//------------------------------// // Empathy // Story: An Affliction of the Heart // by Anonymous Pegasus //------------------------------// Kuno peered into Warden’s eyes, waving a hoof in front of his face. His pupils didn’t even shrink as the shadow of her hoof passed over them. He was completely under her control. “Now, Warden. Tell me: why did you lock me up in the cell?” Kuno leaned forwards with a grin, batting at the bell on the collar around his neck. “I needed to keep you contained. Keep you from hurting anypony,” Warden replied automatically, emotionlessly. “And why didn’t you just kill me?” Kuno queried, raising a brow. The pegasus paused then, as though thinking. “I... tried. When you were unconscious the first time. I just couldn’t. I’m not strong enough.” “Physically or mentally?” Kuno asked, rather urgently checking herself over for any stab wounds she might have missed. “Mentally,” Warden responded quietly. “I couldn’t do it.” “And you couldn’t give me over to the guard because I would be executed, yes?” “Correct.” Kuno hummed thoughtfully, rubbing a hoof against her chin. Ambling off for a few moments, she returned with the framed photo from Warden’s room, holding it in front of the pegasus. “And who is this?” “That was Swarm,” Warden said unhelpfully. “And who was she?” Kuno reiterated. “She was Swarm. Swarm was a pony.” Warden stared straight ahead, his eyes vacant. Kuno growled softly in the back of her throat. Warden was fighting her magic, and she didn’t have the strength to redo a spell of that magnitude. “Stop. Resisting.” The changeling pushed a hoof against the guard, annoyed. “Who was Swarm? What did she do, why was she important to you?” “Swarm was a beekeeper... she made special honey sculptures. She was my wife.” Warden shook his head, struggling slightly against his bonds. “Relax, Warden. You’re safe. You’re among friends,” Kuno soothed, gently touching her horn to his forehead again, allowing another trickle of her magic to muddle his mind. The pegasus ceased his struggles, staring blankly ahead again. Kuno shook her head, blinking several times to get rid of the fog greying her mind. “You keep referring to her in the past tense... did she leave you?” Kuno queried, staring into his eyes. Warden shook his head slowly. “She died.” “Why did she die?” “Because I’m weak. Because I failed her.” Warden spoke matter-of-factly, blunt. “Explain it to me.” Kuno trailed a hoof soothingly through the pegasus’ mane again, humming reassuringly to keep him in a cooperative frame of mind. “She was sick. Cancer. She needed me to get her medicine. I failed her. She died.” Kuno gave a low growl, pushing at the pegasus. “Elaborate, or I’m going to zap you again.” Warden shook his head blinking once and struggling faintly. “Swarm was always there for me... Since we were foals. My parents raised me in Canterlot, and she was one of the cool foals. She was their cliques. I was ostracized because I was a pegasus and I wasn’t good at anything. “She was always nice to me. Treated me like any other pony. The others treated me a lot worse. Picked on me. I was the only pegasus in the class. Even after we grew up, and went our separate ways, she was the only one from school who stayed in contact with me. I joined the guard, she perfected her honey sculptures. But she knew I wasn’t meant for the guard. She introduced me to growing plants. Helped me get my cutie mark. “She made all the moves. Asked me on a date. Told me what to do to make her happy. And she was the one who proposed. We were married for barely a year when she got sick. We lived so far out of town that she refused to see the doctor. Wasn’t comfortable with them. I eventually forced her to see the doctor, and she was diagnosed with lung cancer. There was medicine that could be made, that could help her... but the grove where it was kept had been taken over by a pair of nesting manticore. They were violently territorial and protective of their young. And the herbs weren’t needed often enough for a detachment of royal guards to kill the manticores. “Swarm was getting sicker... and sicker. I went after the herbs. But I was weak. It took me two days to muster up the courage to enter the grove, and even then, I narrowly escaped with my life. I guess I was lucky, because by the time I got back to the hospital, Swarm was already dead. I failed her, and she died.” Kuno splayed her ears back as she listened to the pegasus’ story, frowning deeply. “Elaborated enough for you?” the pegasus spat, glowering up at her. Kuno blinked once, realising that her spell had failed. “Just like I failed to keep you contained. Should have just turned you over to the guard and let you be executed. You’re just lucky you met with the weakest royal guard ever,” Warden growled, turning away from her, and then shook his head to try and clear it of the residual magic. The changeling frowned at that, shaking her head, and then pulling the pegasus around to face her again, a hoof resting on his cheek, stopping him from turning away. “Empathy and sympathy are not traits to be ashamed of...” “And yet you, who have neither, trumped me with ease,” Warden spat, gritting his teeth and pushing her hoof forcefully away so he could turn his head away from her. “Just... get it over with.” “There is a lot about changelings that you do not know,” Kuno murmured, ears splaying back. “I know enough,” the pegasus stated, “You steal love. You harm ponies. You didn’t deserve my sympathy. And you’re going to prove it when you kill me.” “You are surprisingly uncaring of your own demise,” Kuno pointed out, to change the subject. “What do I have to live for?” Warden growled, turning back to face her again, his eyes narrowing. “Everything in my life was given to me by Swarm. Ever since I was in school. She’s gone now, because I failed. I just grow my garden and do drills with the Reserve Guard to pay my bills. I have no life. And the one thing I tried to do, the one stupid fantasy I had of fixing you or making you civilized or whatever the hell I was thinking, failed utterly too! So if you’re not going to kill me, just leave!” Kuno’s ears pinned back at the pegasus’ tirade, and she shrunk slightly, frowning. “You... wanted to civilize me?” “I wanted to prove that just because you were born as a monster doesn’t mean you have to stay one. That, and I’m too weak to let you die at my hooves, even indirectly.” Warden snorted once, turning his head away from her again, his expression contemptuous. “But... I’m not a monster,” Kuno protested quietly. “I’m just... a changeling.” “A monster,” Warden spat in response, growling and gritting his teeth. “You steal love. Couldn’t you just earn it?” “Earn it?” Kuno asked with an incredulous laugh. “Even the Royal Guard’s weakest member thinks we’re a race of monsters who are born evil.” Warden growled at that, refusing to respond. “And even when you couldn’t bring yourself to kill me, you still imprisoned me and sentenced me to a slow death,” Kuno stated with a contemptuous snort. “You are the monster.” “What even happened to that, huh?” Warden asked, turning back to face her, struggling against his bonds. “What happened to you dying?” “I guess you like me more than you’re letting on,” Kuno responded challengingly. “I’ve always been bloody terrible at character judgements,” Warden accused with a snarl. “So this is what we’ve degenerated to, huh?” Kuno asked, snorting once. “Exchanging barbed retorts?” “I thought you were going to kill me!” Warden snarled, wiggling and squirming furiously to try and break free. “I... I never intended to kill you. Well, maybe I entertained the idea of it while I was strangling you. An intrusive thought,” the changeling said dismissively. Warden snorted once, braying in his anger. “Then leave!” “No,” Kuno stated, shaking her head slowly. “I... I’ve already decided what I’m going to do.” The pegasus stared up at her contemptuously, his eyes narrowing. Kuno reached down, hoof moving towards his throat. Warden turned his head, gritting his teeth and tensing his form. The collar jingled as Kuno removed it: unlocking the padlock at the front and then undoing the collar itself, tugging it free and dropping it to the side. The ropes then basically fell free from the pegasus’ form. Warden rose to his hooves, towering over the smaller changeling, and for a brief moment, Kuno was sure she’d made a mistake. But she was brave, and rose to her full height regardless, staring up at the pegasus. “I will prove to you that we are not monsters.” “What does it even matter? Who even cares? What’s to even stop me from just killing you?” Warden growled. Kuno gave a wry smile at that, eyes narrowing at the pegasus. “It matters to me. You don’t have to understand it. You just have to accept it. And as for what’s stopping you from killing me...” Kuno trailed off at that, before grinning and turning away, scooping up the collar and unlooping the padlock from it, tossing it to him. Warden caught the padlock automatically, blinking down at it. Kuno smiled smugly, “You’ve already proven to me that you lack the balls to go through with it.”