ponies, put them all in a spell-induced dream, and feed off their love? You get to live the rest of your lives in your wildest fantasies, and my people get to eat; a win-win!"
Celestia grits her teeth. "Then why haven't you done it? You clearly need something from me; otherwise, we wouldn't be having this talk."
The Queen frowns. "Yeah, that's the problem. You see, to maintain a spell that big, I'd need a lot of magic. But I can't seem to activate the Elements of Harmony, and—"
"LAY YOUR DIRTY HOOVES OFF THE ELEMENTS, YOU DIRTY LARVA!" Celestia bellows in her Royal Canterlot Voice.
Chrysalis blinks, her ears now ringing. "And here, I thought your sister was the loud one. Speaking of which, where is she? She's usually asleep at this point in the day, but she wasn't in her bedroom."
Celestia smirks. "Likely somewhere far away, gathering as much help as she can. As long as she's out there, you're doomed to fail."
Chrysalis lights her horn, a wicked grimace forming across her face. "We'll see about that..."
"So, your 'parents were entomologists', eh?" Luna frowns down at the disguised changeling in front of her.
Icarus sweats visibly. "To be fair, Changelings are insect-like, and my parents are experts on them..."
Luna lights her horn. In an instant, Icarus's disguise is stripped away again, revealing him for what he is. His build is similar to that of his unicorn guise, but chitinous and hole-riddled. His wings are cloudier than any other changeling's, and his mane is fuller, but otherwise, he looks like the creatures currently occupying Canterlot. He sighs, and his gaze falls to the ground.
Cupcake steps forward. "Icarus, is that really you?"
The bug wilts a little, but nods.
Ollie glares towards him, his emotions clouding his judgement momentarily. "Prove it, then! Tell us something only the real Icarus would know!"
Icarus sighs. "When we first met, I was just a traveler with a penchant for fire. You let me crash at your apartment while I job-hunted, and we became closer friends the longer we spent together. You introduced me to Cupcake and Tepid at a party they were hosting for Winter Wrap-Up, and—"
"That's enough," Ollie interrupts him. He turns to Luna and states, "It's him."
Luna nods, unlighting her horn. But the frown remains on her face. "How long have you been in our borders?" She questions.
"Two years," Icarus admits.
"What was your purpose in coming to Equestria?"
"To gather love and bring it back to the Hive."
"And what is your reason for coming with us on this mission?" Luna raises her eyebrow.
He glances to the group, still looking apprehensive. "I came to stand by my friends. They've taught me how to live better, and for that, I owe them more than I could ever repay."
Tepid Waters looks flattered; Cupcake Foil looks surprised; Ollie looks disappointed, but no longer hostile.
Luna turns back towards the group. "What say you lot? How do you feel?"
Cupcake steps forward. "I don't know what the heck he could've possibly learned from me, but I'm touched anyway." That causes a few chuckles from Tepid and Icarus.
Tepid joins them. "Icarus used to be so distant and grumpy, but he's grown to be a great guy. I, for one, think he's alright."
Morning and Lavender step forward. "We haven't known him for very long," Lavender admits, "But from what we can tell, he's a good pony— er, changeling." Her mother nods in agreement.
Finally, Ollie is left. He gives Icarus a look, then sighs. "I don't like that you lied."
Icarus sighs. "If it helps, I tried to be as honest as I could without giving myself away. My parents really did become a soldier and a caretaker."
"And I appreciate that," Ollie admits. "Were you ever going to tell us?"
The changeling winces. "I was struggling to find the courage."
Ollie nods. "It'll take some time, but as long as you're willing to be more open, I can forgive you."
Icarus smiles, hope returning. Ollie finally steps forward, joining the rest of the ponies. Icarus hesitates, then steps forward, grabbing his friends in a hug.
And for the briefest of moments, Icarus could've sworn he saw Luna smirk.
But just as quickly, Luna's serious face comes back. "Now, we must continue on our way. The guards could be back at any minute."
Icarus breaks out of the hug and raises a hoof, "I can somewhat smell their pheromones when they're nearby."
"Then you shall walk beside me as I lead." With that, the group continues on their way, Icarus resuming his disguise.
As they walk, Luna turns to Icarus. "You acted commendably, Icarus. If I were in your position, I likely would have panicked."
Icarus blushes. "I had to be strong, for my friends."
Luna nods. "With a make-up like that, I might just be willing to overlook all the falsified documents you must've filled out."
Icarus pales. But he relaxes when she giggles, "I am merely messing with you. Once we sort this mess out, I will be glad to issue a royal pardon if you're willing to capitulate."
Icarus nods vigorously, "Anything, your Majesty."
Luna then turns back towards the others. "I should commend you five as well. To not lose yourself to your emotions and stick by your friend, no matter how different, is a mark of a strong pony."
Cupcake trots a little more quickly to catch up with Luna. "Hey, he's our friend. What else were we supposed to do, slap him with a flyswatter?"
This gets a laugh out of most of the group, other than Icarus, who looks uncomfortable at the prospect.
Luna smirks. She couldn't have picked a better group...
Icarus asks, "Why are you fine now, when you seemed so angry before?"
She blinks. "That, my astute little changeling, will be answered in due time."
She then stops the group, staring ahead at two ornate doors. "We're here."