Twilight Twinkle aged seventeen, and eleven months (physically twenty-one)
It was evening in Ponyville, and as the night came in slowly in the early spring evening, ponies began to relax. On the edge of Ponyville, in the residence of Mayor Fluttershy, all was quiet. The various animals that occupied the place were relaxed, most of the rabbits just sitting next to the cosy fireplace alongside the pegasus owner of the house. The mare slowly read her way through an old book, one that had in fact helped her buy the small cottage she lived in. Her first novel. Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone. Over the years she'd changed her opinion on the Daring Do books. The first had been apprehension, wondering whether the pony she'd based the design of the title character on would take offense, then joy at learning the books were popular, then mild irritation at herself for all the errors, as helpfully pointed out in a long, long letter from an admirer all the way from Canterlot. She had completely forgotten about the letter from the young Twilight Sparkle the day she met the unicorn, partially from her usual social awkwardness, and also because, if she remembered correctly, she hadn't wanted to be known as the mare who wrote Daring Do books. Even though Ditzy had managed to figure it out one day. She hadn't really wanted to write as many as she had, but Angel had been insistant on it for some reason. And her heart had soared the day Rainbow Dash declared she read the books as well. Fluttershy had regarded that as a true victory for her writing, and one of the top ten days of her life. At that point the door to the cottage opened, and the pony who was responsible for half of the days of the list entered, an odd smile she'd been seeing on his face a lot recently on his lips.
"Mother." He nodded, before walking merrily past the fireplace. There was a slight buzz, and Fluttershy was certain she could hear him humming. She gently set the book down and turned to look at him, smiling as she did. Even after all these years, the fact that he called her mother made her want to cry, just a little bit. She remembered the day Whisper Wind had first said 'mama', when she'd actually cried for seventeen minutes at that.
"And what are we so cheerful about?" she asked. He said nothing, gently moving about the tiny kitchenette, still humming.
"Whisper Wind" she said, with a touch of motherly authority. He turned to look at her, still smiling.
"Well, I just... I was thinking of visiting the Crystal City again." He said, his wings fluttering slightly. Fluttershy smiled. Her son had a great fondness for the city, ever since Twilight Sparkle's daughter had asked for him to journey along with her to see it. There had been a noticable change from her son after that visit. She hadn't been sure quite what exactly the reason was for that, but he'd occasionaly just start smiling, in a way Fluttershy had seen once or twice before, including on Mr McIntosh, and Rainbow Dash when they'd found their own personal Very Special Someponies. Fluttershy had always assumed something had happened between Whisper and Twilight Twinkle, and while she wasn't entirely sure the filly was the most responsible mare around, she'd never held any malice towards the girl either. But for the last few years, every chance he got Whisper had been travelling to the distant city. And she couldn't blame him. The city was almost like one massive work of art, from the green fields, and the dazzling mountain-like castle. But she knew exactly what was on Wisp's mind. Once that nice mare had shown up on her doorstep one night, blushing and shuffling and asking if Wisp wanted to go to a dance with her, everything had clicked into place.
"Visiting it for somepony?" she asked. He blushed. And muttered something. There was a slight pause, followed by a sigh.
"There's something I should probably tell you, mom." He said, calm as always. He looked down at his hooves.
"It's about her." Fluttershy looked at him for a moment. Then she realised who he meant by that. His real mother. His birth mother, not his real mother, a stern un-Fluttershy-like voice in her mind stated.
"What about her?"
He looked uncertain, and a bit pained. "Well, it's just that... we still don't know what she's actually planning, or what she wants, and... I just think it would be a lot safer for everypony if I were somewhere more difficult for her and her armies to access. Somewhere more difficult to attack than, say, Ponyville." Fluttershy looked into his eyes and saw there was something else, something causing the emotional distress in him.
"There's something else." She said. He nodded, and walked towards the window.
"It's Twilight Twinkle" he said, sighing slightly. "Ever since the incident with Discord, she... has been a bit unusual around me. At first I thought it was simply because I believed her tale about her father." Fluttershy felt a pang of guilt about the poor girl. She knew exactly how it felt to have one's mind played with by the chaos deity, but he'd managed to out-do himself with whatever he'd done to her. Apparently the medics at Canterlot General had tried suggesting spells similar to the sort Twilight Sparkle had used to restore Fluttershy and her friends from their 'Discorded' (As Rainbow Dash had dubbed it) state, and that had met with frosty reception from the young princess. Or at least everypony called her a princess, despite her not having wings, or a crown, though the mare had never seemed troubled by that fact.
"But it isn't. It's much simpler." There was a slight pause, as the stallion (and she had to think of him as a stallion, because he was taller than her now, and therefore couldn't really be called her little colt) shuffled slightly. "She's attracted to me" he said, in the same tone one used to describe tax hikes. Fluttershy ruffled her wings slightly, and realised what he'd said.
"Oh. Oh!" She suddenly felt the need for a strong cup of tea. After a few minutes she had prepared one cup of the most soothing tea she had lying around.
"So, you haven't just told her?" She said once she had taken a few sips. He shook his head.
"I... Keep meaning to, but every time we meet, she's just..." He turned to look at her, his face filled with sadness. Fluttershy just nodded, not sure what to say to such remarks. "Sometimes she just stops smiling."
The stallion looked down at his hooves. "You don't mind my going to the Crystal Empire, do you?" He said, quietly. She smiled, fairly certain she could tell why he was going there, and it had nothing to do with defensive capabilities.
"You're a grown stallion, Whisper Wind. There's not really much I can do about it." A slight smile began to move across Fluttershy's face. "Is she pretty?"
"Ye-" He stopped, apparently shocked at what he'd said, and frowned, though it seemed to be more out of habit than any genuine irritation, before looking flustered. He sighed. "I think I'm going to go to bed. Feeling slightly sleepy." He said. And with that he walked up the stairs, leaving Fluttershy sitting by the crackling fire, smiling to herself.
Her son had a girlfriend. She promised to make him explain things to Twilight Twinkle in the morning, and then went back to reading her book. After a while she apparently fell asleep. She dreamt an incredibly alarming dream of being in a small ramshackle cottage in the middle of the Everfree, as something large, hairy and covered in legs tried to smash in. Then she was vaguely aware that she wasn't dreaming the loud smashing noise. Her eyes tore open as two changelings smashed through the front door and windows, landing in front of her and hissing at her.
"Give up the royalty, she-pony!" One said.
Fluttershy wasn't entirely awake, but she still recognised their aggresion. Some years ago she would have probably curled up into a little ball and let them waltz through her house and take what they wished. But nopony was taking her son. She raised her hooves, and leapt.
*****
Fluttershy was aware of a young, yet familiar sounding voice in her ears, and a slightly soft feeling beneath her cheek. She opened her eyes slowly, to see she was lying on her bed, and a mint-green and pink mare was looking at her with concern. She recognised the bubblegum-pink mane quickly enough.
"Minty" she said, seizing onto that and allowing recollection to fall into place. She'd injured several changelings, but there had been several of them, and she may have been incredibly strong, but she had little in the way of actual combat training. Then terror gripped her mind as she rushed across the landing on her hallway to Whisper's bedroom. Her son's bedroom was a mess. Apparently he'd put up a fight, but it hadn't been enough.
"Oh no."
*****
Far from Ponyville, in an undisclosed location, several changelings dragged a prone form across a room, until they halted in the middle of a large polished granite floor. Something in the darkness around them moved, and a pair of piercing green eyes opened.
"Hello" A voice whispered, "Son."
*****
Some days later, in Canterlot, in the vast dining hall of the Princesses' School for Gifted Unicorns, Twilight Twinkle sat with her friends, laughing and talking. Her friends, she noted. Actual friends, who liked her. She actually felt happier than she'd felt in a long time, all of her issues with her mother forgotten.
"So we're just out of there, and... what was it you said?" Star Song smirked. Twinkle rolled her eyes.
"'Are you crazy?'" she said, imitating what she'd said the other day, "'I'm not going back in there, it's full of oatmeal.'" The group of ponies laughed at that one, one of her friends even fell off her chair, causing a few heads in the hall to turn. The group continued on with their laughing and joking for some time, until Twilight Twinkle noticed something, and her smile disappeared. Star Song noticed, her concern growing as she saw the royal blue unicorn slip off her chair, and walk over to a pony calmly reading a newspaper. It grew when she saw the mare politely yet firmly take the newspaper from him. Then her face sank, and she began to stride out of the room.
"Twinkle?" Star Song called after her, getting no response. "Twilight?!" She said to the rapid moving pony. She looked at the main headline of the newspaper, which announced
'Ponyville Mayor's Son Abducted!'
Star Song quickly flew after her friend, eventually catching up with her stuffing what few possessions she had into a small saddlebag.
"What are you doing?" she asked. Twilight Twinkle looked up at her, a cold look in her eyes. Star Song wasn't entirely sure she was actually looking at the mare she'd grown to know over the last few years.
"I'm going to Ponyville" she muttered. Star Song could gather that she obviously knew the stallion who'd been abducted, but something else occured to her.
"You're just going to rush off? Just like that? Does that make sense to you?"
The mare glowered at her. "It doesn't have to make sense! I l-... I lo-..." She frowned, and then looked like utterly miserable. Star Song looked in concern. "What?" She reached out a hoof to the mare, who looked utterly lost.
"He's my friend, and if there's anything I can do to help him, I will do what I can." And at that, she walked right past Star Song. The purple pegasus looked heartbroken, and gently kicked a hoof against the floor. She had a terrible feeling she wasn't going to see the royal blue unicorn again.
*****
Twilight Twinkle disembarked from the train, taking in the smell of apples, which seemed almost offensive to her as she thought of changelings, of what that farmer had done to her mother. She quickly made her way to the Golden Oaks library, which her mother claimed as residence, and opened the door. She found a familiy of pink-maned ponies all working in the area, and they all turned to fix her with near-identical toothy grins.
"Hi!" They all smiled at once, and Twinkle wondered why she wasn't teleporting away. She walked past twenty-odd confused faces upstairs, where she set her saddlebags down, and let herself collapse. She quickly frowned, and resolved to get to work.
As it transpired, she didn't have much to go on, since the scene had been barricaded off by members of the guard, and the guard reported to Rainbow Dash, who would probably tell her mother if she was there, so she returned to the library to fume and try and think of a plan. Unfortunately as the sun began to set, she still wasn't sure of anything she could do, outside of rushing out into the wild to look for Wisp, which was beginning to look more and more tempting as time went on.
Then she heard the front door opening, and voices. She walked over to the door to the stairs, and listened in mounting horror.
*****
"C'mon, Fluttershy, there's no need to be such a gloomy gertie. Dashie's ponies will find him." Pinkie Pie smiled brightly, as she always did. Fluttershy smiled slightly. Then she looked around the library, which looked almost exactly the same as it had when they'd all lived in Ponyville, before Rarity and Rainbow Dash had moved away. She looked at Pinkie Pie, who was saying something about chocolate eggs, but she could see Pinkie was giving at least some thought to the fact that it apparently took a disaster to bring them back together.
"Doesn't seem like Twilight Sparkle to be late." Fluttershy said. Pinkie's smile vanished.
"Twilight Sparkle is never late" the mare said. "Nor is she early. She arrives precisely when she means to."
The front door opened, and the two mares turned to see a purple pony enter, who's weary look vanished when she was embraced by the two mares.
"You're late" Pinkie said, before breaking out into a wide grin. There was a slight smile from Twilight Sparkle, instead of the annoyance or panic the mare would have displayed back when they first knew each other.
"Yes, sorry. I was... distracted by..." For a moment she looked both incredibly younger, and incredibly older, and her wings ruffled slightly.
"Anyway" She said, smiling again, "I'm here now. And we're just waiting for Rainbow Dash to show up." She walked over to the centre of the room. Her horn glowed, and four chairs appeared. Pinkie looked appreciatively at the one obviously meant for her, and quickly sat down on its with a content sigh. Twilight looked about the room.
"Does anypony want anything to eat?"
"Yes." Pinke said calmly. "Just biscuits though. And no coffee, before you ask, because I had coffee when I was carrying Banofee and..." She made a curious expression that was both smile and frown. Fluttershy just nodded. The tenth Pie child was capable of bursts of manic excitement that put her mother to shame, including one occasion where the filly had spoke fast enough to shatter windows. Fluttershy was fairly certain that the filly's behaviour was not the result of her mother drinking caffeine, but when it came to the Pies, almost anything was possible.
"Okay, no caffeine for Pinkie. Hot chocolate, or chocolate milk, then?" Pinkie smiled and nodded. "Anything for you Fluttershy?"
She just shook her head. "No, no, I already had lunch, My aides keep saying I need to 'keep my strength up', and all my paper seems to keep disappearing today." She sighed, and relaxed in her chair. "They're good ponies."
Twilight Sparkle just nodded and walked into the kitchen, leaving Fluttershy and Pinkie sitting along, Pinkie's eyes beginning to close slightly.
"So, when's it due?" Fluttershy asked. Pinkie's eyes opened, and she smiled.
"Soon, the doc says. I hope it's a colt. Or a filly. Or a filly and a colt. Or two fillies and two colts." She said, slightly slower than usual. From the looks of things, Pinkie's near-limitless supply of energy was beginning to run low, though she still maintained her usual cheerful attitude. "Though the doc keeps saying four babies at once isn't possible." Pinkie pulled out a pair of sunglasses.
"But he forgot the Pie Family motto. 'Go beyond the impossible and kick reason to the curb.'" Fluttershy just smiled at that, as one usually did when exposed to Pinkie for long enough, and the strange became simply unsual.
"Have you thought of what to name him, or her?"
"I though 'Bumbleberry' would be good, even if it's a filly or colt."
Then, there was a knocking on the door, in a fashion the two recognised. Fluttershy walked over to the door, and opened it. A sky-blue pegasus stood there, a polished golden helmet covering her multi-coloured mane. Her stoic expression was quickly replaced by the broadest possible smile when she saw Fluttershy.
"Fluttershy!" The mare said, embracing the pegasus, who felt the wind knocked out of her.
"H-hello, Rainbow Dash." She said, once she'd regained her breath, making sure to smile back.
"Hiya Dashie! I like your hat." Pinkie said.
"Hey, Pinkie Pie." Rainbow Dash's eyes quickly noticed Pinkie's noticable mass.
"Gosh, that's a big one you've got there." She smiled. Pinkie just smiled back. "Wouldn't be surprised if it turns out you've got twins or something, or a small village." Rainbow Dash's smile didn't flicker when a pillow hit her in the head.
"So, Rainbow Dash, how have you been?" Fluttershy asked. The pegasus sat down on her chair, which reclined slightly when she sat in it. Pinkie pouted slightly, and began investigating whether her chair reclined. It didn't.
"Not bad. Not bad. Managed to get my book published." She said, her smile changing into a grin, but there was something about it.
"Yes." Fluttershy said calmly, "A Daring Do book, wasn't it?" Rainbow Dash looked sheepish, yet also like someone trying to impress an aloof big sibling.
"What did you think?" She said. Fluttershy looked uncertain. "Be honest." Rainbow Dash said. Fluttershy sighed, and Pinkie looked concerned. Some twenty-four years later, and all three remembered what had happened the first time Fluttershy displayed her 'freaky sowing knowledge'. For such a nice pony, she could be pretty remorseless.
"Well... the writing's not bad, the language is a bit simplistic, and your author avatar is... blatant. And the philsophical musings don't really hold up to close scrutiny." Fluttershy looked down at the cushion she was sitting on.
"And why in the world did you choose that title?"
Rainbow Dash bit her lip. "Yeah, I... didn't choose that. The title I'd given it had already been taken, and the one after that, and the next, and the next..." She muttered something about lawyers.
Then two things happened at once. Twilight Sparkle finally returned with snacks and drinks, and there was another knocking on the door. Rainbow Dash walked over to the door, and calmly opened it, to find what at first glance looked like a floating hat. Underneath the hat was a unicorn with elegantly styled hair and three gemstones for a Cutie Mark.
"Rainbow Dash! Oh, it's good to see you again." The mare said, sauntering past the mare. "Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie."
"Rarity?" Twilight Sparkle said, confused, "I thought you wouldn't be able to make it."
Rarity laughed, "Did you really think I'd busy myself with some dull fashion show when poor Fluttershy needs help?"
"No. I just thought you wouldn't be able to show up."
"No Applejack?"
"She's in Manehattan, attending to family business" Twilight Sparkle sighed, secretely glad that her arranged schedule for the meeting wasn't completely disrupted, even if it meant all her friends weren't together again. Her horn glowed, summoning a plush velvet-covered chair for Rarity, who eyed it approvingly and sat down.
"Okay, well, in case we aren't all in the know, Fluttershy's son, Whisper Wind has been kidnapped by changelings." Twilight Sparkle looked at Rarity, who had moved her seat to be next to Fluttershy, who even after all these years and all the self-improvement she'd gone through, still managed to generate incredible levels of sympathy when she looked sad.
"This was apparently done on the command of Whisper Wind's... birth mother" Twilight noticed the slight look of anger flash across Fluttershy's face, "The Changeling Queen." There was a gasp from Pinkie Pie.
"Unfortunately, attempts at locating the boy are hampered by the fact that we have no means of locating the changelings, but..." Her horn glowed, and an illusion of a vast desert appeared in front of her. "We believe they are somewhere beyond the Appleoosan frontier. The problem is finding out where."
From upstairs, Twilight Twinkle slowly listened in.
"So, what's the plan, then?" Rarity asked.
"Rainbow Dash and I were going to take a group of guards, find the changeling queen and try to ascertain her motives. But..." Twilight Sparkle looked at the pegasus, "We think the Changeling Queen is doing this as a means of saber-rattling, perhaps even planning to use her son being raised by ponies as an excuse to declare war."
"What?" Pinkie said, scratching her head.
"Bearing in mind how she acted at during the wedding." Twilight Sparkle muttered, the four other mares suddenly feeling a slight stab in the heart, "I think, based on all the evidence, that she is insane. Just utterly insane."
Twilight Twinkle, meanwhile, was slowly examining the windows, but figured that probably wouldn't work. She looked at the exit to the little balcony, and smiled. A plan was beginning to form in her mind. She quietly opened the door, and looked out over the balcony. There was a considerable drop. She frowned.
*****
"I don't see why we don't just go in there and kick the crap out of her. We've done it before." Rainbow Dash fumed.
"Well, because when we did that she scavenging and barely capable. We don't even know how strong they are, but if they were confident enough to send only a few on their number to snatch one stallion, I think we sho-" Twilight Sparkle stopped, her ears twitching.
"Twilight? What's the matter?" Rarity asked.
Twilight Sparkle frowned, and rushed upstairs. A few moments later Rainbow Dash and Rarity followed after her. They found her staring at the door to the balcony window, before the mare rushed out into the evening air. Then they saw a look of shock and alarm on her face, as a barely visible royal-blue form rushed off into the distance.
"Come back here right this moment, young lady!" The purple alicorn roared, though the young mare paid her mother no heed, retreating out of sight. Rainbow Dash and Rarity exchanged glances.
"I could go get her" Rainbow Dash suggested, though Twilight Sparkle said nothing.
"It'd be easy. I could just fly over there, catch her, bring her back."
"No" Twilight Sparkle said, her voice sounding alarmingly hollow, "No, we've got other things to do."
Rarity and Rainbow Dash watched as Twilight Sparkle walked back downstairs, their faces mirrored expressions of concern.
*****
Twilight Twinkle set out from Ponyville with no general plan in mind, heading in the general direction of Appleloosa. It was only when she was halfway there that she realised she had no plan, no money, no means of looking for Wisp. All her life she'd wanted to explore faraway places and go on adventures, and she'd finally got one, and managed to sabotage it beyond salvation already. She hadn't even been able to get a train there, since she'd left Ponyville in such a hurry. A quick stopover in a small town and a visit to a local bank solved at least a few of those problems, allowing her to get a train. However, the long train ride gave her time to think about what she had done, and her previous issues had time to reassert themselves, meaning she arrived in Appleloosa feeling distinctly put out. She decided to explore the town, wandering at random around it, before eventually settling down on a small sun-warmed bench to think, which proved more difficult than she'd expected, however the thought of seeing her mother again quickly gave her some new determination. Eventually, after several long minutes, an idea came to her. She made her way to the centre of Appleloosa, ignoring the mild west dancers, and sat down, closed her eyes and focused.
Every pony everywhere was taught that magic was present in all ponies, regardless of species. What she planned to do was make a spell of her own, one that could find a pony based on their unique magical imprint. If her mother was there, she'd probably be getting some long-winded lecture on how that was 'not scientifically possible' from the mare who managed to swap her friend's Cutie Marks, then survive being vaporised. She was Twilight Twinkle, daughter of the Princess of Magic, and she didn't care about whether it was possible or not. She focused, reaching out with her magic, not really certain of what she was supposed to be doing. She thought of Wisp, of his light blue eyes, his golden-brown fur, the way he smiled, and... several thoughts about Wisp occured to her at that point, which she ignored. She could interrogate him after she found him.
"I know who I'm looking for." She said. She focused her magic further. Then, she felt something. She opened her eyes. Appleoosa seemed suddenly tinged with darkness, despite it being the middle of the day. She frowned, and looked around. She saw a pair of ponies walking by, glowing faintly. From all appearances it had worked. Now all she had to do was find the changelings. She thought of Wisp again, all the time they'd spent together, of how he'd never directly complained about any of her nonsense, how he'd believed her when almost nopony else did, how good and patient he'd been. She focused, and found the ground seeming to move beneath her feet, moving out towards the vast desert beyond Appleoosa, and a strange blob of green moving through the wastelands. She smiled, and then found herself back in Appleoosa, with a number of ponies staring at her. She smiled, stood up, and ran out toward the desert.
*****
It occured to her, after a while, that perhaps running into the middle of a desert had not been anywhere near the best idea she could have had, especially after a short while when it became increasingly difficult to see, with the blazing sun above her head, and it was getting harder and harder for her to think, and she was so thirsty, and everything was spinning.
Then she passed out, sliding part the way down a sand dune. For a few moments she lay there, and then a shadow passed over her.
*****
Twilight Twinkle felt something cold pressing against her head. She slowly opened a eye to see darkness. After a few moments it turned out to be a cave. A rather small, unimpressive cave, all things considered, but she wasn't out in the desert. There was a small bowl lying by her head. She slowly focused her magic, and lifted it towards her mouth. It turned out it had water in it.
"Just don't drink all of it" a voice said. She felt startled, but not enough to drop the bowl. She looked over the way to see a shape lurking at the other end of the cave. It looked like a pony, and the voice was certainly masculine.
"What brings you this far?" the voice said. There was something familiar about it.
"I'm... looking for somepony" she said, slowly.
"In a desert?"
"Yes." The pony made a small noise.
"He goes by the name of Whisper Wind, he's from Ponyville, and I'm reasonably certain his mother misses him terribly." She slowly rolled on to her hooves and stared at the stallion.
"He's about the same height as me, bright blue eyes, nicer than he thinks he is, and I'd recognise him in a heartbeat." She said, confidently.
"Is that so?"
For a moment there was utter silence. "Wisp, knock it off with the disguise."
There was a slight ruffling sound, followed by the stallion shimmering. His fur turned a familiar gold-brown colour, and a pair of wings appeared on his back.
"That's not quite what I meant" she said. For a moment, there was a look of apprehension on his face, and his form shimmered. In the place of the immaculately-maned pegasus stood a charcoal-grey changeling. Twilight Twinkle frowned at him.
"What?" he asked.
"Well" Twilight Twinkle said, calmly, "It's just something that I've been dwelling on for a while, but... your mother is the Changeling Queen, yes?"
"Yes." He said. She was fairly certain he could guess what she was about to say.
"So, wouldn't that make you... different from the regular changeling?" The look on his face told her all she needed to know. "What do you really look like, Whisper Wind?"
He looked at her, and there seemed to be sadness in his eyes, though she couldn't tell why. His horn glowed, and his form seemed to melt away. In the place of the average sized changeling was a taller, slender form, looking not entirely unlike the Changeling Queen herself, only masculine, and with more muscles. And then Twilight Twinkle saw his true form more clearly. She saw his wings, which were now somewhat larger than the first time, and had glinted in the sunlight when she'd first seen them, and gasped. The right wing was bent, and torn, and just hung pathetically at his side. There were signs along his body of bruising and what appeared to be cuts. She had been planning to make some remark about how he looked like a Princess himself, but now...
"Wisp... what happened to you?" She breathed, feeling quite sure as to what the answer would be.
"She happened. My 'mother'. Chrysalis." He sighed, and sat down, briefly glancing outside to the setting sun. "When she had her changelings bring me back, she explained exactly what her plan was. You see, years ago she came up with a plan, a plan to get 'revenge' on Equestria for what happened at the wedding of your aunt and uncle. She found a random pony and..." He blushed slightly, looking amazingly like Fluttershy for a moment, "Seduced him. Which led to me. At which point she promptly abandoned me outside Ponyville. Fortunately Fluttershy found me before I could starve to death." He frowned.
"Chrysalis believes that the emotions ch- we feed on needs to be taken by force, but I survived for years just because of Fluttershy's love for me. ... Of course, she was always keeping an eye on me. Shortly after the Camping Incident, she keep visiting me while I was sleeping, occasionaly monologuing about her plans, and goals. And sometimes, singing." He sighed again. "She is insane. But the worst bit is that the other Changelings don't care, because as far as they're concerned, there's only one way they can feed."
"And... what is her 'plan' then? Why did she foalnap you?"
"Because, she wants revenge. Her plan was always to send me to live amongst ponies, then return and claim I had been abducted, and use this as an excuse to attack Equestria. Specifically Princess Cadance and her husband. And Twilight Sparkle."
For a moment Twilight Twinkle processed that plan, while he just sat there, apparently waiting for her thoughts on the matter.
"That's... that's the stupidest plan I've heard. What does she honestly expect to gain from another invasion?" She broke off into inelegant sputtering and sentence fragments, before eventually stopping. Wisp gave a low, mirthless chuckle.
"I said as much to her. She... took issue with my open defiance." His bent wing wiggled slightly. Twilight Twinkle just gave him a slight hug, trying not to hurt him by accident. "And had me contained, although fortunately after years of being around the Pie family, getting past them proved easier than expected." There was a slight smile from him, "Grounded though I am."
The two sat there for a moment.
"So, now what?" Twinkle asked, looking out of the cave, and the harsh, glaring sunlight. She was aware her back felt incredibly warm. Wisp just looked... sad.
"We wait" he said. For a moment, neither said anything. "We wait for the sun to go down, then make our way back to civilisation."
The two sat there, seconds passing without incident. Then something occured to Twilight Twinkle. She fought the urge to say it, but the sheer silence quickly proved overwhelming.
"I think it's past my birthday" she said quietly. "I'm eighteen." She smiled weakly.
"Many happy returns." Wisp said, a very brief smile flashing across his features. Then, she remembered some of the things she'd been meaning to say.
"I'm sorry" she said gently. He looked confused.
"For what?"
"For being so... pushy, the last few times we met. I just... I really can't explain why I was doing that, but I am sorry. Sorry for making things so awkward, and being an awful friend." He walked over to her and placed a hoof on her shoulder. There was a slight twinge that felt like sunburn, but she tried not to let it show.
"No, you're not an awful friend. I thought I was protecting your feelings, that I might have assumed after everything that's been happening, Discord, aging yourself, losing your father, the fights between you and your mother, that I just... didn't want to hurt you." His eyes seemed filled with sorrow. "But that's a poor excuse. I was a coward. And a terrible friend."
"No, no, you aren't, Wisp. You're just like the rest of us. Even if you are a shapeshifting emotion-eating Prince of the bug monsters. And you're my friend. You'll always be my friend" She said, leaning in to him. He seemed to jerk slightly, and she wondered if perhaps his injuries were more extensive than he let on. For a moment, neither pony said anything. Then he took a deep breath.
"Twilight, there's something I ought to tell you. I actually wanted to tell you this a few months ago, but... I couldn't work up the nerve." There was trepidation in his voice, and she tilted her head in confusion. He looked hesitant. She raised an eyebrow.
"You're seeing somepony" she said. He looked at her and bit his lip with tiny, pointy little fangs.
"Yes" he said. "Sort of. It's... well..."
"Who?" Twinkle asked, letting her curiosity get the better of her.
"Shiningsapphire!" He blurted. For a moment, neither said anything. Then a scowl overtook Twinkle's face, and there was a curious scent of something burning.
"What? My cousin?!"
"Yes." He said, apprently trying to shore up his courage.
"Shining Sapphire? My cousin?"
"Yes." He repeated. Her mane and tail burst into flames, and her fur went chalk white.
"You're in love with her? Her of all ponies? I introduced you!" she yelled, the room darkening.
"Well, yes, and that was the end of it. And then a few months ago... well, it's curious, but..." Then he stopped, and turned his head. Twilight Twinkle looked as well. Outside, in the distance was a slowly approaching cloud. Or what looked like a cloud.
"That's not a cloud" they both said.
Wisp turned to look at her. "You have to go" he said, she opened her mouth to object, but he held up a hoof. "Don't. I know what you're going to say, so don't. You can't carry me all the way through a desert on your own with no supplies." He frowned. "I'll try and hold them off. It's me they're looking for, not you."
There was a slight pause. "Although from the way you're emoting, it might also be you they're looking for."
"Thanks, guilt trip me, why don't you?"
He smiled gently, but firmly. "Just go, Twilight. Go and don't look back. Please. Please, promise me you won't risk your life for me." She frowned at the use of 'please', and the sad look of desperation in his eyes made her want to knock him out and drag him back to civilisation with her. But there was no fear in them. She leaned forward and gave him a slight kiss on the cheek. And then ran out of the cave. As she did, she heard the buzzing get closer, and closer, and her hooves pounded the sand beneath her.
And she didn't look back.
Twilight Twinkle ran, and ran, and ran on. Her legs quickly began to ache, her mouth began to parch and she ran, and kept running. She ran faster and longer than she'd ever thought possible, and as she did they was the horrific buzzing echoing in her ears, but she dared not turn around in case the Changelings were following her. She felt her cheeks sting as little tears rolled down them and evaporated in the heat. And still she ran, until she couldn't run any further.
*****
Twilight Twinkle awoke with a jolt. She was lying on something that felt like wood, and wherever she was, it was cold. After a few seconds, she became aware of voices, somewhere not too far away, in the dark.
"-or girl. What could've driven her to do that?"
"Don't know, but whatever it was, had to be something terrible." A different voice said.
"The sheriff said we should let her be, but... shouldn't we contact her mother or something?"
There was a few moments silence. "No, no. I think it's best if we let her be."
She opened her eyes. She was in a dark room, with a window showing the rising moon high in the sky. She sat there, wondering where she was, and reached a conclusion. She was back in Appleloosa, having probably been found by somepony and brought back to civilisation. And Wisp was dead.
The thought struck her like a lead weight, crushing every other thought. She was glad she was sitting down or she'd have just collapsed. Suddenly it was difficult to breath.
Wisp was dead. Wisp was dead and it was her fault. Her fault. Wisp was dead.
For the next several minutes, she played that phrase through her mind, in every possible way. For some reason, she couldn't accept it. It just didn't seem possible. How could Wisp be dead? Then a thought came to mind. She needed to talk to somepony. There was something important she needed to do. She tried moving a leg, and was met with an incredible amount of pain, her body screaming 'Do Not Move' at her in as plain a language as possible. She ignored it. She needed to talk to somepony. Very, very slowly, and with a considerable amount of pain, she stood up, and turned herself invisible. After a few steps she started getting accustomed to the pain, and started ignoring it. She opened the door to the cell she was in. She was in a cell. Fitting, consider Wisp was dead and it was her fault. She frowned, ignoring her mind. She slowly walked down the corridor, and found a small desk with a sack of bits on it. She had no money. How was she going to go anywhere without money? And she was technically a princess, since her mother was a princess, and what she was doing was important, so it was wrong to take the money. She'd pay it back later, she told herself, as she made the money disappear. She decided not to bother investigating the fate of her saddlebag. As she walked out of what turned out to be the Appleloosan sheriff's officer, her pace began to quicken. She tried to think of where to go. Back to Ponyville, or Canterlot? Talk to her mother, or maybe even Princess Luna. No, no. Her mother would probably just yell at her, and throw her into a dungeon, and lecture her. She didn't want to be lectured. She didn't deserve a lecture right now. So that left the Crystal Empire, where Aunt Cadance and Uncle Shining Armor lived. They wouldn't yell at her, or lecture her. They'd be understanding. Problems always disappeared with Auntie Cadance. Shining Sapphire was lucky, she had both her parents, and they loved her, and weren't lecturing machines or crazy bug-monsters. Shining Sapphire was really lucky all around, actually. She was smart, beautiful, she had wings and a horn and everypony seemed to love her instantly, including Wisp.
Twilight Twinkle walked, still going slowly, onto the platform for the train. After a while of waiting, still listing all the ways in which Shining Sapphire was lucky, the train that eventually went to the Crystal Empire arrived, and she slowly walked into one of the carriages. There weren't many ponies on the train, so the ticket pony soon arrived, and she paid for her ticket to the Crystal Empire, thought the salespony seemed a bit unsure about her wanting a one-way ticket. As she sat on the seat, watching the scenery go by, she did briefly, ever-so briefly wonder whether she was actually fine. She'd just ran into a desert of her own free will, which made her sanity a bit suspect, passed out from what seemed like dehydration, and from all appearances caused the death of her first ever friend. She did wonder whether it was an idea to go back to Ponyville and explain the situation to Fluttershy, and hope the mayor of Ponyville would be if not tolerant, then at least lenient. Then those thoughts vanished as the tears started.
What had she done to deserve all this? What possible crime had she committed that was so great she required to be punished for this?
'It's her fault.' a voice said. She looked up, and around the carriage. It was empty, and there was nopony else there. She blinked in confusion. She probably just needed some more rest. Or she was hallucinating from the pain.
'You could have saved him.' the voice said again. 'If Shining Sapphire hadn't stolen him from you, you could have saved him. You're strong, you're smart, you're resourceful. So why couldn't you save him?'
Because she was weak from passing out, dehydrated, and she couldn't have fought an entire army of changelings and protected Wisp at the same time.
'Shining Sapphire probably could..' Even though there was no proof of that. Aside from the timberwolves, Shining Sapphire she was fairly certain had never seen an actual fight. She doubted Shining Sapphire could have fought of an army of Changelings either. Most of her magic was love, and magical constructs created by her love. She was fairly certain that an army of Changelings would have just eaten their way through her magic. But, she was wondering how the alicorn and Wisp had ended up together. And not with you. She froze. The voice was inside her head now.
Of course I am. She sat there for a moment. It seemed incredibly likely that she was insane now.
Is it insane to feel like you've been given shabby treatment? Look at you. You're the daughter of Twilight Sparkle. You deserve so much better than this.. She considered that, and it did make sense. She'd often wondered why she didn't have wings, for example. Or why she couldn't teleport. And she was wondering why and how Wisp and Shining Sapphire had gotten together.
They shouldn't have. It should've been you. Don't you deserve some compensation for the crap you've had to endure these last few years?
She nodded. Under ordinary circumstances, she would have realised what was going on was far from normal or sane. She would have quickly informed somepony, but this mystery voice seemed to know her inside and out. It knew all the things that she'd put in the back of her mind, where they would never bother anypony. The sort of things that you never said. But the circumstances she was in were far, far from ordinary. And its arguments sounded so reasonable. So she let the whispering voice in her head continue.
And then Shining Sapphire dares to steal your oldest friend from you?! Who does she think she is?! Wisp is yours! You deserve it. You deserve wings, and a throne and a crown and the praise you have been denied for so, so long!
And then, Twilight Twinkle, daughter of Twilight Sparkle, did the worst possible thing she could have possibly done. She agreed.
"Yeah. Yeah. You're right! I deserve all those things. I've earned them! I think I'm going to ask Shining Sapphire some questions when I get to the Crystal Empire." She frowned.
And had anypony been listening, they would have noticed her voice had deepened considerably. Had there been somepony around who could have read minds, they would have heard a low chuckling noise. In an instant, Twilight Twinkle had changed.
She was no longer Twilight Twinkle, in mind or body.