Celestia looked at the paper, it was a poem. She did enjoy the occasional poetry, so she decided to read it, as a small respite from the other political jargon of pointless noble arrogance and greed. She poured the now cold tea into a cup, and warmed it as easily as one would blink. She then began to read.
Once upon a time not long ago
A town had paranoia that did show
They knew there were changelings, feeding on love
They prayed to the princesses in the castle above
Soon the Princesses sent aid to the town
A platoon of guards had been sent down
They marched in, armed and in armor
In hopes for the changelings to be no more
The guards patrolled the streets night and day
Unlike expected, the fears did not go away
A new fear has arisen, of the guards they had wanted
They rarely showed any emotion, and then only hatred
The changelings in the town were trying to survive
With the guards, changelings where starting to starve
Many had left, and there were few that had died
Thrown into a hole, a funeral where no one had cried.
A few changelings did still stay
Hoping the guards would go away
Life was still difficult, some couldn’t leave
Some still did well, though it’s hard to believe
However, late one night, a disaster occurred,
From the nearby forest, a wolf pack had stirred
And came wandering to the town, looking for food
The soldiers tried to run them off, strong they stood
The size of the pack was larger than expected
Soon the two forces met and conflicted
Discord smiled upon the strife of the town
And soon the soldiers were scattered aroun’
It was by chance that a guard had been cornered
By a trio of wolves that saw him and hungered
The guard in a previous fight, was left without weapon
The wolves, with lust in their eyes, encroached upon
The guard just laid there, all his hope lost
A new contender arrived, something he expected least
From the adjacent house, a changeling emerged
From adrenaline and panic, left undisguised
The guard saw the changeling, poised and ready to attack
But not towards him, instead at the hungry wolf pack
The changeling’s horn was soon engulfed in flame
At a wolf, the changeling launched a blast of the same
The wolf ignited, and in panic and fear fled
From this the remaining two wolves were angered
They approached intending to fill their gullet
However they met with the same fiery fate
Once the wolves had lost the fight
The changeling asked if the guard was alright
The guard nodded and confirmed that he was fine
The changeling looked at the guard once again
Then the demeanor of the changeling changed
Undisguised, in front of a guard, realization dawned
The changeling lowered, dropped ears, and started to back with a slow pace
The changeling wore a triangular pendant on a necklace
He knew the changeling was scared of him being a guard
It felt entirely wrong to him, the feeling of being feared
He assured the changeling that he wouldn’t do anything
The changeling backed into dumpster behind a building
The changeling sat there and cowered, looking at him in fear
Looking much like the guard moments ago at the wolves right here
The guard stood up, and he asked if the changeling was alright
The changeling didn’t respond, and just sat there shivering with fright
The guard looked at the changeling, and asked nicely for a name
The changeling didn’t respond aside from acting the same
The guard was perplexed at this situation, just staring at the equine bug
He decided attempting conversation would be futile, so he gave a hug
He could feel the changeling’s body tense in the beginning
But the action itself had the effect he had hoped, one of calming
After a few moments he released the hug began walking away
As he was walking, “I-370” he heard the changeling say
He turned around and saw the changeling peeking around the dumpster
The changeling pleaded him to not report this to his superior
The guard promised, but couldn’t guarantee her safety from other guards
And once that assurance was given, he marched onwards
After the incident life returned to normal, or as close as it could get
The changeling recurred in the guards mind, nigh impossible to forget
On occasion, a pony with a triangle necklace pendant would pass by
Offering a smile and a wink, eventually however, she decided to say hi
They went to tea, quickly became friends, they enjoyed each others company
After a while, the pony would shed her disguise, after she was assured of her safety
They became great friends, however it was never fated to last forever
Peeking in through a window one day saw this, was a reporter
He took pictures of the pair, while the changeling was undisguised
After the article was published the guard was easily recognized
The guard who had befriended the changeling was arrested that day
and when asked of the changeling, his friend, he didn't betray
After the questioning he was charged with harboring a changeling
The rest of the guard took him to Canterlot for a formal hearing
At the trial the guard was found guilty as charged and imprisoned
The changeling with this knowledge became disheartened
The changeling fled, knowing that the guards where raising alert
She found someplace new, a new face and a new life did start
She still hopes that one day all will be peaceful and happy
And the one pony who showed her kindness would be free
Celestia then saw a small note along with the poem.
Dear Princess Celestia,
I hope you enjoyed the story, I thought it needed to be shared. It is a sad story, hopefully the happy ending will come soon.
sincerely I-370
Celestia set the parchment down and thought about the poem and accompanying letter. After a few moments Celestia arose and poked her head out of her office door, "Guard, fetch the prisoner from cell 3."