//------------------------------//
// Chapter 35 
// Story: Don't Bug Me 
// by Starscribe 
//------------------------------//

Ivy didn't say anything for a long time after that. Amie waited, her whole body poised with nervous energy. She'd given this pony the power to destroy her, and by extension Wes as well, without even expending much effort. Maybe if Path got angry enough about his daughter's “subversion,” he might even push for an invasion of Camp Stella Lacus, dooming everyone there. 

The pressure was enough to keep her fidgeting in place, unable to sit still. Yet she wasn't ignorant—she watched the pony's emotions, and knew before Ivy did that she had made up her mind.

"I can't believe I'm saying this..." she began. "You want to get into the Royal Archives? You'll never stand a chance. All of Canterlot has boosted their security—that's what my Dad was doing before they assigned him to watch the “non-causal” changelings. But... I know a pony who could get through it all." 

She rose, leaving the fire behind and staring out into the darkness. She looked out at Stella Lacus, eyes lingering on the amber streetlights. There were no distractions out here—Agate was far below, and Motherlode had only a few weak gas lamps, easily overpowered by comparison.

"He wants me to go back. He's been suggesting it for weeks—tried by ordering it, then when I pointed out he'd have to accept my application to give me orders, he went for subtler hints instead."

She glanced back at the two resting bugs, grinning broadly. "If those weren't real changelings, I'd think this was the most elaborate plan yet. There's no depths my father wouldn't sink to manipulate me, but he wouldn't hire a changeling."

Amie followed her. She kept her distance at first, in case Ivy would be afraid of her. But despite knowing the truth of Amie's condition, there was none of the disgust other ponies felt for them. Only pity, focused entirely on the two injured bugs. "I could accept his proposal, then tell the ponies back there I'm touring on his behalf. You'd need to give me a little more detail on what to look for. I'm not a magical expert."

"I'd never ask you to do that," Amie said. She touched her shoulder with one leg, cautious. "I'm your friend, Ivy... at least I hope I still am. I would never expect someone to change their whole life around just because it would benefit me. If you hate the idea of being back there, don't go. We'll just have to find another way."

Ivy whimpered. For better or worse, Amie had said the exact thing that hurt her the most. "I wouldn't do it if somepony told me to. I wouldn't do it if they asked. But I can see the need. I can imagine what it would be like... getting ripped out of my home, put somewhere that everypony thought I was a monster. Then when we try to talk, we get attacked, because we look the same as the monsters who invaded. It's not fair.

"Equestria... isn't always fair. But I think the princesses try to be. If they knew about this, they wouldn't like it. Most ponies don't know, but—when the changelings invaded, Celestia tried to convince their queen to stop. She tried to be diplomatic, and the changeling didn't listen. You're obviously not that way." She giggled. "It... doesn't feel like you're feeding on me. Would I know if you were?" 

Amie shrugged. "I honestly don't even understand how it works. The one bug who talked to me about it—feels like he was wrong about everything. I'm happier than I've ever been just having real friendships. If there's some magic underneath it, I don't know how it works."

That was only partly a lie. She didn't have to do anything to feed on Ivy's ultimate acceptance. But when it came, it was a power just as bright as her brother's love had been when Amie sacrificed herself. There was so much that Beth woke up, turning towards them. Rick sat up on one leg, his mouth hanging open.

Amie... stretched. She'd been holding so much magic for so long that there was never room for any more, yet she kept drinking it anyway. She felt a brief tearing sensation, nearly as painful as the time she'd torn a tendon in her shoulder while climbing three years ago.

Then there was more magic, a whole flood of it. Ivy rested her head on Amie's shoulder, and there was a waterfall—a waterfall into somewhere huge that hadn't been there before, an underground lake of incomprehensible size.

"You are my friend, Amie. The first real friend I've had is a changeling, what does that tell you? Guess I'm pretty bucking lousy at this."

Amie shook her head, crying too. "You just hadn't met the right person, that's all. In another town, you might be the most popular pony around. Just... don't try to be. Don't judge yourself based on what other ponies want, Ivy. You'll give up who you really are. Buck what they want!"

"Oh, I'm about to." Ivy turned, rocking slowly back and forth on her hooves. "My dad is going to love when I tell him that I'm going to Canterlot. If he ever finds out why I did it... he might strangle me."

She was smiling, but Amie didn't laugh. She couldn't tell if Ivy meant it or not. "It's just about how you explain it. If you really find this thing, you could help send all of us home! You could solve the changeling problem in Equestria, in a way that makes everypony happy. You'd be a hero."

Ivy chuckled. "In a way that makes all my dad's huge bases and standing pony armies useless. That sounds... kinda awesome. Except the part where you leave. Not so excited about that part."

"Me neither," Amie said. "But if you find the way back, I could take you to camp first! If you like the adventure course at Agate Base, you'll love what Camp Stella Lacus has. Our high adventure ropes course is the best on the west coast, three years running!"

"I don't know what that means," Ivy admitted. "But I'll hold you to it. After..." She yawned, stretching in the usual pony way. "Tomorrow. We'll need to set off early, if we don't want my dad getting worried that something happened to me. One overnight must already be giving him a hernia."

"Just tell him about your plan to go back to Canterlot when you see him," Amie suggested. "Tell him you had an epiphany when you were alone with the stars. It's kinda true—except there were three of us up here with you."





Amie did not need to sleep long, of course. She remained in her tent with Ivy until the pony had passed thoroughly into unconsciousness, and only then crawled out of her sleeping bag, and onto the windswept camp. Where Rick and Beth were waiting beside the fire. 

Since feeding them, both were on their hooves again. They kept to their sleeping bags, taking turns stoking the campfire with new pieces of wood. They might look like bugs, but Amie could see deeper than that. She remembered the campers they'd been. Both younger, probably less productive in Mr. Albrecht's new micronation. 

"You're... Amie?" Beth asked, as she made her way over. "You can really just change whenever you want?"

She could hardly blame the girl for not remembering their first meeting. She'd been delirious with hunger, and she might not have even seen the moment Amie demonstrated her real shape for Ivy.

She did it now, dropping the pony disguise, and returning to her usual shape. It took her another second more than usual to collect herself—probably from the cold. The campers were huddled up so tight, they must be looking shorter than they were. The wind kept catching her fins, flipping them around with more energy than Amie found comfortable.

It was nothing compared to the pain her campers had been in, so she dismissed it easily. "I want to know what's happening in Stella Lacus,” she whispered, urgently. "What the hell are you two doing out here? You know this is past the pony perimeter, right? If Equestrians saw you up here, they wouldn't be kind."

They shared a nervous look. Rick looked down, silent. He wasn't going to answer... but Amie could feel the words before he said them. It was more than just guilt and embarrassment. She saw several solar panels tucked into a backpack, a stolen battery and a makeshift transmission antenna. 

"We came for a reason," Beth said. "Maybe not a good idea. But it wasn't like Albrecht was gonna feed us anyway. We hoped to be able to call for help when we finished."

"Because you were building an antenna up here," Amie finished for her. Her eyes settled on Rick. "A transmitter-receiver. It would broadcast the camp's intranet everywhere with line of sight to this mountain. Dozens of miles, maybe further. And you thought it was so out of the way, the locals would never come up here to check it."

They looked at each other again. Rick's fins folded flat, and his wings buzzed fearfully. Genuine fear, this time, and a little awe. Amie understood that too, without even knowing why. Rick had always respected her as the pioneering leader, but never thought of her as particularly smart. She was brave and knowledgeable, and he admired her for stepping up to protect everyone. Now he started to wonder if she'd been hiding something all this time.

"Yes," he said. "How did you know all that? Wes and I talked about some of my plans, but you... never seemed interested."

"I wasn't," she admitted. She glanced back at the tent, but its sole occupant was still soundly asleep. She would feel it if Ivy roused. "And how did—" She stopped again. This time they both thought it, coming with a wave of pride. It was strongest from Beth, though. Strong enough that Amie kept her mouth closed this time.

"We flew!" Beth proclaimed. "In the dark, since we guessed ponies couldn't see so well. I'm the best in your group, but Rick's okay. A few others are getting there. And when you told us about sensing emotions, we just had to stay hidden when we felt ponies nearby, then move when we didn't. Took... almost two days. But we got here!"

"You were starving." Amie patted her on the shoulder, then Rick. "How many others are like you? Did the relief party not make it?"

They both shrugged in unison. "We've been up here a while now. Didn't... have the strength to fly back, after we finished with the transmitter. It's up on those rocks there, but I... I was too weak to climb back and turn it on." Rick slumped as he said it, burying his face in his hooves.

"But you understand everything," Beth said. "You can hide, you knew we were up here, you knew how to help... camp needs you, Amie! You should see what Mr. Albrecht is doing. Working everyone harder and harder... there's not a lot of meat anymore. We've been using traps and fishing and birds and everything we can get our hands on... but we're hunting the mountain dry. It's like you said—to hunt, you have to spread out, go on long trips, without ever taking too much from one place. I swear the animals have started avoiding Stella Lacus on purpose.

"Albrecht has been pushing us. Since we don't need sleep, he doesn't let us rest, just keeps everyone moving. It wouldn't be so bad if we weren't all hungry, but since we are... and he hates the hunters the most, Amie. I think he punishes us for you leaving, even if he doesn't admit it. He doesn't trust us with guns anymore, focuses on the trappers and fishers. But he still wants us to be out all the time, even when all we get are bows."

Amie nodded weakly. "I knew this would happen. If Equestria wasn't here, we could spread out across miles and miles. If we had some deer country, a few of those would probably feed the whole camp. But Equestria is here, and they don't want—" 

She froze, eyes widening with sudden realization. Amie was working somewhere that Equestrians paid her to make friends. Even if the friendships became real in the end, that only made it more desirable for food. Bud had a whole empty barracks waiting for more friend candidates. 

"I don't know if I can feed everyone," Amie said. "But you're my kids. I think it's time to get you out of Stella Lacus... time to get all of you out."