“Are you sure you don’t want to come Spike?” Twilight and Thomas were preparing to leave for the meeting and Spike had volunteered to stay. They could tell he didn’t like the idea of being present when everyone found out what he’d done and wanted to spend the night without the shame.
“Yes, somepony needs to watch Owlowiscious. He’s up to something, I just know it.” He eyed the brown bird suspiciously, who simply looked back at him with his usual blank expression. Thomas moved over to Spike and motioned for him to come with them.
“You want me to come?” Spikes voice dropped as he spoke. Thomas nodded before kneeling and rubbed Spikes head, like how one would have tussled another humans hair. The dragon looked up at the human with big eyes.
“Are you sure?” Again Thomas nodded. A quiet ‘okay’ was the little dragons response. Twilight looked at the two with a smile, happy to see the two bonding so quickly after what had happened.
“Spike, we grabbed enough parchment, ink, and quills for Thomas to write with right?” Looking back at the human she said in a deflated tone “Sorry the telepathy spell failed. I couldn’t get the proper grip with my magic.” She’d been concerned with making sure Thomas was well enough to go and the failure of her magic and had forgotten how much supplies she’d grabbed.
“Yup, he could write enough to fill the library.” He moved his hand around the room to make his point.
“Very well then. Ready boys?” Twilight asked, looking at the two. Both nodded, and she charged her horn.
“Hold on.” With that, there was bright flash of purple light and three were standing in the Apple Family’s barn. Everyone else had already arrived and was sitting around the large table in the middle of the barn. Applejack approached to greet them.
“Great to see ya again Twi, ya’ll too Spike, and Thomas, WHAT IN TARNATION HAPPENED TO YA?!” Everyone whipped around at the commotion and there were a number of gasps. I must look terrible Thomas thought.
“Who did this to you?” Rachael had rushed next to him, looking over his scars with great concern. Thomas flinched when she gently touched them.
“I can explain” Twilight said. “But before I do, I want you to know that no one intended it to happen.” With that, she told them how Spike had presumed her to be in danger and had launched himself at Thomas’s head. When she had finished, the humans couldn’t stop staring at Spike, the ponies were torn between Spike and Thomas while Thomas stood there, acting as if there was nothing wrong.
“So, Thomas can walk through your magic and Spike can maim?” Rainbow Dash was the first to speak, looking at the three in mixed shock and confusion.
“Yes, it seems that humans, or at least Thomas, are resistant to magic, which is why I haven’t tried to treat his scars magically. It will probably do nothing. He’s also resistant to a telepathy spell I tried to use so he’d be able to communicate with us.” Twilight sounded disappointed as she spoke, causing Thomas to look down at her and tussle her mane, letting her know he understood. She looked up at him and smiled, something that didn’t escape the attention of Applejack or Rainbow.
“Shall we get started then?” Applejack asked tentatively. Everyone nodded and they took their seats. There wasn’t a seat for Spike who stood at the edges of the group awkwardly before Thomas put him on his knee, the perfect height for the dragon to reach the table comfortably. The act caused the humans to look at friend with a funny look, which he ignored as he unpacked the writing materials Twilight had brought along. But before they could start, a bright blue light flashed and in the entrance way stood a dark alicorn.
“We have been visiting your homes trying to find you!” Her voice was as regal as Celestia’s, causing the humans to look at her in confusion. She was smaller than Celestia, with a dark blue coat and lighter mane, and she wore a black breast plate and tiara, the former having a crescent moon emblazoned on it. Her mane was slightly transparent on the edges, and also seemed to wave in a nonexistent breeze.
“Oh my, I am so sorry Princess Luna. We completely forgot that you were supposed to visit. A lot has happened today, as I am sure you’re aware.” Twilight addressed the alicorn in a formal manner, but Taylor knew she was on familiar terms with her. At the word princess, Thomas got up and bowed, the others following suit immediately. The bowing caused the princess to look around at the table, eyeing the humans with curiosity and suspicion. Her eyes settled on Thomas, whose scars seemed completely out of place with the others of his species.
“Where did you receive your wounds human?” She looked at him intently and when he didn’t answer, she took it as a sign of disrespect.
“You ignore a direct question from the Princess of the Night!? How dare you!” She advanced on the human, but Twilight was quick to intervene, stepping between the two. Spike spoke first though, owning up to his actions.
“I gave him those scars. I thought Twilight was in danger and I clawed at his face. He can’t speak because of the stitches.” He tried to keep his voice and posture strong as he faced the princess, but he quickly wilted under her intense gaze. She looked at the group, asking to verify.
“Is this true?” They all nodded. She looked back at the human and apologized.
“We are sorry for taking your silence as disrespect. We were hasty in our accusations.” The human nodded and quickly wrote something on a piece of parchment before handing it to Spike, who read it for him.
“He says he understands and says that there is no need to apologize. He also says it is nice to meet you.” Thomas gave curt nod at the end, smiling lightly.
“It is pleasant to meet you as well Thomas. We are Princess Luna, Guardian of the Night.” She tried to look tall and powerful as she spoke, secretly hoping to strike a little fear into the human, who only bowed again and motioned towards his seat for her to sit in. She accepted, moving over towards that side of the table and sitting regally while Twilight created chairs for Thomas and Spike. Everyone moved down a little to make room and soon they were all seated comfortably.
“So, why is this gathering taking place?” Luna looked at Twilight expectantly, who shrank a little under her intense gaze, but her voice remained steady.
“Well, we were going to discuss what has happened and what we should do in the future. Such as how long we plan on keeping the humans hidden, whether the sleeping arrangements are working and what ever else we need to.” Luna nodded in approval and looked around at the table before speaking.
“Let us begin. Let’s start with the humans introducing themselves.” She looked at Marcus first, who responded curtly
“My name is Marcus.”
“Mines Taylor.” The red head said with a tense voice.
“I’m Rachael.” She tried to make up for her friends lack of manner by speaking cordially.
“I’m called Megan.” Hers was the most casual, throwing in a slight wave.
“And we know Thomas’s name. Your names are odd we must say.” Thomas scribbled something down and handed it to Spike, who loved his role as the human’s mouth piece.
“Yours are odd to us as well. Also, the Royal We is a little too formal for this setting, so would you be willing to use first person?” The ponies looked at Thomas with utter shock at his willingness to ask royalty to change their behavior. The human himself looked at Luna with his fingers laced and a calm expression.
“Of course,” Luna said without commenting on his presumptuousness “we, I have a slight problem with that tradition. And I can see why you’d find them strange.” Her demeanor changed noticeably, no longer trying to act regal and powerful, but instead relaxing and reclining a little in her chair, at ease with her surroundings.
“Can you all please fill me in on what has happened in the last day?” With that, the ponies and humans related their adventures to the Princess, who seemed to enjoy them. Luna smiled at hearing Applebloom’s reaction to Marcus and Taylor, and raised her eyebrows at the story of Angel Bunny and Rachael. She looked at Spike with suspicion when his actions were described in detail. At the end, she remained silent for a few moments after Twilight had finished before she spoke.
“I am quite impressed Spike.” Everyone looked at her incredulously. “Not at the infliction of pain at Thomas’s expense, but I am impressed with his willingness to defend Twilight so fervently and without fear.” She looked directly at Spike as she finished “You have shown yourself to be a loyal companion and a fearless fighter.” Spike blushed noticeably at her praise, causing everyone to smile.
“Well, now that we’re all caught up, how long are we going to keep these guys hidden?” Rainbow slammed one hoof on the table and used it as support as she had the other to point at the humans, moving from one to the other rapidly. Applejack eased her back into her chair as Luna answered her.
“You raise a very good question. Now, the Changeling's were only defeated a year ago, and majority of the countryside is still on edge. Therefore it is unlikely that we will be able to reveal their existence for a year, maybe two. And your possible resistance to magic would only make things worse.” She looked around to gauge the response to what she’d said, and there was an obvious mix. Some, like Fluttershy, Applejack, and the humans called Rachael and Thomas nodded in agreement, while Rainbow, Twilight Marcus and Taylor didn’t look too pleased with this. Megan remained passive.
“What are these ‘Changelings’?” Taylor asked, her tone slightly irritated at being left out of the loop.
“They are creatures that can imitate ponies, making themselves look like loved ones and feeding off that love.” Twilight explained “They are black and green when they aren’t imitating others and have no qualms about killing. They were able to infiltrate Canterlot, our capital, and nearly succeeded in taking down the princesses.” Twilight explained. The humans were obviously surprised at what these creatures could do. Able to blend into their surrounding and willing to kill, they sounded like terrorists on Earth.
“So you see why introducing you, a species never seen in Equestria before, could cause panic. Nopony would know if you’re Changelings and your lives could be in danger.” Luna looked at Taylor seriously, who accepted her logic and looked down at the table in thought.
“Is there anypony in particular who we should notify of our existence? Like a government agency or body?” Spike asked on Thomas’s behalf.
“Well, the only ones I could possibly think of could be the Stable of Nobles, how about you Princess?” Twilight was deep in thought as she spoke, signified by the hoof to her chin and her downward gaze. Luna didn’t take a moment of thought before responding.
“No, only the Royal Academy of Science would have any prerogative to know, but I don’t think they should at this time. The Stable on the other hoof… they could be helpful but also dangerous if brought into this.” She spoke hesitantly, not liking the picture painted in her mind about the legislative body.
“Politics.” Marcus sneered under his breathe, audible only to Applejack and Taylor, who sat on either side of him.
“They could make the integration of your species much easier and more accepted, but they could smell a chance to ask for more powers in exchange. We must tread carefully from here on out.” With that, the group began to discuss items of lesser importance. Applejack brought up the human diet, which caused a minor up roar amongst Fluttershy and Rainbow, the former concerned for her animals and Rainbow nervous about having her friends staying with carnivores. Fluttershy was quickly reassured by the humans and Applejack that they wouldn’t eat anybody she loved, but Rainbow remained unconvinced and Princess Luna looked concerned. The issue was unresolved when Megan suddenly spoke up.
“I think we should take a break for now. I need to stretch my legs.” Megan got up and stretched her back, popping it as she did. The others followed suit, diverging into different groups that mumbled silently.
“Spike, could I talk with you a second?” Spike looked over to see the other human male, the one called Marcus, moving towards him. Looking up at Thomas, who motioned for him to go with a reassuring smile, Spike slowly walked over to the massive creature. He guided Spike a little ways away from the rest of those gathered and kneeled down.
“About what happened in the library with Thomas…” His voice was serious, causing Spike to grow fearful that he was about to be physically hurt. He tensed up in a gut reaction.
“He didn’t hurt you did he?” The human was concerned, his voice nervous.
“No, nothing really bad. He only threw me against a book case, which didn’t leave a scratch.” Spike said, waving the incident off.
“Nothing else?” Marcus asked curiously. Spike shook his head.
He tried to get me with that knife of his but Twilight stopped him.” He added, tapping his chin in thought. Marcus froze, clearly angry.
“I’m going to talk to him about that.” He said tersely. Spike quickly shook his head.
“It’s all good. We apologized to each other earlier tonight.” He assured. The human looked down at the floor at this point, lost in thought. He sat there thinking so long that Spike was about to go back to Twilight and Thomas, who were in a deep conversation with Princess Luna and Rainbow Dash.
“You see,” the human explained, still looking at the ground. “Thomas has a temper, although it’s really hard to make him explode. I wanted to make sure that you were ok.” His eyes met Spikes, and they were filled with concern. The dragon looked into them and saw that the human genuinely wanted to know if he was ok.
“I’m ok now, thanks though. We’ve worked things out.” As he spoke, the human smiled and stood.
“That’s good to know. I’ll let you get back to your new friend.”
“We are not going to do this!” Twilight’s voice was hushed, but still carried weight as she spoke. She, Luna, Rainbow, Thomas, and now Spike were having an argument on the human diet, and Twilight was not happy about how it was going.
“Look, these humans need to either adapt or they will cause severe problems in Equestria!” Rainbow Dash realized she’d gotten gradually louder and quickly lowered her voice accordingly. “We cannot have meat eaters running around the country! Ponies will fear for their foals.”
“She has a point Twilight Sparkle. We will face serious repercussions later if we don’t decide on something now. While I understand that they will not eat ponies, I’m not sure most of the populace will.” Princess Luna’s voice was severe, her words making it harder for Twilight to think. Fortunately, Thomas stepped in with a piece of parchment. Reviewing it, the Princess nodded.
“There are some species that do consume flesh in Equestria, namely griffons and dragons.” Thomas quickly scribbled another sentence before handing it back.
“The difference between you and them is that you humans seem to require less meat than them. Your physiology is a testament to that; you wrote earlier that your appendix can be disconnected from the rest of your digestive system and is much smaller, but you can still eat most cultivated plants. The Griffons still can’t, meaning that they need it to survive. Dragons on the other hoof eat gems and keep to themselves, so they aren’t much of an issue.” Twilight looked to the Princess with shock, not believing what she was hearing.
“Thomas told me how there are certain individuals on Earth who eat like that! They don’t eat any animal products! Some don’t even wear them.” Luna looked to Thomas for verification, who nodded. “But we still can’t force them to eat like us! We’ve never done that before!”
“And we’ve never dealt with aliens, a Changeling invasion, and a ghost unicorn king either.” Rainbow retorted. Twilight glared at her for not backing her up in front of Luna, whose horn glowed as she looked to Thomas. The two smaller ponies looked at them curiously, but Luna’s horn stopped glowing soon after.
“You really are as intelligent as Twilight has informed us. Not only did you realize what I was doing almost as soon as I started, but you also provided the information rather quickly.” She complimented Thomas, who bowed his head in acknowledgement.
“Um, what exactly were you doing Princess?” Twilight asked cautiously.
“I was probing his mind for an answer to our conundrum.” She answered as casually as Princess Luna can.
“But I tried to do that when we were at the library and failed miserably!” Her demeanor was indignant, causing Luna to raise an eyebrow to remind her who she was speaking to.
“While you are incredibly gifted in regards to magic Twilight Sparkle, your talents are rather feeble in comparison to those my sister and I can call upon.” Her tone was flat and quickly put Twilight back in her place. She mumbled an apology.
“It is understandable. You are not accustomed to failure or limitations.” Luna’s tone softened.
“Excuse me, but what information did you get?” Rainbow pressed, wanting to know whether she’d have to deal with murderous humans running around.
“It seems that most humans do indeed have a taboo on eating horse meat, and tend to prefer beef and pork. But they have many staples and I know a simple solution that could easily be agreed upon. If you would all join me back at the table.” The last sentence carried across the barn and the rest of those assembled reorganized themselves around the table and looked attentively at Luna.
“In regards to the diet of the humans, I believe that a solution has been made readily available. Applejack and the humans known as Taylor and Marcus have already come up with the solution, that humans restrict their carnivorous appetite to chicken and fish. Does anyone have any further questions or concerns?” Looking around the table, most seemed placated, Rainbow looking a little irritated with the decision but not wanting to raise any complaints. “Very well, with that issue decided upon, I will be adjourning to the castle. Good night.” With that, she teleported in a flash of bluish and purple light.
“Ah guess now would be a good time to talk about Rarity and Pinkie Pie.” Applejack said slowly, the other ponies at the table nodding in agreement. “Anyone got any ideas?”
“Pinkie Pie’s seen Thomas.” Twilight blurted out. Everyone present, those who could at least, felt their jaws drop, gaping at the lavender unicorn, who looked at her hooves uncomfortably.
“What happened?!” Rainbow shouted, giving the pair an outraged look. She told them about walking through town and their friends Pinkie Sense going crazy, which drew confused looks the humans and concerned looks from the ponies, realizing the implications.
“So what should we do? Rarity’s coming over to see Spike tomorrow, so I can introduce her to Thomas then. Should I invite Pinkie or does someone else want to handle her?” Twilight was still uncomfortable with their earlier looks, her tone slightly hushed. Fluttershy spoke first, in a tone that was similar to Twilights, but meant she was more comfortable.
“Ah think Ah should. Ah mean, Marcus and Taylor seem to be more like her.” The cowpony reasoned, referencing the events with Applebloom. The others around the table nodded in agreement. A moments silence followed as everyone wondered if anything else needed to be added
“So I guess it’s settled then?” Megan inquired, looking around the table. “You’ll handle Rarity while Applejack takes Pinkie Pie? By the way, would you mind if I joined you? I’d like to meet her.”
“Sure, absolutely. Would you like to spend the night at my place tonight?” Twilight offered. Megan nodded and with that, the meeting dispersed, each of them heading to their respective homes and beds, mentally preparing for the next day.