//------------------------------//
// Words with a Zebra 
// Story: A Touch of Chaos 
// by Written Out 
//------------------------------//

Twilight woke with a hacking cough that caused spittle to spray in a wide arc over the grass in front of her. Pained convulsions wracked her body for several seconds before eventually fading away, leaving her panting for breath as her body settled down. A gentle breeze swept down from the trees and she could feel sweat rolling through her fur and falling free to the thirsty ground.

As she tried to stand up, Twilight heard a familiar voice ring out from behind her. "It is good to see you awake at last," the voice said calmly. "When you fell, we were most aghast."

Twilight turned her head to look at the speaker standing behind her. Spots danced in front of her vision and it took her a moment to make out the details of the other mare.  "Zecora, I-" Twilight gasped when she saw the zebra's face. "What happened to you?"

Dark black circles surrounded Zecora's sunken eyes. Flesh and skin hung limply from her jowls, giving the zebra a very unsteady look. Zecora hid a yawn behind a raised hoof. "There is no need to be distressed," she assured Twilight. "I simply failed to get a good night's rest. You do not need to be concerned; it is simply a good thing to see that you have returned."

"I... yeah." Twilight thought about her talk with Discord. She thought about the fight she had been forced to witness between Celestia and Luna. She thought about what Discord had told her about the humans. And... she thought about the deal she had made with Discord.

Now that she thought about it, something about Discord had seemed a little off at the end. Her hoof rose to her neck as she considered the final few seconds, when Discord had openly threatened her life. That had just been far too much unlike him. Everything he had done up to now - actively acting to save her life when she was attacked by Nightmare Moon and again by that large changeling, and apparently saving Pinkie when Nightmare Moon controlled that human - contradicted his claim.

Now that she thought about it, something had seemed different about the mental mindscape between when they had started and when they finished. There had been a strange power there, something other than just him and her. If she hadn't been so disorientated from that vision he had shown her, she would have noticed sooner. Whatever it was, he had deliberately tried to hide it from her. Now she really wished she had found out what that had been.

Zecora's voice interrupted her thoughts. "You are brooding again. What think you? Need you more time to think things through?"

"'Think things through?'" Twilight bitterly repeated, turning her back on Zecora. "Think what through? Should I think about how much of a mess everything is becoming? Or maybe how powerless I feel in front of it all? I feel like everything's just slipping away from me, and there's nothing I can do to stop it." Zecora's hoof rested against her shoulder and she glanced back into the zebra's concerned eyes.

"It isn't healthy to focus so heavily on what you've lost," Zecora said. "You should be thinking of what you still have, so you can continue no matter the cost."

A choked laugh burst from Twilight's throat, quickly dying in a strangled cough. "What I still have? But that's just too easy. I still have my friends, don't I? That's what you're trying to say, isn't it? I'll never lose them. But..." Her throat suddenly constricted and she had to force out the last few words. "I've lost almost everything else."

Zecora's hoof came up, almost but not quite brushing against Twilight's cracked horn. "Everything is not yet lost and gone. So long as you remember that, you can still go on."

Twilight slapped Zecora's hoof away, whipping her head around to glare into Zecora's eyes. A great anger rose up inside her, and she just wanted to scream, to break something, to break everything. Her muzzle pressed against Zecora's and she pushed against the zebra mare with raw strength. "Haven't lost everything?!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice bordering on hysterical. "Haven't lost everything!? How can you even say that!? I've lost so much already! My big brother's been captured, my teacher sacrificed herself to save me, my horn's cracked, Discord's in my head, and the place of my birth has been overrun! Even Spike's gone missing! How can you possibly say I haven't lost everything!? You know nothing about what I've lost!"

Zecora remained expressionless in the face of Twilight's screaming tirade. "Are you quite done?" she asked coolly, taking a single step back. "You complain about what you've lost, but you've yet to lose even a single loved one."

Twilight blinked in surprise, shocked out of her anger by the coldness she heard in the normally friendly zebra's voice. "Zecora?" she asked uncertainly, her ears flattening against her head. Her voice was hoarse from her bout of screaming and rasped harshly in her ears. "I'm sorr-"

But Zecora wasn't finished. "You've lost nothing you are unable to reclaim," she scolded. "Until you hold your daughter's lifeless body in your hooves, you have no right to speak to me about pain."

Twilight recoiled, both from the deserved scolding and the anguish she saw in Zecora's eyes. "Zecora, I-"

"Leaving your home and all your friends behind in a futile search for the one thing that means most in your heart, having to enter a completely different culture for a completely new start. You know nothing about how loss can forever scar your soul. So cease your selfish whining, you pathetic little foal!"

A pitiful whine escaped Twilight's mouth, her chin pressed against the dirt as she just wanted to curl into a ball and hide from the world. The noise appeared to bring Zecora back to her senses, and a deep shuddering breath sped along Zecora's body.  "I'm sorry," she said, her voice brought under control, "that was most unlike me. It's a burden from which I thought myself free."

"Zecora..." Twilight whimpered from where she lay on the ground. "I... I'm sorry."

Zecora shook her head. "There is nothing to forgive, except on your part. As for what I said, please do not take it to heart. I should not have snapped at you to such extremes." She looked sadly up at the sky. "Just unpleasant memories brought about by unpleasant dreams."

"I..." Twilight hesitated, not sure what she was supposed to say. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Zecora's earrings swayed as she shook her head. "No."

"Oh," Twilight said quietly, curling in on herself a little more and feeling distinctly like Fluttershy.

Zecora turned away from Twilight and walked a few steps away. "We should go," she said, seeing that Twilight wasn't following her.

"Huh?" Twilight asked, poking her head up.

Zecora rolled her eyes. "Your friends will wish to know you're awake. We've stopped to rest, all for your sake."

Twilight sprung to her hooves, quickly following after the other mare. "My friends! Right! Um..." She gave Zecora an awkward look, a little nervous to try to start a conversation after the last attempt. "How... how long have I been out?"

"It has been eight hours since your collapse," Zecora said, not looking at Twilight. "I separated you from them so that when you awoke, you would not relapse."

"Oh... thank you." The pitiful attempt at conversation died away, leaving behind an uncomfortable silence in its wake. The awkward moment continued until loud voices could be heard from up ahead, and Twilight picked up her pace as much to get away from Zecora as to see her friends again.

The group sat in a circle around a crackling campfire, chatting animatedly. Applejack was glaring daggers at Rarity while the latter wiped her down with soap, Dash watched the entire event with undisguised amusement, Fluttershy remained quiet off by herself, and Pinkie bounced erratically around the others. A pot filled with stew bubbled over the fireplace, and Twilight felt her mouth water from the appetising smell.

Pinkie was the first to notice Twilight's arrival. "Twilight!" she exclaimed, catching the others' attention. "You're awake!"

"Hey girls," Twilight said with a sheepish grin, walking over to sit down beside Rarity. "Sorry for making you all worry about me. I'll explain later, but what'd I miss?"

Rarity answered before the others could. "Well, Twilight, after you did whatever it was that scared the changelings away, we managed to get Fluttershy back. We decided it would be best to stop and let the both of you recover, so we've been here ever since. That's about it, really. And just where do you think you're going, Applejack?" she added, wrapping her magic around the farm pony who had tried to take advantage of Rarity's distraction to escape.

"Aw, c'mon, Rares," Applejack complained, shying away as Rarity floated over another bar of soap. "Y'all really don't have t' do this."

"Nonsense," Rarity scoffed, plucking Applejack's hat off her head and scrubbing behind her ears. "If we're going to be travelling together, the least you can do is try not to smell like yesterday." She scrunched her nose as dirt quickly overwhelmed the soap she was using. "Or last week for that matter. How did you even get this filthy? I know for a fact you haven't done any work since you left the hospital."

"Yeah, AJ," Dash snarked. "It's just soap. You know what soap is, right?  Nothing scary."

Applejack turned her glare from Rarity to the more deserving Rainbow Dash. "Oh, yeah, sure. Ah see how it is. 'Let's all laugh at the ignorant farm pony.' Funny. It's not the soap Ah have a problem with, it's the scented soap Ah have a problem with. Ah'm gonna smell like fancy fer a week."

"Do you not like lavender?" Rarity asked, pulling the offending soap away from Applejack. "If that's the problem, I have rose, lilac, pumpkin, mint, raspberry, and carrot cake back in my bag."

Ignoring Rainbow Dash's howls of laughter, Applejack turned her suddenly flat expression back to Rarity. "Why do ya even-? Nevermind. Lavender's fine," she said, submitting herself to Rarity's tender cares. "As fer how Ah got so dirty," she added, shooting another glare at Dash, "somepony dumped me in the dirt."

"Hey, I said I was sorry," Dash defended herself. "That rope was tight. How was I supposed to know it was the one preventing you from falling off?"

"The fact that it was tight shoulda given' you a clue," Applejack grumbled as Rarity started scrubbing at her neck.

Dash watched the soap move back and forth for a few seconds before a small boyish laugh escaped her nose. "Yeah, sorry, but I just can't take you seriously like this."

"I'm glad you're finding this so amusing, Dash," Rarity said as she scrubbed at Applejack's back. "Because once I'm finished here, it's your turn."

"Uhh..." Dash hedged, desperately casting about for a change in the conversation. "Err... Hey Z!" she shouted at Zecora, "Is the food almost ready? I'm getting hungry!"

"Z?" Zecora repeated, cocking an eyebrow. "Are you referring to me? You can hold your horses, for the stew's almost finished. A little more time and spice will keep the taste from being diminished." She walked over to where her saddlebag lay and pulled out a bottle filled with strange green flakes. Carefully popping the top off, she poured a healthy dollop into the pot and stirred it into the floating chunks of sliced vegetables.

"Awesome," Dash said before shifting her attention to the other pegasus of the group. "Hey, Flutters, you've been quiet all day. You doing okay?" She blinked once before covering her face with a hoof. "Oh, great," she mumbled out. "Now I'm rhyming too."

"Oh, yes, sorry," Fluttershy said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I'm still just a little tired. You don't need to worry about me."

"Sure we do!" Pinkie proudly proclaimed, popping out of nowhere at Fluttershy's side. "We're just thinking about you. Who knows what those nasty changelings would have done if we hadn't rescued you in time."

Rarity snorted, by now working on Applejack's tail. "Hmph. I, for one, think those... things made it quite clear what they intended. It was absolutely unforgivable what they tried to do to you, darling. If they ever do anything to hurt anypony I care about like that ever again, I swear I won't rest until I've exterminated every single one of them like the bugs they are!"

Everypony else stopped and stared at Rarity, blinking in surprise. Rainbow Dash leaned down close to Applejack's ear. "Rarity's surprisingly hardcore, isn't she?" she whispered. Applejack mutely nodded.

"Riiiight," Twilight said, awkwardly shifting slightly away from Rarity. "Aaaanyway. There was something I wanted to talk to you girls about. It's about what happened to me after I was knocked out, and what I saw there..." And she told them. She told them everything that happened to her, and everything that she saw. From watching her body being controlled like a puppet, to the fight she witnessed between Celestia and Luna, to the final vision Discord showed her before sending her on her way.

By the time she finished her retelling, Zecora's stew had already finished cooking and bowls of stew were being passed out among the group. Rarity accepted her own bowl, fishing out a spoonful of vegetables and blowing on it to cool it. "Goodness," she said after a pause. "That's certainly a lot to swallow, isn't it?"

"A gryphon?" Dash mumbled under her breath quietly enough for nopony to hear her. "G...? No, it couldn't be..."

"So, we're all just playing pieces to him, are we?" Applejack asked angrily, pulling her returned hat down low over her eyes. "Now that game just sounds all kinds of wrong."

"Even the changelings?" Fluttershy asked, her voice quivering as much as the rest of her body. "He's controlling them as well?"

"Hey, but at least Princess Celestia was able to get free from Blacky, right?" Pinkie asked, trying to look at the good side of things. "That's good, right?"

Applejack snorted. "Yeah, with the help of that human thing, or whatever it was called. Ah thought we left that thing tied up in the hospital. Twi, you wouldn't happen to know anythin' about how he got free, do ya?" There was the slightest hint of teeth in her words when she spoke; she knew exactly how he had escaped.

Twilight bowed her head, not able to meet Applejack's eyes. "Applejack," she said hesitantly, "I'm sorry. I know you were - are - mad at him, but I just couldn't-"

Applejack waved her apology away. "Nah, Ah ain't mad at you, sugarcube. You did what ya thought was right, and it sounds like it all worked out in the end. Ah still hate him, though, and don't think that's gonna change."

"You're being stubborn, Applejack." Rarity brandished a spoonful of stew in Applejack's direction. "If he really was being controlled by Nightmare Moon, we can't blame him for what he did any more than we blame Princess Luna."
 
"He took and tried ta hurt my sister. Ah think Ah have the right t' be stubborn," Applejack huffed, crossing her forelegs. After a moment, her expression softened and her legs uncrossed. "But yer right. Fine, Ah'll try not t' hold a grudge, but Ah make no promises."

"That's fair enough," Rarity said with a satisfied nod, popping the spoon into her mouth. Swallowing down the stew, she pointed the empty spoon at Fluttershy. "Fluttershy, are you not going to eat that?" she asked, pointing at the still full bowl of stew sitting next to the pink-maned pegasus.

Glancing down at the bowl, Fluttershy gave a meek little shake of her head. "I'm just not hungry," she said apologetically. "Sorry."

"Suit yourself, but you really should try it. This dish is just divine." Seeing Fluttershy make no move for her food, Rarity shrugged and turned her spoon towards Twilight. "By the way, I must wonder what Discord wanted by telling you all this. Even if it's not true, it sounds like a most fascinating story, doesn't it? A race before the ponies, wiped out without a trace. It sounds like the sort of tale one would find in the Canterlot plays and stagehouses, alongside the tale of Equestria's founding, the story of Nightmare Moon and Princess Luna, and the legend of the Crystal Empire and the cruel King Sombra who ruled them."

Twilight raised an eyebrow at that. "There's plays about Nightmare Moon? Really? I spent almost all my life in Canterlot and I never heard anything of the sort."

"Well, they're still fairly new," Rarity pointed out. "Don't forget, Nightmare Moon  was thought to only be a legend for young foals until a few years ago. But getting back on track, we should consider the possibility that nothing Discord said or showed Twilight was even true."

"You don't think he was lying?" Pinkie asked.

"I just think you shouldn't take what somepony says at face value unless you trust them," Rarity said. "So let me pose a question to you all: Do you trust Discord?"

"No," everypony present - even Zecora - said simultaneously.

"Alright, you've made your point," Dash said, absently stirring her bowl of stew. "But what about that fight Twilight saw between the princesses? You think that was just made up, too?"

Rarity shrugged. "I don't know. I honestly wouldn't put such a thing past him."

Pinkie pulled her muzzle out of her bowl, licking the leftovers off of her face. "I think he showed her the truth. If that was a lie, and he made an agreement with Twilight to change what happened, but the thing that Twilight needed to make a deal for never happened, then wouldn't Twilight then not need to follow her part of the deal?"

"I... What?" Dash stared blankly at Pinkie, her spoon sticking out of the side of her mouth. "You lost me."

Applejack upended her bowl of stew into her mouth, smacking her lips at the taste."Ah think what Pinkie means is that, no matter what Discord might ask, Twilight wouldn't need to do what he wants if Discord never held up his end of th' bargain. That varmint might play fast an' loose with the rules, but he seems to expect other ponies to follow them to the letter." She held out the empty bowl towards Zecora. "Seconds?"

"Rules," Dash scoffed, angrily plucking one of the sliced vegetables out of her stew and throwing it aside as Zecora poured Applejack another bowl. Ignoring the glare Zecora was giving her at the flagrant waste of food, Dash continued. "What a dumb game. I say we stop playing by his rules. Just figure out what exactly he's playing at, and then we break his entire board!"

"I don't think that's a good idea," Twilight said, putting her empty bowl down. "Whatever he's playing, it sounds like he needs us alive for it. If we stop playing his game, he might stop trying to keep us alive."

"Ugh," Dash groaned, stretching out on the ground. Her one good wing fluttered limply before folding up at her side. "I hate this. I hate how casually we've started talking about our own lives and deaths." She started to scratch aimless patterns in the dirt. "I miss our peaceful lives, back in Ponyville before all this started."

"Oh?" Rarity cocked a teasing eyebrow at the stunt flier. "Aren't you the one who would always go on about how you were going to join the Wonderbolts? And aren't they partly a military group under Princess Celestia? I would think this sort of thing would be right up your alley."

Dash shot a confident smirk up at the white unicorn, but the grin was only a shadow of its regular strength. "Ha! Don't worry about me! I live for this stuff! It's just..." Her smile died away and she looked down at the grooves her hoof had scraped. "I never wanted any of you guys along for this sort of thing. I think... if anything ever happened to any of you guys, I think it would kill me inside."

Silence descended after Dash's confession. Each pony considered the truth of her words, and how much they applied to themselves.

Inevitably, Pinkie was the one to break the silence. "Then why don't we make a promise?" She shifted her gaze around the circle, locking gazes with each face in turn before moving on to the next. "A promise that, no matter what happens in the future, we will all survive. We'll overcome any challenge that might get in our way, and we will return home... together." She reached her hoof into the center of the circle, holding it above the dying flames.

"I... Yeah. Yeah, I'm in." Dash reached her own hoof in, placing it on top of Pinkie's. "So, what, are we going to make it a Pinkie Promise?"

 Pinkie considered as Rarity and Applejack also reached in and placed their hooves in the circle. "No," she said slowly. "No. This is more important than a Pinkie Promise. A Pinkie Promise is a promise that, if you break it, is the fastest way to lose your friends. But this is a promise that we will not lose our friends. That we are not going to leave them behind."

"So what should we call it?" Fluttershy asked, tentatively adding her own hoof to the group.

"How about... a Friendship Promise?" Twilight suggested, finally adding her own hoof on top of her friends'. "A promise that, no matter what we do or where we go, we will always remain friends."

"You could not make that sound more cheesy if you tried, Twilight," Rarity said with a teasing wink.

Twilight's face flushed as all her friends laughed gently at her expense. "We-well I don't see you coming up with any better ideas," she huffed, looking away and trying to hide her blushing cheeks.

"Don't mind Rarity, she's just havin' a little fun," Applejack reassured, elbowing Rarity in the ribs.

Rarity winced away from Applejack before giving Twilight a reassuring look. "Don't worry darling, a Friendship Promise sounds lovely." A gentle look passed throughout the group as they considered their friends among them. Friends that would forever remain friends, so long as the promise remained in place. As if by an unspoken signal, as one, every one of them shifted their attention to the last mare present, the last mare who had yet to join in.

"What?" Zecora asked, noticing all the hopeful eyes pointed in her direction. Her ears flattened down as she realized what they wanted. "Oh no," she said as she backed away, waving a hoof in front of her. "I think this is something from which I should remain cut."

"Aw, c'mon Z." Dash gestured impatiently for Zecora to join them. "You're as much of this now as any of us."

"That is beside the point," Zecora protested, backing further away. "I simply do not believe that this is something to which I should be appoint...ed."

"Yer rhymin's falterin'," Applejack pointed out. She gave Zecora a meaningful look. "Is the idea of bein' friends with us really that unpleasant to ya?"

"No! No, no, no, no, no! Goodness, no, that is not so!" Zecora flustered as she hurriedly waved a hoof back and forth in front of her face. "It's just that..." Her voice went weak before fading entirely, and she stared silently down at the ground, unwilling to make eye contact with any of the mares before her.

"Zecora..." Twilight hesitated as something occurred to her. Things the zebra had said over the past several days started to line up, and a clear picture started to form. A picture of loneliness and solitude, of a pony feared simply for being different. "Zecora, when was the last time you had a friend? Or... anypony, actually?"

Zecora remained silent, but her body gave the answer away. Her entire body trembled, and she clutched at her leg in a futile attempt to hide her shudders. A red line leaked from her mouth, and the mares present all realized that the zebra was biting the inside of her cheek hard enough to draw blood.

"I can't say that I know what you've been through, but I do feel like I know what it's like," Twilight said quietly. She stared down into the firepit, the reflection of the barely flickering flames dancing away in her purple eyes. "To think you don't need anypony else in your life. That you can build walls around yourself and shut the world away." She lifted her head, looking at all her friends surrounding her. "But I know now that there's a better way. To open your heart to others and let them in your lives. Having friends has enriched my life, filling it with light to the point that I don't know how I could ever have lived without them." She turned her attention back to Zecora, a pleading look in her eyes. "Please, Zecora, let us share some of that light with you as well."

Zecora remained unmoving, her sorrowful eyes remaining locked unseeingly at an nondescript rock in front of her. "I..." Her eyes shimmered with unshed tears and she ran a moistening tongue across suddenly dry lips. "How can you possibly ask that of me?" she asked, her voice never rising above a raspy whisper. "You have no idea how much my life has been filled with debris."

Rainbow Dash spoke up, her raspy voice cutting in before Twilight could speak again. "And we don't care," she said bluntly. As the others turned surprised looks at her, Dash finished her thoughts. "No matter what it is, we'll face it together. That's what being a friend is all about."

Applejack shook her head at Dash's impromptu speech."As blunt as ever, ain't ya?" she asked rhetorically before also turning to Zecora. "That said, she's right. Whatever challenges y'all may face, we'll be right at your side with you."

"Yeah!" Pinkie said excitably, her grin threatening to lead right off of her face. "And don't worry about burdening us with whatever burdens you might have. We're already dealing with a lot of stuff; a little more won't hurt."

"Please, Zecora," Twilight pleaded. " I consider you my friend, and I know everypony else does as well.  It would mean a lot to me if you joined us. So, please."

"Why?" Zecora muttered far too quietly for any of them to hear her. "Why must you make this so hard?" Without saying another word, she stepped forward and placed her hoof on top of the others'. She moved quickly, like she feared if she hesitated for too long she would lose her nerve completely.

Twilight looked hopefully at the striped hoof atop her own before turning her gaze to its owner. "Thank you, Zecora." She licked her lips in a slightly nervous manner. "Do you want to tell us what exactly happened to you?"

Zecora shook her head once, her sad expression never changing. "Not yet, not in this light," she said almost apologetically. "But I promise, I will tell you when the time is right."

 Pinkie placed a reassuring hoof on Zecora's shoulder, and the shaman looked up into those deep blue eyes. "That's okay. Whenever you're ready to tell us, we'll be ready to listen." A small smile appeared on Zecora's face at the words; it was a sad smile, but it was a smile nonetheless.

"Too true!" Applejack proclaimed loudly, her boisterous voice enough to make Fluttershy - who was standing beside her - flinch away and cover her ears. "We're all friends here now! And there ain't nothin' now that's gonna change that!"

Seven pairs of eyes turned to look at the point of contact between them. The last of the fading smoke curled around their hooves, tenderly caressing their symbol of friendship before disappearing in a silent whisper of wind. A promise to be there for one another, a promise to always support and care for each other. No matter what sort of challenges would rise to oppose them, one thing would never change between them. A vow that no matter what they may do or where they might go in the future, their bonds of friendship would forever remain strong.





Should I tell her, and open her eyes? Zecora wondered, listening to Twilight laughing and joking with the others. Or would it be kinder to let her continue to believe the lies?
 
A sad sigh escaped Zecora's mouth as she cleaned out her cauldron of the last dregs of the evening's stew. Events had progressed far further then she had ever anticipated, bringing memories she had thought long buried bubbling up to the surface. Thoughts of her daughter washed over her, the traces of the memories hurting as much as salt being rubbed into an open wound. Even after all these years, the scars hurt as much as they had when they had just been opened.
 
Happy laughter floated over to her, and Zecora listened as Twilight Sparkle laughed and joked with her closest friends. Twilight now knew that Zecora once had a daughter, but she probably thought that she had died only a few years ago. An unwilling smile appeared on Zecora's face as she wondered what Twilight's reaction would be if the unicorn learned that, had she lived, Zecora's daughter would actually be a few years older than Twilight herself. Most ponies were surprised to learn just how old Zecora was, but the shaman kept up the appearance of youth through the healthy application of potions, magic, and good old-fashioned exercise.
 
Nothing says 'I want to be young and healthy forever' like tearing through the undergrowth with a song in your heart, a basket of herbs on your back, and a pack of feral timberwolves nipping at your heels.
 
Zecora snickered in amusement at the idea of some of the ponies she had met over the years trying to outrun even a single baby timberwolf, let alone a full pack. Not that she had anything against the ponies of Equestria, but they were just so amazingly soft and weak at times. Nothing like home. Deep in her heart, Zecora actually feared becoming sluggish and indolent like them. Just giving in and letting the sweet tempting natural magic of the land wash over her and carry all her worries and stresses away.
 
It was a worry she dealt with every day, but Zecora was determined to one day find the one who took her daughter's life. That day was fast approaching now, and an ugly smile spread across the shaman's face as she considered what was about to happen...
 
She quickly released the pleasant thought, schooling her expressing into the same wise and mysterious mask she always wore. There was still so much that could go wrong, even as the meeting she had been living for for years finally approached. With the magic of Equestria on a flux, it was impossible for anyone to predict what would happen over the next few days. The balance of magic that had stabilized the country for generations had been broken; Twilight probably still didn't realize that she had accidentally destroyed that balance.
 
A loud bark of laughter brought Zecora's attention back to the group of young mares. They were all so young, so innocent. Such a strong bond that tied them together, and now they wanted to draw her into that bond with open hearts and welcoming hooves...
 
Can't say I feel right lying to those youngsters like this, Zecora thought, watching them all through half-lidded eyes. In particular, her gaze rested on the butter-yellow pegasus sitting off by herself. After several seconds - right before Fluttershy was about to notice Zecora's considering gaze - the zebra returned her attention to the pot in front of her.
 
Only to realize that the pot was already spotless, and likely had been for the past few minutes. How did I miss...? She trailed off, figuring she must have just been too consumed by her thoughts to realize she had already finished. Picking up a small vial from the ground next to her, she popped the lid and sprinkled a tiny amount of the golden powder within onto the pot. Without any sort of flash or any other sign that magic was being used, the pot began to shrink until it was no larger than a thimble and Zecora tucked it and the powder away inside her saddlebag.
 
Seeing none of the others were paying her any attention, Zecora pulled out a pair of items from her bags and slipped out into the surrounding woods. Two options lay before her; to let events run their course as they were, or to tell Twilight Sparkle of everything she knew. Either way, things could go very wrong.
 
It only took a few minutes for her to find a tree stump suitable for her needs. Placing the first of the items she brought with her - a flat piece of wood - on top of the stump and sitting in front of it, Zecora took a deep breath to calm her nerves. Of these doubts I must be free. Ancestors, Spirit, please guide me.
 
She upended a small pouch over the wood, letting the contents fall free. Tiny bones, like those belonging to a bird or squirrel, bounced wildly in every direction while Zecora's eyes watched on. Eventually, the last bouncing bone came to a rest and Zecora slowly nodded her head in acceptance.
 
So, that is how it is to be. A mistake or not, I suppose we shall see.
 



 
"I think that one looks like a bunny rabbit," Pinkie said, lying on her back and pointing up at the sky. She and the others sat in a circle, their tummies happily digesting their meals as they watched the clouds drifting by.
 
Applejack cocked her head as she looked at the cloud in question. "Ah don't... No, wait, Ah see it, but the ears are too short. Ah'd say it's more like a dog, you know, like Winona."
 
"More like a cat than a dog," Rarity said, lazily waving her hoof upwards. "Look, the muzzle's too flat. What do you think, Dash?"
 
"I think I want to kick it," Dash replied flatly. Her uninjured wing gave a little twitch, expressing her repressed need to burst into the sky. She hadn't been confined to the ground for this long since she had been a filly. At least at the hospital, she had had something to read.
 
Rarity flinched at Dash's depressed tone. "Sorry," she murmured. An awkward silence lay over the entire group, nopony willing to break it in case they accidentally drew the flightless pegasus’ ire.
 
Except one. "Aw, quit yer bellyachin'," Applejack said without rolling off her back. "'Least ya kin still move." The bandages covering almost every inch of her body said everything for her, and said it in a way not even the sullen pegasus could refute.
 
"Heh," Dash laughed, an unwilling smile spreading across her face. "Look at us. Two of the strongest ponies in Ponyville. Now we're just a couple of cripples, aren't we?"
 
"Ah prefer to think of them as war wounds." Applejack craned her neck back, looking at where Dash lay and holding a hoof out towards her. "You regret it?"
 
"Sometimes. But other times? Not in the slightest," Dash grinned, clopping her own hoof against Applejack's. "Thanks, AJ. I needed that."
 
"Always here to make sure yer keepin' yer head on straight." The group fell into a comfortable silence, letting it cover them like a thick blanket as they took comfort and solace in the other's presences. Eyes slowly slid shut and the group one by one slid off into sleep's embrace, the last few nights having denied them restful sleep. That was how Zecora found them, the zebra silently slinking up to Twilight's side and waking the unicorn with a mild poke.
 
"Mnnngh?" Twilight moaned, her eyes blinking wearily. "Whozat?" She peered up at Zecora for several seconds before recognition came. "Zecora? What's up?"
 
The sides of Zecora's mouth twitched before a small smile formed as she looked down at the sleepy unicorn."There are two things with you about which I wished to speak. One is a simple thank you but the other is very bleak."
 
Twilight sat up as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Her mumbles were hazy and unfocused as she tried to recall where she was. "Spike, get me some coffe- oh… right." Sadness flashed through her expression for a moment before she schooled it and shifted her attention to Zecora. "So what can I do for you?" She covered her mouth with a hoof, hiding a yawn.
 
"I wished to thank you for counting me among your friends," Zecora said, helping to pull Twilight to her hooves. "I can only hope that one day I will be able to make amends."
 
"You are one of our friends," Twilight said with another yawn. "We wouldn't have come this far without you."
 
If only you knew. "Your words are very kind," she said aloud, turning away from Twilight so the unicorn couldn't see her expression. "Even if they do put me in a bit of a bind." Sensing Twilight's coming question, Zecora spoke first. "You and your friends protect Equestria from those who would bring all to zero. But I am different. Just a selfish mare here for my own reasons. I'm no hero."
 
"We all have our own reasons for being here, Zecora," Twilight assured. After a moment's hesitation, she rested her hoof on Zecora's shoulder reassuringly. "You're no different than any of us. For friends, family, or our homes; it makes no difference in the end."
 
Zecora gave Twilight a sidelong look. "Then what drives you?" she asked seriously. "What's your reason for seeing this through? Even though you may face the entirety of the world’s might. Until when do you plan to fight?"
 
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Twilight took a moment to frame her answer. "I... I just want this to end," she said quietly, her voice barely breaking a whisper. "All I want is for everything to return to normal. Back to the way it was before all this started." Zecora turned to look at Twilight directly after that, and the unicorn had to do a double-take at the emotion she saw in the zebra's eyes. Surely that couldn't have been disappointment, could it?
 
"I see," Zecora said calmly, her expression returning to normal so quickly that Twilight could almost believe she had imagined it. "Then I will leave it be." Reaching into her tail, Zecora pulled out a small bottle of powder and passed it to Twilight. "This bit; do you recognize it?"
 
"Well, yeah," Twilight said as she accepted it, holding the clear glass bottle in front of her face and peering at the powder inside. "You put this on our supper, right? What is it, anyway? Flavouring?"
 
"A special type of cultivated mould," Zecora said, watching Twilight's expression carefully. "Poison is what you hold."
 
Twilight froze and the bottle of poison slid out of her grip, tumbling down into the cushioning dirt. Her throat felt suddenly dry and she stared at Zecora in disbelief. "P-poison?!" she exclaimed hoarsely. "Are you trying to kill us?"
 
"Do not be alarmed," Zecora reassured, scooping up the bottle and checking it for cracks. "You will not be harmed. On almost all species, including ponies and zebras, it has no effect. I simply felt there was something that needed to be checked."
 
Twilight forced herself to calm down at that, reminding herself that Zecora surely didn't mean her or her friends any harm. "So then, why did you feel the need to poison us?" She tried to keep the accusation out of her voice, but wasn't sure she succeeded.
 
Zecora held the bottle in front of one of her eyes, looking right through it at Twilight. "This mould has an interesting effect on a certain race. Food spiced with it becomes completely unpalatable to those who would hide their face."
 
Twilight was going to ask Zecora what she meant, when a memory came back to her. A single line, given a completely different meaning with this one little piece of information.
 
"Fluttershy, are you not going to eat that?"
 
"No." The word escaped Twilight's mouth unwillingly. "No, it can't be. That can't be true. I just can't believe that."
 
Zecora looked at Twilight's slacked-jawed expression apologetically. "I'm sorry, but the facts are clear. You cannot simply deny it out of fear. No matter how much it may sting." She stepped right into Twilight's face, making sure her next words would not be ignored or unheard. "That is not your friend Fluttershy; that is a changeling."
 



 
A sudden movement. A hint of fear. A whisper of wind.
 
Whatever caused it, the lone pegasus suddenly jolted awake, sitting bolt upright before she realized what she doing. Her mind felt slow and fuzzy, and she looked around the room she was in with incomprehension. Whether it was the lush, comfortable sheets, the rich tapestries hanging from the walls, the wide open window allowing in a cool breeze, the undisguised changeling sitting in the corner and watching her with intelligent eyes, or the patterned wallpaper covering the walls. She saw all of it without really seeing any of it.
 
Wait, one of those was different than the others...
 
Fluttershy let out a squeak of fear as she stared at the changeling in horror. The changeling smiled brightly, the tip of her twisted horn pointing down at the ground. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Fluttershy. The Queen will want to see you now that you're awake."
 
The smile slid off Fallen Roses' face as Fluttershy dove under the covers. "This is going to take a while, I can tell." She gave the pony-shaped lump a hopeful poke, but sighed when it slid away from her. "Perfect."